Happy New Year's Eve! I have one last post to share with you before 2010 comes to a close and we ring in the new year! Over on PSA's blog HERE, there is an Inspirational Photo of the Week -- you'll see it on the right side at the top of the blog. This week is a pair of champagne glasses. I really had fun creating this card! It's something I would probably never create just on my own without a photo to inspire me!! I drew the shape of the glass, colored it with a Zig Emboss Writer pen, then heat embossed the gold part. I added Star Dust Stickles to the top for the foam. Then cut out the shape and adhered to the cardstock with dimensionals. I used the 'celebrate' stamp several times to form the stem of the glass. For added bling, I put more gold EP to frame the card!

Thanks so much for stopping by and I wish you and your family a WONDERFUL NEW YEAR ahead! I will be back on Monday with another New Year's card for the next Paper Therapy Challenge!

 

Supplies:

Stamps: DeNami Design - Petit Fours Party Time (the bursts); Stampin' Up! - Everyday Flexible Phrases (celebrate)

Cardstock: SU - Very Vanilla, Basic Black, So Saffron

Ink: Sweet Stamps - White Dye inkpad

Other: PK Glitz - Honey EP Max; Stickles - Star Dust; Zig Emboss Writer pen, Dimensionals

Paper Therapy Challenge #12 - Christmas!

Hello....it's the last Monday before Christmas! WOWZERS! Time never really slows down, does it?!?  Well, I hope you have all your Christmas shopping done and wrapped (my shopping is done...still need to wrap!) so you can enjoy the final days before the BIG day.
This week at Paper Therapy, the challenge is to make a Christmas project. I made a CAS card for this one. I just love that patterned paper! I used a shimmery paper for the embossed leaves, and finished it with some PTI ribbon and the 'be merry' sentiment. Thanks for visiting today...I know it's a busy time so I appreciate you spending a few minutes with me! If I don't get a chance to post anything else before the holiday....I wish you all a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS with all your families and friends!

Just have to mention my husband took this picture for me. He put the card in our Christmas tree
for an extra festive look. He did a great job, huh?! Love those lights in the background!

Supplies:

Stamps: Stampin' Up! - Warm Words

Patterned Paper: Cloud9 Design Paper Pad - Harvest Holiday, Cream Paper - Unknown

Other: PTI Spring Moss Ribbon

Paper Therapy Challenge #11 - Snowflakes!

Good morning and welcome to another challenge at Paper Therapy. If you are not familiar with Paper Therapy, it's an online forum for card makers and scrapbookers to share their work, chat about crafting and life in general. There are also swaps and challenges too! Every Monday there is a new challenge posted in the forum HERE. You have until the following Saturday night to upload your project based on that week's challenge. The first challenge of every month will receive a prize and a blinkie. We would love to have you play along! It's a very fun community of crafters!

This week is very simple -- make a project with a snowflake on it! I wanted to change it up a bit this time around, so I decided to make a paper snowflake! I found this tutorial online, and tweaked it to be my own. I had some Stampin' Up! double-sided DSP, so I thought it would look great for this project! It was pretty simple to do -- you just have to plan ahead. I ended up waiting to unravel the paper from the pens after two nights of it being wrapped just because I didn't get a chance to finish it before then. I think it worked out good because the paper is still pretty curly. I think this would be a great project to do with your kids (if you have any, lol!). I think I will be hanging it on a doorknob at my house.
Thanks for popping in! Have a great week everyone!

Supplies:

Patterned Paper: Stampin' Up!

Accents: Colorbok - Clear Rhinestone; SU - 1.25" Circle Punch, Embroidery Floss

Other: Glue or tape runner, stapler, 6 pens, scotch tape

Triple Challenge Day

Hello! I've got another Christmas card to share with you today! I combined three different challenges: DeNami Product Challenge - Punches, Sweet Sunday Sketch, and The Color Dare #88 - Riding Hood Red, Old Olive, and Neutral of Choice. It's a pretty simple card. I just HAD to add some red Stickles to give it some bling ;-) It's so great of you to stop by! Let me know what you think of my card!

 

Supplies:

Stamps: DeNami Design - Decorative Flourish, Three Line Border; SU - Sincere Salutations

Cardstock: SU - Real Red, Old Olive, Naturals Ivory

Ink: SU - Real Red, Mellow Moss

Other: EK Success Edger Punch - Daisy Scallop, Stickles - Xmas Red, Dimensionals

Wee Memories Holiday Music Inspiration & PPA Challenges

 Friday is HERE!!!! I am so happy the weekend is about to begin...I have another extended weekend and I am SOOOO glad! Work has been rough lately, so it will be nice to have some extra relaxing craft time...and of course finish my Christmas shopping! :-)

                                                                     

Today I have a card to share with you for both the Wee Memories Holiday Music Inspiration Challenge and the Pals Paper Arts Fashion Inspiration Challenge. I thought it was so clever to use a holiday song as the inspiration for a card! I had a bunch of ideas for it, and ended up with the card below, using White Christmas as the inspiration--perfect for the 'winter whites' in the PPA photo. I absolutely LOVE color, so an all white card for me is quite a change! But, I really love it! As you all probably know, pictures sometimes just don't do the card justice....especially in this case. I added Stickles to select areas of the embossed design (click on picture to see more detail), but it sure doesn't show the fun intensity of the *sparkle* that appears in bright light. It reminds me of fresh fluffy snow when it first falls. DeNami Design is sponsoring the Wee Memories challenge, so if you participate, you'll have a chance to win a $25 gift certificate! There is a mystery prize for the PPA challenge, so you might want to check that one out too! I want to thank you for visiting my blog, and I would love to hear your thoughts about my creation for these challenges. Have a great weekend everyone!

Supplies:

Stamps: DeNami - Christmas Script

Cardstock: Stampin' Up - Whisper White

Ink: Tsukineko Pigment Ink - Starlite Silver

Ribbon: Unknown (from a wedding favor!)

Other: Embossing Folder -Sizzix Textured Impressions Damask #3, Stampin' Up! Corner Rounder Punch, Silver Cord - SU, Stickles - Star Dust

Paper Therapy Challenge #10 - Sketch

Good morning and a Happy Monday to all of you! This week is a sketch challenge over at Paper Therapy. Use the sketch below to create a card or a tag for a scrapbook layout!

Here's my result of the sketch challenge. I needed a male birthday card, so I used my new stack of s.e.i. Black Orchid papers for this card -- so fun! I added some white ink around the edge of the large teal piece in the background, added a button with some baker's twine for an added accent, and used dimensionals to pop up the Happy Birthday oval.

I am really glad you made your way to my blog today! It's always so great to have visitors ;-)
Make sure to visit again later in the week....I will be posting a Christmas card!

Supplies:

Stamps: Stampin' Up! -Warmest Regards

Cardstock: Stampin' Up - Certainly Celery
Patterned Paper: s.e.i. Black Orchid

Ink: Staz-On - jet black, Sweet Stamps - White Dye

Ribbon: SU- Black grosgrain

Other: Button - DeNami Design, Twine - Divine Twine, Marvy Uchida 1.5" circle punch, Nesties: Classic Ovals Large, Dimensionals

Paper Therapy Challenge #9 - Buttons and Bows

Hello and welcome to another Paper Therapy challenge! I hope you all had a great long holiday weekend! If you are not familiar with Paper Therapy, it's an online forum for card makers and scrapbookers to share their work, chat about crafting and life in general. There are also swaps and challenges too! Every Monday there is a new challenge posted in the forum HERE. You have until the following Saturday night to upload your project based on that week's challenge. The first challenge of every month will receive a prize and a blinkie. We would love to have you play along! It's a very fun community of crafters!

This week's challenge is to create a project using a button AND a bow/knot. I chose to make a birthday card since birthdays are the cards I need/use the most! I really love how this one turned out...do you?! I recently got a pack of patterned paper that is so yummy - such great colors! So I decided to use it on this card. I found a butterfly stamp from my 'early' stamping days to use as well...seems like a good match to the paper. I finished it off with some PTI ribbon, a DeNami button, and some thin SU brown ribbon. I hope you like my creation and I'm so glad you stopped by today! :-)

Supplies:

Stamps: Stampin' Up! - Sincere Salutations, Rubber Stampede - Small Butterfly

Cardstock: Stampin' Up - Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla, (green is unknown)
Butterfly Patterned Paper: the Paper Studio - Poteeka Souffle

Ink: SU - Regal Rose, Always Artichoke

Ribbon: PTI Berry Sorbet, SU Ribbon Originals - Seaside

Other: Button - DeNami Design, Nesties: Labels Four, Classic Ovals Large, Paper Piercer, Sponge

Papertrey November Blog Hop Challenge

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL!!!

I hope you are having a WONDERFUL
day with family and friends.

Today I have a project to share with you that is for the Papertrey November Blog Hop. The challenge this time is to design a holiday tag or two (you must use at least one PTI product). Sooooo....here is my tag! I used one stamp from the Giga Guide Lines stamp set that resembled a snowflake. I randomly stamped and embossed it on the base with Silver Pearl EP. I also embossed the image using Burgundy EP Max as the focal point. Add a scalloped circle behind it, a pleated ribbon, and some silver cord, and you have yourself a pretty tag! Ok ok...I admit it. I am smitten with this tag!!! I'm pretty new to making tags and now I can tell you that I will definitely be making MORE of these soon! I had so much fun making this! Yippeeeee!

Thank you for stopping by! I love receiving comments so please be kind and let me know what you think about my creation. If you like my work, I also encourage you to become a follower ;-) Have a great holiday weekend!  *Click on photos for a larger view*

Supplies:

Stamps: Papertrey Ink - Giga Guide Lines

Cardstock: Stampin' Up - Confetti White, Purely Pomegranate

Embossing Powders: Sparkle N Sprinkle - Silver Pearl, PK Glitz - EP Max Burgundy

Other: Ribbon - PTI Raspberry Fizz, SU Silver Cord, Nesties - Standard Circles Small, Big Scalloped Circles Large, Labels Eight, Paper Piercer, Dimensionals, Crop-o-dile

Paper Therapy Challenge #8 - It's a Guy Thing!

Hello and welcome to another Paper Therapy challenge! If you are not familiar with Paper Therapy, it's an online forum for card makers and scrapbookers to share their work, chat about crafting and life in general. There are also swaps and challenges too! Every Monday there is a new challenge posted in the forum HERE. You have until the following Saturday night to upload your project based on that week's challenge. The first challenge of every month will receive a prize and a blinkie. We would love to have you play along! It's a very fun community of crafters!

This week you must create a project for a guy (child or adult). I am a girly girl and love making cards with flowers and cutesy stuff, so sometimes it IS quite a challenge to come up with a card for a guy. I have recently done some dry embossing because I finally got the right plates to use my Cuttlebug folders in my Spellbinders Wizard. So I wanted to play with the Tiny Mosaic folder. I love how much texture that embossing brings to cards. Makes it so interesting, in my opinion. Ok, so here's what I did on this. I stamped a large background stamp on a piece of vanilla cs with distress ink. It is kind of a blurry/abstract stamp, and with the ink, it just kinda looked like a mess, lol! After that, I embossed it. Then I took an ink applicator and applied cool caribbean ink and the distress ink in random places, while still letting the vanilla cardstock show through in some areas. Very fun technique! I really liked doing this. Very easy, and the possibilities are endless with multiple colors, different embossing folders, etc! For the sentiment on the oval nestie, I used the ink applicator to add just a little color on the inside edge of the embossed oval. Also added a touch of the chocolate chip ink on the outer edge of the oval. It's a simple design, but can be adapted for any occasion or recipient. THANKS FOR STOPPING BY!

Supplies:

Stamp: Stampin' Up - Eat Cake

Cardstock: Stampin' Up - Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla, (other is unknown)
Ink: SU Cool Carribean, Tim Holtz Distress Ink - Tea Dye, SU Chocolate Chip

Other: Nesties Classic Ovals Large, Cuttlebug Embossing Folder - Tiny Mosaic, Ink Applicator, SU Corner Rounder, SU - Twine

Paper Therapy Challenge #7 - Thank You

Good morning everyone! Today is a day for another challenge over at Paper Therapy. Since Thanksgiving is just around the corner, the challenge this time is to make a Thank You card or a "What I am Thankful For" Layout. We would LOVE for you to participate with us over at Paper Therapy. You have until Sat night, Nov 20th to upload your project to this thread.

I just LOVE how this card turned out! The patterned paper is so fun and colorful, and I love the embossed pattern. I tried to make a fall themed card with the colors. Thanks so much for stopping by, and like always....I would love to hear your feedback!!!

Supplies:

Stamps: Stampin' Up - Noteworthy, Carte Postale

Cardstock: Stampin' Up - Perfect Plum, Marigold Morning, (others are unknown)
Patterned Paper: Cloud9 Design Paper Pad - Harvest Holiday
Ink: Elegant Eggplant, Perfect Plum

Other: Nesties Labels Eight, Sizzix Tim Holtz Alterations Texture Fades - Regal Flourishes, Button - Stemma, Green Fiber - Adornaments by EK Success, SU - Twine, Dimensionals, Sponge

DeNami Christmas Blog Hop

Good morning bloggers!! I am very excited to be a part of another blog hop with DeNami Design! It's one of my FAVORITE stamp companies. If you are not familiar with them, you MUST check out their website and blog for adorable stamps and lots of card ideas! While commenting on the projects along the hop, you have the opportunity to win a DeNami gift certificate...so be sure to start at the beginning of the hop HERE to get the details! If you already have, then you should have come from the very talented Wendy Elliot's blog. I'm so excited to have you!

I chose to do something a bit different than my usual 5.5" x 4.25" card size. I picked a square shape because the Elegant Floral Circle stamp I used is so beautiful that I wanted it to be the main focus of my card, and I felt that the best way to showcase it would be on a square card. It's a very simple design, but I think elegant too! This was such a fun card to make. It's the first time I used Copic markers too! I just had to buy some red and green colors to try with this stamp. I also added some red and green Stickles to the image for that finished *sparkly* look. Oh, and a few rhinestones too! I hope this card has brought some Christmas inspiration for you. If you haven't started thinking about your Christmas cards yet, this is the time to do it! It's creeping up on us so quickly!!! Gotta get my butt in gear and start crankin' on mine -- LOL!

In this close up, you can see the *sparkle* better around the edges of the flowers and leaves.

Your next stop along the hop is Amy Smidebush. Be sure to hop on over and leave her a comment on her creation! Have fun!!!

Supplies:

Stamps: DeNami - Elegant Floral Circle

Cardstock: Stampin' Up - Chocolate Chip, Real Red, Mellow Moss, Very Vanilla
Ink: SU Chocolate Chip

Other: Nesties Labels Nine, Copic Markers, Stickles - Xmas Red, Green, Cuttlebug Embossing Borders - Just My Type, Paper Piercer, Rhinestones - Colorbok

Mojo Monday Sketch Challenge #164

Happy Saturday! Today I have a quick post to share with you. For the first time, I decided to participate in the Mojo Monday challenge! The sketch this week is really great. Today is my husband's birthday, so I used the sketch to create a card for him. I hope it's masculine enough! I finally used some of my Papertrey Ink stamps I bought over the summer. I just love the Giga Guide Lines set. You will probably see more cards using this set soon! I'm thinking of making some Christmas cards with it.
I hope you like what I created! If you are new to my blog and like my work, I would love more followers! ;-) Be sure to stop by again tomorrow (Sunday) for the awesome DeNami Christmas Blog Hop!!! There are 22 designers this time, so you will surely get a good dose of Christmas inspiration!!!

Supplies:

Stamps: Papertrey Ink - Giga Guide Lines

Cardstock: Stampin' Up - Basic Black, Whisper White
Patterned Paper: Me & My Big Ideas - Black and White Free Spirit Specialty CS

Ink: Staz-on - Black, Brilliance - Starlite Silver

Other: Ribbon - SU Black Grosgrain, Nesties - Standard Circles Small, Classic Squares Small

Paper Therapy Challenge #6 - Ad Inspired

Good morning! I hope everyone had a great weekend! It's time for another challenge over at Paper Therapy! This time it's an Ad Inspired challenge. Make a project based off of the inspiration you’ve gotten from the ad pictured above. Isn't it such a unique and interesting ad?! I sure spent a lot of time just studying it to see how I wanted to use it as inspiration for my card. And here's what I did! I'm pretty happy with it.

I used the brown color of the stockings, the black patent leather of the shoes, and the skin tone of the feet for my main layout. I tried to simulate the lines of the stockings by creating vertical lines with the embossing border (I had to run it through the machine 5 times since it was just a single squiggly line). I wanted to create the same shiny look from the shoes, so I took a piece of black cardstock, and embossed the whole thing with clear embossing powder. There must have been some pieces of white ep mixed in with the clear because you can see the little speckles in it, lol! Oh well....I think it gives it some extra character. I punched out a black scalloped circle and made a cut to the center where each scallop is. Then layered a prima flower, a button from DeNami Design, and finished it off with some black thread. I also added a touch of distress ink to the edges of the creamy caramel and vanilla cardstock. I hope you like my creation! I would love to hear any feedback you may have for me! THANKS FOR STOPPING BY!!!

Supplies:

Stamps: Stampin' Up! - Small Script

Cardstock: Stampin' Up - Creamy Caramel, Basic Black, Very Vanilla, Kraft

Ink: Staz-on - Black, Tim Holtz Distress Ink - Tea Dye

Other: Orange Prima Flower, Button - Denami, Black Thread - Magic Scraps, Marvy Uchida Round Scalloped Punch, Rhinestones - Colorbok, Cuttlebug Embossing Borders - Just My Type

Paper Therapy Challenge #5 - Holy Moly! (and SCS CC287)

Good morning! Hope everyone had a great Halloween! This week's Paper Therapy challenge is a fun one! Holy Moly...you must create a project with a hole in it somewhere. How you choose to do it is up to you! I was excited about this challenge because I really haven't made many cards with a 'window' in the front, so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to try it out. I also used a previous SCS Color Challenge CC287 for the colors on this card. I kept it simple, and this is what I came up with. It's a little difficult to see where the window is, but the edge of the orange trim is where the hole is. The DeNami Design "BIRTHDAY WISHES" sentiment and balloons (which I masked) are stamped on white cs and layered on eggplant cs, then attached to the inside part of the card with dimensionals. To keep with the circular theme, I used another DeNami stamp Medium Double Circle, to create the pattern around the window. I used a Stamp-a-ma-jig to help me out with that one! Luckily, I only had to do it once! At the bottom is a piece of eggplant cs, with thin strips of certainly celery and groovy grava layered on top. I used my Crop-o-dile to punch the small holes. I intended to use this as a male birthday card, but now I'm not sure. Would it be appropriate for a guy? Or do you think it's too girly?! Let me know what you think! Have a great week! :-)

Supplies:

Stamps: DeNami - Birthday Wishes Circle, Party Time Petit Fours Set, Medium Double Circle

Cardstock: SU - Certainly Celery, Elegant Eggplant, Groovy Guava, Whisper White
Ink: SU - Certainly Celery, Elegant Eggplant

Other: Nestabilities Standard Circles Small, Dimensionals, Crop-o-dile, Stamp-a-ma-jig

Paper Therapy Challenge #4 - Scraps

Today kicks off the next challenge over at Paper Therapy! Dig out those cardstock and ribbon scraps and use them to create something beautiful! It can be anything, as long as you use only scraps (the base can be a full piece of cardstock). Check out the design team projects here in the Challenge #4 thread...there are some really great ways to use up your scraps! I encourage you to come participate in this challenge. You have until Saturday, October 30th at 11:59 CST to upload your project to the thread mentioned above. We would love to see what you can create with your scraps! Thanks for stopping in! Hope you visit again!!! :-)

Supplies:

Stamps: Stampendous - Pearl Beadwork

Cardstock: Stampin' Up - Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry, Elegant Eggplant

Ink: SU - Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry

Dies: SB Nestabilities Classic Ovals Large
Ribbon: SU - Rich Razzleberry dotted grosgrain

Other: Pink Pearls - Kaiser, White Pearl - Recollections

DeNami Design Theme Challenge #4

Happy Sunday! Today I have a card to share for the current DeNami Design Theme Challenge: CHRISTMAS!! I've been busy making Halloween cards lately, and haven't made Christmas cards yet...until now. I just can't even believe November is just around the corner.

 

Here is the card! I used the Curly Garland Border (one of my favorites because it's so versatile), and stamped it twice to form the shape of a Christmas tree. I have to give major credit to my Stamp-a-ma-jig for perfect alignment! ;) I used the little bursts from the Petit Fours Party Time set to be the tree topper...it's kinda hard to see because of the yellow color on the vanilla cardstock. At the bottom, I used the present from the same set. To add some more interest, I used red and green Stickles as ornaments, and gold for the topper and presents. The edge of the red cardstock was punched using my new EK Success edger punch called jewel. More bling was added to the edge with dots of green Stickles!

So what do you all think?! I would love to hear your feedback! I am thinking of doing something a bit different this year for my Christmas cards. I've always just designed one layout and sent everyone the same card. But I would love to play around and make 5 or 6 different ones to keep it interesting. I might even do another variation of this card. I'll be sure to post them all :-) ***SO GLAD YOU STOPPED BY!***

Supplies:

Stamps: DeNami Design - Curly Garland Border, Petit Fours Party Time

Cardstock: SU - Kraft, Real Red, Handsome Hunter, Very Vanilla

Ink: SU - Real Red, Handsome Hunter

Other: EK Success Edger Punch - jewel, Stickles - Xmas Red, Green, & Golden Rod, Metallic Trim, Dimensionals

Paper Therapy Challenge #3 - Color

It's time for another challenge over at Paper Therapy! This week is a color challenge. I love color challenges. I tend to use similar colors over and over again on my cards, so it's nice to be forced to change it up! I immediately thought of Halloween when I saw these colors. I've been having a great time creating Halloween cards the last few weeks.

So this is my card! I am sooooo excited about this one! I LOVE IT! hehe. It's different for me, and that's a good thing. I tried out a new technique I saw when I had watched a few videos about the SB Wizard. It's so easy and I think it has such an awesome look. See how the edge of the die cut shape is white, but there is color on the inside? Well, all you have to do is place the actual die on top of your cut shape, then use a sponge to add some ink to the inside edge of the shape!
The black and white paper in the center is part of a DCWV stack...with glitter! It's a little difficult to see in the pic, but it adds some nice detail. Also, the green cardstock is completely made of glitter! So fun! I finally got a chance to use that sharp black and white ribbon that I've had for probably a year. I love it! Anyway...you must check out the rest of the Paper Therapy design team projects HERE for this challenge! I'm telling you....they are AWESOME! We would LOVE to have you play along with this challenge! It's a perfect way to get a Halloween card done! Thanks for stopping by :-)

Supplies:

Stamps: Stamin' Up - Holiday Best (Trick or Treat), Year after Year (Pumpkin)

Cardstock: Stampin' Up - Whisper White, Pumpkin Pie. DCWV (Latte CS Stack)

Patterned Paper: DCWV (The Glitter Stack)

Ink: Black Staz-on, SU - Only Orange, So Saffron

Dies: SB Nestabilities Labels Eight

Other: Brads - BasicGrey, Ribbon - Michael's, Sponge

Paper Therapy Challenge #2 - My First Stamp

***If you're here for the DeNami Autumn Blog Hop, please scroll down to the previous post.***

Good morning! I hope everyone had a great weekend. It sure was unseasonably warm here in Chicagoland - in the mid '80s and full of sunshine! What a treat for October. I wore shorts and a t-shirt while watching the Bears game, lol! That's a rare sight! ;-)

It's time for the second weekly challenge over at Paper Therapy. Click here to see the challenge post and the design team's cards!  Everyone did such a great job. This week is quite a unique challenge...to use the very first stamp you ever purchased on your project! Well, mine is a Thank You sentiment that I bought probably about 15-20 years ago while shopping with my step-mom! I remember being with her in the store, and I picked out the stamp so I could make my own Thank You cards for birthday gifts, Christmas gifts, etc. I also got one of those Colorbox rainbow ink pads, with like 5 different colors in it! Who knew that years later rubber stamping would be my passion and that I would still have it!!

This is a very simple card. The main Thank You is embossed with black EP, and the diecut is a Nestie. I stamped the black cardstock repeatedly with the sentiment, and embossed it with clear EP. For the red accents, I added the ribbon behind the diecut, and the brads in the corner.
Thanks for stopping by! Like always, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Supplies:

Stamp: Rubber Stampede - "Thank You"

Cardstock: SU - Whisper White, Basic Black
Ink: VersaMark

Ribbon: SU - Real Red Grosgrain

Other: Nestabilities Large Labels, Red Brads - unknown, Black EP, Clear EP

DeNami Autumn Blog Hop!

Hello, good morning and Happy Sunday! I am so excited to be a part of the DeNami Autumn Blop Hop today...it's the first blog hop I've ever participated in! Woo Hoo!!  If you've come here from Amy Smidebush's blog, then you're on the right track! If not, then you'll want to make sure you start at the beginning on the DeNami blog here, so you don't miss a thing! Leave a comment on EVERY blog in the hop, and you'll be eligible to win one of two $20 DeNami gift certificates. You have until Monday, October 11, 11:59 PST to leave your comments. Sweet deal, right?!

As the name suggests, this hop is all about Autumn. So I decided to use the ADORABLE Jack 'O Lantern Trio stamp as the main focus for this card. I just love that stamp. I used chalks to color them in...gives it such a nice, soft look. I also used the ZigZag Stitch Border around the edge of the brown cardstock using VersaMark. Lastly, the Flower Vine Swirl was stamped twice at the bottom for a little added detail. Thanks for stopping by, and I hope I have inspired you to go and do some Autumn stamping! Enjoy the rest of the hop. Your next stop is Tina Covington's blog.

Supplies:

Stamps: DeNami Design - Jack 'O Lantern Trio, ZigZag Stitch Border, Flower Vine Swirl

Cardstock: SU - Really Rust, Creamy Caramel, More Mustard, Natural

Ink: SU - Chocolate Chip, VersaMark

Ribbon: BasicGrey

Other: Nestabilities Ovals, SU Eyelets and Button, Stampin' Pastels

Paper Therapy Challenge #1 - Sketch

Hello and Happy Monday everyone! Hope you all had a great weekend and were able to spend some time making cards for World Card Making Day.
Today is an exciting day. It's the first day of the weekly challenges over at Paper Therapy, and I'm proud to be a member of the design team. Yeah! This week happens to be a sketch challenge, and it's such a nice sketch, don't you think?! Kristin did a great job with it. We would LOVE to see what you can come up with for this challenge! There happens to be a prize for this one (the winner of the 1st challenge of every month gets a prize)! You have until this Saturday, Oct 9th at 11:59 pm (CST) to post a picture of your finished project as a reply to this week's challenge post.

Sooooooo...here's the sketch...

 

...and here's what I came up with!

I needed a card for my good friend Sara's baby shower. They don't know the baby's gender, therefore I had to make it neutral, so I used both blue and pink. I think it turned out so cute, what about you?

I would love to hear your feedback and comments, so feel free to do so!

Thanks for stopping by! :-)

Supplies:

Stamps: Stampin' Up -  Year After Year, A to Z Accents

Cardstock: SU - Kraft, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla
Blue Patterned Paper:  Colorbok
Ink: SU - Chocolate Chip, Bashful Blue

Ribbon: American Crafts

Other: Nestabilities Standard Circles Small, EK Success Open Scallop Edger Punch, SU Brads, Sponge

DeNami Sketch Challenge 4

Hi everyone! Today I have a card for the DeNami Sketch Challenge 4, which you can find here. I really love this sketch that Sherry created. It's simple, but interesting at the same time! I decided to make a Halloween card because I haven't made any yet this year. And you know what? I actually haven't made ANY Halloween cards since 2006!!! I never really owned any Halloween stamps...but that changed when I bought this adorable Jack O'Lantern Trio stamp from DeNami Design at the CHA show this year! I just love it! It's so cute! I also don't have too many markers, so I don't do a whole lot of coloring in images. Maybe one of these days I will get a few Copics to start a collection. Uuhhhh...so many things I want to buy, buy, buy.....

 
I am very happy with how this turned out. The orange patterned paper is something I found in my stash that I had bought years ago. I don't have too many embellishments that match this color scheme, so I created my own by spelling out the words "BOO" and "EEK"! I used a small circle punch to make the green circles, stamped the letters on each one, and used purple Stickles to accent the edges. I also used dimensionals on each one to give them some extra oomph! Hope you like it. I would love to hear your feedback :) Thanks for stopping by!

Oh, and be sure to stop by again on Monday, Oct 4th. It's the first day of the new weekly Paper Therapy challenges! I will have my first Design Team card posted here on my blog, and on the Paper Therapy site. Come check it out! We'd love to have you participate! There will be a prize for this one ;-)

Supplies:

Stamps: DeNami - Jack O'Lantern Trio, EK Success Image Tree - Brush Alphabet

Cardstock: Stampin' Up - Basic Black, Whisper White, Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive

Patterned Paper: Unknown

Ink: Black Staz-on

Dies: SB Nestabilities Standard Circles Small, Big Scalloped Circles LG

Other: SU 1/2" Circle Punch, Lavender Stickles, Dimensionals

Announcement!!!

Hello fellow bloggers and paper crafters! I have exciting news to share with you today! I am proud to announce that I've been chosen as a Paper Therapy Design Team member! If you aren't familiar with Paper Therapy, it is an online community where stampers and scrapbookers gather to discuss paper crafts and general, everyday life. There is a gallery section where you can upload pics of your projects, and starting Monday, October 4th, there will be a new challenge every week! The first challenge of every month will have a prize! Let me tell you...these are going to be fun challenges! And what I really like about it is that you can use any brand of product for these challenges, so anyone can participate.
If you haven't checked out the site yet, I encourage you to register (it's free). Just click the grey "SIGN UP" box at the very top of the page. Then introduce yourself in the "Intros" forum. I look forward to seeing you there!

Color Cue {8} and Cardabilities Challenges

I needed an anniversary card for my in-laws, so I decided to combine the Color Cue {8} Challenge with the Cardabilities Challenge. I love how this card turned out! Perfect fall colors!
Isn't the patterned paper just gorgeous?! I couldn't believe how perfectly it matched the colors for the challenge, so of course I had to use it. The yellow vertical piece of cs is made with a stamp from the Double-Line Doodles SU set. I love my Frames with a Flourish SU set, but haven't used it all that much. I thought it was a nice complement to the patterned paper. Finally, the polka-dot ribbon ties it all together. Thanks for stopping by! I would love to hear your feedback! :-)

Supplies:

Stamps: Stampin' Up - Frames with a Flourish, Everyday Flexible Phrases, Double-Line Doodles

Cardstock: Stampin' Up - Whisper White, So Saffron, Bravo Burgundy, Old Olive

Patterned Paper: Heidi Grace Designs

Ink: Stampin' Up - Chocolate Chip, Always Artichoke

Ribbon: Joann's Papercrafting Ribbon

Other: Dimensionals

Embellish Magazine Color Challenge with Squares

I've got a quick post today. This is my card for the Embellish Magazine Color Challenge with Squares. This is such a great color combination, I couldn't pass up submitting a card to the challenge! I punched out a few squares and decided to rotate them so they actually look like diamonds. I made this for my stepmom to cheer her up since she's been in a lot of pain lately due to a bulged disc in her lower back. Her favorite color is purple, so it worked out very nicely :-) Thanks for stopping by and as always, I'd love to hear your comments!

 

Supplies:

Stamps: Stampin' Up -Doodle That, Around and About, Fun and Fast Notes

Cardstock: SU - Perfect Plum, Certainly Celery, Basic Black, Very Vanilla
Ink: SU - Perfect Plum, Basic Black

Ribbon: PTI - Spring Moss

Other: Nestabilities Labels One, SU 1 3/8" Square Punch, Stickles-Lavender, Dimensionals

DeNami Color Challenge #4

I hope everyone had a wonderful long holiday weekend! I sure did, but it still went by WAY TOO FAST!! Dave and I spent time with family, I did some clothes shopping (got some new fall stuff and a new winter coat!), and I was able to spend time stamping. So fun ;-) So, here is my card for the current DeNami Challenge which is Color Challenge #4. Michele did an AWESOME job picking the colors. I just luv luv luv them! I just might have to do two cards for this challenge. We'll see if time permits. I used the Rosebud Trio stamp as the main focus of the card, and then inked up just one of the Rosebuds with VersaMark and stamped it in each bottom corner to give it a little extra character. Let me know what you think! You've got to check out the challenge and play along, there is still plenty of time. There is a FABULOUS prize for this one ;-)

Supplies:

Stamps: DeNami - Rosebud Trio, Stampin' Up! - Warmest Regards

Cardstock: SU - Pink Passion, Basic Black, Whisper White
Ink: SU - Basic Black, VersaMark
Ribbon: White - Unknown, Black - SU

Other: Nestabilities Labels Eight, Kaiser - Pink Pearls, Recollections - Black/White Pearls

Simple Masculine Card

I made this card a few months ago, and realized I never posted it! It's always a challenge for me to come up with a guy card, and I am very pleased with this one! I used Stampin' Up's Circle Circus set and Happy Everything. I love sets that have such fun, detailed patterns. I stuck with the common blues and browns I often use for masculine cards. It's a simple yet appealing card, what do you think? I'd love to hear from you! I'm happy to have new visitors and followers on my blog  ;-)
 

Supplies:

Stamps: SU - Circle Circus, Happy Everything

Cardstock: SU - Ballet Blue, Chocolate Chip, Kraft

Ink: SU - Chocolate Chip, Whisper White

Ribbon: Joann's Papercrafting Ribbon

Other: Miscellaneous Circle Punches, Brad - SU, Dimensional

DeNami & Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenges

For this card, I decided to combine two challenges. The first is DeNami's Theme Challenge #3, and the second is Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge 82. Check them out! I thought they were great challenges.

 

















I didn't use any special techniques on this card. Just lots of basic stamping, die cuts, and punches! I love adding detail...it's rare that I make a card using only cardstock. WIth all the amazing embellishments out there today, how could you NOT! I used 2 DeNami buttons from the great bag of buttons I bought at their booth at CHA. It's such a good mix of different styles and sizes. I also used ribbon from Paper Trey Ink. Glad I made that purchase ;-)
Thanks for stopping by my blog! I love getting new visitors and receiving comments, so let me know what you think! Have a GREAT weekend!

Supplies:

Stamps: DeNami - Birthday Wishes Circle, Party Time Petit Fours Set

Cardstock: SU - Tempting Turquoise, Lavender Lace, Basic Black, Whisper White
Ink: SU - Tempting Turquoise, Lavender Lace, Basic Black

Buttons: DeNami
Ribbon: PTI -Plum Pudding

Other: Nestabilities Standard Circles Small, Marvy Uchida 2" Round Scallop Punch, EK Success Edger Punch-Open Scallop, SU Corner Rounder, Stickles-Lavender, Dimensionals

California Vacation Pics...

Dave and I are back home now after having a wonderful California vacation last week. I thought I'd share a few of my favorite pictures. Dave really enjoys photography, so I had the luxury of just enjoying the scenery while he snapped, snapped, snapped away with his camera! Overall, he took about 2000 pictures! Here are only a few...

We took a guided coach bus tour which started in San Francisco and ended in Los Angeles, making many stops along the way. Sonoma Wine Country, Yosemite, Monterey, a forest with the big Redwoods, Pebble Beach, Carmel, Santa Barbara, Santa Monica, LA, and Hollywood! We were both surprised at how cool it was (or COLD!) for most of the trip until we got to Santa Barbara. For those of you that know me personally, you know that I absolutely HATE THE COLD! The 50's-60's are not a temperature I would have guessed for California! The breeze off the ocean was very brisk. So, in the pictures below, you will see me all bundled up...I was even able to manage to get on two sweatshirts! LOL! It's shocking that I can survive living in Chicago, huh?! Hope you enjoy the pictures ;-)

The famous Lombard Street in San Francisco. It's hard to see the actual street
with all the foliage, but check out all those cars going back and forth!

San Francisco neighborhoods. Notice how steep it is! Crazy!

Something I really enjoyed on the trip was visiting Ghiradelli Square where they
make such delicious chocolate! See the sign behind us, in the upper right?

San Francisco = FOG! I love this closeup shot. The color is fantastic!

Seeing and driving over the Golden Gate Bridge was one of my favorite moments on our trip!

Yosemite National Park. Amazing!

Cool shot Dave captured with a long exposure.

California Coast

One of my favorite things was getting a tour of the Sony Pictures Studios lot!
Among the list was the set of Jeopardy and the sitcom "Rules of Engagement", but pictures weren't allowed there :(

The Kodak Theatre is where one of my favorite shows is filmed!! American Idol!!

And of course, we HAD to get a picture of the famous HOLLYWOOD sign!