Painted Autumn Pumpkin Patch

Happy Halloween! Instead of an autumn scene, like on this card, I have more of a winter scene going on outside my window right now. That white stuff is coming down like crazy! Luckily, so far, it's not sticking, but melting as it hits the ground.

This is a card created mainly with Designer Series Papers...all but the spooky cat are part of the Painted Autumn pack of papers. I created the "Happy Fall" sentiment using the Labeler Alphabet and then added some texture using the Timeless Textures stamp set.

Don't forget...today is the last day of the Designer Series Paper Sale!

Delightful Daisy So Very Loved

I think that the Delightful Daisy Designer Series Paper is my favorite paper from this years catalog (at least right now!)  When I first saw these papers I knew I had to scrap the photos I had taken of my sweet granddaughter just a month before the catalog came out. She was wearing an outfit that matched the colors in the paper and she was even holding a daisy!

I cut eight 3-1/2" squares of DSP to create the background for my page.. A 2007 Sale-A-Bration set, So Very was used to create a title, which is embossed in white on Night of Navy. I used the very handy Labeler Alphabet set to stamp the words on my list next to the largest photo. I used the tiny daisy image in the Daisy Delight set to create the bullets for my list and the largest daisy image with coordinating Daisy Punch for the large daisy embellishment. The center is one of the pretty Gold Faceted Gems. Here's a closer look.

Originally I had planned to use just one photo on this layout, but couldn't decide between two of the photos...so I ended up cutting 3 photos down into small squares using the Stitched Shape Framelits, and placed those photos along the bottom. 

Can you spot "something Stampin' Up!" in the photos themselves? I made little Maddy a bunch of headbands when she was only a month or so old using felt and the Spiral Flower Die. You cannot see in the photo, but there is a large Iced Rhinestone jewel in the center. Babies need bling too! (Both the die and the rhinestones have been retired, so they are no longer available)

After I was finished with my layout I realized I hadn't included the date or age of Maddy, so I used the Tiny Tag set with it's coordinating punch (both retired) and wrote her name and age on the tags which are hung from the bow created using Daffodil Delight Seam Binding Ribbon.

I used pretty much the same layout for a Halloween page using the Spooky Night DSP shown here.

If you too love these papers...you can get them for FREE!

But hurry...the Buy 3 Get 1 FREE Sale ends tomorrow!

Spooky Cat on a Fence

This isn't a trick! The spooky Halloween card I created was made using the Spooky Nights DSP... with no stamps involved!

A picket fence was created from Basic Black cardstock that was embossed with the Pinewood Planks embossing folder and then cut into strips. The cat was punched from the Spooky Nights DSP and the pumpkins were fussy cut from a different sheet in the pack. Even the spooky tree and moon are included in this spooktacular pack of Designer Papers.

If you haven't yet taken advantage of the buy 3 packs of DSP and get one FREE sale yet...you have until October 31st...don't miss out!

Owen's Baby Bear

I went to a baby shower over the weekend and here is the card I made to go with the baby gift.

The adorable Baby Bear stamp set was an obvious choice. The color combo used is Basic Gray, Smokey Slate and Lemon Lime Twist, and it matched the diaper bag I gave for the gift perfectly! I like to buy a diaper bag and then use that as the "gift bag" to hold the rest of the baby gifts I give. I add lots of fluffy tissue tucked in between the gifts and always attach a cute toy and my card or tag to front of diaper bag to "embellish". I meant to take a photo to share with card, but I forgot.

I used the Layering Squares Framelits to cut both the Whisper White square and the scalloped square. I was able to create a personalized banner using the Labeler Alphabet & Thoughtful Banners stamp sets. The mommy-to-be loved that her babies name was on the card.

The Basic Gray & Black Bakers Twine was from last years Halloween combo pack of twine, so it's no longer available. The button was something I had in my stash and the color is a close match to Lemon Lime Twist so I used that as well.

Spooky Cat on a Spooky Night Layout

This is a great layout to showcase all the different patterns in a collection of paper. This page is all ready for a photo of my grand daughter on Halloween...who I'm sure will be more cute than spooky. I used the Spooky Cat Bundle (stamp set and cat punch) along with the coordinating Spooky Night papers.

The paper includes a sheet of squares with the spooky tree and full moon, all ready to stamp the owl if you choose. I cut all the other pieces the same size as this square.

I used the Labeler Alphabet to create my title and to make the BOO banner. I stamped the title strips with the pattern stamp from the Spooky Cat set...love that little stamp to add a little texture. The pumpkins and witch's hat were fussy cut from the Spooky Night DSP.

The little rat running across the pumpkins is a stamp included in the Spooky Cat stamp set as well...this set really is versatile and as you can see, works spooktacularly well with the DSP. The cat is punched out from the Spooky Nights paper and all I had to do was color the details on his face. The black Vintage Crochet Trim is part of the Spooky Night Suite which can all be found on pages 52 & 53 in the Holiday Catalog.

If you order 3 packs of Designer Series Paper right now, you can receive this pack (or any of the others offered) for FREE!

Thanks for visiting! Have a spooktacular weekend!

Jar of Love Thank You Card

Here's a favorite stamp set that I haven't used in a little while...Jar Of Love. A couple of  this years In Colors were used for a fresh look.

Colors used: Berry Burst, Lemon Lime Twist, Peekaboo Peach & Pool Party.

The jar of flowers was arranged on a Whisper White background that was embossed using the Pinewood Planks Embossing Folder. A pretty bow using Berry Burst Crinkled Seam Binding Ribbon finishes off the card.

Have a beautiful day!

You've Got Half Full Style

I've been wanting to use the champagne drinking women from the You've Got Style stamp set with the new Half Full stamp set since I got it. I had the opportunity when I needed to create a card for a 50th birthday.

Thankfully my cousin who just hit this milestone looks more like she's in her mid 30's vs this more mature woman. She has a sense of humor, so hopefully she got a kick out of this card. I used my Aqua Painter to color the images. Unfortunately, the photo is a little washed out so the watercoloring is barely visible, nor is the metallic gold I used for the jewelry and edging of the sign...so you'll have to trust me that it looked nicer in real life! LOL

I created the little "50 and fabulous" banner by simply drawing it on Whisper White cardstock using my Journaling Pen and cut it out...there was a lot of fussy cutting on this card, but it went pretty quick. The Fresh Fig background piece was easily done by stamping the row of glasses from Half Full until the background was totally full! I used one of the Gold Faceted Gems and Black Mini Sequin Trim to embellish the card.

Thanks for visiting...have a GREAT day!

Half Full Birthday

This past weekend we went away with several friends for a wine tasting weekend in Northern Michigan. One of our friends celebrated her birthday during the weekend and I was so happy I had the Half Full stamp set to create her birthday card! This is a new set in the Holiday Catalog and not only does it have great line art featuring glasses and a bottle but it has several awesome sentiments using nice fonts as well.

I watercolored the images using my Aqua Painter. After cutting them out, I used Crystal Effects over the glasses and the glass part of the bottle to make them look like glass. SU! doesn't sell CE any longer, so if you are not like me and have a big bottle left, you can also cover the images using the Fine Tip Glue Pen and allow to dry. Both products will leave you with a shiny, glassy looking image. See the close up below.

The Fresh Fig background layer was stamped all over using the stamp with a line of corks from the Tuscan Vineyard stamp set...these two sets work great together!  For the inside I used the stamp "may your glass always be half full".

I also decorated the envelope and used another great sentiment..."the best wines are the ones we drink with friends."

I really love this set and I also love that it was designed by a fellow SU! demonstrator, Linda Bauwin,  in recognition of becoming a Million Dollars Sales Achiever. Congrats and thanks to her for such an AWESOME stamp set!