Into the Crazy Blue

And More Colored Embossing Powder

2012-02-16T12:37:00.000-08:00

I couldn't stop at just brown, so I had to try out my new blue powder on some pretty pale yellow. I used Papertrey Ink's "Lily of the Valley" stamp set with the American Crafts "Frost" opaque embossing powder and Versamark ink. Love the results!
Using a Q-tip, I applied PTI "Fresh Snow" ink to the individual flowers. I accented with flat-backed pearls and a Martha Stewart Crafts punch.

I used American Crafts "Weave" textured cardstock in White (71081), Powder (71064) and Butter (71040).

I used Beacon Adhesives "Zip Dry" and Glue Arts "Mini Adhesive Squares" as well. Thanks for taking a peek!

Colored Embossing Powder

2012-02-10T14:45:00.000-08:00

I have enjoyed heat embossing for many years.

I don't know why it's taken me so long to get a colored opaque embossing powder! I love the effect it gives on dark paper. On this card, I used American Crafts Zing! embossing powder in Frost. I also used some clear for the smaller damask, but the blue is really what stands out. Isn't it striking against the deep brown cardstock (also American Crafts)? I also used it on the metallic finish die cut I made. While regular ink would just wipe off the slick surface, it heat embossed beautifully.
I'm going to have to try this out on different colors of cardstock for sure! Thanks for taking a peek :)

Supply List:

Cardstock: American Crafts

Adhesive: Beacon Adhesives "Zip Dry" and Glue Arts "Mini Adhesive Squares"

Ribbon: May Arts

Die cuts: Spellbinders Grand Calibur, Labels Nine

Stamps: Papertrey Ink "Damask Designs" and "Up, Up and Away!"

Ink: Versamark

Misc: Gold paper, fancy button

Valentine Antiquities

2012-01-28T11:40:00.000-08:00

I was lucky enough to win the Spellbinders Shapeabilities set called "Antiquities" when it first came out. I'm a little ashamed to say that I didn't open the package until now. I guess I didn't have the right vision for that set at the time. It's getting a workout now :) On this card, I used the key hole from the "Antiquities" set. I covered it with Beacon Adhesives Liquid Laminate and some fine glitter and attached it with metal brads. The heart is also by Spellbinders - "Nested Heart Pendants." I embossed it with the die and then inked over the raised embossing with Versamark. I applied UTEE (ultra thick embossing enamel) to the ink and heat embossed it. then I rubbed pink ink over it to make the embossing stand out even more.

The doily is from Papertrey Ink. The background paper is from an old paper pack and I'm not sure what brand it is because it was given to me as a single sheet.
Thanks for taking a peek!

Colorful Vintage Valentine

2012-01-12T11:26:00.000-08:00

I love vintage style and I also love using bright colors. Some might say these two don't easily mix, but I tend to disagree :)
This card started out with handmade buttons. I used Papertrey Ink's Button Basics stamps and dies to make up several different styles. After that, I decided I needed a button card to put them on, so I made up one of those as well (using the Papertrey Ink stamps and Memento inks). Then the rest of the card layout just came tumbling out. I used a piece of old Cosmo Cricket Enchanted paper for the background and added a cute little banner made with a Spellbinders banner die. I used some The Paper Studio buttons for some variety as well - that's where the cameo and pretty scalloped heart came from.
And here's the inside. I used a Verve Stamps sentiment.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Easy Taffeta Flowers Tutorial

2011-12-24T11:19:00.000-08:00

I am not that much of a flower person - I love the real things, but in my crafting, I don't use them often.

Part of it might be cost.
Pre-made flowers are EXPENSIVE.
Part of it might be time.
Hand crafting flowers can sometimes take longer than making five layouts.

Today, I was experimenting with a flower for a gift and I stumbled upon magic. They cost almost nothing to make and I finished a bloom in less than 5 minutes. Now that I know how to make them, I can crank out a bloom in 2 minutes flat from beginning to end. Now THAT'S my kind of flower. :)

First, I took some light pink taffeta that's been clogging up my top craft drawer for years. I folded it over about 7 times so I'd have 7 layers. I rooted out my Spellbinders Nested Peony dies and picked out the 2nd and 3rd largest. I die cut the flowers using my Spellbinders Grand Calibur and a piece of cardstock beneath the taffeta - it sometimes helps you get a clean cut when you're working with flimsy fabric.

After I had my layers of flowers, I put them together (I made two flowers, so this one below has 4 layers of large flower taffeta and 3 layers of medium) and fastened them with a pretty fabric brad.

These are pretty just like this, but I wanted to add some distressing. Taffeta reacts VERY easily to heat, so carefully using my heat gun, I blasted the flower until it curled just the way I wanted it. Remember, it reacts very quickly (MUCH faster than heat embossing) so start off slow with the heat gun about 6 inches away. You could probably try a blow dryer for this as well.
Here's the flower after heat blasting it. Again, it's pretty just as it is. I wanted some pink ink on the edges, though. :)
I just used Memento "Rose Bud" ink and it worked well. Easy peasy!
And here is a shot of the project I'm making. I don't want to post all of it though, because certain people might be looking at the blog ;)

Thanks for taking a peek and Merry Christmas!

Winter She Art

2011-12-21T14:14:00.000-08:00

Earlier this year, I took Christy Tomlinson's She ARt Workshop. I have shared three already, but I have been wanting to do a winter themed one for a while now. So today, I did it!
I had a lot of fun with the dimensional details on this one. Flocking, glitter, lace, buttons, pom poms, snowflakes and a decorative branch.

If you want to make some She ARts of your own but don't know how, I encourage you to check out Christy Tomlinson's site. Her workshops are a ton of fun!
Thanks for taking a peek!

Cool Color Combo

2011-12-15T11:13:00.000-08:00

I got the cutest holiday buttons in a button grab back from Hobby Lobby earlier this fall and I was so excited to pair them with a Papertrey Ink stamped button card! I wanted to play off the sparkly silver, so I used American Crafts Glitter Cardstock. The beautiful ribbon is from May Arts - it's got a pretty sheen to it, but you can't tell very well in the photo.

On another note, I AM DONE for the semester! Just turned in my last final today -ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. :)
Thanks for taking a peek!

Pretty Poinsettia

2011-12-13T08:46:00.000-08:00

I bought this stamp set from Flourishes a couple of years ago because I adore elegant poinsettias (Flourishes - "Boxwood & Poinsettia"). This set is really fun for making backgrounds, but it works well as a focal point as well. On this card, I heat embossed the large poinsettia with clear powder on white cardstock. Then I colored in a few spots with a red watercolor pencil and shaded it with a water pen. Then I cut it out and embellished the center with pearls.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Baptism

2011-12-10T09:30:00.000-08:00

Today, we are attending a baptism and I wanted to share the card I made for the occasion. I used a thick, opalescent cream cardstock and die cut it using Spellbinders dies - "Cross Collection" and "Fleur de Lis Pendants." I layered two of the crosses with foam dots to get some dimension. The embossed section was embossed with a Cuttlebug 5x7" embossing folder. Afterward, I embellished with a few mini pearls.

This card is deceptively simple to make - I had it finished in less than fifteen minutes (planning included!).
Thanks for taking a peek!

Button Boutique Christmas

2011-12-09T11:54:00.000-08:00

Today is the last day of classes for the semester. I have finals week next week and then I'm free until January! Well, as free as a mom and wife can be around Christmas time, I suppose. We have quite a few activities planned! Hopefully we'll get around to making a lot of fun stuff : )

And on that note, I love vintage button cards. (I know, that's not really related, but just try to ignore that.)

Of course, when I saw the Papertrey Ink stamp set called Button Boutique, I knew that I would love it. And I do! I had fun yesterday afternoon making up three different button cards for Christmas cards. This is one of them.
I stamped the button card with two colors of ink (red and green) and then inked it with Antique Linen Distress Ink to give it an aged appearance. With pop dots, I affixed the die cut tree I made using my Spellbinders Nested Tree die set and American Crafts Glitter Cardstock. I added a cute little punched bow on top - this punch was a gift from Japan, so I'm not sure where to find it in the US. It's brand name is Daiso. To finish it off, I adhered buttons as ornaments with Fabri-tac glue.
And here is the finished card. I used paper by MME (Lost & Found Christmas) and some more American Crafts Glitter Cardstock. By the way, if you're looking for a sturdy and GORGEOUS glittered cardstock, I highly recommend American Crafts. It even comes in a variety pack that sells at stores like Hobby Lobby. It's not messy, and as you can see, it die cuts beautifully.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Vintage Christmas

2011-12-08T15:07:00.000-08:00

I like to make up several vintage style Christmas cards to sell at the store (Annie Kay & Co in Kearney, NE) because there don't seem to be many around. Vintage Christmas is a very popular theme in decorating, but I don't often see pretty vintage Christmas cards in retail stores.
For this card, I used a traditional vintage image I received from The Paper Dreams Factory. They have tons of gorgeous vintage images for all occasions! They're the real deal too, printed in Germany. The garland of red bows is a trim by May Arts. They have the cutest holiday trims! The embossed paper was made with a Cuttlebug embossing folder and the patterned paper is by MME.
On this card, I used a sheet from Elizabeth Craft Designs. It's all shimmery and rainbow-like, so the embossing really brings that out. It's hard to photograph though, and it looks much better in person. The ornament was made with a Spellbinders Heirloom Ornament 2010 and some Webster's Pages patterned paper. I embellished it a bit with some pearl paint and bronze glitter for a distressed look. The gold bow was actually from a broken Christmas ornament. I couldn't bear to throw it away!

Thanks for taking a peek :)

Wait!

2011-12-05T13:04:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to pop in here to let you know that I'm alive and to tell you not to give up on me! It's that lovely time of the semester where all the projects, papers and exams pile on and I've got 4 days left of classes and 3 days of finals before I can officially cut loose with all my creative Christmas craziness! I do have a couple of cards to share with you in the meantime. This one was created using Basically Bare Banners. The buttons (including the rattle) came from a misc. button bag at Hobby Lobby and the paper is from Authentique.
This card was made with my Waltzingmouse stamp set and the snowman is a button from the same bag as I mentioned before. The candy cane rope is from May Arts. All die cuts are Spellbinders and the patterned paper is a Christmas MME stack. The cork is by Quickutz.

Thanks for taking a peek - stay warm!

Past Scrap n' Art Publications

2011-11-18T11:36:00.000-08:00

Today, I'm just sharing some cards and a layout that were published in the September issue of Scrap n' Art. The supply lists, tutorials, full articles and contributions from the other Design Team members are still available for viewing in the "Past Issues" section of the Scrap n' Art website (for subscribers). Thanks for taking a peek!

Yee Haw!

2011-11-14T14:42:00.000-08:00

That's right, I'm not quite done with those Waltzingmouse western themed stamps.
I had to one with pink!

I love how I can pick and choose which stamps to use to finish off a sentiment. I used 4 different stamps for the above sentiment. On the inside, I used 2.
I love how this all looks with that Authentique "Brilliance" paper. I also used a Papertrey Ink "Parisian Doily" die and American Crafts Glitter Cardstock. the yellow stars on the sentiment are accented with mini pink rhinestones - this card is for a rhinestone cowgirl!
Thanks for taking a peek!

Rootin' Tootin' Merry Christmas

2011-11-12T08:04:00.000-08:00

Last week, I was lucky enough to win two western themed stamp sets from the talented Niki Estes - the stamps are Waltzingmouse sets. I was especially excited because I have had my eye on these stamps since they came out. I knew that I wanted to use them in making some western style Christmas cards.

One of the sentiments in the "Back in the Saddle" set reads "Have a rootin' tootin' time," so when I was inking that stamp up, I covered the word "time" with a scrap of paper. Then I was free to change the rest of the sentiment to "Merry Christmas" using another stamp set. I also added the holly from the other set to offset the red.

I die cut it with Spellbinders Labels Eight and then matted it over an oval I had previously stamped with the woodgrain image from the 2nd Waltzingmouse stamp set "Way Out West."
The red cardstock is from American Crafts and I embossed it with a 5x7" Cuttlebug embossing folder before inking over it (Fresh Snow ink by Papertrey Ink).

Of course I couldn't limit myself to just Christmas cards with these sets. I couldn't wait to do a sunset background with the "Way Out West" set! The sentiment was made with both sets (woodgrain & sentiment) and die cut with a Spellbinders Eyelet Squares die.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Beautiful November

2011-11-11T17:30:00.000-08:00

Today was gorgeous. The high was about 65 degrees and it was crystal clear and still. It was a great day for a hike, so Levi and I went geocaching in a big park that stretches out into the country. The air smelled sweet and the sunshine was delicious.

We still have some pretty fall colors, but some trees (like the cottonwoods) are completely bare. I did manage to snap a few photos of my favorites a couple of weeks ago, though. This is at our church, St. George Orthodox Church.
I love the contrast between the trees and the sky - it was a perfect day.

This is obviously not showcasing any amazing fall colors, but it is a funny photo of Max under the clean laundry pile. Levi thought it would make him mad to pile it on top of him like that, but he rather seemed to enjoy it and proceeded to take his 4th nap of the day.
OK, now we're back to fall colors. I love how her hair looks with the leaves. I told her she could be a fall pixie.

This week was a fun mail week. I won a blog candy from Niki Estes and she sent me two fantastic western themed stamp sets from Waltzingmouse Stamps. I've made a few cards with them already, but when I went to take photos this afternoon, the camera battery had other plans. So hopefully, I'll have time to post some tomorrow.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Shabby Chic Birthday

2011-11-05T06:51:00.000-07:00

When I was a teenager, I wanted nothing to do with pink or anything that looked too girly. I'm glad that I managed to grow past that stage, because there's nothing sweeter than a shabby chic birthday card!
On this card I started out with the paper - The Girls Paperie paper, to be exact. The die cuts are items that I already cut. They were waiting in my "die drawer." I just realized how ominous that sounds.

I embellished them a bit with stamps (Papertrey Ink Doily Details on the oval, Mega Mixed Messages on the banner), gems and ink (Memento Dandelion and Rosebud inks). The butterfly cut was made with American Crafts Glitter Cardstock, so all it needed was a pink button. The lace bow is made with May Arts lace ribbon and I attached it with Beacon Adhesives Fabri-Tac.

As for the die cuts themselves, they're all from Spellbinders (Standard Ovals, Butterflies 2, Banners).
Thanks for taking a peek!

Penguins

2011-10-31T18:19:00.000-07:00

Penguins are adorable. These penguins (Fiskars Winter Wishes stamps) are super adorable. My awesome friend Dayna and her hubby Troy came over this weekend and she got this stamp set from Hobby Lobby. Of course I had to break into it and stamp up some paper before she left.
Pure cuteness.
I anticipate more of them making their way onto winter cards soon.
Thanks for taking a peek!

Vintage Glam

2011-10-21T08:10:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I've blogged - it just seems like I've been incredibly busy. I had Fall break from classes earlier this week and it was wonderful. That also means that this was a short class week which is also wonderful. Then it's back to the same ol', same ol' though until Thanksgiving break. sigh.

I do have a card to share that I made with this beautiful Webster's Pages paper. The glittery chipboard piece comes plain and it's by Want2Scrap. It coordinates with a Spellbinders die that I don't own, so I chose to add glitter. I just used a super fine iridescent glitter, so it sort of plays off the colors that are near it. The two pearl thingys are vintage style buttons I got in a big grab bag at Hobby Lobby. The Thickers are of course by American Crafts and the ribbon is May Arts.

As usual, I'm busy, so I don't have time for more at the moment. Got to get to class and then hurry home to clean up because Alexis's friend is coming over and they have early release from school today. I think we'll be baking cookies this afternoon and doing a craft. Maybe.
Thanks for taking a peek!

Congratulations

2011-10-11T14:49:00.000-07:00

I like to make cards that can have more than one use. A Congratulations card can be used for several occasions and I find that the more versatile a card is, the easier it sells. On this card, I die cut the leaves and flowers and layered them with foam adhesive dots. The leaves were cut out of American Crafts Glitter Cardstock. The dies are by Spellbinders (Nested Poinsettia and Foliage Shapeabilities). The paper is from an old Cosmo Cricket collection - I believe it's called "Enchanted." The rub-ons are by Melissa Frances.
Thanks for taking a peek!

Fall Photos

2011-10-07T11:43:00.000-07:00

We've been having some nice fall weather and some interesting animal behavior. First up is this sweet little line of kitties that I photographed at my parents' house. It was a little chilly that morning, so when the sun came up, they formed a line so they could enjoy the maximum benefit while still sharing body heat. Pretty smart and very cute :)

We've also been having swarms of butterflies invade the yard. In this photo taken in our front flower bed, there are SIX butterflies on that one plant. Can you spot them all?
We have a bird feeder in the back yard that serves many a meal to the neighborhood chickadees, sparrows, robins and other various birds. Lately, it also seems to be serving fast food to a sneaky squirrel and his sneaky squirrel buddies on the ground. I haven't seen him actually get into this position, but I've seen him eating more than once. He's so greedy, he lets me get within six feet to take his picture.

Nom, nom, nom, nom...

And this is just so you can see how precarious a stunt this really is. How the heck he gets all the way down there UNDER the eaves of the garage is a mystery.
So all in all, it's been an interesting few weeks. :)
Thanks for taking a peek!

Basically Bare

2011-10-06T06:29:00.000-07:00

I love to alter chipboard. There is something very satisfying about taking a plain and raw piece and changing it into something else. If you've been following my blog for a while, you might know that I love to make dresses out of ribbons and trim and affix them to plain chipboard dress forms. There are an infinite amount of combinations! The colors, patterns and textures of trim all work together to make a new creation. Not to mention that I can get by without a sewing machine or pattern!

On this card, I used a cutie pie dress form from Basically Bare. They have an AMAZING selection of alterable items made of chipboard, cardboard, stiff felt, canvas and acrylic. This one was perfect for a card, so I started by cutting the pleated May Arts ribbon for the skirt layers. I adhered everything with Beacon Adhesives "Fabri-Tac" - even the gems.

These dresses are so fun because you don't have to worry about perfect seams or edges. Everything is glued onto the back, never to be seen again. They make pretty accents for wedding shower cards, birthday cards, invitations, scrapbook pages, home decor and more.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Leaves are Falling

2011-10-03T07:42:00.000-07:00

In Central Nebraska, we don't get much of a fall most years. Sometimes it seems like it's t-shirt and shorts weather right up until it snows. Other years, we get an early hard freeze that kills all the leaves before they have a chance to turn. This year, however, fall has been beautiful so far. The leaves are starting to change to gold and red and we've been having some lovely Indian Summer days with chilly nights. Our tomatoes have been moved to the back porch to avoid any frosts we might get - they're in planters, so moving them is pretty easy. The lawn hasn't been mowed in more than a week and it looks just fine. Right now, I'm sitting in my room with the window open and a crisp, cool breeze is toying with the curtains. All in all, I am enjoying this fall weather.

I love the look of leaves on cards, but using real ones can be pretty tricky. I get a lot of use out of my Spellbinders Nested Maple Leaf set because I can make leaves for spring, summer or fall. It just depends on what colors or materials I use. On this card, I also used half of a Spellbinders Labels Fourteen, American Crafts Thickers, Quickutz adhesive cork, Cosmo Cricket patterned paper scraps and some pearls and a gem.
On this card, I used American Crafts Glitter Cardstock. I just love that shade of yellow! I used a smaller Spellbinders Labels Fourteen die cut along with American Crafts Thickers and Cosmo Cricket "Matilda" chipboard candy corns. Very simple design, but the glitter background really makes it sparkle.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Spellbinders Shapeabilities

2011-09-26T18:37:00.000-07:00

I have a lot of fun with my Spellbinders Shapeabilities. I was lucky enough to win a boatload of Spellbinders sets a couple of years ago and I enjoy jazzing them up for holiday cards. Check out this kitty - Micah thought it was the best thing ever. I die cut black American Crafts cardstock - THE BEST for die cutting in my opinion - and embossed it. then I added light green gems after I adhered it to the card. meow!
As for most of the other shapes, I inked over them with white ink (Papertrey Ink Fresh Snow). The light gray tomb was inked with black. The orange is glitter cardstock from American Crafts and it really shows off the black accents. It's hard to tell in the photo, but it's super sparkly.

I just think scenes like this are so fun to make! Thanks for taking a peek :)

My Favorite Pumpkins

2011-09-20T10:36:00.000-07:00

I mentioned before that I love pumpkins.

Now, I love the traditional looking pumpkins, but I REALLY enjoy doing the not-so-traditional kind as well. I actually own a set of nested pumpkin dies and I do use them. However, this is how I make my favorite pumpkins - out of eggs!

Yep, these are actually "Nested Egg" dies from Spellbinders. I love cutting out all sorts of lovely Easter eggy goodness in the spring, but these babies pull a double duty by letting me make pumpkins in the fall.

I like to cut out a whole bunch of these, so I use various shades of orange/gold/yellow cardstock and different scraps of patterned papers of the same color scheme. I like to emboss the cardstock pieces for some texture as well. Then, I can take any three I want and create a pumpkin. I position the bottom two first, angling them out slightly and touching a bit. I take the top middle egg and adhere it over the others with foam dots. Then, I cut a but of a stem out of patterned, embossed or glittery green paper. Or - like one card below - I use stuff like gems, buttons, etc.
Sometimes I ink over the embossing and sometimes I leave it plain. The fun part of these is finding out just how many combinations you can come up with!

Thanks for taking a peek :)

Ready or not - here it is!

2011-09-16T19:59:00.000-07:00

Well, whether or not I was ready, fall has arrived! We got down in the 30s this week for a low and today was Cccccccoooooold and rainy. I did make time to cook up a whole large squash (one that substitutes for pumpkin) and make a yummy pumpkin spice dessert yesterday. There's nothing quite like fresh cooked pumpkin/squash in a dessert! So much better than canned.

I've been so busy with classes and cards that I haven't had much time to post. I made up a big ol' batch of fall cards and took them into the store this week. I'm in the process of making some really fun Halloween cards for the Scrap n' Art October issue as well. I do have a couple fall cards to share with you today. I have been pulling out the Spellbinders dies and going to town because I won a huge supply of fall/winter dies last summer and I LOVE to use them :) The banners are a new addition and I love them as well!
That pretty bow is made with May Arts ribbon. Isn't it just an amazing color?

Well, hopefully I'll be back soon with more to share - thanks for taking a peek!

September SNA and a chance to win!

2011-09-07T08:27:00.000-07:00

Have you seen the newest issue of Scrap n' Art? I spy some Unity stamps, some Want2Scrap, Photojojo and more! There are some really fun tutorials with step by step photos along with reviews. Digi scrappers - don't miss the Pixel Gypsy download! Also, remember to check the SNA blog. We have great projects and features every week for FREE!

I also wanted to point out this chance to win.

http://kwiksurveys.com/?u=consumeradhesives

Be sure to take the survey by the end of the month for a chance to win a Brand New Cricut Expression 2!

The Great Pumpkin

2011-08-29T08:03:00.000-07:00

No, I'm still not quite ready to give up summer.

This week, Hobby Lobby tried to entice me to do so with its holiday scented aisles and pretty decor, but I plugged my nose and walked on by. Having a fully stocked Christmas section by mid July is a bit nauseating, but I have to admit that once the fall decor goes up and they bring out all those warm, spicy candles and pumpkins - well, I get a little excited.

I love pumpkins.

I love cinnamon.

I love fall colors.

I love baking and chilly evenings.

*sigh*

Ok, so maybe I can still hold onto summer with one hand and use the other to smell fall candles. I guess I'm wavering a little. I really do like pumpkins a lot.

Here's a little card I made, hoping to get all that fall nonsense out of my system.

It didn't work.

I think I may do more.

Thanks for taking a peek ;)

Supply List:

Pumpkin: Spellbinders Nested Pumpkins dies, Provo Craft Cuttlebug embossing folder (Ornamental Iron), American Crafts cardstock

Tickets: Unity Stamp Co, Cosmo Cricket paper, Memento ink

Stickers: American Crafts Thickers

Card base: American Crafts Cardstock, Cosmo Cricket paper

Just us Chickens

2011-08-25T18:56:00.000-07:00

School is officially back in session! Tomorrow marks the first full week back and so far everything seems to be going smoothly. The kids love their new teachers and have many friends in their new classrooms. My professors seem to be fairly normal and it's nice to be back to more of a routine. I'm not quite ready to let go of summer though and I hope we have a good long while before the sky starts throwing white stuff at us. Sadly, being busy with all those school and life activities will probably make the time fly.

Speaking of things that fly, I do have a card I finished a couple weeks ago. My mom loves chicken and rooster items and she happens to have several real chickens and roosters as well. That's where I picked up this cute little feather.

I've had a little drawer of feathers just waiting for the perfect cards. When I saw these stamps by TPC studios at Hobby Lobby (they completely re-stocked their stamps!) I knew they were mine. I haven't had much time to play with them yet, but I did do this country style card for my mom. I stamped with blue ink on blue cardstock and then I sponged brown ink on the corners and sides.
The circle and red decorative circle were made with Spellbinders dies (Classic Circles and Lacey Circles). The pleated cream ribbon is from May Arts.

Thanks for taking a peek - hopefully I'll be back soon :)

Almost back to school part 2

2011-08-13T11:00:00.000-07:00

Alexis found a fun book called Rock Your School Stuff by Laura Torres at our local library this past week. It's right up her alley and has inspired her (and me) to jazz up some of her school supplies. A couple posts ago, you saw how we altered her old pencil box with hot glue, buttons and letter tiles. Today, we made her plain spiral notebook a WAY cool girly notebook with a real pocket! Here's how we did it :)

First of all, we rummaged through some clothes that had gotten too small. I wanted to use blue denim, but the only thing that fit the bill was a pair of tan jeans. If you plan on using a color spray, like Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist, the tan jeans would actually be the way to go. Cloth absorbs the mist quite well, so you could really get some neat effects. I think that's what I'm going to do on my next altered notebook with the remaining tan material. I cut the bottom off of a pant leg and then cut up the seam so I had a flat piece. I used Beacon Adhesives Fabri-Tac (don't miss the ROCKIN' post about this in today's SNA blog!) and smoothed the denim onto the notebook cover.

Next, we cut off one of the back pockets. We just cut right outside of the seam.

Alexis wanted some ribbon on the side, so I glued (Fabri-Tac again) some pretty trims by May Arts near the spiral. I just can't get enough of May Arts ribbons and trims! We also glued the pocket onto the notebook.

We finished it all off with some gems and a pink bow. The whole process took less than half an hour.

The kids got their teacher assignments yesterday and are pretty darned excited. I have a feeling that we're going to be doing more crafts before school starts on the 22nd! Thanks for taking a peek :)

Experiments

2011-08-12T08:20:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, I just want to take out some supplies and try something new. That's how this card came about. A while back, I had a card that featured an adhesive backed cork die cut shape. The thin backing to the cork was sitting on my craft table because I find it hard to throw things away. ;) I decided that it would be a great mask because of how thin it was, so I placed it on some light purple cardstock, grabbed some small lily of the valley stamps (from Papertrey Ink's Lily of the Valley set) and with some Brushed Concord Distress Ink (Ranger), I stamped around the mask.

It started out as a rectangle shape, but I punched the corners with a corner punch (Martha Stewart) and then cut closer to the flowers because I had it in my head that I wanted it to look like the edges had burned. After I cut it, I inked around the edges with Chestnut Road pigment ink in a Cat's Eye. I accented the shape with purple pearls and layered some die cut shapes I had in my odds and ends drawer. After I adhered the piece to the card base, I decided the white trim would add a little oomph, so I adhered that with Beacon Adhesives Fabri-Tac.

Looking at this card, I'm still not in love with it, but I got to do some fun masking that I know I'll be using in the future. It's an interesting way to create a label shape with stamping and it has a lot of possibilities. Thanks for taking a peek!

Almost back to school

2011-08-09T14:30:00.000-07:00

We've been school shopping these past few weeks, trying to get all those supplies for the best price. Alexis needed a pencil box again this year, but still had hers from last year and it was in good condition. She was a little bummed that she didn't get a new one, so we took out the craft supplies and jazzed it up!

I used a hot glue gun and an assortment of brightly colored buttons. After I glued the buttons on, Alexis decided that we needed a bit of sparkle, so we added some gems. Of course, we needed her name on there, so I found some letter tiles and put those on as well.
She's pretty excited to show everyone her new/old pencil box!

Altered Shadow Box

2011-08-06T14:51:00.000-07:00

When my bestie, Dayna, was here for a few days, we got a lot done. We stamped, we embossed, we cut, we glued, we did everything. We even had time to make matching shadow boxes! We happened upon these shadow boxes in the 85% off section of Hobby Lobby - I got white and she got black. We wanted to do them to match our living rooms, so we each took different colors of buttons and inks and went to town making up the embellishments you see inside.

The button cards were stamped with Papertrey Ink stamps and the buttons are by The Paper Studio. The wooden half spools are from my stash, but I believe you can pick them up anywhere they sell packages of wood craft items. The cute little chipboard woman is from Cosmo Cricket's Circa 1934 collection.
I loved the frame as it was, so I didn't do anything to alter it. I love it when I can pick up a good deal like this!
Thanks for taking a peek :)

A few June Scrap n' Art projects

2011-08-03T12:30:00.000-07:00

I just went out and snapped a few photos of my favorite flowers that are blooming right now. I have some gorgeous bright pink gladiolas that are blooming, but the photos didn't turn out very well - maybe I'll try again tomorrow :) It's lovely outside today; supposed to be a high in the 80s! Such a welcome change from the 100 degree heat we've been having.

Here are a few projects that were in the June issue of Scrap n' Art featuring Flourish with a Bling! and Judikins. The full supply lists are in the June issue if you'd like to see more.

Thanks for taking a peek !

Quilted Card

2011-08-01T11:46:00.000-07:00

Cosmo Cricket has so many papers that I love. I wanted to put a couple different collections together in this card, so I die cut the papers with Spellbinders Classic Diamonds Nestabilities so they would fit together perfectly. After I had a bunch cut, I just started adhering until I had them all on the card base. Then, I trimmed off the edges to be flush with the card base and embellished a bit. I added the buttons with a dab of Fabri-Tac (Beacon Adhesives) and the rest of the items are from Cosmo Cricket. The diamond shapes are great for banners (just cut them in half) and for doing quilted looks like this. It works really well on layouts too! You can die cut photos into the diamond shapes if you like.

Also, the August issue of Scrap n' Art is live today! It's not as big as it normally is due to Summer CHA - but OH MY WORD, you're going to want to see next month's issue for sure! BRAND NEW CHA goodies! That's the great thing about being a digital magazine - we get the new CHA items before any print magazine, so you'll have to come on over in September to see all the new product. In this month's issue we've still got some rocking stuff, though. We got our hands on a bit of the new Nikki Sivils collections! We've also got Susiebee and you're going to love their stuff. Don't forget our tutorials and reviews - we've got them too! Come on over to check it all out :)

Hope you're staying cool and thanks for taking a peek!

Happy Together

2011-07-26T08:43:00.000-07:00

As you can see, I am still enjoying my Parisian Lace die (Papertrey Ink)! I love the look of traditional doilies, but being able to make non-traditional ones is also a lot of fun. I used the die with some Cosmo Cricket paper on this card and cut out 2 doilies. I cut the doilies into pieces and then adhered them onto black cardstock. Then I simply adhered some Cosmo Cricket chipboard embellishments and a cardstock sticker and I was done. I really like how the black shows off the details in the doilies :)
In other news, it's another scorcher today! It was actually really nice yesterday - only got up to about 90 degrees. Today, we won't be so lucky. I'm also dealing with camera problems for some reason. This camera is less than 1 year old and it keeps shutting itself off. Yesterday I couldn't get it to stay on to take ONE photo. I hooked it up to my computer and it says the battery is fine, so I'm not a happy camper. I don't think we have a service plan and if I have to replace this baby after less than a year, you can bet I'm not going to get the same brand! Ugh...maybe it was just being disobedient and will be better today. Here's hoping.

Thanks for taking a peek :)

Clean and Simple Anniversary

2011-07-21T08:07:00.000-07:00

I love adding stamped elements to cards and layouts because the stamping is a step that can be done ahead of time. I don't even have to have a specific project in mind, because all of that comes later. If I'm not feeling terribly creative, but still want to do something crafty, I stamp up a bunch of images and make some embellishments for my "odds and ends" drawer.

This flower is one of those embellishments. I made it (along with several others) with a Martha Stewart flower stamp set. The set came with flower outlines and the stamp of the flower itself so there is no coloring necessary. I stamped the flower with light pink and the outline in darker pink and then cut it out. I added a blob of Fabri-Tac to the center and added some pale pink pearl beads.

The rest of the card is super simple. I used a pale cream shimmer cardstock (120 lb), Martha Stewart punch (Punch Around the Page Double Arches) and accented it with American Crafts Glitter cardstock. The rub-on is by Melissa Frances. Thanks for taking a peek!

Stamped Background - Sew Sweet

2011-07-18T08:51:00.000-07:00

I'm still using up those items that I stamped when my friend, Dayna, came to visit! This was stamped with her set from The Girls Paperie. I stamped a full 12x12 sheet and gave Dayna half of it so we'd both have a chance to play. Having the pre-stamped paper made this card a breeze! I just added the sticker sentiment from Cosmo Cricket's Material Girl collection (I added it to the purple cardstock and cut that out and used foam dots to make it stand out). I accented the card with a few buttons and I was done!
As for the actual stamping, I used The Girls Paperie stamps with Memento inks. The cardstock I used is from American Crafts - I seriously cannot get enough of their cardstock. Thanks for taking a peek!

Hot!

2011-07-17T14:16:00.000-07:00

Man it's hot! I wish that I had a nice frosty drink just like the ones on this card :) The stamps are my friend's, and they're an odd brand that I can't remember. I used chalk inks on them and glittered the margarita with some loose green glitter and a Zig glue pen. The yummy paper is by Cosmo Cricket and I used a Fiskars Starburst punch on the bottom of the purple paper. I used ric rac from my stash as well as some purple gems.

That's all for today - I've gotta lay low and stay cool! Thanks for taking a peek :)

Sweet!

2011-07-14T09:38:00.000-07:00

I love this paper by Cosmo Cricket (Garden Variety Collection), but I didn't have any of the embellishments that coordinate. I decided by looking at those cutie pie strawberries that I could easily make my own versions. I used a Spellbinders Oval die with red cardstock and cut off just a bit of the top of the oval. Then I hand cut a messy green top and outlined it in black pen and adhered it to the oval. My Signo Uniball white pen is all dried up (boo!) so I used Tulip Pearl fabric paint to make the white seeds. Then I added some fun googly eyes and a pretty Flourish with a Bling! leafy branch and I was good to go!
I layered it over a bit of cork I die cut with a Spellbinders Labels die and scored and folded the little banner with the sentiment. Thanks for taking a peek!

Baby cards

2011-07-13T08:12:00.000-07:00

I think I need to meet more young moms because I love to make baby cards! Here is one I made a while back with Papertrey Ink's "Button Basics" stamps Instead of using stamped or die cut buttons, I went with baby themed buttons - I just love that cute little chick!

The ribbon is Faux Linen by May Arts. I chose white and then sprayed it with Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist. It absorbs the color beautifully! I did a soft blue and yellow spray AFTER I tied the bow, blending them slightly where they touched.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Using Stamps on Layouts

2011-07-11T11:12:00.000-07:00

In one of the forums I frequent, it's very common to see posts from people who want to get more use out of their stamps. After asking a few more questions, I found it interesting that many of these people hadn't considered using the stamps on their layouts - they had been focused on cards and smaller scale projects. As someone who LOVES to use stamps on my layouts, I knew I had to address it!

Last month, I hosted a challenge for people to get out those dusty stamps and put them to work on a layout. We had some great entries! It was fun to see how different people utilized their stamps. However, it still seemed that many people were a bit tentative...perhaps they only used one stamp one time. Now that's all fine and good if that's what you want to do. I wanted to challenge them further - to get more and MORE use out of those stamps. I wanted to get them to see the possibilities that stamps offer. In the midst of all the stamping thoughts, I created a layout for the July issue of Scrap n' Art that relied on stamping as the main technique. I have to tell you that it was the most fun thing to make! I used two different sets of stamps from Tweety Jill Designs and did a bit of heat embossing, a bit of masking, layering and more. Here is a sneak peek of the layout. The full-size layout can be found in the current issue of Scrap n' Art. Thanks for taking a peek!

Blog Candy

2011-07-08T10:39:00.000-07:00

Head on over the Melissa Bove's blog because she's handing out some amazing blog candy!

Dressy Birthday Wishes

2011-07-02T10:51:00.000-07:00

I wanted to share another card I made from the embellishments and die cuts I made when my friend, Dayna came to visit. This cutie pie dress form stamp is by Unity and I used a Big & Juicy Rainbow pad by Ranger. After I stamped the dress form, I stamped the sentiment in black and I stamped the butterfly in aqua. To embellish it, I tied a thin ribbon around the waist and put little gems on the butterfly. Then I cut it out and adhered it to my die cut shapes (Spellbinders Labels Nestabilities dies) with a dimensional foam dot. Thanks for taking a peek - for my American readers, have a wonderful 4th of July weekend!

If you haven't done so, make sure you check out the July issue of Scrap n' Art - hot hot hot! We've got stamps, sketches, tutorials, reviews, and much more!

Lazy Days of Summer

2011-06-27T11:35:00.000-07:00

I always think that I'm going to have all this time in the summer to make tons and tons of projects and then do wonderfully detailed blog posts about them. Ha! I've once again fallen prey to the lazy days of summer...and I'm not even sorry about it. In fact, I've been reading (for FUN), enjoying my flowers and plants, organizing and doing all sorts of lazy summer stuff. Yesterday, I did break through the haze for about a half hour - long enough to do a couple of birthday cards. This one was made with odds and ends that my friend Dayna and I whipped up during her visit. It's fun to be able to slap a card together in just a few minutes!

I don't want to give you the wrong impression...I have been doing some other papercraft related things as well. For instance, there are just a few days before the July issue of Scrap n' Art comes out and there are lots of fun things to see: stamps, stencils, techie gadgets and one of my fav companies ever is featured as well.

Thanks for taking a peek!

2011-06-15T12:58:00.001-07:00

My best friend and her husband came to visit us for a long weekend and we had the BEST time! Dayna and I don't have many chances to papercraft together, so we took full advantage of our time and cranked out tons of things. We used each other's stamps, inks, embossing folders, dies, punches - it was awesome. Now we both have a lot of pieces to use on cards and layouts and hopefully it will make it easier for Dayna to have some creative time on her own. I told her I would make a blog post about her to make sure she gets some cards done...so here it is! Get some cards done, Dayna! ☺

This is a card that I did a couple of weeks ago to sell at the store. I love how the gold embossing powder looks on the doily stamps! I will have to experiment a bit more with that. I've been working on the July Scrap n' Art projects, but I may have something new to share here in the next few days. Thanks for taking a peek!

Simplicity

2011-06-10T07:59:00.000-07:00

I got a new Martha Stewart Punch Around the Page set when I was home in May and I have been putting that baby to work! It's a deep edge punch (LOVE THOSE!) called Double Arches. I just love how it transforms a plain piece of white cardstock into a decorative piece of art! I didn't want to take away from that on this card, so I kept the embellishments really simple. The beautiful scalloped edge ribbon is from May Arts. I cut the pink glitter cardstock by American Crafts with a Spellbinders Butterflies 2 die. The sentiment is by Papertrey Ink. Thanks for taking a peek!

Handmade Wedding

2011-06-07T08:53:00.000-07:00

My good friend and neighbor, Ann, got married this past Saturday. The theme of her wedding was "handmade" and she spend countless hours making the decorations with the help of her fiance (now husband) Toni. Toni is a jewelry maker from Lebanon and so you can only imagine the beautiful beaded accents that were everywhere - on the cake, on the wine glasses, napkins...everywhere! Ann is also an artist and it was amazing to see what she had created.
I wanted to make them a card that mirrored that handmade sentiment - one that utilized their wedding colors. I decided upon this beautiful stamp from Loralie Designs. I colored it with Copics and Sparkling H2Os and die cut it with a Spellbinders Nestabilty (Labels Seventeen). I used a Spellbinders "Lacey Circle" die and American Crafts Thicker for the monogram. The blue paper is metallic and very shiny. I also used one of my new toys, a Martha Stewart Deep Edge Punch Around the Page (Double Arches). I embellished the earrings with blue Dew Drops because they reminded me of some of the beautiful beaded items Toni made. It was a beautiful wedding and as you can see, I was inspired!

Thanks for taking a peek!

April Scrap n' Art

2011-06-05T07:36:00.000-07:00

Here are some items from the April Scrap n' Art issue and blog. Thanks for taking a peek!

Frilly Baby Girl Card

2011-06-01T10:39:00.000-07:00

I love to doctor up girly cards with tons of trims and ribbons. There are so many different textures and colors available! I like to adhere the bulky ones with Beacon Adhesives Fabri-Tac. it always does an excellent job of holding things in place. With bulky items like these, I have found that dry adhesives just don't stand the test of time. I've never had something come off when I've used Fabri-Tac.

On this card, I used Spellbinders Lacey Circles and an SRM Sticker. The cardstock (glittery white included) is all from American Crafts. Trims are from Hobby Lobby.

Thanks for taking a peek!

On the Cusp

2011-05-17T09:18:00.000-07:00

It's not summer yet. The weather here is still pretty unstable and it can't quite decide if it wants to warm up. We've had warm days, but they've been followed by cold spells. Today seems bright and sunny so far and I'm hoping for a little bit of summer. The kids get out of school tomorrow and we're going to be visiting family for a bit, so I won't be posting for about a week and a half - maybe two.

I'll leave you with a cute little dress form that is super easy to make. All you need is some different types of ribbons/lace, a dress form (chipboard will do, it doesn't have to be padded), Beacon Adhesives Fabri-Tac and some embellishments of your choice. The dress form I used is from Ooh LaLa Design Originals.

You can click on the tutorial strip to make it a bit bigger if you like.
1. Choose a wide ribbon that takes folds fairly well. I used one that is wired. Put Fabri-Tac in a line across the bottom part of the form and fold the ribbon over it.
2. Do the same thing right above it to make a tiered skirt.
3. Use some thin ribbon for the under-bodice, just wrap it around and around, securing the ends with a dab of Fabri-Tac.
4. Pick some nice lace that will form the outer-bodice. Just secure it in the back - pull it tightly so it doesn't sag.
5. Use some decorative trim for the waist/belt and secure it in the back as well.

6. Embellish with flowers, pearls, gems, etc. I made a "price tag" for the sentiment using Spellbinders Labels Four. The paper I used was glossy, so I heat embossed the stamp so it wouldn't smear.

You can use these on cards or they can be incorporated into any home decor. They can also stand alone - you can make a stand for them or make them into ornaments and hang them. As you can see, the possibilities are endless with colors and patterns. These are a lot of fun :)

Well, thanks for taking a peek!

Spring Flowers

2011-05-10T17:45:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I got to spend time out in the yard planting and tending flowers. I planted some beautiful Oriental Lily and Gladiolus bulbs along with some annuals. I also had two Easter Lily plants to move to the flower bed. We really didn't have anything in this yard when we moved here, so it's been a slow process of planting and moving things around. A good friend is in the hospital right now, and I wanted to bring her some flowers - unfortunately, none of mine are blooming right now. Instead, I decided to make my own flower using the fun tutorial found in the May Scrap n Art. I love how it turned out and I cannot wait to make more!

I tweaked the flower a little bit by using Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist and a flower center. Make sure you check out the tutorial - it's really easy and great fun! Thanks for taking a peek :)

Cardstock: American Crafts "Weave: Butter (71040), Melon (71033)"

Adhesive: Beacon Adhesives "Zip Dry"

Paper: Cosmo Cricket

Stamps: Papertrey Ink

Tools: Spellbinders Labels Fourteen, Papertrey Ink Parisian Lace Doily die

She Art Workshop

2011-05-10T12:00:00.000-07:00

I had the amazing privilege of taking Christy Tomlinson's She Art Workshop in March. Come over to the Scrap n Art blog to see my first She Art!

http://scrapnart.com/blog/theblotter/sheart

Just Because

2011-05-02T09:24:00.000-07:00

I really like mixing and matching from different companies. It's fun to see what combinations that arise! On this card, I started off with patterned paper from Hambly Studios. It's pearlescent and just lovely. I used stamped pieces that I already had made up, so this card came together fairly quickly. The button card and sentiment are by Papertrey Ink and the dress form is from Rubber Cafe. The butterfly and scalloped circle were cut using Spellbinders dies - Butterflies 2 and Scalloped Circles. The rosette ribbon really finishes this card off; I picked it up at Hobby Lobby.

I'm right in the middle of finals, so this won't be a long post. Thanks for taking a peek!

Mom

2011-04-30T08:36:00.000-07:00

I wanted to make some Mother's Day cards that were a bit more hip this year. On this card, I used Cuttlebug embossing folders - a zebra and a crocodile pattern. I inked over them with white and black inks to make them stand out a bit. I die cut white glitter paper with a Spellbinders Labels Fourteen and used American Crafts Thickers for the word "mom." I really like the embossed patterns, so I think I'll do a few more similar to this. I also have a peacock feather folder and a leopard print; they came in a package of 4 at Hobby Lobby.

I finished my last week of classes and so now I just have finals. Bring on the summer! Thanks for taking a peek - have a great weekend!

Can't Say I Didn't Warn You!

2011-04-27T13:50:00.000-07:00

Here is another doily stamp card. Same premise as the one from yesterday, but I wanted to use a different color scheme. I embellished the doilies with stars and periods from the same American Crafts Thickers set I used for the "mom." I have to say, I really liked how crisp the doilies looked with the black ink!

This is "dead week" for the semester - the week before finals. I am SO ready for summer break. Bring on the card making!

More doilies!

2011-04-26T15:50:00.000-07:00

I just can't stay away from this Delightful Doilies stamp set by Papertrey Ink. It is entirely too much fun to use and there are so many possibilities. Here is one of the cards I made with the set recently. I couldn't stop at the front, so I had to stamp the inside as well.

Many of the sentiments from the Papertrey Mega Mixed Messages fit inside the medium doilies, so that's fun too.

Well, if you don't happen to like doilies, you might want to stay away for a while. I believe the craze has just begun ;)
Thanks for taking a peek!
Ink: Memento
Embellishments: Prima Marketing
Stamps: Papertrey Ink
Cardstock: American Crafts

Be Good

2011-04-19T11:18:00.000-07:00

I love the embellish stamped images, and I knew when I saw this pretty corset, I could do so many things with it. I stamped it in Rose Bud ink by Memento on light pink cardstock. I used a mini bead garland for the top hot pink trim. On the bottom, I used a lace trim and mini pink pom poms. The corset and sentiment is by Rubber Cafe and it's cling mount rubber.

That's all for today; thanks for taking a peek!

Win a Free Scrap 'n Art Subscription!

2011-04-14T10:47:00.000-07:00

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Steampunk Wonderland

2011-04-14T07:17:00.000-07:00

You have probably heard the term, "Steampunk" at some point. This style has really taken off in the papercrafting world in the past year. At Scrap 'n Art, we currently have a special issue dedicated to Steampunk, so if you want to learn more about it and see some rockin' Steampunk projects, you'll want to check it out! This is a Steampunk piece that I created. My daughter loves Alice in Wonderland and I have already made her custom Alice decor for her room. When I saw that pocket watch from Stanislaus Imports, I knew that I had to create a Steampunk Wonderland. The book itself is a Secret Storage Book. Isn't it neat? It lends itself perfectly to alteration. Honestly, this book took a while to do and I used a bazillion techniques. If anyone is curious about anything, don't hesitate to let me know and I will explain what I did. For now, I'll just leave it at this. :) Thanks for taking a peek! :)

Supply List: Metal Embellishments: Stanislaus Imports “Gears, Pocket Watch, Watch Parts”; Flower Soft “Shamrock Green” Book: Secret Storage Books "Alice in Wonderland"; Cardstock: Paper Accents "Extra Heavy Chipboard White 12x12 (128CB)"; Adhesvie: Beacon Adhesives "Zip Dry," Glue Arts "Adhesive Squares"; Ink: Tsukineko "Memento: Tuxedo Black"; Paint: Apple Barrel “Black, White,” Folk Art “Metallic Blue Sapphire”; Pens: Copic "Ciao: 36 D Colors"; Stamps: The Rubber Cafe “Candy Rosenberg: Steampunk Charity Wings”; Misc: Wooden book

Doilies

2011-04-12T07:17:00.000-07:00

Anyone remember that pivotal scrapbook issue a few years back that featured a white paper doily on the cover project? After that, doilies were everywhere! I happen to remember that moment because I had submitted items a year prior to that which featured doilies - even to that same magazine. Now, I'm not saying anyone copied my stuff. It's just funny to me how trends work! At any given moment, artists all over the world are coming up with new trends. Sometimes they last and sometimes they fade quickly. I'm just happy that the doily is here to stay. :) I just purchased the "Delightful Doilies" stamp set from Papertrey Ink. I got my package yesterday and so I had to crank out something to show for it. Here is what I came up with.

The doilies come in different sizes that you mix and match. There are the small centers, the medium middles that go around them and the large outside borders. I have to say these are TONS of fun! I can see myself using them for all sorts of layouts and cards.

That's all for today - just wanted to poke my head in and talk about doilies for a minute. ;)

Mother

2011-04-11T06:56:00.000-07:00

It's that time for me to work on my Mother's Day cards. Not only do we usually send out four cards, but I also have to make quite a few for the store. Last year I think I only sold 2; the year before I think I sold more than 12. So who knows how many I will sell? :)

For this card, I wanted to showcase these two flowers, so I kept the rest pretty simple. I stamped the flowers onto the white cardstock and then stamped the iris again on purple and green cardstock so I could cut out the respective parts and layer them over the lily of the valley. I also used Copics to add some shading. I attached the iris flower with a foam dot and used some lavender chunky glitter.

Then I matted it on yellow cardstock, adhered that to the white base and stamped the sentiment - Papertrey Ink's Mega Mixed Messages.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Lily of the Valley), Stamp Zia (Iris)

Five minute card #2

2011-04-09T08:36:00.000-07:00

If you follow any trends, you know that banners are still pretty popular in papercrafting. By now, there are many stamp sets, dies, cartridges, stickers, etc. that you can use to make your own banners. However, for those of you who like to make things on your own, banners are as easy as pie.

For this card, I cut triangles ahead of time. I like to use up scraps of paper for this task - long strips work especially well. First I get a strip of paper; the wider the paper, the bigger the banner.

I am not the measuring sort and I do not care for extreme uniformity so I just start cutting! If you get anxious about going with the flow, then you can measure with a ruler and mark where you need to cut.

I like to use double sided paper for this, because you can use either side. You can also cut a lot of triangles for later use. I used some on the inside of my card as well. Once you have the triangles, you can also adhere them to another paper and cut around them with decorative scissors to create a fun border.

To string the banner, you can draw straight or curved lines with a pen and then attach the triangles where you like. You can also just adhere the triangles to the project like I did and then embellish with gems, pearls, buttons, ribbon, etc.

If you own a square punch or die, you can also just cut them in half and make easy banners like I did on this card.
As you can see, banners are a fun and quick way to add custom embellishment to a project. Thanks for taking a peek!

A Five Minute Card

2011-04-06T16:41:00.000-07:00

I know that sometimes I just need a quick birthday card - something that I can throw together in five minutes or less. This is definitely one of those cards! I've made lots of cake cards before, but this one (excuse the pun) takes the cake! It's so easy to make and it can be made from scraps. Each card is different and just by using different papers, you can make a card for anyone. For this card, I used paper by Crate Paper and a sentiment sticker from SRM Stickers . I used a Fiskars Sunburst border punch and a Martha Stewart border punch to create the "frosting" decorations.

You can also make this for a bridal shower, wedding, anniversary...you name it! It can be decorated with pearls, gems, lace, flowers, and all manner of yummy stuff. As you can see, these cards are a great way to use up extras that you have laying around.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Gratitude

2011-04-03T16:12:00.000-07:00

I am thankful that this past week is over! It was one of the busiest (and stressful) weeks I've had in ages. It wasn't the fault of any one thing, but with everything together, it seemed like the week that would never end.

Now, the weather has decided to shape up a bit (NO more snow, please) and I can see the light at the end of the tunnel as far as classes go. So in celebration of giving thanks, I'm sharing this card. I created the sentiment label with a Spellbinders Beaded Oval die. Before I took the die off of the paper, I put a heart over the top and I sprayed it with Bubblegum Tattered Angels. The sentiment itself is a rub-on by Melissa Frances (as is the patterned paper). Everything else is fairly self explanatory and made with items from my stash.

Thanks for taking a peek :)

You Are SEW Special!

2011-03-28T07:23:00.000-07:00

This weekend, a dear friend took Alexis and I to a landscaper where we took a fun class on potting hanging baskets. We got to pick our own flowers and design hanging baskets. The best part is that the landscaper will be keeping them for us until we can safely put them outdoors - they water, trim and completely take care of them so when it's time for us to have them, they're established and beautiful. How fun! We had a great time. To thank the sweet lady (Sandee is her name), I made a centerpiece (to be shared later) and a card to match. I had picked up some vintage wooden spools still in the wrapping at my local Goodwill a while back. They are incorporated into the centerpiece, and I wanted to continue the theme with the card. I used some cute paper from the Cosmo Cricket "Material Girl" line and backed it with pink cardstock I cut with my Martha Stewart Crafts "Deco Shells" punches. The sentiment was printed directly onto the pink cardstock before I punched it. I just created it in Microsoft Word. To finish this card off, I attached buttons with Glue Arts "Mini Adhesive Squares" and glued on my blue ric rac with Beacon Adhesives "Fabri-Tac" - so easy! Now that my Spring break is over *sob* I actually have to go back to class now. It starts in half an hour...and I'm still in my jammies. Guess I should get on that! Thanks for taking a peek!

Mother's Day

2011-03-25T08:45:00.000-07:00

It's Spring break here. I've gotten quite a bit done (still have homework to do...bah). I just wanted to go on record saying that I do not appreciate the snow today. Not one bit. I know it's not much, but it's the idea of the whole thing. Unless I'm going skiing, I do not want snow on my Spring break! Ok, now that that's out of my system, I have a Mother's Day card to share. Mother's Day cards are fun - I can be as girly and frilly as I like! This card isn't very frilly, but I think it's sweet.

The gold paper is metallic and quite shimmery in real life. I like embossing specialty papers because they always look so fancy! The embossing folder is the Fleur de Lis from Provocraft and the label is by Spellbinders. The "Mother" sentiment is by Papertrey and the Pearls are by Prima Marketing. The ribbon and flowers are just stuff from my stash.
Thanks for taking a peek!

Winner!

2011-03-24T06:54:00.000-07:00

Thanks for all the great comments - the winner is.....

afilatreau! Please send your address to amy@scrapnart.com and I will get your package out :)

Candy continued...and a card

2011-03-18T06:37:00.000-07:00

Whew! Sorry I didn't get back earlier with a blog candy photo. This is the week before spring break (for me and my kids) and I've had quite a bit of homework. Gotta love how the weeks before and after break are full of tests and projects and reading - almost makes it seem like we would do the same amount of work with or without a break...hmmmm. ;)

Anyway, I'm glad to have a break. So here's the blog candy photo above, and I'll keep it running until Wednesday. Just comment on the previous post and you're entered to win!

I've got a fun card to share today. I used Spellbinders Nested Eggs dies and some scraps of paper. The polka-dots are Jillibean Soup and the gingham is Pink Paislee. I can never part with paper that bright and pretty!

I just cut a piece of light brown cardstock to resemble some sort of basket and scored it with my Martha Stewart score board. I inked over the top as well. After I finished the basket and eggs, I pasted it onto a blank card base and then cut around it so that the base was also shaped like the eggs and basket. Then I accessorized with a fun bow and a felt button. I made a simple tag with a Spellbinders Labels Seventeen die and letters stickers. This card was really simple, but also a lot of fun.

Well, thanks for taking a peek!

Candy

2011-03-13T14:38:00.000-07:00

Well, I have the blog candy together, but my camera software is acting up and it won't let me upload the photo. I will attach it later when I can get it to work.

Here is the blog candy list:
1 6x6 Nikki Sivils "Sugar Cookie" paper pad
1 Tattered Angels "IR Resistables" Paper Tags
1 package assorted colored buttons
1 Pink Paislee Artisan Tape
1 small package Technique Tuesday clear stamps
1 journaling clear stamp

All you have to do to be eligible is leave me a comment! Thanks for coming to my blog and for making the blog candy possible :)

Easter

2011-03-12T09:01:00.000-08:00

Well, at some point in the past couple of weeks, I passed 5000 unique blog views and 100 followers...I do believe some blog candy is in order! Let me find some yummy stuff and I will post it later on today if I can.

In the mean time, I'll share this card with you. I've had a scrap of that blue iridescent paper for ages. I can't even remember what I used most of the paper for. I decided that I needed to get that paper on a card and send it on it's way. It was just the right size for me to die cut with a Spellbinders Nestability - Labels Fifteen. The gorgeous image is from a company that used to be known as Harlee Quinnz Designs and I don't know if they're still around.

The sentiment is by Papertrey Ink - "Mega Mixed Messages" set and I stamped it on a Spellbinders Labels Fourteen die. I think that shape is so romantic for some reason. I just love it. The pearls were originally plain white ones, but I used a Copic marker to make them pink. The Fleur De Lis are chipboard pieces by Tattered Angels and I inked them a bit with "Angel Pink" ink by Memento. That lovely pink rose trim is from Hobby Lobby. It reminds me of cotton candy :)

Thanks for taking a peek and don't forget to look back later for some candy!

Shabby Chic Easter

2011-03-07T07:41:00.000-08:00

Well, apparently, I'm going through all the styles for my stash of Easter cards this year! I really like how this one turned out - mostly because of that glittery gingham egg! To make it, I covered the gingham paper with a sheet of adhesive (It was a 6x6" double sided clear adhesive sheet by Scrapbook Adhesives). Then I peeled off the top and sprinkled pink "Fairy Dust" over top. I should have gotten a closer photo of the egg; the glitter is just gorgeous. Then I die cut it with a Spellbinders Nestled Egg die and adhered it to the largest Labels Four die cut and made a tag of it. I made the banner simply by scoring it and cutting the edges. The sentiment is by Papertrey Ink and the chick stamp is from American Crafts. On a whim, I used three mini pom poms as an accent where I would normally use pearls or gems. The patterned paper is from Cosmo Cricket "Honey Pie" - it's an oldie but a goodie! I tied the double bow using pegs. You can see how in this amazing tutorial by Becca Feeken. She is my bow hero :)

http://www.amazingpapergrace.com/tutorial/becca-bows/

I used Distress ink on the bow to shabby it up a bit and I used white acrylic paint on a dry sponge to go around the edges of the kraft card base.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Vintage Easter

2011-03-05T16:04:00.000-08:00

I have a sheet of beautiful vintage images from a company that was known as Harlee Quinnz Designs. This image was too cute to pass up, so I had make a vintage style Easter card.

I used the Fleur de Lis embossing folder by Provo Craft on white cardstock and inked over it with "Angel Pink" Memento ink. The strip of pink paper with the white pattern on the side is from the old "Honey Pie" paper pad from Cosmo Cricket. The rest of the card was done with items from my stash: Hydrangea silk flower, loose pearls, rose vine trim and pleated trim were all purchased at Hobby Lobby at some point over the past few years.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Whimsical Birthday Wishes

2011-03-02T07:08:00.000-08:00

I was starting to realize that I don't do many children's birthday cards. I don't know why, because I love the fun themes and images. When I saw this gorgeous carousel horse from The Rubber Cafe, I knew immediately that I needed to do a girl's birthday card.

I stamped the image onto a Spellbinders Lacey Square die cut. This is one of my favorite dies ever! I colored the image with Sakura Stardust pens and accented it with loose irridescent chunky glitter. If you didn't know, Stardust pens give you a beautiful glitter finish, so the whole image is sparkly.

I used Paper Accents cardstock and some glittered patterned paper from the "Homespun Chic" GCD collection by Melody Ross. The pink rosette ribbon is from Hobby Lobby's fabric department. I also used a Prima Marketing pearl and Papertrey Ink's sentiment from Mega Mixed Messages.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Celebrate Today

2011-02-27T08:38:00.000-08:00

I had a couple custom orders for bridal shower cards last week. I made the first one and delivered it...WITHOUT taking a photo. Dang it, I hate it when I do that! It was a really cute one too :) Luckily I have some similar supplies so I will probably make another that is based on the first one - and this time take a picture.
This started out to be the 2nd custom order, but I don't know. I think I will make another and take both in to let her choose. I like how this one turned out, but I'm not so sure it's what she wanted, know what I mean?
As you can see, I once again used that yummy beaded and sequins bridal lace. Even without the layered butterfly part, this card looked so elegant. I might actually do another one with just the lace and sentiment and experiment with different colors.

Anyway, back to this card. I cut the butterfly with one of my Spellbinders Butterflies dies and the labels are Spellbinders as well - Curved Rectangles and Labels Seventeen. The cardstock is all by Paper Accents and I used Zip Dry adhesive by Beacon Adhesives. The sentiment is by Papertrey Ink - "Mega Mixed Messages" and I heat embossed it with Ranger "Sea Foam" embossing powder. I glittered up the butterfly with some el cheapo (not really the name ;) ) glitter from Hobby Lobby. Seriously, for a nice sized container, it was only $1.47 for the regular price! It was great for this card because it reflects the blue, purple and pink of the labels.

In other news, we're all white and frosty again. sigh.

The nice weather brought the robins back and when it started to snow, they all congregated angrily in the trees and cried their birdy little eyes out. I could empathize with them. Now they're all fluffed up and pouting. Again, I empathize.

Thanks for taking a peek :)

Unexpected Surprises

2011-02-22T11:21:00.000-08:00

Some unexpected surprises are fantastic and some are just plain yuck. In the case of today's unexpected surprise, I have to say it's definitely the former :) I'd like to thank Nora for bequeathing me with a Stylish Blogger Award!

In order to accept the award, I must pass this on to 8 other stylish blogs (it will be my privilege to do so) and list 8 things about myself.
1. I am a full time student.
2. I can say all 50 United States in alphabetical order.
3. I have two cats, Max and Ace.
4. I have been married for 10 years (it will be 11 in May) and have 2 kids.
5. I have visited 7 countries.
6. I am a natural redhead.
7. I "inherited" papercrafting from my grandmother.
8. Someday I would love to design stamps!

And without further ado, here are the 8 blogs I have chosen. I love so many - this was a hard decision!

http://seesterk.blogspot.com/
http://manyminimemories.blogspot.com/
http://byondbzr.blogspot.com/
http://basicallyami.blogspot.com/
http://jarfullofjoy.blogspot.com/
http://willrunforstamps.blogspot.com/
http://poetryinapotoftea.blogspot.com/
http://candyscraps.typepad.com/

Thanks for the honor, Nora :)

Best Wishes

2011-02-19T08:35:00.000-08:00

If you're a follower, you know that I love to use trims and pretty ribbons on my cards. I went to Hobby Lobby this week and stocked up on a few pieces I really liked and here is a card that shows one of them off. The pretty beaded/sequins trims are a tad expensive, so I wait until I have a coupon or until they go on sale. One thing about them is that I use so little of the actual trim on a card, so that makes them last longer than I originally anticipate.

On this card, I adhered a buttery yellow cardstock to the white base. Then I adhered a "Swiss Dot" (Cuttlebug) embossed vellum panel to the right side. Where the panel left off, I adhered my bridal trim with Beacon Adhesives "Fabri-Tac."

I used a Spellbinders Lacey Circle die for the sentiment along with Papertrey Ink's "Mega Mixed Messages" set and some Prima Marketing pearls. And that's it! This card is very easy to do, but I love how that elegant trim sets it off.

Thanks for taking a peek! Have a wonderful weekend :)

Thinking of You

2011-02-17T07:28:00.000-08:00

I can say at this point that I am done with winter cards. No more snowflakes, no more hot cocoa. For the next few weeks, it's all SPRING!
We've been having some lovely weather here - today we have mid 60s! the sky is blue, there is a slight breeze, and I have seen a few early blooming flowers starting to get brave enough to peek out from the dirt. Along with that bright and sunny mood, I have a bright and sunny card to share.
The pretty glittered paper is from GCD Studios (Melody Ross - "Homespun Chic"). The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink's "Lily of the Valley" set. I didn't want to take away from the paper by adding a solid color label, so I decided to stamp it directly onto the pattern. The flower is from ETSY and the ribbon is from Hobby Lobby.
I used some Beacon Adhesives "Fabri-Tac" to adhere the flower to the ribbon - it just takes a tiny bit.
Well, thanks for taking a peek on this lovely spring-like day!

Miss You

2011-02-14T07:12:00.000-08:00

The weeks are starting to fly by again - it's that time in the semester! This semester seems to be sucking the life out of me on top of that. I have a couple of classes (required, not in my field of study) that I just do not care for. I got spoiled last semester having classes all within my major!
Anyway, in between studying, reading Paradise Lost and doing some special design team work, I had the chance to make a card for my bff. She had a rough week last week, and she needed a paper hug.

I used Papertrey Ink's "Woodgrain Basics" set to make the background paper (Memento Bahama Blue ink). I had made up several white die cuts with my Spellbinders dies, so I picked through my stash and got the ones I wanted for this card. The bigger one is a Beaded Circle and the smaller one is an Eyelet Circle. I used Papertrey Ink's "Mega Mixed Messages" for the sentiment (Memento Rose Bud ink). The cutie pie vintage image is from Paper Dreams Factory. I LOVE their vintage art images!

For the punched borders, I used a Martha Steward Crafts Deco Shell border punch and an EK Success bracket punch. The little line of white butterflies is a piece of trim from my stash.
Well, thanks for taking a peek! Hopefully I'll be back later this week...and I probably won't be rhyming :)

PTI "Ultimate Card Kit"

2011-02-05T08:09:00.000-08:00

If you like Papertrey, head on over to Nicole's blog because they're having a contest! Link your favorite project that uses PTI product from the past year to their blog for a chance to win. Also leave a comment for another chance.

Here is my favorite - I just love how the balloons, clouds and banners captured the feel of the place in the photos. We could see for miles and miles and the air was so clear and clean. The clouds were white and puffy and the weather was lovely. When I look at this layout, it brings all that back and that is why it's my favorite.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Thanks, Grandma

2011-02-03T06:11:00.000-08:00

I happened to inherit what I like to call the papercrafting gene from my Grandma Helen. She passed away a few years ago, and amazingly enough, is still gifting me things! I had a little stash of her art supplies (she was an artist and teacher) handed down to me, and one of these items was a pad of old watercolor paper. It's the paper you see the stamped image on in this card.

I decided I wanted to use it because of its unique texture, and when I went to sew the edges, it took the thread like fabric - it's quite flexible. And then when I inked over it, I was delighted to see the fun texture. And it was a moment where I just thought: thank you, Grandma. :)

The stamp comes from Loralie Designs. I just think it's the cutest thing! There are actually two sewing machines in the set and both are equally amazing. This stitching is sort of my "thing" that I like to do. I use two different colors of thread (one on the bobbin and the other threaded through the machine) and then make sure I stitch off the edge of the paper a bit. That makes the bottom thread show through, so if you take a closer look, you'll see the tan and black threads. The messier the better with this technique!

Thanks for taking a peek :

Scrap 'n Art Blog Post Today

2011-01-25T11:37:00.000-08:00

Check out the SNA blog today to see the post that accompanies this card. Thanks for taking a peek!

Yeah...so

2011-01-21T19:42:00.000-08:00

You know how I was complaining earlier in November and December about not getting any snow? Well, now I've had enough of snow - it's pretty deep out there - and I would like to think of other things like blue skies and rainbows.

This adorable cloud paper comes from My Little Shoebox; it's from their 2010 Spring collection "Flying High." The labels were done with Spellbinders Nestablilties - Labels Fourteen. I love that shape! The stamps and the cloud die are from Papertrey Ink's "Up, Up and Away!" set. I colored the rainbow with watercolor pencils and I doodled around the labels and cloud with a Zig black marker so they went with the doodly cloud paper. I used Diamond Stickles on the cloud for good measure :)

Thanks for taking a peek!

Pink and Yellow

2011-01-17T09:38:00.000-08:00

All through school, I remember hating pink. When I was young, I hated it because I was a tomboy and pink is for girly girls. When I was in high school, I hated it because I was still sort of a tomboy and...what can I say - I was not a girly girl.

Today, I'm still not what you would call "girly" but I have acquired a deep appreciation for all things pink. I'm not the type of person who obsesses over single colors though, I'm a color combination affectionada. I love pink and brown, pink and green and most of all, pink and yellow.

I started out with that color combo in mind when I was die cutting the items for this card. I used a Spellbinders Nested Heart Pendant (largest one) and inked over the embossing with Papertrey Ink's "Fresh Snow" ink pad. By the way, if you want a fabulous white ink but have come to the conclusion that they're all just so-so, you've got to try PTI's.

Then I sprinkled just a bit of Antique Gold (Ranger) embossing powder over the ink and heat embossed it. Antique Gold isn't opaque; it provides a lovely and slightly holographic sheen.

I used a Spellbinders Lacey Circle die for the teapot sentiment. The teapot is from Crafty Secrets "Tea & Coffee" set. I wrote the sentiment with a Zig pen. The background paper is by Cosmo Cricket - I stitched it with my sewing machine and inked around the edges with pink ink.

The lace trim is from my stash (probably 30 years old or more) and the rayon seam binding is a find from my mom's trip to Goodwill. I sprayed it with Tattered Angels, crumpled it up and let it dry. It's got some sparkly shine from the TA.

I adhered all of this on a pre-made kraft card base and inked the edges with the PTI white ink. I used Glue Arts "Perma-Tac" and Beacon Adhesives "Zip Dry" for my adhesives. Thanks for taking a peek!

Nuts about you!

2011-01-13T12:13:00.000-08:00

I've had these nuts and squirrel die cuts for more than 10 years. I think they came from Creative Memories at some point via my mom's cousin. Anyway, I knew they were perfect for this cute card layout!

I wanted to add some texture because I'm not a big fan of plain die cuts layered on top of each other. I embossed the squirrel with the Swiss Dots Cuttlebug embossing folder and layered it on the green square with a foam dot. I added the grass cut over top of this and added the pink eyeball. I love those things!

As for the rest, this card is super duper easy. I layered the embellished square onto a Lacey Square die from Spellbinders. I put the background paper onto the card base (paper is by Eye M 2 Cute - love the pink wood grain!) and added the square. I used random letter stickers for the title (Sassafrass, Basic Grey and American Crafts Thickers).

Thanks for taking a peek!

More Paint Sample Fun

2011-01-10T07:39:00.000-08:00

Today was supposed to be the first day of my new semester of classes. However, 10+ inches of snow put a sizable dent in that! So I'm back for one last pre-semester blog post. This is it - the last of my paint samples I picked up. *sigh*

For a minute there, I almost forgot they were FREE and I can get more whenever I want! ☺

I wanted to show off the yummy shades of yellow, so I went really simple on this card. I used a Spellbinders Lacey Squares die and a Standard Squares die to make the sentiment (alpha stickers are from Doodlebug). The white punched strip was made with a Martha Stewart Crafts Double Edge punch. I just added pretty buttons with Fabri-Tac by Beacon Adhesives and I was done!

Thanks for taking a peek :)

Fly Away With Me

2011-01-09T13:57:00.000-08:00

This is for the Flourishes release contest - the colors of love challenge!
The lighting seems weird on this one, but I guess it's because of the snow reflecting the light into my porch. This card was made with Papertrey Ink's "Up, up and away!" set and also with the hearts from Verve's "Hundred Hearts" set. I stamped the balloon baskets on the card, but stamped the balloons themselves onto other white paper - 3 of each. I cut them out and scored down the middle and adhered them back to back to create the 3D effect. Then I attached them to the card above the baskets.

The bottom was done using the Martha Stewart Crafts Deep Edge "Daisy Fan" punch. I finished it off with a knotted sheer ribbon (Hobby Lobby) and a twine tied button (Jillibean Soup).
I used Zip Dry on everything.

Well, I start back to classes this week, so I probably won't be posting as regularly as I have been. Please bear with me though, I won't leave! I have 12 hours again this semester and I'm hoping it goes quickly.

Thanks for taking a peek!

Winter Wishes

2011-01-07T12:23:00.000-08:00

Do you ever have embellishments or scraps that you just can't get rid of because you are just sure you'll use them someday? I know I do. Luckily, every once in a while, I make a card for which one of those oldies but goodies is a perfect match. This card has two! Remember Prima Paintables papers? The snowflake is from one of those...I loved those papers. Perhaps that's why I just couldn't part with this last snowflake. The oval sentiment is ancient and I have no idea where it came from. A few years ago, I decorated it with some extra "Deco Snow" paste and glitter and it made its home in my extra embellishment drawer. I thought it paired with the snowflake quite nicely. I also added a silver pipe cleaner and some punched borders (Martha Stewart Deco Fan Corner punch and EK Success Diamond Scallop).

I guess the moral for today is: don't give up on those random embellies! ;) Thanks for taking a peek.

Use Those Freebies!

2011-01-03T14:47:00.000-08:00

If you love color as much as I do, you might gravitate towards the paint samples in your department/home improvement store. Even though I haven't painted a room in years (we rent), I just love the beautiful mixes and shades of colors that can be found there! The most awesome thing about them is that they're almost always free. FREE!
I grabbed up a handful of my favorites a few months ago from Ace Hardware and finally got around to making this card. As I was making it, I realized just how easy it would be to make a set of neat cards in different colors.

For this card, all I did was cut the paint sample strips to fit the card and I cut the part with the names of the paints. Then I just layered them, added a decorative strip border (Martha Stewart Crafts Deco Shells border punch). I finished the top off with a polka-dotted ribbon from Hobby Lobby, a rub-on from 7Gypsies, a Spellbinders Lacey Square die cut and 2 orange gems.

So go grab up a fist full of those paint samples and let your imagination run wild!

Birthday Card for the New Year!

2011-01-01T12:58:00.000-08:00

When I checked the store this week, I noticed I was low on birthday cards again. I have a really fun Loralie Designs birthday stamp and wanted to ink it up again and that's how this card was born. I think decorating these stamps is so fun! They're big enough that you have room to put on extra pretties like pearls and glitter, but small enough for a card. This stamp is called "Birthday Girl" - isn't she cute?

I colored her in with Copics and pieced her shirt and hat with patterned paper shaded with Copics. I pieced the cake as well, using some really old watercolor paper to give some texture to it. I used Prima Marketing pearls for the earrings and I used Glossy Accents by Ranger to coat the eyeglasses so they look like glass.

I used a Spellbinders Eyelet Squares die and a Martha Stewart Crafts "Deco Shells" corner punch to make the border. The patterned paper is by Pink Paislee.

Thanks for taking a peek and happy new year!

Winter Wonderland

2010-12-26T19:06:00.000-08:00

Well, we didn't end up getting a white Christmas this year. We had a snow forecast for Thursday night, but nothing ever came of it. This morning, however, we woke up to this:

Not snow, but a beautiful coat of frost. Other places in town had even more, but I didn't have a chance to get other photos. I suppose this pretty frosted wonderland is enough to tide us over, but what we really want is some SNOW for Christmas break!

These two cards are from last season, but they're pretty appropriate. The stamp is an old wood handled rubber stamp I picked up at my dollar store when we lived in Tennessee. I believe the brand was Miss Elizabeth's. I colored the images a bit with Copics and accented with Diamond Dust and Martha Stewart Crafts Mica Flakes. All dies are Spellbinders of course :) I used Standard Circles, Scalloped Circles, Petite Snowflake Border and Create a Flake 2. Thanks for taking a peek!

Merry Christmas!!!!

2010-12-25T08:37:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Poinsettias cont.

2010-12-23T13:26:00.000-08:00

This is another one of my poinsettia paper cards in a more subtle style. I also used the boxwood wreath and bow from the Flourishes "Boxwood and Poinsettia" set. The sentiment is by Papertrey. I made red berries with dots of Stickles. The lace is a very old vintage that my mom picked up - I love vintage lace! I inked slightly around the edges of the red cardstock with Papertrey's "Fresh Snow" ink as well. The die cut is a Spellbinders Labels Sixteen.
Thanks for taking a peek!

Button, Button, Who's Got the Button?

2010-12-22T12:13:00.000-08:00

I wanted to do a fun card to send to my sister in law and her kids. I had a large tree left over from the bunch of trees I die cut a while back (from glitter paper I made myself - the tutorial is in the current issue of Scrap 'n Art) and I knew it would be perfect. This is a very simple card - I cut the paper (Cosmo Cricket) and lightly distressed the edges with my scissors. Then I adhered the tree with Zip Dry and I also used the Zip Dry to adhere the buttons. As is the case with many glittered Thickers, they needed a bit more adhesive, so I applied a bit of the Zip Dry to them as well. On the inside, it says, "merry, merry, merry Christmas!"

Thanks for taking a peek!

Pretty Poinsettias

2010-12-21T11:27:00.000-08:00

I think poinsettias are such a classy and beautiful flower. Last year I bought the "Boxwood & Poinsettias" stamp set from Flourishes and I have to say I'm getting my money's worth! I love making my own custom poinsettia paper and here are a couple different cards I've made this week.

For this card, I took medium pink cardstock and stamped large poinsettias and petals on the smooth side. I cut out one to use as an embellishment and then cut a piece to fit a 5x7 card. After I cut it, I used IOD Prima tape (it's old from my stash) to add the layer of text. I used Stampin' Up Real Red ink because it can be smeared a bit with moisture. I put some Diamond Stickles on the single poinsettia and smeared it with my finger to get the effect in the center. I finished the card off with a Hero Arts "Holiday Sayings" sentiment and Martha Stewart Crafts "Deco Fan" border punch.

This card was much more simple. I just took a plain white card base and stamped it with the large poinsettias. I glittered the centers and added the sentiment square that I die cut with Spellbinders Eyelet Squares. The ornament is a Spellbinders die from the Poinsettia Frameabilities set. The sentiment is by Papertrey Ink - Mega Mixed Messages.

On this last card, I did the same first couple steps as on the first. Then instead of adding the tape, I stamped text over it with Papertrey Ink's "Fresh Snow" ink and a Hot Off the Press text stamp. I smeared the centers with stickles and added the matted paper to the card base. I die cut a Spellbinders Labels Seventeen die in white and stamped with the Papertrey sentiment. The cute little gold tree is by Paper Dreams Factory - they are an AMAZING source of vintage embellishments!

In other news, we got a new cat! Our Humane Society was having a big adoption day on Saturday and the animals which had been there for a long time were really reduced. We picked up a 4-5 year old neutered male named Max. Our other cat is a 5 year old neutered male of the exact same size. We brought him home and he is just a lover! Such a cuddly guy and a big softie to boot. He so badly wants to be Ace's friend, but Ace is a little anxious.

Neither are aggressive though, so mostly they just follow each other around and stare. Ace had a moment of panic this morning and popped Max on top of the head with his dangerously furry paw and ran away. Max was unimpressed. Most of the time, they can be found standing on opposite sides of a door frame, peering at each other while Max does his purr-meow.

Other times, Max simply gives up and stalks Ace. When Ace gets near the stairs, he chases him up and I can hear him running into the wall at the top. Evidently his previous indoor experiences did not include wood floors.

Warmest Wishes

2010-12-18T09:31:00.000-08:00

We're getting our first snow of the season! It doesn't seem like we'll get a lot, but it's soft and fluffy and just beautiful as it's falling. I love the first snowfall - there's just something magical about it. I thought this card was appropriate for celebrating. I used the new Nested Mitten dies from Spellbinders and the new Snowflake Pendant die as well. I LOVE that large snowflake.

I used Papertrey Ink's "Mega Mixed Messages" for the sentiment. The pink strip of words is IOD Prima Marketing Tape. It's old - like 5 years old or so and I decided it needed to once again see the light of day. I used the Martha Stewart Crafts Deco Fan border punch for the punched edges and Martha Stewart Crafts Mica Flake Glitter for the mittens. The center bling is from my stash - I think it's by Hero Arts.

I also finished up my finals this week, so I'm free for a while! It's a great feeling :) Thanks for taking a peek!

Super simple

2010-12-12T13:16:00.000-08:00

I guess I'm going through a "simple" phase because this is another card that barely took 5 minutes to create. I did have the flower made ahead of time, but it could easily be made with a Prima or other ready-made flower. I used the Poinsettia Nested dies from Spellbinders to make the flower (Graphic 45 Christmas Past paper) and I glued pearl beads into the center. That was the hardest part of this one, the rest is easy peasy! I just stamped the sentiment (Holiday Sayings by Hero Arts) and glued sparkly pipe cleaners to the card base - I purchased mine in the Hobby Lobby craft supply dept.
Thanks for taking a peek!

Simple and Classy

2010-12-08T09:12:00.000-08:00

I'm not so much of a simple papercrafter. I like techniques and all the extra "stuff" - that's what's fun to me. However, sometimes, I happen upon a card that just doesn't need a lot of extra. To me, this is one of those cards. I used the reindeer again from the Spellbinders Fanciful Holiday and it's layered onto a Spellbinders Labels Sixteen. The silver doily is by Martha Stewart. I used a dot of Stickles for Rudolph's nose and a small strip of Hobby Lobby ribbon for an accent :)

Thanks for taking a peek!

Checking in

2010-12-05T17:37:00.000-08:00

I'm still pretty busy with classes ending and finals coming up next week, but I wanted to peek in and share a card :)
I've been playing with my Spellbinders a lot this week. It's fun to be able to make up a lot of die cuts to use on cards even if I'm not sure how I'm going to use them. I think it lets me be a little bit more creative, because I make combinations I wouldn't normally think to do - like the one on this card.

I used the Poinsettia Frame die and some gold shiny cardstock. I love how the embossed portions look with the metallic paper! I'm also getting a lot of use out of the reindeer die from the new Fanciful Holiday die set. Of course I had to add a red pearl to his nose! Both of these are layered on a Labels Nine. The plaid paper is from Graphic 45 Christmas Past - LOVE that collection. The sentiment (Hero Arts) was heat embossed with copper detail powder from Stampendous!
Thanks for taking a peek!

Rudolph

2010-11-18T13:57:00.001-08:00

I didn't create this recently, but I realized I never shared it. I must have had this reindeer die cut for 8 years - it's pretty old. I decided it needed some Swiss Dots (Cuttlebug embossing folder) and a red glittery nose! For the background, I used the Candy Cane embossing folder and inked over it with Fired Brick Distress Ink. Such a simple card, but I think it's fun :) Thanks for taking a peek!