The 12 Kits of Holidays--February 2013

Oh my heavens, what happened to February?!  This month has just flown by, and I can hardly believe it's time for another round of The 12 Kits of Holidays!  Check out the country-inspired Christmas kit that Renee sent us this month:

I actually struggled with this kit for a while because there was so much stuff to work with!  But I managed to get 4 cards done, and luckily have lots of supplies left to use later.  :)

Cardstock:  Papertrey Ink (Rustic White)

Patterned paper:  Echo Park (This and That Christmas)

Stamp:  Waltzingmouse (Yonder Star)

Ink:  Stampin' Up! (Real Red)

Tools:  Papertrey Ink (Parisian Doily die), WPlus9 (star dies)

Accessories:  My Favorite Things (buttons), Michaels (twine)

Cardstock:  Papertrey Ink (Rustic White, Pure Poppy, Dark Chocolate)

Patterned paper:  Echo Park (This and That Christmas)

Stamp:  Waltzingmouse (Woodenheart Alphabet, Yonder Star Background)

Ink:  Stampin' Up! (Real Red, Chocolate Chip)

Tools:  Papertrey Ink (Alpha Blocks die), pinking shears, corner rounder

Accessories:  My Favorite Things (button), Michaels (ribbon)

Cardstock:  Papertrey Ink (Rustic White, Dark Chocolate)

Patterned paper:  Echo Park (This and That Christmas)

Stamp:  Waltzingmouse (Yonder Star)

Ink:  Stampin' Up! (Real Red), Papertrey Ink (Chamomile tea dye)

Tools:  Memory Box (Deer Trio die), Sizzix (embossing folder), Spellbinders (label die), corner rounder

Cardstock:  Papertrey Ink (Rustic White, Dark Chocolate)

Patterned paper:  Echo Park (This and That Christmas)

Stamp:  Waltzingmouse (Yonder Star)

Ink:  Stampin' Up! (Real Red, Chocolate Chip)

Tools:  Waltzingmouse (Yonder Star cut files), pinking shears

Accessories:  My Favorite Things (button)

Keeping it short and sweet so you can visit the rest of the 12 Kits crew!

Joyce: Cards-by-the-Sea
Renee: ItsAPatchworkLife
Tracey: InMyCreativeOpinion
Sharron: OnPapillionWings

Marybeth: Marybeth's Time for Paper

Jeanne: AKeptLife
Amy: Stamp-n-Paradise
Kim: CupcakesCardsandKim
Kara: KandRDesigns
Kelly: GinghamGirl
Jessica: The Paper Parade

Thanks for stopping by!

CFC91--Hi Ho Silver

Happy Friday!  Who's ready for the weekend?  I hope you'll find time for something fun, perhaps even a challenge or two.  :)

This week's CAS-ual Fridays challenge:  use silver on your clean and simple creation.  I rarely reach for metallics, so I really enjoyed the push to do something different.

Despite the fun challenge, it's also a sad week at CAS-ual Fridays, as we're saying farewell to several Girl Fridays.  They all have exciting things in their future, so we're sure to keep seeing their incredible creations in the blogosphere, but they will be greatly missed at CAS-ual Fridays.  :(  I hope you'll take some time to visit each of them to wish them well!

As for my card this week, I couldn't resist using some silver glitter paper on my card base.  The white panel was stamped repeatedly with a border from Mama Elephant's Trifecta in aqua.  I added a sentiment from WPlus9's Heartfelt Mix, some silver cord, and a few silver sequins.

Cardstock:  WPlus9 Design Studio (White)

Glitter paper: Michaels

Stamps:  Mama Elephant (Trifecta), WPlus9 Design Studio (Heartfelt Mix)

Ink:  Stampin' Up! (Pool Party), Memento (Tuxedo Black)

Tool:  Fiskars (hole punch)

Accessories:  silver cord, sequins

I can't wait to see your entry in the gallery!

Thanks for visiting today, friends!  Have a great start to your weekend.

Kids' Craft--Magnetic Bookmarks

Cardstock:  Stampin' Up! (Pretty in Pink, Lucky Limeade), WPlus9 Design Studio (White)

Stamps:  Papertrey Ink (Tiny Treats: Valentine, Boxes, Bags, & Tags), Lawn Fawn (Chevron Backdrops)

Ink:  WPlus9 Design Studio (White), Memento (Tuxedo Black), Stampin' Up! (Real Red, Lucky Limeade, Pretty in Pink)

Tools:  Spellbinders (circle die), corner rounder

Hi friends!  How about a just-for-fun post tonight?  I've been looking forward to sharing the Valentines my daughter and I made for her class.  We're not big on giving out candy as party favors, so I'm always trying to think of alternatives.

This past Christmas, my daughter got some magnetic bookmark clips in her stocking, and that was the inspiration for these little magnetic clips.  Aren't they cute?  

We made simple cards out of cardstock, Lucky Limeade for the boys and Pretty in Pink for the girls, and clipped the bookmarks to the top.  For reference, the cards are 2 1/2 X 3 1/4 inches and the clips are 1 3/8 X 4 1/2 inches.

Here's a view of the clips once they're taken off of the cards:

This design could be adapted to whatever stamps and dies you have in your stash.  I used a Spellbinders circle die to round the ends of a strip of white cardstock, then my daughter did some basic stamping with images from PTI's Tiny Treats: Valentine and Boxes, Bags, & Tags.  She colored the images with pencils.

I stamped the fronts and backs of the bookmarks using Lawn Fawn's Chevron Backdrops, masking the image and sentiment on the front.

After scoring and folding the strips in the middle, I cut self-adhesive magnetic squares from a large roll, stacked the magnets together, and removed the backing from one square to attach it to the inside of the strip.

One tip if you make these yourself:  Make sure you orient the magnetic squares so that they are strongly attracted to each other.  In some orientations they have a weaker attraction, and once you adhere the magnets you won't be able to move them.

I removed the paper backing from the other magnet, folded the top of the strip down and pressed it onto the adhesive.

These were so much fun for my daughter and I to make together, and hopefully her classmates will enjoy using them.

If you decide to make any of these, I'd love to hear how they turn out!  I already have plans of making some Halloween themed clips for our annual party's goodie bags.

Hope you've had a great weekend!  Thanks for visiting today!

CFC90--Black and White plus 1

Have you been following all of the excitement at CAS-ual Fridays?  Tonight's the night when the new team of Girl Fridays is being introduced, and I'm thrilled to say that I will be staying on for another term!  You can see the rest of the DT announcement on the CAS-ual Fridays Challenge blog.  Let me just say--I feel incredibly humbled to part of such a talented group!

As if that weren't exciting enough, tonight is also Release Night for the latest batch of CAS-ual Fridays Stamps!  To celebrate, CAS-ual Fridays Stamps is sponsoring this week's challenge, which is to use black and white plus one other color on your clean and simple design.

I used an image and sentiment from one of the newest sets, Only You.  I love the clever mix and match sentiments in this set, centered on the word "you".

I chose Lucky Limeade as my accent color, stamping the flourish with it and coloring some rhinestones with my Copics to match.

The black cardstock panels are debossed with a diamond pattern for subtle texture, but the sentiment panel is really the star of the show in this design.

Cardstock:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Black, White)

Stamps:  CAS-ual Fridays Stamps (Only You)

Ink:  Stampin' Up! (Lucky Limeade), Memento (Tuxedo Black), Copic markers

Tool:  Papertrey Ink (diamond impression plate)

Accessories:  rhinestones

I hope you'll join in the fun this week!  I always love seeing the splashes of color in the gallery.

I promised you photos of my daughter's Valentines, and I hope to be back with those over the weekend.  There just aren't enough hours in the day since I took on teaching a class this semester, and I've missed spending time with all of you here in blog land.

Have a great Friday!

Cloud9 February Blog Hop

It's time for another Cloud9 Blog Hop!

This month's inspiration photo comes from the Black Eiffel blog, featuring an assortment of kids' Valentine treat bags:

via Black Eiffel

I took the inspiration pretty literally and whipped up some little envelopes to put in my kids' lunch boxes on Valentine's Day.

Using WPlus9's seed packet die, I cut the envelopes from this kraft, polka-dotted paper from a collection that I must have bought three or four years ago.  I just keep whittling away at it year by year.  :)

For my daughter's envelope, I used the just-released sets Chantilly Trim (for the floral image) and Written on Ribbon (for the banner), as well as the companion die.  The sentiments are from Love You More.

My son's envelope is decorated using images from Love Birds, along with the coordinating dies.  Since my little guy doesn't do much reading yet, I opted for the heart speech bubble from Love You More in lieu of a sentiment.

Cardstock:  WPlus9 Design Studio (White)

Patterned paper:  (K & Company)

Stamps:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Chantilly Trim, Written on Ribbon, Love Birds, Love You More)

Ink:  Stampin' Up! (Lucky Limeade, Real Red, Chocolate Chip)

Tools:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Written on Ribbon die, Love Birds dies)

I'll probably fill these with stickers and a love note, which should put a smile on their faces, especially since this mom is rarely organized enough ahead of time to put notes in lunch boxes.  :)

Please join us for this month's hop!  We'd love to see what you come up with using your WPlus9 goodies.

I'm off to tackle the shoveling!  Thanks for spending a bit of your day with me.

CFC89--Love Song

Hello again!  Is everyone on the East Coast ready for the blizzard?  They're calling for 2 feet of snow here, and as excited as my kids are to finally do some sledding, I'm hoping the forecast is wrong.  Snow days are great until you have to shovel.  :)

It's CAS-ual Fridays challenge time, so let's get right to it:

Doesn't Michele come up with the best themes every week?  This week, in honor of the Grammy awards coming up on Sunday, we're challenging you to use a song as inspiration for your clean and simple design.

Our sponsor this week is Michele's very own CAS-ual Fridays Stamps, so be sure to play along for a chance to win some of her fabulous stamps!

This was a tough one for me, and several of my ideas didn't quite translate to paper.  Then, while scrolling through song titles on the web, I came across the song "Lucky" by Jason Mraz and Colbie Caillat.  It made me think of this sentiment in the PTI mini set, Luck of the Irish.  Since my hubby loves green and the Boston Celtics, I'm thinking he won't mind this unconventional Valentine.  :)

Cardstock:  Stampin' Up! (Gumball Green, Real Red), WPlus9 Design Studio (White)

Stamps:  Papertrey Ink (Distressed Stripes, Luck of the Irish)

Ink:  Stampin' Up! (Gumball Green, Certainly Celery, Real Red)

Tools:  Papertrey Ink (heart dies)

The hearts and "leaves" were cut with PTI's Heart Prints dies, and I hand trimmed the stem.

Please join us this week with your song-inspired creation!  It should be fun!

Thanks for stopping by!

An Awesome Birthday Card with CAS-ual Fridays Stamps

Hey there!  I have a card featured over on the store blog for CAS-ual Fridays Stamps today, so I'm popping in quickly to share it here, too.

Our good friends have a son who will be turning 8 this year, so I thought it would be fun to use stamps from Rad to get a head start on his birthday card.  His dad is the only person I've ever heard use the phrase "like a boss", so it seemed appropriate.  :)

This is super easy to put together, once I'd settled on my design and colors.  I placed the uninked stamps on the top red panel to line them up, picked them up all at once with my acrylic block, then stamped them with Real Red ink.

The nice thing about the white strip?  If you mess up the stamping on the white card base, you can always stamp it again on a separate strip and slip it into place.  Not that I would actually know that from experience or anything.  ;)

Cardstock:  Stampin' Up! (Real Red, Tangerine Tango), WPlus9 Design Studio (White)

Stamps:  CAS-ual Fridays Stamps (Rad)

Ink:  Stampin' Up! (Real Red, Tangerine Tango), Versamark

Tools:  Fiskars (star punch)

Accessories:  Filigree (white embossing powder)

Like the punched holes I've done before, I like the simple look of the punched out stars for a masculine card, and it's a bonus that it stays flat for mailing.

Thanks for stopping by today!  Come back tonight for a new CASE Study challenge!

WPlus9 February/March Release Day!

It's finally here!  It's Release Day at WPlus9, and all of the new stamps, dies, ink, and cardstock that have been previewed over the past few days are now available in the WPlus9 store!  

To celebrate the release, I have one more project to share which uses three of the new stamp sets and two of the companion dies.  This is my last post as a Guest Designer, but I want to say a huge thank you to Dawn, the Design Team, and all of you for your wonderful comments and enthusiasm over the past week!

For my card, I stamped the mesh panel from Chantilly Trim onto kraft cardstock using the new white ink.  The sentiment, from Embroidered Bouquet, is stamped on top of it in black, and I die cut and stamped flowers from Very Vintage Florals to embellish the corner.

I die cut the left side of the kraft panel using the Scalloped Border die and pierced along the edge, then mounted the entire panel onto a Cupid's Bow card base.

Cardstock:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Cupid's Bow, White), Papertrey Ink (Kraft)

Stamps:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Very Vintage Florals, Chantilly Trim, Embroidered Bouquet)

Ink:  WPlus9 Design Studio (White), Stampin' Up! (Real REd, Lucky Limeade), Memento (Tuxedo Black)

Tools:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Very Vintage Florals companion dies, Scalloped Border die)

Now that I look at it on the screen, I'm thinking I'll add some bling around the sentiment, but as is this would be great for mailing.

Stop by each of the Design Team blogs to leave some love for those incredibly talented ladies!  They really are the best in the business.  :)

Dawn Woleslagle

Elise Durenberger

Kerianne Gwin

Cristina Kowalczyk

Lea Lawson

Jean Martin

Jinny Newlin

Sarah Martina Parker

Savitri Wilder

Thanks again for stopping by and sharing your thoughts with me!  Happy shopping!  :)

WPlus9 February/March Release Day 4--Full Reveal

It's time to reveal all of the new stamps and dies being released this month at WPlus9!  I know you probably can't wait to see them, so I'll get right to it:

Chantilly Trim

Scalloped Border die

Very Vintage Florals

Very Vintage Florals companion dies

Lacey Layers

Lacey Layers companion dies

Embroidered Bouquet

Written on Ribbon

Written on Ribbon companion die

In addition to these beautiful sets, WPlus9 is releasing three new cardstock colors AND a fabulous white pigment ink!  Everything will be available tomorrow in the WPlus9 shop.

Before I go, I have a quick and easy card to share, made with stamps from Chantilly Trim and a sentiment from Very Vintage Florals.

I love being able to use the scalloped border die to make a decorative edge on my cards.  And don't you just love the detail on those lace trims?

Cardstock:  WPlus9 Design Studio (White), Stampin' Up! (Wisteria Wonder)

Stamps:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Chantilly Trim, Very Vintage Florals)

Ink:  Stampin' Up! (Wisteria Wonder, Certainly Celery, So Saffron)

Tool:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Scalloped Border die)

Don't forget to stop by tomorrow for the group post!  Thanks for visiting today.

WPlus9 February/March Release Day 3

Hello friends!  The fun continues with Day 3 of the WPlus9 release previews!  I can't tell you how much fun it has been working with the new stamps and dies, and today's cards are my favorites so far.  :)

Today we are previewing one more stamp set and its coordinating die:

Written on Ribbon
Written on Ribbon companion die

Written on Ribbon has a beautiful folded banner image and tons of sentiments for weddings, birthdays, and more.  For my first sample, I made a gate-fold card with the die cut banner right in the center.

I just can't get enough of this new white ink, so I used it to stamp images from Embroidered Bouquet onto dark gray cardstock.  Love!

The banner and gems look orange, but they are SU's Calypso Coral.  I'm a bit smitten with this gray and coral color combo at the moment.

Cardstock:  Stampin' Up! (Basic Gray, Calypso Coral), WPlus9 Design Studio (White)

Stamps:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Embroidered Bouquet, Written on Ribbon)

Ink:  WPlus9 Design Studio (White), Stampin' Up! (Calypso Coral, Basic Gray), Copic marker

Tools:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Written on Ribbon die), We R Memory Keepers (Corner Chomper)

Accessories:  Michaels (rhinestones)

For my second card, I wanted to use the small sentiments from Written on Ribbon in a different way, so I lined up several wedding-themed phrases on a block and stamped them down the edge of a white card base.

I stamped and die cut images from Lacey Layers and adhered them to a lavender panel, which is popped up with foam tape.  I chose a focal sentiment from Heartfelt Mix, stamping "congratulations" on a white banner and "to the happy couple" below it.

Cardstock:  Stampin' Up! (Wisteria Wonder), WPlus9 Design Studio (White)

Stamps:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Written on Ribbon, Lacey Layers, Heartfelt Mix)

Ink:  Stampin' Up! (Wisteria Wonder, Basic Gray)

Tools:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Lacey Layers dies)

Accessories:  Michaels (silver pearls)

Once again, you won't want to miss the creations from the WPlus9 Design Team:

Dawn Woleslagle

Elise Durenberger

Kerianne Gwin

Cristina Kowalczyk

Lea Lawson

Jean Martin

Jinny Newlin

Sarah Martina Parker

Savitri Wilder

Thanks so much for your comments and support!  Be sure to stop by tomorrow for the full reveal of all the new sets!

WPlus9 February/March Release Day 2

Welcome back to Day 2 of previews of the February/March release from WPlus9 Design Studio!  Today we're featuring two more gorgeous stamp sets and a collection of dies:

Lacey Layers
Lacey Layers Companion Dies
Embroidered Bouquet

And as if new stamps and dies weren't enough, this month there is a new product being introduced that is a must-have:  white pigment ink!  Oh my goodness, I thought I had my go-to white ink all figured out, but this new ink from WPlus9 is amazing!  Just look at the coverage and crisp detail I got using it to stamp a background with Embroidered Bouquet onto kraft cardstock.

I used one of the new Lacey Layers dies to cut a window in the kraft panel, stamped the coordinating image from Lacey Layers in green, then added a sentiment from a set previewed yesterday, Very Vintage Florals.  That cute little button stamp is part of the Lacey Layers set, too.

Cardstock:  WPlus9 Design Studio (White), Papertrey Ink (Kraft)

Stamps:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Embroidered Bouquet, Lacey Layers, Very Vintage Florals)

Ink:  WPlus9 Design Studio (White), Stampin' Up! (Pear Pizzazz, Chocolate Chip)

Tools:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Lacey Layers dies)

Accessories:  jute twine

My next card was difficult to photograph, so I apologize for the glare.  I used multiple images from Lacey Layers, stamped in Versamark and heat embossed with clear powder on WPlus9's black cardstock.  I added a sentiment from Spring Post on a strip of cream cardstock, using one of the circle dies included in the Lacey Layers Companion die set to round the end of the strip.

Don't let the reflection fool you--these images are incredibly detailed and stamp beautifully!  And this card looks pretty amazing in real life, I must say.  :)

Cardstock:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Black), Papertrey Ink (Vintage Cream)

Stamps:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Lacey Layers, Spring Post)

Ink:  Versamark, Memento (Tuxedo Black)

Tools:  WPlus9 Design Studio (Lacey Layers dies), We R Memory Keepers (Corner Chomper)

Accessories:  Stampendous (clear embossing powder), button, ribbon

You know the Design Team will have some amazing samples to share.  They always do.  :)

Dawn Woleslagle

Elise Durenberger

Kerianne Gwin

Cristina Kowalczyk

Lea Lawson

Jean Martin

Jinny Newlin

Sarah Martina Parker

Savitri Wilder

Thanks so much for joining me again today!  Stop by again tomorrow for Day 3 of previews!

CAS-ual Fridays #88--Love Letters

Please scroll down for Day 1 of the WPlus9 February/March Release previews!

Hello!  I'm back again with a fun new challenge from CAS-ual Fridays.  This week's theme is Love Letters:  use your alphabet stamps, stickers, or dies on your clean and simple creation.

I needed a birthday card for a little guy turning 5, so reached for my number dies and created "windows" in a panel of navy cardstock.  I popped the panel up with foam dots and highlighted the number "5" with a scrap of orange patterned paper behind it.

I kept the sentiment simple, since this little guy can't read yet.  :)  Embossed chevrons on the background and an orange star are the finishing touches.

Cardstock:  Stampin' Up! (Midnight Muse), Papertrey Ink (Terracotta Tile)

Patterned paper:  My Mind's Eye (Alphabet Soup)

Stamp:  Papertrey Ink (Birthday Basics)

Ink:  Stampin' Up! (Midnight Muse)

Tools:  My Favorite Things (numbers, tab die), Lifestyle Crafts (embossing folder), Papertrey Ink (star die), We R Memory Keepers (Corner Chomper)

Accessories:  button, DMC floss

I hope you'll join us this week!  Thanks so much for your visit!