Featured Friday - Samantha Aguilera!!

Happy Featured Friday Folks, it's that fine time of the month where I get to spread around some bloggy love and showcase a blogger who's inspired me in some way.

Today's star designer is brought to you by the letter S for:

Samantha Aguilera of Designs by Sammy!! 

Although my style tends to be more mixed media-y, I admire designers for a host of different reasons. These FF segments have seen cardmakers who focus on shabby chic, masking masterminds, and yes - even clean and simple.

That's because even if I'm not particularly good at creating in that aesthetic, I still drool over well-designed cards in any style. And Featured Fridays are a GREAT way to get me outside of my comfort zone.

And that's where Samantha comes in. We "met" when she asked me to be a part of the Crafty Gals Design Team (which I served a term on). I always drooled over Sammy's ability to create fancy fold cards, but her greatest skill (in my opinion) is coloring. Holeeee snapdragons can this girl color!

By why let me tell you all about her, when she can do that herself? Here's 7 things you should know about Samantha:

1. How did you get your start in card making?

My mom is actually the one who got me started! In December of 2009 I got a Cricut and I have just expanded from there. I've always been into crafty things though. Before I was into card making, I use to paint and scrapbook as well.

2. You're an amazing colorist! Have any tips for people interested in learning to color like you?

I invested in some of the Kit & Clowder technique classes and those are worth every penny! I feel like those classes defintely help me perfect some of my coloring techniques and I've learned so many new ones along the way as well. The biggest tip, I would have to say though is PRACTICE!

3. If you could buy any craft supply/product right now, what would it be?

A MISTI! I've been eyeballing that thing out for a while now. I have a couple stamp sets that are meant to be layered and with MISTI it looks like it would be a breeze.

4. If you were a color, what color would you be and why?

I would have to say Magenta. First off it's my favorite color, second off I love how fun, loud, and pretty it is!

5. What are your favorite card making challenges?

I'm completely biased but Crafty Gals Corner (which I run for those of you who didn't know) is one of my favorites! I also really like Faery Ink, Scrapper's Delights, Sassy Studio Designs. Some of those are blog challenges but nevertheless - still fun!

6. How do you stay organized?

I attribute a lot of that to my need for organization. My craftroom has to be oragnized, I'm a little OCD about it. Every box is labeled with what it's side, things are alphabetized, color coded, etc. My dies and stamps are in Stamping Up! Storage boxes and are colored coded by occasion. I can't stand not being able to find something - so with this crazy organized way I hardly ever loose anything.

7. What is your best advice for new bloggers?

Explore other people's blogs, find some inspiration, and show us what you got!

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I just got a MISTI and, although I haven't had much time to test it out, I can tell it's going to be amazing! 

For those of you who haven't seen a Featured Friday before, it's all about CASEing. I'll find one creation on the featuree's blog that made me fall in love, and then we BOTH get to CASE the creation! 

THE ORIGINAL

Oh my goodness golly - this card is actually displayed in my dining room right now because Samantha sent it to me for my birthday. I was BLOWN AWAY. That gorgeously colored ombre hair, the netting, and the pearl "bubbles" It's so creative and something I never would have thought to design!

SAMANTHA'S CASE

MY CASE

 

So my very first thought was to do  Janna Prosvirina's Oak Fairy

with ombre hair like the awesome Samantha - ummmm yeaaaaahhhhh I'm going to need some practice withthat because, as you can see - this is NOT ombre hair. Snicker*

I forgot how relaxing coloring could be!! I colored this girl up with a whole HOST of Spectrum Noir Markers. ANNND! After one rather unsuccessful attempt at scoring, I fancy folded! *Takes bow* Taaa daaaa! So thank you Samantha, for pushing me out of my comfort zone because I LOVE what I created! 

I'm sending this gal over to:

Crafty Gals Corner - Bingo Challenge (I chose the middle row down - ribbon, colored digi, sentiment)

Aud Sentiments - ATG + a sentiment

One Sweet Challenge - Anything Goes using Sweet Pea Stamps

Darnell's NBUS - Everything on this card is new. I won this digi stamp back in March and haven't used it yet - woops! I also used some brand new May Arts adhesive ribbon, and the wooden chippies have been idling in my drawer, too. 

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Pssssssssssssssssssstttt: Here's special sneaky peeky for my bloggy followers - As we were going through the conversation for Featured Friday, Samantha said "Gosh, I love what you do with mixed media." and I gushed "Thanks! But I WISH I could do what you do with coloring." and so an idea curdled in our brains. 

So on the last Thursday of the month we'll be bringing you

The BS Sessions! Basically, I'll ask Sammy one question about coloring, and SHE will ask me one question about mixed media. And then we'll share tutorials on our blog. The first BS Sessions will be held September 4th! Stay tuned!

PLEASE - if you could spare a minute of your day would you mind popping by Sammy's blog and telling her hello? I'm sure it would make her day!

Featured Friday - Jenny Martin!!!!!

It's that magical time of the month again where I get to show off a stamper who's been a huge inspiration to me. If you're new to my blog (HELLO!) this segment bears the name Featured Friday and happens every 2nd Friday of the month. I'll do a little questionnaire, and then we'll each CASE one of the FF's cards. 

So, without further ado, let me introduce:

Jenny Martin of My Paper Epiphany!!

I first "met" Jenny when I saw her work in some gallery or another and gasped - and then, naturally, I had to click through to her site and say hello and stalk her...erm... I mean... pay her compliments? for awhile. 

Jenny's work is truly masterful! She started blogging back in 2011, and honestly one of the things I love most about her work is wondering how she takes such good photos - (maybe she'll share her secrets). If I had to describe Jenny's aesthetic, I'd say it's a tailored sort of mixed media with a hint of shabby chicness. She's a whiz with Distress Inks and Markers and creates some of the most vibrant colorful work on the web. I've got a little bit of a girl crush on her! Shhhhhh!

Check out these colorful designs:

 

But why gush and spew about her when she can give you all the good gossip herself?!

Here's 7 things you should know about Jenny:

1. What type of cards do you most like to create?

Watercolour - I love the variety of ways I can achieve this effect! Distress ink/markers, watercolour paints, Gelatos, Brushos, dye inks and many more. My favourite watercolour paper is Fabriano. I’ve been experimenting with my new supplies Kuretake Gansai and Peerless Watercolours.

The Peerless watercolours are really unique and I got them because they are the perfect supply to take on holiday with me. Check them out on this youtube video.

2. What's your favorite thing in your crafting space?

Well I recently bought an old table to use as a desk and bought lots of lovely vintage things to make my work space more inspiring. I found a cute glass front cabinet and I’ve arranged all my favourite wood mount stamps in it! I also found a very old stamp holder which I love because it is a symbol of my 2 obsessions - stamping & vintage love!

Here is a pic:

3. Why did you start blogging about your creations?

I started for the same reason as a lot of people - I discovered the world of challenges and wanted to join in.

This is a quote from my 1st blog post "I entered my 1st challenge at Hero Arts last Week, and then my 2nd at Simon Says Stamps, which incredibly I won! I then entered the same card from the SSS challenge in the Sweet Pea Stamps challenge and got a prize from them too! Then yeserday I received a free 3 months subscription from Scrapbook Creations! So I am feeling very lucky! Yay!!!”

Ha! I haven’t won a SSS challenge since then.

4. Be honest... how much crafty stuff in your stash has yet to be opened?

Too much ! In fact I’ve recently started an Etsy shop to sell my cards and I’ve decided I’m going to make some die cuts using my stash of beautiful paper and sell them too. In fact I’m going to have a huge de-stash! I’ve come to the realisation that I prefer to just use media on my cards and usually not many layers, except for a few die cuts.

Too much of my time is taken up arranging and re-arranging my stash - so a lot of it has to go!

5. What is the one craft supply you couldn't do without and why?

One! Hmmm… Well I would say stamps, but you can’t do much with stamps if you don’t have ink! So I think I’m going to say my Distress Markers because they are so versatile.

6. Do you like pina coladas on a midsummer night? (Just kidding <- that's not a real question but I thought it'd make you laugh.)

You just made me picture myself on a tropical island, watching the sunset, palm trees swaying in the gentle breeze, walking on the beach with my Pina Colada and a gorgeous ……...

The real number 6. What is your favorite technique? Have an example?

I like to mix it up. But I think my favourite is like the featured card, applying ink to the stamp with distress markers, spritzing and then stamping!

The results always make me happy and feel a little bit like an artist!

7. What's the best piece of advice you could give to new bloggers?

Look at lots of other blogs and leave comments. I love that I have got to know so many people through entering challenges and commenting. It always makes me happy to receive encouraging comments, so I like to reciprocate. I am always honest and heartfelt in my comments and try to be encouraging

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And now, for the part you've alllllllll been waiting for (at least that's what I'm choosing to believe).... The CASE! 

THE ORIGINAL

I chose this STUNNING watercolor-looking bird that's been placed oh-so-carefully onto vellum and prettied up with all sorts of lovely, frilly accents. 

JENNY'S CASE

Jenny opted for a very non-literal interpretation of the original. She kept elements of the original with the layout and the twine and the watercolored butterflies on bits of vellum. Here design sings with loveliness!

MY CASE: 

I, on the other hand was MUCH less creative and did an almost picture for picture CASE of Jenny's copy. I switched the ribbon colors up a little bit and added a funky vintage earring to gussy it up, but I think it definitely pays homage to Jenny's beautiful original card.

I am going to send my card over to the following challenges:
In the Pink - use lots of Pink 
Fab N' Funky - Things with Wings
Little Red Wagon - Vellum 
Through the Craftroom Door - Anything Goes

Thank you all for sticking around. 

Would you PLEASE help me to make Jenny's day by going to her blog and saying a hello? She's currently got 72 bloggy followers but I'm SURE she would LOVE some new friends!

Featured Friday - Lauren Bergold!!!

Well you all are in for a TREAT today. If you're a new follower to my blog 1) you are awesome! and 2) Featured Friday is a once-a-month segment around these parts in which I highlight another crafty blogger who is a huge inspiration to me. 

Getting to know other bloggers has been a huge part of what drives me to create and without further ado, I will introduce this month's Featuree:

Lauren Bergold of ...all the GOOD blog names were taken...!

Firstly - how cool is her blog name?! It's just one of the MANY examples of Lauren's hilarious personality. 

I first stumbled upon Lauren's blog after viewing some of her amazing work on a design team challenge inspiration post. Her downright miraculous treatment of patterned paper leaves me incredulous every time I see one of her creations. Many of her designs include zero white space and patterns that I never would have thought to pair!

  

She's Artsy with a capital A - she frequently draws her own designs and goes beyond cardmaking with ATCs, fancy index cards, and mini-journals. 

But why let me tell you all about Lauren, when she can tell you about all about herself? Here are 7 things you should know about Lauren:

1. How did you get your crafty start?

I'm pretty convinced there's a "craft gene" and I was born with it. My mom and her sister are crafty, their dad was very creative, my nieces and nephew love to draw and color and make stuff... it's just a thing we all do!

2. What is your favorite "style" of crafting?

Collage has always been my favorite medium and I'm definitely a "more is more" kind of gal, lol! I love lots of layers, pattern-on-pattern, vintage ingredients, found objects and loads of texture. I really admire people who can do "clean and simple" but alas, I'm not one of them.

3. If you could be any color, which would it be and why?

Can I be a rainbow? Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeease??!?!! If not, I guess I'll be hot pink, to cheer everyone up! :)

4. What is the best craft organization tip you have?

Think about how you personally work best and think realistically about how much stuff you actually have. We all love pretty containers but let's face it, the plain sturdy ones tend to hold more and last longer. I store as many things as possible vertically (like a book shelf), so I can browse and access individual items easily; if I have to dig through a *pile* the stuff on the bottom just won't get used. I also keep a "basic kit" of things i use constantly (scissors, adhesives, pens)next to my prime workspace, and a duplicate set in my travel bag, because i was constantly forgetting at least one vital thing when teaching or taking classes.

5. What are your favorite card making/scrapbooking challenges to participate in?

Well Shopping Our Stash and Jingle Belles are both very near and dear to my heart, obviously! I also love the Cardabilities sketches. Fusion Card Challenge always inspires. The Crooked Stamper Sketch Challenge is pretty awesome... and I'm not just saying that because Leslie is my friend and I designed the graphic for it, lol! For the last three summers, I've participated in The Index Card a Day project (aka ICAD) via the Daisy Yellow Art blog, which is not a challenge in the traditional sense, but which I find hugely helpful for recharging mojo and trying new things.

6. What is your least favorite crafting supply?

Hmmmmmm... that's really tough! I don't think there's any particular category I dislike. I suppose I'd have to say anything that's badly designed or doesn't work right. Punches that line up poorly, dies which don't release and unreliable adhesives don't last long at my house. Life's too short!

7. What is your best advice for new crafty bloggers?

Try not to get too caught up in the "comparison" game. There will always be people who are a skill-level above and below you, this is true of EVERYTHING in life. Make things you love, keep practicing, learn from your mistakes and especially...HAVE FUN!!!

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I think her last piece of advice - to have fun! - is something that we both really agree on. Blogging and crafting is supposed to be a blast! 

Now here's the part of Featured Friday that I REALLY love. We take one of Lauren's old designs and CASE it! I distinctly remember seeing the card I chose to case for the first time and I am pretty sure I stared at it for a good long while. 

The Original: 

Thud <--- sound of my jaw dropping. Right?!?! If any card is a work of art it would be THIS ONE!! It's made with tons of paper folded pieces and patterned paper. Lauren has a tutorial on her blog, if you'd like more details about how she pulled this off. 

Lauren's CASE

Lauren opted to go for a travel-themed card and this time around she used old falling apart maps and atlases to fuel her design. She folded all the pieces from the books and maps and repurposed them into something absolutely stunning!!

My CASE

To be perfectly honest... I feel a little silly. There's no patterns on here! Doh! I started folding bits of white paper just to practice with and then I never stopped! I gessoed the whole bit to make the white paper firmer and give it more of a distressed paper mache feel and then I added a heavy layer of gelatos and blended all together. Lastly, I sponged a layer of Black Soot Distress Inks to really bring out the corners of my folded triangles. So, no patterns - but hey I'll just have to make another gorgeous card like this. 

I'm going to send this baby over to play along in the following great challenges: 
Addicted to Stamps - Make Your Mark
613 Ave Create - Anything Goes with Flag option

Thank you for popping by - Lauren has an extra card to share with you on >>>her blog<<< using this technique, in addition to that tutorial I mentioned earlier so you should definitely go say HELLO! and help to make her day EXTRA SPECIAL. That's what this bloggy community is all about - right?!

Featured Friday!!! - Georgie Connelly

Hello my friendly friends! Firstly, I'd like to say a big thank you to those who left comments on my last card. Reading through YOUR stories about country life and the great outdoors had me feeling nostalgic and (I'll admit) a little bit misty-eyed! That's why I love the bloggyland - there are so many of you who just make me so happy with your comments and your inspiration.

Speaking of inspiration, if you're new here I'll let you know about a little thing I do called Featured Friday. Once a month I feature a crafter I've met in the blogosphere and share a little bit about them with YOU! 

This month's featuree is:

Georgie Connelly of Little Blue Craft Box! 

Georgie is a hop, skip, and a jump over the pond from me and hails from England! When it comes to mixed media projects, Georgie takes the cake. Her work is textural, romantic, and ethereal and I'm always inspired after a visit to her blog. She knows how to work embossing paste and Prima flowers like no other! 

But why tell you about Georgie when she can give you much better insights herself? I asked Georgie 7 questions about her crafty life. 

How did you get your crafty start?

Ive been 'arty' in some form or another all my life, but this recent addiction started quite quietly about two and a half years a go, about six months after my son was born. Then about a year and bit later I started my blog, I was in deep at that stage and I knew then it was a point of no return! :) Heaven forbid anyone makes me go cold turkey now - I'm sure I wouldn't survive, art is my life!!

If you could be any craft supply, what would you be and why? 

This is tough... there are so many yummy goodies to choose from! But picking one…. I'd be gesso, then I could be covered, from corner to corner, in all my favourite supplies!! ;)

How do you handle mistakes in your work?

Hmm, really depends on what I'm working with, most mistakes I embrace and can bodge/fix with a happy outcome. If I'm working with water based paints and I mess up with colour from the off then they get canned. I've really not worked out a way to rescue them without it resulting in mess. Generally gesso is my life saver.

What are your favorite card making/scrapbooking challenges?

Lindy's Stamp Gang Colour Challenge 

Dusty Attic Mood Board Challenge 

Prima BAP and Colour Board

Country View Challenges

Mixed Media Monthly Challenges

Craft Stamper TIMI

Generally I find the mood boards very motivating as they're open to interpretation and if your mojo is a little low they can give you a great boost!

What's your best organizational tip for crafters?

I'm not really sure I'm qualified to give out this sort of advice, have you seen my crafty space??! :)  The best I have is reels of double sided tape hooped around my lamp. However, it is all about to change, so I -cough cough- plan to be far more organised in the future!! 

Where do you find inspiration for your designs?

Everywhere really! I love Pinterest, Google, books... Even the simplest photo of household paint swatches for colour gets my brain whizzing! My son is my biggest source of motivation for scrapbooking, as I love layouts! But ultimately my arty crafty friends are hugely inspirational and so very talented! There’s always something new to learn or products to try, so this keeps me buzzing!

What's the best piece of advice you could give to new bloggers?

I'd say try to get yourself 'out there' as much as possible. It took me ages to realise this and feel brave enough to enter challenges, comment on blogs (I was a watcher for ages) but once you do you won't look back. The online crafting community has to be the best out there for support, be it art or otherwise. If you're unsure about something, contact another crafter - they are so happy to help and so lovely (this is what I did, and I wouldn't be here now if I didn't). Ultimately, as with anything in life, you get back what you put in so don't be afraid to make the first move! :)

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When reading through Georgie's answers, I had to giggle about the organizational question. My craft room could use some work, too (and by some work, I mean a professional organizer and a dump truck) (ok... it's really not THAT bad) :) 

In my Featured Friday posts, my featuree and I always pick a past piece of their artwork to CASE. Georgie works on altered art, scrapbooking pages, and cards so I had a bevy of inspiration to choose from. 

After pouring through Georgie's blog, I finally settled on a gorgeous, saturated scrapbooking layout.

The Original

I fell in love with the seashells, the texture and the ethereal beachy feel. It truly is a masterpiece, and it helped Georgie win one of her very first Prima Marketing competitions!

Georgie's CASE

Did anybody else's jaw just drop to the floor, or was it just me! WOW! I didn't think very much could improve on the original, but the monochromatic feel and gorgeous textures definitely matched the spirit of the original to a T!

My CASE

As you can see, I had inspiration overload from Georgie's gorgeous original!! I didn't have any drywall tape or cheescloth, so I made do with some products found around my home. I gessoed a mesh potato bag to create the "drywall tape" and I used a leftover dried up baby wipe to create the cheesecloth effect. I sprayed the baby wipe with Distress Sprays to give it a foamy feel and added some frantage chips. The background was made with white acrylic paint. 

I'm sending my card over to the following challenges:

Frilly and Funky - Monochrome

Craft Stamper Take it Make it - Use Texture

Anything But Cute - Masculine

Inspired By Stamping - Customer Gallery
Fusion - Inspiration Image 

Thank you all for popping by! PLEASE please pretty please won't you go pop over to Georgie's blog and say hello to her? Let's make her day extra special! 

Featured Friday - Betty Keefe!!

It's the second Friday of the month and that means it's that magical time of the month when I get to share one of my favorite bloggers with you in a segment I like to call "Featured Friday".

So please join me in welcoming this month's guest:

Betty Keefe of Created By BJK!!!

Betty hails from Nebraska, but her daughter lives in Fargo and so I actually got the pleasure to meet her when she came for a visit earlier this year. Not only does Betty have the kind of kindness and humor that I hope to have when I grow up, she's a wizard with die cuts and clean lines. 

Hey... just because I can't do clean lines, doesn't mean I don't admire them!

Like me, Betty just started blogging last year but her cards have made a huge splash and are some of my favorites on the web. Just look at some of these stunners:

 

 

But why let me blather on about how amazing Betty is, when she has so many more interesting things she could say about herself. Here's 7 things you should know about Betty:

1. Why did you start blogging?

I started blogging in January 2014 so that I could enter challenges more easily and become a little more active in the card making/stamping world – before I had my blog I just had a Flickr photostream.

2. What inspires your designs?

A lot of my inspiration comes from roaming around on Pinterest and I follow many blogs through Bloglovin’. Sometimes it’s just a color combination, a technique or a layout that will catch my fancy and I’ll go from there.

3. If you could have a lifetime supply of one stamping product, what would it be?

This is so difficult but at the present, it would dies – there are so many wonderful techniques for using them. Dies give dimension, texture and a completeness to cards which for my style works very well.

4. How do you keep you card-making mojo going?

I don’t seem to have much trouble in that department – every morning I check out other blogs and Pinterest (I get up very early and am retired so have the time) – always manage to see something that trips my trigger. I also sell my cards in a gift shop and to many friends – rarely make the same card twice.

5. What are your favorite card challenges?

I am pretty bad about entering challenges – I follow quite a few but then never seem to get around to entering them. The challenge also has to have something I like to create – if I have to use an animal forget it!! Rarely enter sketch challenges as they are usually more layered and detailed than I like. In the fall, I start entering Merry Monday and few other Christmas challenges. I favor challenges that use clean and simple like The Card Concept and Addicted to CAS.

6. Do you do any other types of crafts?

In my past I have done macramé, counted cross-stitch, jewelry, woodcrafts – I sew, knit and crochet (not very well in any of those) – and used to scour garage and estate sales for neat stuff to upcycle into something useful. Have been stamping and making cards since about 1998 – but in 2008 had some foot surgery and had to sit around a lot – watched Jennifer Mcguire videos on using inks and it’s been cards just about exclusively since then.

7. What is your best piece of advice to new bloggers?

I consider myself a new blogger so this is another difficult question. I guess it would be "do what pleases you”.

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Pinterest and Bloglovin' - that's where you can find both Betty and I when we're not huddled in our craft rooms!

For my Featured Friday posts, I always choose a card to CASE. After scrolling through Betty's Pinterest feed, I landed on this one. 

The Original

This card has it all!  Polka dots, a splash of color, and the dies Betty loves so much. It's bright, it's clean, and it's fun!

Betty and I both took another crack at her card and CASED it. 

Betty's CASE

Gorgeousness! Isn't it? Betty knows how to knock out elegant, stunning creations. 

My CASE

I stuck with the bright, fun burst of flowers and added some sparkles to the center. I just changed a few minor things here and there, but the spirit of Betty's card is definitely smack dab in your face. 

I used the Simon Says Stamp "Thinking of You" stamp set. 

Speaking of Simon Says Stamp, I'm going to hook this card up with the SSS Wednesday Challenge - Sentimental and Shopping Our Stash - Big, Bold and Beautiful, and 613 Avenue Create - ATG/with feminine option. 

Thanks for popping by and would you pretty please pop by Betty's blog and give her some extra special bloggy love today? 

Featured Friday - Lisa

Happy Friday!! I stayed up all night packing for a 3-day craft crop I'm heading off to. My sister, my cousin, and my aunt will all be joining me and I'm ready to get inky and fabulous! Can't wait to show you all what I create!

Today brings around that special time of the month. No... not THAT time of the month. It's the time when I get to showcase a super talented designer whom I admire in a segment I call Featured Friday! 

This week's featuree is:

Lisa from A Mermaid's Crafts!

I was first introduced to Lisa's incredible work by surfing around in some online gallery or another. I remember clicking through to her site and scrolling about for what seemed like hours admiring the texture and brilliance of her designs. She could shabby the chic out of any card around, better than anyone in the blogosphere. 

Lisa's a writer (as evidence by her awesome writing style on her blog) who calls Indiana home. She's been blogging for a little over four years and has served on many design teams, most recently for Scrapy Land craft store and Die-versions. 

But why tell you about her myself when she'll give you the down-low on her own?

Here's 7 things you should know about Lisa:

1. How did you get your crafty start?

 I've always loved to craft but didn't seriously pursue it until about fifteen years ago when I became hooked on the craft shows HGTV used to show. I first saw Tim Holtz on The Carol Duval Show and fell in love with his crafty style. I tried several different mediums, my favorite being polymer clay. Then I discovered die-cutting and my focus completely changed. Now I mainly make cards, mixed media projects and home decor items.

2. What is your favorite "style" of crafting?

 My style is always changing, but my current favorite style is shabby chic. I love distressed edges, torn paper, crackle paste, shabby stitching, lots of flowers and ribbon. I so admire people who can do CAS because I just can't. I have to have layers...big open areas on a card make me break into a sweat. I have an almost compulsive need to keep adding embellishments!!

3. If you could be any color, which would it be and why? 

Ooh, what a fun question!! Pink is my favorite color, but I would have to choose blue...it's the color of the ocean and I am obsessed with the ocean (must be the mermaid in me!!). Blue is the color of the sky and a blue sky is so beautiful. Blue is also calming and cool and relaxing.

4. How do you handle mistakes in your work?

 Mistakes drive me crazy. I am a Type A with a borderline obsessive/compulsive personality, so I hate when I make mistakes, and sadly, it's often!! I try to cover the mistakes with flowers or embellishments if possible. But if it's bad enough, I'll salvage what I can from the card and start over. I was making so many mistakes when I tried to sew on my cards...the thread kept breaking and there would be holes in the paper with no thread in them and I couldn't cover them. I ruined so much paper. It got to the point that I was afraid to try with good paper so I just quit sewing. Then my Mom suggested that I try a more expensive thread. My gosh, it made all the difference.

5. What are your favorite challenges to participate in? 

I used to be addicted to entering challenges and I would scroll through all of the listings on Paper Playful to see what challenges my card would fit into. But I don't have the time to craft that I used to so I don't get the chance to enter many challenges anymore. Definitely the Scrappy Land Blog Challenge, since I'm on the DT :) I do try to enter the Tim Holtz 12 Tags Challenge when I can - I've been lucky to win twice and prize of Tim goodies is awesome. I always try to enter the Simon Says Monday and Wednesday Challenge when I can...I've yet to win but I'm ever hopeful!! But now that I have time limitations, the only challenges that I enter regularly are the ones that my bloggy friends host.

6. What is your least favorite crafting supply? 

 Hum, that's a tough one. I don't know that I have any supplies that I don't like. I wouldn't say it's my least favorite, but I have a ton of twine and never seem to use it on projects. I have so many different colors but the only color I ever use is the natural hemp twine. I don't know why.

7. What is your best advice for new crafty bloggers? 

My best advice to new crafters is to be open to trying new things. Don't get tied down to one style...try different things, even if it means stepping out of your comfort zone. You never know what you can do until you try. I was very reluctant to try coloring and once I did, I was glad. As far as blogging, if you want people to visit your blog, make sure you visit theirs. Leave comments. Ask questions if you have them - crafters are so amazing and most would love to help. Enter challenges and participate in blog hops. The more exposure you can get, the better. It takes a commitment but it's so worth it.

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There are so many things I identified with in Lisa's answers, such as the mistakes thing-a-ma-jig. I'm pretty convinced that is why I like distressed things so much, because if you make a mistake you can just slap some kind of medium over it and call it design. :) 

I had such a tough time picking a card of Lisa's to CASE because there are sooooo many good ones in her gallery but eventually, I landed on this one:

The Original

I loved the different textures, the gorgeous distressed framed sentiment, and the giant amazing crinkle bow. I could go on and on, but we have more cards to get to!

Lisa's CASE

Holy goodness and all that is right with the world. I thought nothing could get much better than the original, but CLEARLY I was wrong! The springy feeling, the colors, and the blue bow just put this card over the top for me. If you want full details about this card, go check out Lisa's blog!

My CASE:

OK. Ok... I have to say that I clearly have some work to do in my shabby and chic capabilities. I actually really love this in person, but next to Lisa's it seems... well... shabby. haha I die cut the frame and double embossed it with white powder. Also, I TRIED to figure out how to do that gorgeous bow. I googled and struggled and wiggled but I couldn't get it. So here's my shout out to Lisa to post a bow-tying tutorial on her blog! 

I had an amazing time making this card and now definitely feel more like exploring shabby chic. 

I'm going to link up my card to:

Frilly and Funkie -  Springtime Diecuts

Mixed Media Card Challenge - Spring

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday - April Showers/Spring Flowers
Monika's Birthday Linky Party (happy birthday month, friend! I'm happy to help you celebrate!)

Thank you, my friends for stopping by! Make sure to go give Lisa some bloggy love and make her feel extra special today!