Sunny Days Challenge at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps

Good Morning and welcome to another 

fabulous and fun Saturday Challenge

at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps!

This week our challenge for you is ....

SUNNY DAYS!

My card features three stamp sets: GOOD IN THE WOODS (Lucas), GOOD IN THE WOODS ACCESSORIES (BBQ) and that bright cheery sun from HERE COMES THE SUN. I stamped Lucas and the BBQ in our Wicked Black Ink, masked them, and used our new Radiant Rainbow stencil for the background. Inks used in the rainbow include: Ruby Red, Pumpkin Patch, Summer Sunshine, Charming Chartreuse, Sparkling Sapphire (currently on sale!), Purple Pansy and Gorgeous Grape. The rest of the scene was done in copic markers.

Each and every Saturday we post a brand new challenge for the week and you are welcome to enter as many times as you like with new creations. You are welcome to use any stamp however using Kraftin' Kimmie stamp and products will earn you double entries to the monthly prize of a $25 voucher to the Krafty shop!

There are two ways to enter... you can link up your creation on the Kraftin’ Kimmie blog page or you can upload your photo to the album in our Krafty Friends FB group.

And this weekend we have a special MAKE YOUR OWN SALE going on!  Use coupon code CSM20 to receive 20% OFF all regular priced items in the shop for the weekend!

Also if you need a little extra inspiration or a jumpstart to your mojo, we have a new sketch each month! Feel free to use it any time!

Here's the hop list:

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Sunnie

Hey krafty friends!

I'm the hostess for the Fun in the Sun challenge this week at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps. You can use any summery image, patterned papers, embellishments or colour schemes that get you thinking of warm weather!

I've used the gorgeous Sunnie on my card today. I paired her up with some Picadilly papers from Basic Grey. The sentiment is from our Mermaid Sentiments Set.

Sunnie was coloured with copics. (I'll be back later to update with a list of colours.

Make sure to check out what the rest of the Krafty Girls have created over at the KKS blog. We'd love to have you play along this week. If you use a KKS on your submission, you could be the lucky winner of Sunnie!

Thanks for stopping by!

Blessings,

Melanie

Release Day at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps!

Well welcome back!! It’s Krafty RELEASE Day at KRAFTIN' KIMMIE STAMPS!! And we’re celebrating with a KRAFTY HOP!!

Over the last few days in our Krafty Peeks, we have shared lots of AMAZING new stamps from all our artists! We’ve got something for everyone!! We've got TWO sweet new summertime sets from Nicole.......GOOD VIBRATIONS and SUMMER LOVIN’!! We’ve got two sweet new sets from Cheryl……SHELL ME A STORY and TOTALLY TUBULAR!! And of course we have an amazing new set of SIX awesome stamps in our BEACHY GIRLS collection and they are simply A-mazing!! 

You will get to see most of the new images today as you sit back and enjoy our MAY Krafty Hop! As you hop from blog to blog, be sure to leave a comment at each and every stop because some lucky stampers will win packages of these incredible stamps from the new release!! 

Here's my card featuring one of the sweet mermaids from the Shell Me a Story set. I used some old Imaginesce paper I found at the bottom of one of my paper bins. The corner embellishments are Classic Corner Dies by SCACD and the flourish is an MFT die. She was cut out and matted with Spellbinders. I pulled out an assortment of flowers (mostly Prima) and some pearls to finish it off. 

The image was stamped on Neenah and coloured with Copics. Stardust Stickles were added to her tail.

Skin: E000, E00, E11, RV95  Hair: E50, E31, E33, E37, E59, BV29  Tail: BG09, BG10, BG11,BG15,  B99, YG00, YG03, YG11, C7  Top: R20, R22. R59, BG15   Fish: Y00, Y15, Y17, Y21, E08, E13, E17, E59, YR04, YR07, YR61  Background: BG0000, BG000, B00

When you’re done hoppin’, be sure to head over to the Kraftin’Kimmie shop, because ALL the new images are available now! As always, we have our Gimme Kimmies Kits available for those of you who ‘need it all’!! The stamps are grouped together by artist and are available at a discount, but only for a limited time!! 

We’ve also rereleased some of our favourite Retired Summer stamps….Eleanor, Florence, Jack and Mae which you can pick up right now! AND we’ve put our awesome BEACHY SENTIMENTS and MERMAID SENTIMENTS on special right now to coordinate with ALL of our new stamps!! 

Have you seen our new section…..KRAFTYSINGLES?? Well, we’ve had some people asking for some of our sets of stamps as single images…and while we can do it on an ongoing basis, we’ve split a few of them up for you but only while supplies last!! So head on over and check out which ones are up this week! 

Don’t forget we’ve also got fabulous newPaper Pads, EZmount, Tack N Peel and Storage Panels for all your krafty needs!!! {US and International customers *may* have extra shipping costs if ordering paper pads due to the weight.}

Ok, here's the complete hop list for today...have fun!

Thanks for stopping by!

 Blessings,

 Melanie

Gabby...A Kraftin' Kimmie Sneak Peek!

Welcome back to Day THREE of the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps MAY previews!!! Wanna know the random commenter who is the lucky winner from yesterday?? Well, ALL the winners of this week will be announced at the LIVE online RELEASE PARTY TOMORROW night!!! Go HERE to get all the details!!!

Today we have THREE of the new stamps from our BEACHY GIRLS collection!!! We'll share the other three tomorrow! These gorgeous images will really get you in the mood for sun and sand!!!  Today, we'll introduce you to GABBY, JACQUIE COUSTEAU and LEILANI!! 

Here's my card featuring Gabby. I absolutely LOVE this stamp! Volleyball is my favourite sport and I play in a league through the school year. I love watching beach volleyball, but I don't play it for a number of reasons.  First of all, I don't fair well in the hot humid weather...it doesn't agree with my asthma. Secondly, one of the downsides of being a redhead with super fair skin is that I pretty much burn instantly. Thirdly, there's the whole beach volleyball uniform...NOBODY needs nor wants to see that much of me. ;P   So ultimately, I pretty much avoid the sun at all costs, lol. It's taken me many years, but I've come to terms with my pastiness. ;)  Anyways, back to Gabby...I like to pretend this is what I look like when I go up for a spike! In actuality, I know I don't even come close to looking this good, but a girl can dream right? I love the action in this image, and I adore her hair!!

Here's a close up: 

(Sorry, I forgot to record my colours...I'll get back to having a list for you with my Sunday blog hop card.)

Below you will find all the Krafty Girls who have goodies to show you today and while you're visiting their blogs, be sure to leave some love at each stop because ONE lucky stamper is going to WIN a package of today's stamps!! Woohoo!!!

ALL of our MAY stamps will be available TOMORROW night at the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Shop!!! We'll be celebrating tomorrow evening at our ONLINE RELEASE PARTY!! It's over at our KKS Facebook fan page! Join us for all the fun!! You can find more details here!! 

Here's the list for today's previews: 

Thanks for stopping by!

Blessings,

Melanie

What's the Scoop? (A Kraftin' Kimmie Sneak Peek!)

Guess what???!! It's that time again........ time for Kraftin' Kimmie's MAY 2013 RELEASE!!!!! 

We are kicking off the *New* MAY Kraftin’ Kimmie Stamps previews today and we're SO excited to share these new stamps with you from artist, Nicole Aspinall!!! Today we’d like to introduce you to these FUN SUMMERTIME image sets ….GOOD VIBRATIONS and SUMMER LOVIN'!!!

After the success of our awesome Trinket stamps by Nicole, we're thrilled to share these fun image stamps we've designed!! You can create either clean and simple cards with them or much more elaborate designs!! And you'll see this in the amazing samples today!

Here's my card featuring one of the delicious images and sentiments from the Good Vibrations set. I went pretty clean and simple with my card...I love making little note cards. They are so much fun to tuck into little gifts, or to give on their own with a sweet little message. The image was coloured with Copics and I added a bit of Stardust Stickles to the ice cream.

We have lots of inspiration from the Krafty Girls, so hop around....and be sure to comment at each and every stop because one lucky stamper is going to WIN BOTH of the new GOOD VIBRATIONS and SUMMER LOVIN' sets!!! {All of this week's winners will be announced at the online party on Saturday night!}Here's the list of today's previews:  

OH YES!! We are having another amazing ONLINE RELEASE PARTY!!! It's happening this SATURDAY evening at our Facebook fan page....and you can get ALL the details HERE!!! ALL the new stamps we're sharing over the next few days will be released on SATURDAY!!

Thanks for stopping by!

Blessings, 

Melanie

Here Comes the Sun

Good morning folks!! The challenge over at Sundays With Crissy this month is Here Comes The Sun. This is open to your interpretation! You could use sunny colours, summertime images, include an actual sun on your project...so many possibilities!

I decided to pull out one of my favourite stamps that Crissy illustrated for Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps...this stunning fairy is Ophelia. (You can find all the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps by Crissy Armstrong HERE.) I've used her a couple of times before, but I absolutely adore her so I was excited to ink her up again. :) Ophelia is actually perched on a rock, but I chose to not ink that portion of the stamp so that I could have her sitting on the edge of my main image panel with her legs extending past the border. I could have used that "out-of-the-box" Spellbinders technique that so many talented bloggers use...but I was too lazy! lol So I just placed the die on the paper, traced around it with a pencil and hand cut it...definitely not the perfectly clean and crisp edge you get when using your Spellbinders properly, but it will do. :) I've been hoarding that sunflower paper from Fancy Pants (Rusted Sun) for ages and finally decided it was time to use it, especially since the sunflowers seemed to be perfect for this challenge. I had this gorgeous deep red satin ribbon that I thought would be a perfect colour match for the red in the paper...nope. My ribbon supply is actually quite limited, and I felt the card needed another horizontal element behind the image. I had recently picked up a roll of organza ribbon at the dollar store, so I covered my ribbon with a layer of that to tone down the intensity of the red...and I was hoping it would echo the shimmer I planned to put on Ophelia's wings. The little white pearls were created with a Viva Decor Pearl Pen in Ice White.



Ophelia was stamped on Neenah paper with Memento Ink and coloured with Copic markers. The sky was sponged in with Stormy Sky Distress Ink and a hand-cut cloud template. In keeping with the Here Comes The Sun challenge, I wanted to use sunny colours for Ophelia. I also wanted to experiment with some feather blending on her wings...fairy wings are so much fun to colour! It took me a few tries on a scrap piece of paper to come up with the right combination of yellows, oranges and reds to achieve the effect I wanted...she actually ended up looking a bit more like a fire fairy than a sun fairy though! lol I added some subtle shimmer to her wings with Smooch Illuminate.



Copics: Skin: E000, E00, E11, R20 Hair: E50, Y21, Y26, E31, E33, E37, E59 Dress: R22, R27, R29, R46, R59, C5, C7, YR16, Y17, R27, E08, E99 Wings: E50, YR20, YR16, Y17, Y23, R17, R27, R59

Why don't you get creating and show us your Sun/Summer themed cards!! There will be five free digi's given to one lucky challenge participant who will be chosen by Random.org at the end of the month! You may now use images from any company and still be included in the draw for the blog candy prize! Those who use one of Crissy's images, either from her rubber or digital collections will be entered twice in the draw. But please respect the rule of no more than three entries per month. Otherwise your entries could be deleted the first post is "HERE"

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps "Ophelia
Paper: Neenah, Bazzill, Fancy Pants
Ink: Memento, Distress Ink, Copics
Embellishments: Ribbon, machine stitching, Viva Decor Pearl Pen

The June Kraftin' Kimmie Sneak Peeks Start Today...introducing "Stanley the Snail"!!

This Sunday will be another release day at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps!! The fun starts today with the first round of sneak peeks from the fun and fabulous Krafty Girls. You can visit the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog each day leading up to the release to see who has previews to share.

We have some very exciting news to share today...Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps is introducing another fabulous Krafty Artist!!! The Krafty Girls are all showcasing stamps by the very talented Emilie Goulet!!! I am already in love with Emilie's sweet style...you are going to adore her images!

This is "Stanley the Snail"...how cute is this??!! Quite the life our Stanley leads...look at him just chillin' on the beach! This image is so much fun to colour up. The patterned paper was in my scrap bin, but I'm pretty sure it's from Fancy Pants. The "Fun in the Sun" sentiment is part of Kimmie's "Mermaid Sentiments Set", and was stamped in Versafine Ink. The orange ribbon wasn't quite the right shade, so I went over it with my YG04 marker to create a better match.



I started by stamping Stanley on Neenah paper in Memento Ink. I coloured Stanley and his chair with Copic markers, but then had a bit of colouring mishap when I was working on the umbrella. I had used some very juicy BG's which ended up bleeding something terrible. Ugh. I decided to stamp the image again on some X-Press It Blending Card and had another go with different colours. I have tried this paper before, and haven't been overly fond of it. However, I'm thinking that I perhaps need to experiment a bit more with it as I was much happier with the result this time. Rather than re-colouring Stanley, I cut my "Neenah" Stanley out and and then paper-pieced him onto the image stamped on X-Press It with a Quickie Glue Pen.

Colours: Stanley: E31, E31, E25, E29, E59, E50 Shell: Chair: R22, R27, R46, R59, C5, C7 Umbrella: YG04, YG07, YR31, E08, B02, B12, B14, B23, B24, B99, C3, C5, C7 Stereo: C1, C3, C5, C7 Sand: E30, E31, E33, E37, E40, E41, E50, E59 Table: E18, E13, E50

To see more of this amazing new collection of stamps, please hop on over to the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog! Oh, and might you be interested in a bit of BLOG CANDY?? Kimmie is giving away one complete set of Emilie's new collection...all you need to do is hop around and leave comments on all the Krafty Girls' blogs who have sneak peeks today, and Kimmie will announce the winner on the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog tomorrow. :)

Hope to see you back tomorrow for round two of the June sneak peeks!!

Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps "Stanley", "Beachy Sentiments"
Ink: Memento, Copics, Versafine
Paper: Neenah, Bazzill, Fancy Pants
Embellishments: Ribbon, twine, button

Who's ready for some new Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps??!!

This Sunday will be another release day at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps and as always, Kimmie has put together an amazing selection of stamps! Today we are kicking off the sneak peeks with images by a brand new Krafty Artist!

Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps is thrilled to introduce a new artist to the mix....her name is Cheryl Alger! You may recognize her name from Sassy Cheryl's where she creates digital art. Cheryl is creating a brand NEW line of images, specifically for Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps! These stamps will ONLY be available at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps and ONLY as unmounted rubber stamps! Now here's a bit about Cheryl!

I grew up outside of Staunton, Virginia, but now live in the Richmond, Virginia. I absolutely LOVE to draw and always carry a small sketchbook with me in case inspiration strikes me while I'm out and about.

I have been creating digital art now for about 12 years now and have licensed my work to companies such as Kohl's, Hobby Lobby and Shopko, among others, for over eight years. I started creating digital images about two years ago. It's been a lifelong dream to become a working artist, and besides deadlines, I LOVE everything about what I do! It really helps that I have a very supportive husband and son (they also can be my biggest critics! I have to admit, I LOVE my job!

This is "Little Summer Girl". How fun is she with her little ducky floatie?! I paired her up with some fun bright patterned paper from Echo Park. The "Make a Splash" sentiment on my card is from Kimmie's "Mermaid Sentiments". The little water droplets are Jolee's Stickers...I still had the sticker pack out from the card I made for our current "Krafty" challenge. Lol, how's that for lazy crafting...just grab whatever is already out on your table! :)

Copics: Hair: Y21, Y23, E31, E33, E37, E50, E59 Skin: E000, E00, E11, RV42 Bathing suit: R27, R29, R46, E59, C9 Flippers: Duck Floatie: Y00, Y11, Y17, Y21, Y28, E35, R27, R46, YR00, YR02, YR04, YR07, E08

Please make sure to stop by the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog today for links to all the Krafty Girls who have sneak peeks to share with you. The sneak peeks will continue right through until the release day this Sunday when we'll have a fun blog hop to celebrate!

CANDY ALERT!!!!: Kimmie has decided to give away a whole set of Cheryl's new stamps today! Make sure to leave comments on all the Krafty Girls blogs because one lucky winner will receive the whole set of Cheryl's new stamps and she'll announce the winner in Thursday's post. (visit the challenge blog for links to their blogs!!)

Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps "Little Summer Girl" and "Summer Sentiments"
Ink: Memento, Versafine, Copics
Paper: Neenah, Bazzill, Echo Park
Embellishments: Jolee's Stickers

Surf's Up!

Hello and happy Saturday to you all! The lovely Miss Tracy Cornhill is our hostess this week at the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog and her challenge is to use Kraft Paper on your project!

I decided to pull out the ever adorable Surfing Miles for my card this week. To create the little beach scene, I sponged in the sky and used a wave sticker (Jolee's Stickers bought at Walmart). The "sand" was created by crumpling up pieces of Kraft cardstock and then pulling apart the outer layers. This exposes the core of the cardstock which has a bit of a "fuzzy" texture. I crumpled it up a bit more, tore the edges and brushed them various inks to highlight the texture. The fun surfboard paper is from Fancy Pants.


Miles was stamped in Memento ink and coloured with Copics.

Miles: W1, W3, W5, W7, C1, C3, C5 C7 Shorts: BG000, BG10, BG11, BG72, BG75, R17, R27, R29, R59, G7 Surfboard: B91, B93, B95, B97, YR00, YR02, YR04, YR07, E08, YG00, YG11, YG23, YG25, G7

The lucky winner of the Kraft Paper challenge this week will get to choose one image stamp as their prize!! Just make sure to use a Kraftin' Kimmie Stamp on your project...you can go shopping at the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Online Store. For some inspiration, hop on over to the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog to see what the Krafty Girls have created this week.

OK...now for some Kraftin' Kimmie News Tidbits!! There are several exciting things you will want to know about, so make sure to read thoroughly. :)

1. Did you see the newest items available at the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Online Store??? Kimmie is now carrying keychains, magnets and 5x7 prints of some of Krafty Artist Annie Rodrigue's work!!! Make sure to scoop yours up when you place your next order! (I grabbed myself a "Perfect Poison" keychain, and an "Angry Ballerina" keychain for my daughter Ainsleigh. LOVE them!!) You can find them under the "Annie's Artwork" category at the store.



2. Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps is celebrating National Scrapbooking Day and Mother's Day by having a big ol' SALE!!! There are over 100 stamps from all of our lines on sale 25-75% off! Yes, you read that right! This sale will run from Friday May 6th-Tuesday May 10th! And some of these images will be retiring shortly, so get them before they are GONE!! (Cannot be combined with other coupons/discounts!)



3. Please join us in welcoming a brand new full-time Krafty Girl to the team...Carole Burrage!!! We are absolutely thrilled to have her joining us. Not only is she an amazingly talented stamper, but a visit to her blog is bound to leave you in stitches with her witty humour. Welcome aboard Carole!! :)



4. And finally, we'd like to welcome our lovely guest designers for the month of May: Kerry Johnson, Taylor Usry and Inge Groot! Can't wait to see what these ladies have up their Krafty sleeves. :)

I will leave you with one final "head's up"...sneak peeks for the May release will being this Wednesday!! So make sure to stop by the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog each day to see who has sneak peeks to share with you...you will love the May stamps!

Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I hope you enjoy your weekend. :)

Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps "Surfing Miles"

Ink: Memento, Copics, Distress Inks (Antique Linen, Tea Dye, Walnut Stain)

Paper: Bazzill, Neenah, Fancy Pants
Embellishments: Jolee wave sticker

Pip!!

Good morning friends!! Are you all set for another Kraftin' Kimmie Challenge?? Your hostess is the lovely Jeanne Streiff...she's challenging us to use Twine or Floss on our projects this week.

This lovely young mermaid is "Marina". I used some fun papers from Imaginesce. I matted her on the scalloped patterned paper because I thought it kind of looked like the scales I was trying to create on Marina's tail. To keep with the scalloped theme, I also pulled out my Lacey Circles Spellbinders and a Martha Stewart border punch. I used a little bit of white embroidery floss on the button and then added a little clamshell charm attached with jump rings. LOL...I had a bit of fun with the title of my post today. Do you remember what book talked about a goldfish kiss that made the sound "Pip!"??? Think waaay back to your childhood favourites. Think cats in hats, Pops that were hopped on, people houses, ham and eggs in less than traditional colours...gosh, I LOVED Dr. Seuss!! One of my many Seuss favourites was Mr. Brown Can Moo...and in that book, Mr. Brown could make the noise of a goldfish kiss...PIP! Too fun!! :)

Confession time...I was running a bit short on time this week so lucky for me I had this image already stamped out and partially coloured from a colouring demo I did at the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Booth at Scrapfest back in October. I honestly cannot remember the complete list colours I used on her tail, but taking a look at it I will guess that the following colours were included: YG00, YG11, YG63, YG67, G99, Y00, Y17. When colouring the Kraftin' Kimmie mermaids, I like to try to replicate the texture of scales on their fishy tails. I lay down my colour in little "U" shaped flicks...be very lighthanded with these strokes as you will be building up the depth of colour. If you are too heavy-handed, you will end up with too much ink saturating your paper and will loose the crispness of the strokes. It's these crisp and clean strokes that will create the appearance of actual scales. I layer the strokes heavier towards the outer edges of the tail, especially the outer edge that is furthest away from the light source. As I work towards the middle of the tail (and the highlighted area), I use fewer of these "U" shaped strokes...and I will use much lighter colours for them in this area. I take my lightest shades (in this case they were probably YG00 and YG11) and go over all the strokes to soften them slightly...remember you want to keep some of the strokes visible to create the texture. I always end up going back in to add more ink for additional depth and detail. As a final touch, I used some Smooch Illuminate and Stardust Stickles for a bit of "glam". :)

When I pulled out this partially coloured image, I had coloured her hair in tones of yellow but I wanted to change it up a bit so I started playing with some auburn tones layered over top. I'm guessing that the blonde base would have included some Y21, Y17, E50 and some E30's...not sure though as it was so long ago. The additional colours I added were E11, E13, E17, E99 and E59. The skin was most likely coloured with my go-to combo of E000, E00, E11 and R20.

If you play along this week, you could win Stella Strawberry, the stamp Jeanne used on her beautiful card this week! (just make sure to use a Kraftin' Kimmie Stamp on your project to be eligible) You can check out all the gorgeous projects created this week by my fellow Krafty Girls and our lovely Krafty Guests at the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Challenge Blog!

Thanks for stopping by today blog friends!! Your visits really do mean so much to me. I understand that life is very busy, and so the few minutes you take to stop by here at Paper Blessings is VERY much appreciated.

Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps "Marina"
Ink: Memento, Copics
Paper: Neenah, Bazzill, Imaginesce
Embellishments: Crocheted trim, stretchy ribbon, button, embroidery floss, metal charm, machine stitching, Startdust Stickles, Smooch Illuminate
Tools: Martha Steward punch

Do Mice Scuba Dive??

Good morning, and welcome to another weekend! We've got a new challenge for you today at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps. The fabulous Donna has created a great sketch for us to play along with this week...gotta love sketch challenges!! I decided to pull out cutie patootie "Tubing Miles" for my card this week. This little mouse just makes me smile with his "floatie" and scuba mask.

Here's Donna's great sketch:

So, are you game?? If you participate in our challenge, you will have the chance to win "Mae", the stamp Donna used on her gorgeous card this week....but ONLY if you use a Kraftin' Kimmie Stamp on your project. (go shopping HERE!)

Have a fantastic Saturday friends!

Blessings,

Melanie

(psst...If you missed out on the Summer Mermaid Stamp Kit, don't despair! Kimmie is releasing them as individual stamps, so you can now pick up your favourites!)

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps "Tubing Miles"

Ink: Memento, Copic markers

Paper: Neenah, Fancy Pants, Bazzill

Thinking Outside The "Square"

Time for another challenge at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps...and today it's my turn to play hostess! My challenge, should you choose to accept it (lol...sorry), is "Creative Cuts"...I would like to see you thinking outside of the typical "square" card format. If you're like me, it's so easy to fall back on the square-based card, but let's try something outside of our comfort zones this week! You could make any card with "fancy" folds or even a shaped card. (Lot's of your larger Nesties will lend themselves towards making some really fun shaped card bases!)

My card this week is a "side step card". I have done a couple of these cards before and I quite liked the result. You may have to do a little calculating to figure out which dimensions will best suit your images. The first time I saw one, I was a bit intimidated to try, but they really are not all that complicated...once you get past the little bit of initial measuring/math, lol! This card measures approximately 6x5.5. I'll show you a picture of the folds/cuts at the end of this post.

I have had this idea floating around in my head since Kimmie first showed us the mermaids from her summer stamp kit, and I thought this card would be perfect for it! This little scene features "Billy Blyth" and "Cordelia" (who is part of the Summer Stamp Kit)...what a pair!! There's Billy going about his pirate-y business...maybe looking for a safe place to bury his treasure chest...when he spies a gorgeous gal perched on a rock out in the water. Well "Blimey" (a sentiment you will find in Kimmie's Pirate Sentiments)...he's absolutely smitten! I stamped all my images on Neenah cardstock and coloured them with Copic markers.

Here's a side shot to show the folds on this side-step card. (and the foam squares under Cordelia's tail...that DON'T show from the front, lol)

Now, I borrowed a trick from Krafty Girl Michele and did not stamp the pupil of Billy's eye...I added it in after with a Copic multiliner so that he is looking right at Cordelia. The "sandy beach" he is standing on is just kraft cardstock...I crumpled it up to loosen the fibres and then separated the layers to expose the interior which was then touched up with some Distress Inks to accent the texture. Now, I wish I could take credit for this stroke of creative genius, but I'm a firm believer in giving credit where credit is due! I saw this technique while visiting the very talented Lorie at her blog "The Thinkin' Spot" (here's the LINK to her gorgeous project using this technique). LOL...guess I "borrowed" a lot of ideas for this card, but that's the beauty of the blogging world...you can be inspired by so many wonderfully talented artists who are willing to share their secrets and tips. Thanks so much ladies!

Cordelia's tail received a generous coat of Smooch Illuminate and some StarDust Stickles as did her hair adornments. I drew a rock for her to sit on, and then added some fun wave stickers.

The Krafty Girls have really rocked this challenge...every week I'm just amazed by the talent on this team! You will find pictures of all their "Creative Cuts" on the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog...you can click on the links to go to their individual blogs for details on their projects. You are sure to be inspired to participate in our challenge after seeing their creative genius!

You can link your project up at the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps blog...just make sure to use a KK stamp if you want to be in the running for this week's prize. What could you win?? Well, since I'm the hostess this week you will get to choose between "Billy Blythe" or "Cordelia" as your prize! We can't wait to see what you come up with!

Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps: "Billy Blythe", "Pirate Sentiments", "Cordelia" and mermaid accessory stamps
Paper: Neenah, Bazzill, Kraft cardstock
Ink: Memento, Copic markers, Distress Inks (Tea Dye, Brushed Corduroy, Stormy Sky)
Embellishments: Jolee's wave sticker, Stardust Stickles, Smooch Illuminate

Shades of Summer

Happy Saturday!! Last week, I enjoyed a little "escape" with my friend and current guest Krafty Girl Krista! Our day kicked off with a cup of tea at Starbucks before hitting a couple of great crafty stores. I behaved myself, and just bought some paper, some foam pads for my Tim Holtz blending tool and some more StarDust Stickles!! Lol, this was honestly the highlight of my shopping time, as I was unable to find it in any of my local stores. After lunch, we headed over to Kimmie's place where Andrea also joined us. You should have seen the set up of Copic markers...it was amazing!! (my little collection paled in comparison to both Kimmie and Andrea's) Now, my plan was to be super productive and get a whole bunch of colouring done...yeah, not so much. We just had too much to talk about! Kimmie did show us how to cut easy-mounted stamps out with a hot knife...seriously, I now need a hot knife. It's SOOO much easier than struggling with gooey scissors. Thanks ladies for such a fun day!

Soooo, are you ready for another challenge at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps? Our hostess today is the amazing Jeanne Streiff! She has put together a great challenge for us inspired by the colours of summer...BLUE, TAN and YELLOW.

For my card today, I inked up another mermaid from Kimmie's Summer Mermaid Stamp Kit...hope you already ordered yours, because there are not very many left! This kit has been a huge success...apparently you all LOVE your mermaids!

This lovely gal is "Cordelia". I paired her up with some gorgeous papers from October Afternoon (I grabbed several papers from both Fly A Kite and Thrift Shop and played around until I had a combo I liked.) Now, I stretched the challenge a little...my blues are leaning more towards teal, but that's still in the blue family, right?? (Hope Jeanne agrees! lol) I decided to go with a Kraft cardstock base to make sure to get some "tan" in there! I stitched around all the layers of paper, and covered a little tag in the OA paper for the sentiment, which is also part of the Summer Stamp Kit.

Cordelia seems like quite the little diva! She certainly knows how to accessorize...look at all the hair adornments. This image is great for breaking out the Stickles, rhinestones and pearls...the girl loves her bling! I loaded her up with lots of Smooch Illuminate, StarDust Stickles and Rainfall Stickles (just on the green shells in her hair).

Hope you join us this week in the challenge...you could win Tubing Miles, the stamp Jeanne used on her gorgeous card! Just make sure to use a Kraftin' Kimmie Stamp so that you are eligible for the prize (go shopping HERE!!).

You can link up your creation at the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog where you will also be able to see what the rest of the Krafty Girls have made this week...they are stunning!!

How would you like to DOUBLE your chances of winning?? Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps is the sponsor at Cute Card Thursday this week, and it's a sketch challenge! I used their sketch on my Cordelia card today...it's a great layout! So, make sure to enter BOTH challenges this week, and increase your odds of winning!


Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Summer Mermaid Stamp Kit (Cordelia and sentiment)
Paper: Neenah, Bazzill, October Afternoon (Go Fly a Kite and Thrift Shop)
Ink: Memento, Copic markers
Emebellishments: StarDust and Rainfall Stickles, Smooch Illuminate, dollar store metal brad, machine stitching

It's June Release Day at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps!!

The wait is over...it's RELEASE DAY at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps! There are four stamps featuring Miles The Mouse by Kimmie's brand new artist Steven Leary. You can also purchase the new Summer Mermaid Stamp Kit which includes six lovely mermaids created by Annie Rodrigue, a whole bunch of accessory stamps and a fantastic sentiment set. If you order these gorgeous mermaids now while they are available as a set, you will receive a 20% discount! This Summer Kit is exclusively available at Kimmie's Online Store.

So, what better way to celebrate such a fantastic release than with a BLOG HOP! Kimmie, of course, will be randomly selecting a few lucky participants who will win some of the new stamps...so make sure to leave comments at all blogs along the hop!! Go grab yourself a cup of your favourite brew and get comfy, because we have a ton of fun for you today!

Oh my goodness, what a lineup of talent Kimmie has in store for you on this hop! We have several guests joining us today, including both of the artists responsible for the images this month, Steven Leary and Annie Rodrigue!! Also, joining us today are some of the amazing Junior Krafty Girls, so be sure to leave them some love too! The hop starts at the Challenge Blog, so if you did not arrive here after visiting my friend and very talented stamper Lacey, then you should start back at the beginning so you don't miss anything! Here's the list for the hop:

1. Challenge Blog

2. Tara and Hannah

3. Steven Leary

4. Elaine

5. Paula

6. Jeanne

7. Michele

8. Jen Balcer

9. Donna

10.Diana

11. Annie

12. Krista

13. Lacey

14. Melanie (you are here!!)

15. Vicki

16. Kimber McGray

17. Rae Barthel

18. Kimmie

Ok, how would you like to see another mermaid from our Summer Stamp Kit?? My easel card today features "Ariana". How adorable is she...and I just love her little seahorse friends! I wanted to create a bit of a scene with some of the accessory stamps included in the Summer Mermaid Stamp Kit. So, I decided to create a small recessed window on this easel card. I stamped and coloured up the little fish and seaweed and adhered them in the window. I used Glossy Accents to stick on some small beads to create the ocean floor. Ariana was attached in front of the window to add to the dimension of the card, as were her little seahorse friends. The sentiment from the Summer Stamp Kit was adhered to the inside/base of the easel card.

Here's a side shot of the card. I had to do a little "engineering" to accommodate the recessed window. Obviously, this card cannot fold flat, so I incorporated a 3/4" spine into the card. (The depth of the window is only 1/2", but the bottom layer also has a bit of dimension so as to prop the card up when open. Hmm...hoping this make sense!! lol)

Originally, my lovely daughter and Junior Krafty Girl Ainsleigh was going to have a card for today's hop as well. However, due to a busy week full of school projects and other commitments, she didn't quite get it finished. She is planning to have one for next week's challenge instead.

Ok, time for you to head off and see what the incredibly talented Vicki has to show you! My goodness, this girl has talent!

Remember to leave comments at every blog on the hop so you have the chance to win some of the new release stamps! After the hop, get yourself over to the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Online Store to place your order. (Remember, this is the ONLY place you will be able to purchase the Summer Mermaid Stamp Kit...at an incredible price too!) Guess what?? Each and every order placed this week, will receive a little goodie bag of random bonus accessory stamps in your package!

Have fun hopping!

Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Summer Mermaid Stamp Kit

Ink: Memento, Copic markers

Paper: Neenah, Fancy Pants, Bazzill

Embellishments: Dollar store beads, StarDust Stickles, Smooch Illuminate

Tools: Spellbinders Fancy Tags

Beachy Keen Kraftin' Kimmie June Previews!

Wow, what a jam-packed week it's been at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps!! Only one more sleep until you will be able to get your hands on the amazing June stamps. Have you got your favourites picked out?? LOL...why not save yourself the headache and just order them all! There are four fantastic new Miles the Mouse stamps by new Krafty artist Steven Leary and of course the amazing Summer Mermaid Stamp Kit by artist Annie Rodrigue. This is an exclusive kit that will be available only at Kimmie's online store...and only for a limited time! Although the images will eventually be released individually, you can take advantage of an amazing 20% discount if you order them as this Summer Kit.

We have another round of previews today along with our weekly challenge. Kraftin' Kimmie herself is our hostess this week and her challenge is "Beachy Keen"...we want to see projects with a summer or water theme. Of course, this challenge ties in perfectly with all our June release stamps! (psst....it's also perfect for our Bathing Beauties that were released last month!!)

Ready to meet another mermaid?? This is "Nerissa", isn't she just gorgeous?? I pulled out some beautiful Crate Paper for this card. Do you ever find paper that you stash away for just the right project/image?? I have been holding this one for a bit...found it in a clearance bin at Scrapfest a while back. Silly me...I only bought two sheets. The texture on this double sided paper is amazing, and the colour combination is divine! I also used a little scrap of K&Company paper for the Spellbinders layer that Nerissa is matted on. That sentiment is part of the Summer Mermaid Stamp Kit.

Nerissa was of course coloured with Copic markers, and her tail was glittered up with Smooch Illuminate and Stardust Stickles...which I'm sadly running very low on!! (and NOBODY seems to have it in stock locally...almost in panic mode here, lol!!) These mermaids NEED glitter, so I've been stretching my little bottle of Stickles to last me through this preview week! (I had just enough left for my Blog Hop card tomorrow!!) Lucky for me, I'm on my way to London today with Krista, and I'm hoping to find some there.

So, are you going to play along?? Go on and check out the amazing projects by the rest of the Krafty Girls...oh my goodness, they are rockin' this preview week with their creative genius! Then, ink yourself up a Kraftin' Kimmie stamp and get busy! You could be the lucky winner of a brand new Kraftin' Kimmie Stamp!!

Don't forget to come back tomorrow...did we mention it's RELEASE DAY!! Join us for our blog hop, and then go shopping at the Kraftin' Kimmie Online Store to buy all the fabulous June stamps!

See you then!

Blesssings,

Melanie

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Summer Mermaid Stamp Kit, "Nerissa" and sentiment

Paper: Neenah, Crate Paper, K&Company, Bazzill

Ink: Memento, Copic markers

Embellishments: Crocheted trim from the dollar store, pearls

Tools: Spellbinders

Calliope

(This is one of two posts today...just scroll down for the Wags 'n Whiskers weekly challenge!)

Welcome to Day 3 of the sneak peeks for the Kraftin' Kimmie June release!! By now, you've seen some gorgeous mermaids and some adorable little mice on the Krafty Girls' blogs....are you loving them?? As always, you'll find a list of the Krafty Girls participating in today's previews on the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog.

If you're just joining us on the previews now, you can still hop around to previous posts on the Krafty Girls' blogs to catch up on what you've missed. We have one more day of sneak peeks planned during our challenge this Saturday, followed by Release Day on Sunday June 13th!! Hope you plan to join us for the Release Day Blog Hop!

Did you hear the great news?? Kimmie is releasing a fantastic Summer Mermaid Stamp Kit that will be available exclusively from Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Online Store starting this Sunday! Included in this kit will be SIX stunning mermaids by Annie Rodrigue, a bunch of accessory stamps and a great sentiment set!! You should plan to grab yourself one of these kits quickly to take advantage of the great price! The stamps will eventually be released individually, but if you wait until then you will be missing out on Kimmie's limited time special offer of a 20% discount!

Allow me to introduce you to the lovely Calliope! These mermaids are so much fun to colour. I jazzed up her tail and fins with Smooch Illuminate and Stickles (I did the same with Marina a couple of days ago...you can see that post here). I used a combination of papers from my scrap bin and October Afternoon, and sponged them all with a bit of Bundled Sage Distress Ink. The sentiment is part of the Summer Mermaid Stamp Kit.

Skin: E13, E21, E25, E29, E50 Hair: 100, C7, C5, B60 Tail and fins: YR00, YR02, YRo4, YR07, Eo8, E33, Y06 Octopus: RV00, V04, V07, C5

I hope to see you back tomorrow for our weekly challenge...I'll have a preview of another mermaid from the Summer Kit!

Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Summer Mermaid Kit "Calliope" and sentiment

Ink: Memento, Copics, Distress Ink

Papers: Neenah, Bazzill, October Afternoon, unknown scrap

Tools: Spellbinders

Embellishments: wooden tag, jewelry spacer, mini-brad, seashells, Smooch Illuminate, StarDust Stickles