Sweet Love Frame

Hi! Long time no see! I do remember saying that I was not going to be back until the New Year, but to be honest, I couldn't make it! I have been busy, and have been spending time with the kiddos, it's just that new toys from Santa have seem to take precedence lately! *wink* Sooooo, I decided to play too! I will be showing you what I have been up to over the next couple of days, but for now I want to share a frame that I submitted to Stampin' Up! for their February Stampin' Success art contest. Needless to say, it did not make the cut, but it's all good! Just have to try again! I made this sweet frame with various DSP's that are available in the current catalog. ( Yes you read that right, I used current DSP! HA! I think I shocked myself a little too!) The middle of the frame was cut using the scallop square die for the big shot. I cut a piece of acetate the same size as the vanilla border, secured the two with sticky strip, then added some foam tape to pop it up so I could change the picture. Super cute! Thanks for stopping by! Details are below -

Stamps - Fabulous phrases
Paper - Play date, Newsprint, Pear Pizazz, Garden Gala DSP's, Very Vanilla, Early Espresso, Real Red
Ink - Early Espresso
Access - Big shot, Scallop Square die, Full Heart punch, Heart to Heart punch, Lg and Sm corner rounders, Acetate, Paper piercer, hole punch, early espresso 1/8 ribbon, Dimensional dots, foam tape, sticky strip, Timeless Type alphabet, Chipboard, linen thread

Make it Merry

Hello, and happy Monday! Can you Believe it... less than a week to Christmas..Yikes! I finally finished all my Christmas cards. YEAH!! I hope they get to their destinations on time! I decided I was going to make this card a year ago, and ya think I would have had finished them all a long time ago. Sometimes I have the best intentions, but then I get a *little* distracted.. (Hey look some new stamps to play with! HA!)



So with that said, this will be my last post for 2010, as I plan to take some time to spend with family and kiddos, and to recharge those creative juices! I have lots to share in the New Year, so I hope you will join me! I hope the holidays bring you Joy and Peace, and all the best for the New Year!

Heather :)

A welcome break

Happy Friday all! I am forcing myself to sit down and play with some new goodies today. (Did ya ever notice how hard it is to twist your own arm! HA!!) I am taking a welcome break from those last minute holiday cards to play along in today's Free 4 all challenge on Splitcoaststampers. And the challenge was to do just that! Take a break from those last minute things, and remember to BREATHE! We were asked to make a birthday card and that's it! How easy peasy! I actually got my youngest son Ian birthday card done a day ahead of time too! I hope you join in, and take a break today too! Thanks for taking a peek. Details below -

Stamps - Bring on the Cake ( available Jan. 4th, 2011)

Paper - Crumb cake, in color prints pack, whisper white, daffodil delight

ink - crumb cake, black, daffodil delight

Access - big shot, perfect polka dot folder, daffodil stripe ribbon, yellow embroidery floss, dimensional dots



Snowed in.....

Afternoon! Just wanted to share another project that I have made for myself, with one of my FAVORITE wheels from Stampin' Up!, Neighborhood. I made something similar to this for a friend quite awhile ago when she was buying her first home, and I always wanted to make one for myself. I just Love it! I water colored my row houses, cut them out, and added some Liquid applique to the eaves, and the stoops. I know that it is no longer a SU product, but Dazzling diamonds just wasn't doing the trick for me. I used chipboard letters from lots of letters, sponged them with crumb cake, and added a little snow to the letters too! The frame is from my LSS, and the opening is for a 5x7 picture. Details below -

Stamps - Neighborhood wheel
Paper - whisper white, wintergreen DSP (retired)
ink - real red, daffodil delight, old olive, Cajun craze, basic gray, crumb cake
access - lots of letters chipboard, sponge, two way glue, dazzling diamonds glitter, liquid applique, frame, dimensional dots, aqua painter

Thanks for taking a peek. :)

A S(n)ewy day project.....

Hello! I first want to apologize for not posting in such a long time. Life really got in the way of things for me for a while, and as much as I wanted to come downstairs and play, I could never find the time. My youngest, Ian, broke his foot and I have been really preoccupied with him, and trying to get ready for the holidays. I know you can all relate in some fashion, so thanks for understanding. I did find the time to finally play with the Designer fabric from the SU Holiday mini, and make a pillow for myself. This sewing thing is really new to me, and I think I did a pretty good job this being my first pillow and all. I kept it simple, adding a little trim to the edges of my pillow wrap. Can't wait to show my Mom.. she is the sewing guru in our family. she will be so proud! Details and directions to make your own pillow wrap are below -

fabric - SU Deck the halls Designer fabric

ribbon - Early Espresso satin ribbon, crochet trim

Directions -

Materials -

your choice of SU designer fabrics (enough to cut (8) 6 1/2 squares

3/8 yard lining fabric

1- 12x16 pillow form

Decorative button (optional)

thread to match

Cut from SU designer fabrics :

Eight 6 1/2" squares . Note that the seam allowance is on four sides for easy cutting

Cut from lining fabric:

One 12 1/2" x 24 1/2" rectangle

Instructions -

*1/4" seam allowance is used throughout

Sew four rows of two 6 1/2" squares together. Press seams.

Sew four rows together to create one 12 1/2" x 24 1/2" pieced pillow wrap.

Place pieced wrap and lining right sides together. Sew the two long edges. Turn right sides out and press.

On one short open end, press under 1/4", wrong sides together.

Fold the wrap in half with pieced sides together. Insert the unpressed short end into the pressed short end. Pin. Top stitch through all layers to form wrap.

Top stitch outer edges.

Press and slide over pillow.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a great day everyone. :)

CC299 JOY

Good Morning! Had a busy couple of days around here, and wanted to share a card that the girls in my club made this past weekend. I can not take credit for the design. The original design is I believe by Sherri Barron another Stampin' Up! demo. I was crusin' through the gallery on the SU demo site Stampin' Connection, a wonderful resource for business tips, beautiful inspiration from other demonstrators, and I found a card that was similar to this. I just put my own twist on it. I remade the card today to fit the Color challenge on Splitcoast today.  Needless to say it was a hit with the club this month! Thanks Sherri! If you would like access to all the wonderful inspiration on Stampin' Connection, now is the time! Through the end of November (today) Stampin' Up! is offering a Huge discount (50% off) on the Stampin' Up! Starter kit! Contact me for more info, or go directly to my SU website for details. Thanks for taking a peek! recipe below-

Stamps - Perfect punches

paper -  River rock, Old olive, whisper white, brushed gold

ink - real red, river rock, choc chip

access - big shot, pefect petals folder, 2 3/8 scallop circle punch, scallop circle punch, real red grosgrain ribbon, 1/2 circle punch, sponge, dimensional dots, 1 1/4 corcle punch

You're such a Trooper

Hi everyone! I am glad to be back downstairs today playing. My Thanksgiving was food and family filled, and super relaxing... didn't even wash a dish! (Thanks Honey!) AND, I was even given the go ahead to keep playing this morning.. (My husband must have something up his sleeve!)

I am playing with my Sparkly and Bright set, and looked at the little Santa in the set, and instantly saw him parachuting down to ground, his little arms held up like that. I punched out various sized circles, stamped them with the snowflake, then sponged the edges with Marina Mist ink to give them some depth. Then randomly adhered them to the card base. I punched a 2 1/2 circle, cut it in half, ran it through my big shot and used my 1 3/8 circle punch to cut away the edge to form my parachute. I stamped Santa in black, crumb cake, and cherry cobbler, then colored his face with a blender pen, and blush blossom ink. The sentiment is stamped in early espresso, then cut out in the shape of a cloud. I add a few more clouds, a rhinestone to the ball of his hat, and some Dazzling diamonds to the trim of his hat and coat. Super Cute!

All supplies Stampin' Up! Details below -

Stamps - Sparkly & Bright

Paper - Marina Mist, Whisper white, Cherry cobbler

Ink - Marina Mist, Early Espresso, Cherry Cobbler, Crumb Cake, Black, Blush blossom

Access - Big shot, Perfect polka dot folder, blender pen, linen thread, marina mist 1/8 " ribbon, red ridding hood red button, sponge, various circle punches, two way glue Dazzling diamonds glitter, rhinestone, dimensional dots.



Making Cherry Chocolate Crumble

I wish right! Sounds divine though... I took a little time out of my CRAZY day to take a break, and check out the color challenge on Splitcoast today. The colors for today's challenge were Chocolate chip, Cherry cobbler, and Crumb cake. Now if you didn't have something decadent on your mind after reading those colors we need to talk! *wink* I used crumb cake for my card base, sponged chocolate chip around the edges, and crumb cake ink for my sponged ornament. I stamped my snowflake from SU Winter Post in Cherry cobbler, then sponged the edges of that panel with chocolate chip ink as well. I used my vintage wallpaper embossing folder for some texture, and distressed the edges. So What do ya think? Delicious! Thanks for taking a peek! All supplies Stampin' Up! Details below -

Stamps - Berry Christmas (sentiment) retired, Winter Post

Ink - Chocolate chip, Cherry cobbler, Crumb cake

Paper - Chocolate Chip, Cherry Cobbler, Crumb cake, Very Vanilla, Newsprint DSP, Early Espresso

Acess - Very vanilla satin ribbon, Big Shot, Vintage wallpaper Embossing folder, paper piercer, Scallop edge boarder punches, half pearl, sponge, dimensional dots, Chocolate chip ribbon, red hemp twine

a Ski Slope Free for all



Happy Friday!! I have the day to myself today. Well mostly anyway, I AM sitting here with the never ending laundry, but I think you get my point. I took time to play in today's Splitcoaststampers Friday free for all challenge. Our challenge was to make a thank you for those hostesses we will visiting during the holidays. I went ahead and made a gift bag for some lucky hostess that I will be seeing on a holiday visit. I have made this ensemble in the past, for various events like a bridal shower, and Mother's day, I just change up the DSP for the appropriate occasions. I started with a larger version of a box in a bag (tutorial in the resource section of Splitcoast). Then made some quick thank you cards, a little box to hold 3 tea bags, a nugget box, bookmark, and a beaded pen. Super cute right. It's a great little gift to have on hand for that extra special hostess in your life. Thanks for taking a peek. Directions for the bag are below -

You will need -
1 piece of card stock 8 1/2 x 7
2 pieces of card stock 1 1/2 x 10 1/2
2 pieces of coordinating DSP 6 x 10 1/2
Sticky Strip
Big shot
Top Note die
Coordinating ribbon, Buttons or Brads
scallop edge punch
Large Grommets

1. Start out by making your box, or base of your bag. Score the 8 1/2 x 7 piece at 1 1/2 inches on all sides. Cut up to your score line on each corner, then use sticky strip on the tabs to form your box, and keep it secure.
2. Take your 2 pieces of card stock 1 1/2 x 10 1/2 and punch your edges.
3. Cut out 2 Top Notes using your big shot, and score down the middle.
4. Now to assemble your bag. Take the (2) 6 x 10 1/2 pieces of DSP and apply sticky strip to 3 sides of one of the pieces, and just the bottom of the other. (make sure you apply your adhesive on the opposite side the paper that you want on the outside of your bag. ) Lay the DSP with the single strip of adhesive flat on your work surface, and remove the sticky strip backing.  Starting in the center, line up your box with the edge. Press firmly, and wrap the edges around the sides. Repeat with the remaining piece of DSP. Once your bag has sides, you just repeat these steps to adhere your decorative edge.
5. Take your 2 top note pieces and fold them in half. Adhere one side to the front of the bag. Using your cropadile place to large grommets on each side. Cut 2 pieces of 13 inch ribbon and thread through the grommets, and adhere the tab of ribbon to the inside of the bag. Fold down the other half of the top note die, and secure with more sticky strip.
6. Add your brads to the centers of the top note dies.
7. To close your bag, cut a piece of ribbon long enough to go under the brad in the back of the bag, across the top and under the brad or button in the front. Tie in a knot or bow.
8. Fill  bag, with your choice of gifts for your holiday hostesses. :)

Party Hearty



Hellooooooo! It seems I have been away for a few days again... Sorry about that! I hope you missed me as much as I missed you. Today I needed to sit down and make a birthday card for one of my Son's friends who is turning 11. I always get so stuck with this age group. I never want to offend and make the card to childish, and I don't want to make it too mature either. So I played along in the sketch challenge on splitcoast to give me a starting point. OK .. boy card, boy card.. boy card....I chose some boy colors, and went to work. I used some retired SU papers, again! I am really good for that right! I used bermuda bay, soft sky, Sweet pea DSP, and Good neighbor DSP. I used Party Hearty for my stamp set using the sentiment, and the party hats to create a little banner. Thanks for stopping by and taking a peek. All supplies Stampin' Up! Details below -

Stamps - Party Hearty

Paper - Bermuda Bay textured, Whisper white, Sweet pea DSP, Good Neighbor dsp, Soft sky, Taken with teal

Ink - versamark, early espresso

Accessories - scallop edge punch, mini library clip, linen thread, dimensional dots

sketch (a)Peale

Hi all! I want to share a card with you that I have made for Jen del Muro's SFYTT this week. I have been trying to get down here to play all day, and  finally got the chance. I used some Cocoa Kisses DSP, and a favorite set of mine Berry Christmas. I know, I know these are both retired, but my motto is "use it if ya got it." The sentiment is from Occasional Quotes and  is a quote by Norman Vincent Peale. Hence the title of this post. I hope you like it. Thanks for stopping by today, details are below.

Stamps - Berry Christmas (retired), Winter post
Paper - Soft Suede, Whisper White, Cocoa Kisses DSP (retired)
Ink - soft suede, Real red
Access - red satin ribbon, playground button, white string, paper piercer, distressing tool, dimensional dots

Many Tanks

Where did the week go? Time is really flying by this November...today I took time to play along in the ways to use it challenge on Splitcoast. Our challenge hostess asked us to create a card for Veterans Day, or Remembrance Day if you live in Canada. After reading the challenge details, I knew exactly what I was going to do. I pulled out all the various thank you sentiments that I have from my SU sets, and created some DP with them. I also used one of my ALL TIME favorite stamps, this little tank from the SU set Words by Wilson. (My affection runs deep for this stamp, considering my past occupation, and my screen name on Splitcoast.... tankgrl *wink*)  I hope you take time to remember those that are serving or have served their countries. Many Tanks too you!! Thanks for taking a peek, details below -

Stamps - Various Thank you stamps, Words by Wilson (retired), Extreme elements
paper - Old olive, Concord crush, poppy parade, whisper white
ink - old olive, black, river rock, marina mist
access - black marker, aqua painter, daffodil delight 1/8 ribbon, small star punch (retired), dimensional dots

Sparkly & Bright

Monday already? I fit in some time to play over the weekend, in between cleaning up the yard, and carting kids here and there. Glad I did too! I just received this set in a recent order, and have been wanting to get inky with it for days. I had originally saw this set as perfect for tags this holiday season, but I think I am going to use in workshops for cards too! For my first sample I used non traditional Christmas colors, Melon Mambo, and Marina Mist. I punched out various sized circles, then stamped them with the darling snowflake in the set. I then adhered them randomly onto the card front. I used wild wasabi, marina mist, and melon mambo to ink up my tree, stamped it twice, cut out one, and popped it up on top of the other for some dimension. I used one of the essential rhinestones for the star on my tree, stamped my sentiment in basic black, then finished it off with some Marina Mist ribbon.  Super FUN!

My second sample using this set I used the stocking, and some accessories from the loads of love set. I used Sahara Sand for my card base. I stamped the stockings in a row using versamark, then stamped one in Old Olive. I stamped the snowflake in versamark on top of the Old Olive stocking, then cut it out and added some Crystal effects and some Dazzling Diamond glitter to the "bells" for some detail. I stamped my packages from Loads of love on a scrap and colored them with a blender pen, and markers. I cut out the packages and attached them to the stocking with a glue dot. I popped the finished stocking up over one of the other stockings, Sponged the edges of my card with Crumb cake, then stamped my sentiment to complete the card. I hope you had time to play over the weekend, and thanks for stopping by and taking a peek. Details below -


Mambo Bright card -
Stamps - Sparkly & Bright
Paper - Melon Mambo, Whisper White
Ink - Melon Mambo, Wild wasabi, early espresso. Marina Mist, black
Access - Circle punches, essential rhinestones, Marina mist 1/8 ribbon, dimensional dots

Sahara Stocking card -
Stamps - Sparkly & Bright, Loads of Love Accessories, teeny tiny wishes
Paper - Sahara sand
ink - versamark, crumb cake, old olive, real red, garden green
Access - open scallop punch, Crystal effects, blender pen, Dazzling diamonds glitter, dimensional dots, sponge

Simple snowflake

Happy Friday... I have two cards to share with you today, both are of the K.I.S.S./CAS variety. The first one I just love. I used my SU snowflake punch, and very simple details. I layered my very vanilla punched panel on top of a cherry cobbler panel, so it would show through. I took my perforating tool, and gently ran it over my early esspresso pad to ink it up, than added the dotted lines to make the snow flake look like an ornament, than finished it off by adding a vanilla button, laced with some early espresso 1/8 ribbon. I stamped my sentiment using Sincere Salutations, a set that I always over look. Super quick, and cute to boot!

This next one I found while checking out a good friends blog! (Thanks Penny!) I used the same LO, just changed up the stamps. I actually created Dashers background, by stamping my "C" block directly into my Baja Breeze stamp pad. I then stamped Dasher on top of that image. I outlined the edge of the  stamped block with two way glue and Dazzling diamonds. Another super quick, and cute one! Don't ya just love them! Thanks for stopping by, and taking a peek! :) Details below -

Snowflake card -
Stamps - Scincere Salutations
Paper - Early Espresso, Very vanilla, Cherry Cobbler
Ink - Early Espresso
Access - snow flake punch, perforating tool, 1/8 early espresso ribbon, vanilla button, glue dot

Dasher card -
Stamps - Scincere Salutations, C block, Dasher
Paper - Crumb cake, whisper white, cherry cobbler
Ink - baja breeze, early espresso
Access - spiral punch, twoway glue, Dazzling diamonds, dimensional dots, 1/8 eraly espresso ribbon

clearly a sketch

Hi all.. Please forgive me for my short absence. Lots happening here including my entire household having Strep throat. Lets just say it was a REAL interesting couple of days around here. We are all on the mend, and I have felt a little deprived of my stamps, so I got to sneak downstairs today for a little while. I played along in the sketch challenge on Splitcoast. This one really had me thinking, I was almost afraid I lost my mojo. I looked around at the scraps I had on my desk, and went to work. I had a scrap of clear acetate on my desk, and dry embossed it with my new Northern Flurry embossing folder by SU. I had never tried this before, so today was the day. I am still using up my SU holiday dsp scraps from years past, but I am sure that you can replace with ones that are in the current catalog. I am glad I got to sneak away for a little while today, I hope you get a chance to do the same. Thanks for stopping by and taking a peek. All supplies Stampin' Up! Details below-
Stamps - Many Merry Messages
Paper - ski slope DSP (retired) Pawsitively prints DSP (retired) old olive, whisper white, baja breeze
ink - real red
access - big shot, Northern flurry embossing folder, perfect polka dot embossing folder, snowflake sizzlit, playground button, silver cord, window sheet, paper piercer, dimensional dots

Soaring By

Happy Friday all.. :) I needed to sit down and make a quick card for my Neice who's Birthday is Halloween. If you hadn't noticed, I play along in alot of the challenges on Splitcoaststampers, and today was no exception. I go to the challenges to get inspiration for the task at hand. So Friday's challenge is a free for all. The only challenge was to paper piece with scraps. I have lots of scraps of older SU dsp, so I went for those. I used papers from last Sale-a-bration called Good Neighbor. These papers are fun and bright, and perfect for my niece. I am sure it will be well received. Thanks for taking a peek today! :) All Supplies Stampin' Up! Details below -

Stamps - Crazy for Cupcakes, Teeny tiny Wishes
Paper - Soft Suede, Old Olive, Baja Breeze, Good Neighbor DSP (retired), Pink Pirouette
Ink - soft suede
Access - Scallop edge punch, paper pircer, big shot, scallop rectangle clearlit, linen thread, mini library clip, dimensional dots

Vintage Sketch

Happy Wednesday everyone...I am playing instead of working, and I will probably pay the price when my husband comes home and sees that I am a little behind.. Oh well, it's worth it! I wanted to play along in yesterdays color challenge on Splitcoaststampers, but never got the chance. So I am playing along in the sketch challenge today, and using the colors from yesterdays challenge. CHACHING! A two for one!  The colors were blushing bride, crumb cake, and baja breeze. So soft and elegant. Our dessert option was to use pearls and lace. These are elements that I have in my stash, but really never use. I guess I just like looking at all the bling in their little boxes, like a treasure. I used Vintage Vogue, and Bella Toile for my sets, and a retired sentiment from Elegant Greetings. This card just called for it I think. :)
My proportions are little smaller than the sketch given, but that is what is great about the sketch challenges. You fit it to your needs. They are a great starting point. So if you are ever in need of a little inspiration, check it out! Thanks for taking a peek. :) All supplies are Stampin' Up!, Details below -

Stamps - Bella Toile, Vintage Vogue, Elegant Greetings (retired)
Paper - Blushing Bride, Crumb Cake, Confetti White
Ink - Crumb Cake, blushing bride, Pear Pizzaz
Accessories - Baja Breeze double stitch ribbon (retired), victoria crochet trim, baja button, linen thread, pretties kit, half back pearls, lg oval punch, 1/4 hole punch, sponge, dimensional dots

Lovely SFYTT

I played along in Jen Del Muro's SFYTT today, as I needed to sit down and make a card for my brother-in-law, so I used her SFYTT sketch as a starting point. I used SU Lovely as a tree, another set that I have had forever, and rarely use. I stamped the trees in Cajun Craze, then moved the stamp over a little and stamped again to create some dimension. I stamped the top of the card with the oak leaves also in Cajun Craze. I sponged around the edges to give the scene some depth. Next, I stamped my oak leaves 2 times in Timber brown Stazon and watercoloered them with my SU markers, pumpkin pie, Cajun Craze, Daffodil Delight. I cut out one, and poped it up over the first one. I paper pirced the circle and added a simple bow out of linen thread to finish it off. The sentiment is from a retired SU set called It's your Birthday. Viola! A bithday card for my brother-in-law. Now to get it in the mail before the actual day. *wink* Thanks for taking a peek! Details below, All Supplies are Stampin' Up!

Stamps - Lovely as a tree, It's your Birthday, Sanded  Paper - Cajun Craze, early espresso, more mustard, confetti white, Ink - timber brown stazon, pumpkin pie, Cajun Craze, Daffodil Delight, Access - 21/2 XL circle punch, paper pircer, latte button, linen thread, dimensionals

Back to Basics

Did you ever feel sometimes you just need to get back to the root of it all or the basics? I have an upcoming club, and I have been trying to think of that WOW card. After a lot of trial and error, (too many layers, too much technique, etc.) I looked around my stamp room with a sigh, and this stamp set called my name.. (Well no not really *wink*) .. and I immediately knew what I was going to do. This set came in my starter kit oh so many years ago, and I rarely use it. It is so fun, that trusty old pick up truck. So I went back to my basics..paper and ink. I love the outcome. I stamped my image on confetti white, in Stazon, and water colored it with my aquapainter and reinkers. I found a leaf in Awash with flowers that went really well with this set, and used it to add a little whimsy to the card. I ran my cajun craze layer through the bigshot using the square lattice folder ( kinda looks like a brick road), and finished it off with some twill tape. Thanks for taking a peek. Details below -

Stamps - Loads of Love and Accessories, Awash with flowers,  Paper - More Mustard, Crumb cake, Confetti White, Cajun Craze, Very vanilla, Ink - Stazon, old olive, Early Espresso, Pumpkin pie, Accessories - aquapainter, big shot, square lattice folder, mini library clip, twill tape, dimensional dots

Spooky Stuff Kids.....

Hi .... I am still fawning over the colors from yesterday post, so bear with me and my new "crush". I played along in today's sketch challenge on Splitcoaststampers. I took a peek at the sketch before I actually went into work today, and was thinking about it on and off through out the day. Got the kids through homework, and dinner, and put the ideas to work. The sketch called for an oval in the center, but the hostess let us change it to our specific needs. I flipped the sketch upside down and created my Spooky scene. As I stated earlier I used the same colors from yesterdays color challenge on SCS, which were Crushed Concord, Cherry Cobbler, and Old Olive. The dessert option was to use argyle, but I subbed in a scrap of some hounds tooth. The moon was punched out of retired SU Walk in the park dsp. Super Fun card Don't ya think? Thanks for taking a peek! Details are below -

Stamps -  SU Home is where the haunt is (retired), Wicked Cool, Wood grain, Paper - Crushed concord, Cherry Cobbler, crushed concord dsp, ski slope dsp (retired) Early Espresso, Walk in the park dsp (retired), Whisper White, Ink - black, river rock, Accessories - scallop edge punch, sponge, dimensional dots, Googlie eyes

Crush on Concord...

..Sigh....Today I have to admit, I have a new love..it's name is Concord Crush. I was really busy today here at home (work), and took a little peek at the color challenge for today at splitcoaststampers. Well that's all I needed to be totally SMITTEN with this color. The colors we were to use were Concord Crush, Cherry Cobbler, and Old Olive. The Dessert option was argyle. Are the colors not lush and Delicious. Betty the hostess for the challenge NEVER dissappoints with the combos. I kept my layout simple and quick, as the kiddos still needed some help with homework.  Thanks for taking a peek ! Details are below -

Stamps - Occasional quotes, Paper - Concord Crush, old olive, Play date dsp, very vanilla, Ink - concord crush, versamark, Accessories - big shot, impression plates I, so saffron 5/8 ribbon (retired), playground buttons, scallop edge punch

Thankful Thoughts

Hi , what weekend we had here in my house... Fall seems to be in full swing. Birthday parties, pumpkin carving, and taking a day trip to the Arboretum to take in all the gorgeous fall colors. This trip has been a tradition since the kids were really small. I always try to put them in the same colors that day, so I can take the christmas picture for that year. So when I let them know what is up for the weekend, I usually get A LOT of grumps and groans, but then we get there, and the air seems to change and it is all Good! Nothing like asking your kids to all look at the camera at the same time, and SMILE! *wink* I know we have ALL been through this is some fashion, but it always amazes me that they can act like that, when they allready know what to expect going into it.. Here is a pic of them at their best. Of course this is not this years xmas card picture, that one has to be approved by the kids. (HA!) Ok, so enough about my weekend, and back to the reason for this post. I played along in Jen Del Muro's SFYTT this morning, and was inspired by all the colors I saw and things I did over the weekend. I used a variety of SU designer papers for this card. I have a lot of scraps, and am challenging myself to use as many of those that I can before I go buying more, or cutting into a sheet just for a small piece. I used Newsprint, some retired Sweet Pea ( some of my faves of all time by SU) and greenhouse gala. I love the fact that I can pull out papers from past and present and they all go together. So I don't feel bad about using up the scraps.



Thanks for hanging in there all the way to the bottom of the post for the details, and thanks for taking a peek today! Details are below -

 Stamps - Grateful Greetings, Paper - So Saffron, tangerine tango, pear pizzaz, early espresso, newsprint dsp, sweet pea dsp (retired), Greenhouse gala dsp, very Vanilla, Ink - old olive, tangerine tango, early espresso, river rock (to distress)

Accessories - Lg SU oval punch, scallop edge punch, sewing machine, hole punches, pear pizzaz poly twill ribbon, photo corner punch, dimensional dots

Making Friday Merry!

FRIDAY!! Whoot! Whoot! I thought it would never get here.. My Thursdays seem like they go on forever sometimes. If you are wondering why I am so excited about Fridays, they are my official day off, and I get to do what I want, and that means hunkering down and getting inky fingers.. amongst other things *wink*. I checked out the Free 4 all challenge for this Friday on Splitcoaststampers, and it was to create a winter card/project, with out any white. I chose to use up some more scraps of some older SU Holiday dsp, and vanilla card stock. I also used a retired SU set called Berry Christmas. I {heart} this set, and was sad to see that it did not make it back into the current catalog. sniff..sniff.. But it's all good. The set makes me happy, and only good things come out of things that make you happy. :) Thanks for taking a peek today! Details Below :

Stamps - Berry Christmas (retired) , Paper - Pear Pizzaz, Holiday Treasures(?) DSP (retired), Very Vanilla, Ink - Chocolate chip, old olive, red ridinghood red, Accessories - Big shot, Merry Details Sizzlit, SU Felt ribbon (retired) red ridinghood tafeta ribbon (retired), linen thread, jingle bell, pinking heart border punch, photo corner punch, pircer, dimensional dots.

Sketchy Robot...

My son Ian comes to me this morning with a Birthday Party invite for this weekend... I am like Cool...until I look at the RSVP, which was YESTERDAY! The invite has been in his backpack for at least a week. Don't ya just love Kids! So I took advantage of the Sketch challenge at Splitcoaststampers, and came up with this super simple and quick card. (Note to self - Sit down and make more!) I used Lots of Bots, a must have in my opinion. I stamped my image in SU classic black, heat set, then colored with my SU markers and a versamarker. If you use your versamarker as a blender, the colors stay wet, and your SU markers become very blendable. I have had a lot people ask me about this technique, and I guess that will have to be my first tutorial.. So Stay tuned. I also created my own DSP, using Apple Blossom, and Extreme Elements. I like the outcome, I hope you do too!  Thanks for taking a peek. (:   Details are Below -

Stamps - Lots of Bots, Apple blossom, Extreme elements , Paper - Whisper White, Basic Gray, Green Galore (retired), Making memories DSP, Ink - SU  Classic black, green galore, going gray, veersamark, versamarker, white craft, Access - Spiral punch, Dymo Label maker, sm star punch ( retired ) dimensional dots.

SCS Color Challenge

Good Morning... I am playing hookie this morning from work, as I have a few appointments through out the morning, so I decided to check out todays color challenge on Splitcoaststampers. The colors to work with today were Real red, Pink pirouette, and Pear Pizzaz. These colors shout Christmas to me, so I went with it. No stamping on this card, as adding our own handwritting was the dessert option that was listed in the challenge. So this is as Simple as it can get. I used some older DSP scraps and the new Pear Pizzaz DSP for my papers, and some pircing, and a scrap of that yummy felt ribbon from Stampin' Up! Thanks for taking a peek. Card details below -

Stamps - none, Paper- Crumb cake, whisper white, Pear pizzaz DSP, Bella Rose DSP (retired), Cocoa Kisses DSP (retired ), So Saffron, Accessories - choc chip felt ribbon (retired), paper pircer, lg star punch, Latte Button (retired) silver cord, xl bird punch, dimensional dots

Make Merry!

Had a little bit of time this weekend to get creative, so I participated in Jen Del Muro's SFYTT again. I just received this stamp in a recent order, and thought it went perfectly with the sketch this week. I am using up some scraps from SU retired DSP. I still need to get some of the yummy papers in the holiday mini to create with, but it's all good until then. I really like how this came out in the limited time I had to play, I hope you do too! Details are below......

Stamps - Sweet Snowglobe, Berry Christmas, Paper - Early Esspresso, red ridinghood red, Crumb Cake, Whisper White, Old Olive, Baha Breeze, Ski Slope DSP ( I think) Ink - Red Ridinghood red, old olive, bashful Blue, Baha Breeze, Versamark , Accessories - Big Shot, Northern Flurry embossing folder, snow flake punch, 1 1/4 circle punch, pinkng heart punch, paper pircer, white button, elastic cord, clear EP, dimensionals.

Greetings! (My New Blog)

 As you know from my first post, I FINALLY got around to starting this BLOG! (I know crazy right!) I have only been talking about it for 2 years now. I just hope I can keep it up, and together. *wink* So Welcome to Downstairs Designs. A place where I can share my papercrafting adventures with you. I hope you join me in my journeys. Today,  I am sharing a card that I made for Jen Del Muro's SFYTT this week. I am  really trying to get into the Halloween spirit, and I think this did the trick......so...with that said I think I will go find my BROOM! (insert wicked laugh here)!   All Supplies are Stampin' Up!, card details below :

Stamps - Grateful Greetings, Wicked Cool, Paper - Concord Crush, Basic Gray, Old Olive, Peach Parfait and Concord crush DSP, Ink - Black, Access. - scallop edge punch, pinking heart punch, Big shot, Top note die, ticket corner punch, mini vintage tag, dimensionals, old olive satin ribbon, sponge.

I did it!

I told you I could!..... Look Mom no Hands!!
Come Back soon for some more Cute Schtuff! I promise it will be here. So until then...

Heather