Newton's Nook Designs January Release - Wild About Zoo

hello! what better pick me up could you need in the middle of the week, than Newton's Nook's January Release?!

today, the whole DT is showcasing the new, super FUN, playful and sweet, Wild About Zoo Stamp set!! i just LOVE these little critters, and the super sweet, coordinating puns! ha ha!! they are perfect for scrapbooking your winter memories, doing a project life type spread, gift tags and, of course, cards (especially Vanetine's Day cards!)!! all of the new sets will be available for purchase on January 16th, right here!

ok, here's my first card :

i created the background with distress inks, and it just came out SO well! i LOOOOVE those pinks, yellows and oranges!! 
i colored the elephant with copics and then popped him up over some crumpled up vellum! i also stamped the sentiment onto the other half of that crumpled vellum, and then embellished the card with lots of wood veneers and enamel dots! 

i added stitching to adhere the vellum and to the vellum heart sticker too! LOVE this card!

my second card was also lots of fun to make, too! and it's another favorite!

a lemur!!!  i LOOOOVE that little lemur! i colored him with copics and then popped him up over that night sky!
to create the night sky i used some watercoloring with some black/really really dark grey mists and recycled packaging! once that was dry, i used a star stencil and some embossing paste to add the stars to the 'night sky'.

I also added that heart washi and some stitching! LOVE it!

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Would you like to win “Wild About Zoo”?
This set will be given away to TWO lucky winners! 

Here's how to win: 

Comment on the NND blog and Design Team and Guest blogs (see list below)! Two winners will be chosen at random from the collective blogs release posts. Make sure to check out each of their blogs and comment for your chance to win. You will not know which blog has been chosen so the more you comment on the better your chances are of winning! You have until Thursday, January 15th at 9pm CDT to comment  -- winners will be announced on the blog post on Friday, January 16th. 

Check out all the awesome Design Team Blogs below to enter:

Newton's Nook Designs

Taheerah Atchia

Lydia Evans

Larissa Heskett

Samantha Mann

Crafty Math-Chick

Jess Moyer

Stephanie Muzzulin

Danielle Pandeline

Kimberly Rendino

Yukari Yoshioka

Tracy Mae (Guest Designer)

xoxo for you

today i'm sharing a card i made for the current Runway Inspired Challenge! i just LOVE the photo - i just can't resist using pinks and yellows! 

see? awesome - and look how VIBRANT that pink is!! LOVE!

ok, so for my card, i used some Mama Elephant stamps! i was inspired by the bright pop of pink of the dress (obviously! ha!), the yellow dress walking back on the right and the white dress walking back on the top right of the photo! 

yes. you love it, i can tell already (ha!!)! 
the background was created by watercoloring with pinks a piece of white cardstock. then i took my Triangle Background Hero Arts die and then on a separate card base, i re-attached (most) of the pink triangles. i'm not explaining it completely, but hopefully it's easy to see what i did!

then i stamped the cute as can be puppy (he's a british bulldog in my mind! lol!) and speech bubble heart from the Origami stamp set onto some vellum (to represent the white dress walking away). but the vellum was TOO see through, so i took some white ink and lightly colored the back of the vellum pieces. PERFECT! it was still see through but not completely! 

i used some old thickers for the sentiment and stitched them on, and added a stripe of yellow washi, to represent the yellow dress walking away! LOVE it!

thank you for stopping by!
enjoy!

an Inky Paws FLASH challenge!

good morning! i can only assume is COLD by you, if you live in the states. it seems like everywhere is getting hit with a cold front, and for once, SC is part of the COLD! it's 18 here!!!! what now?! lol!! but i'm not complaining, i LOVE cuddling under blankets! ha!

anyway, Newton's Nook is having a fun little FLASH challenge on their blog! they even have a FREE digi available! you don't have to use NND stamps, but of course we LOVE to see them in action! :D the challenge is only 3 days long, so hop to it, and you could be the random winner! :D

it's a PERFECT time to make some thank you cards - so i couldn't wait to play along! and i used a TON of sets to create my card! 

i saw a design similar to this on one of the cut apart pieces from the new Amy Tangerine Stitched collection in a video, and i just NEW that i had to try to recreate it! :) (if you're wondering about my inspiration, it's in the last photo on this link here!)

first i lightly drew a heart onto some white cardstock. then i heat embossed in white (what felt like!) a MILLION little flowers and leaves! ha ha! once the shape was filled out, i added some watercoloring with my distress markers! 

the stamp sets i used are (deep breath):
Versatile Vases
Newton's Daydream
Easter Scramble
Basket of Wishes
Simply Sentimental
Winged Wishes

a little washi was adhered to the top of the card, and it was done. i LOOOOOOVE how it turned out! and i LOVE finding inspiration everywhere! :)
so what are you waiting for? please play along for your chance to win!
enjoy!

a love-y layout with joshua giraffe

well hello again!

today i have a little layout...that is pretty 'me-specific', lol! well, the title that is!

this layout is also up on the Newton's Nook Designs Blog, so be sure to check it out there! :)

ok, a little background info - my husband and i have been together since i was 16...so we have a lot of history! and part of that history is silly, and laughable and makes us smile and cringe at the same time to think of! for instance, does anyone know the song by Raffi - Joshua Giraffe? um...yes i used to work in daycares and nanny through high school and college, so i'm well versed in the world of Raffi! and my husband's name is Joshua...so... 

yes!! 

this layout is YEARS in the making! lol!

i used the cute little giraffes from the Wild Child stamp set! i LOVE them! they were watercolored and then fussy cut! i also used the leaf image from that set to emphasize the yellow-y watercolored areas on the background. 

when we went to the zoo last summer, i just knew i was going to scrap this picture! it's my hubby and i with the giraffes! so us! :)

i both like and don't like this layout! ha! the more i look at it, the more i like, it but it's...not quite 'perfect!' lol! i added the title (ha ha!) with thickers and some tiny type. i also layered lots of papers behind the photo and added some flair and washi too. i didn't want to go crazy! (i have been known when NOT to stop!)

be sure to check out the post on the Newton's Nook blog and leave some love, i would so excited if you did!! :)

enjoy!

countdown to the Create a Smile January release!

it's almost here! the super cute and FUN january release for Create a Smile stamps!!

today i have a card on the Create a Smile stamps blog showing a peak of  one of the sets!

it's so FUN! this set is PERFECT for creating encouragement cards, to cheer someone up, or to just make someone smile!! i can't WAIT for it to be released!

i colored all of the clouds and the sweet little bird with copics! then i fussy cut them out.
the background was created by using some gesso over a rain drop stencil in a few areas. once dry, i added some blue distress ink by way of watercoloring it on! i cut that into a banner for the card! some of the clouds are popped up for dimension, and then i added a few subtle white enamel dots!

LOVE this card! it will be perfect to send to someone who is having a lot of bad days! and hopefully it will make them smile for a minute or two! :)

be sure to check out the Create a Smile blog for the other AMAZING sneak peeks by Anja! they're INCREDIBLE, as usual, i love how she thinks OUTSIDE the box! :)

enjoy!

lawnscaping challenge #97 - winter theme

alright - out with the old, in with the new, as they say!
and today, we have a NEW Lawnscaping Challenge to share! this time, the challenge is to create a winter themed project based on these images found on Pinterest! 

and i LOOOOOOOOOVED these images! seriously - swoon! i was SO inspired!
i loved the whites, very light blues, super soft browns and that POP of red with the bird!

i really like how this card came out! 
first, i added some watercoloring to a white piece of cardstock, and then die cut the Stitched Snowflake Lawn Cuts! it gave me a variety of warm greys, light blues and whites on each snowflake! then i dip died each snowflake with some versamark and added some Silver Pearl embossing paste! people - this adds a layer of shine, but you CAN STILL SEE the colors, underneath. i LOVE it! :)

i used my sewing machine to stitch on the snowflakes in a burst from the top right of the card. then i colored the bird, log and trees with come copics and popped them up for dimension! the bird and log are from Joy to the Woods (LOVE that set!), and the sentiment and trees are from Yeti, Set, Go! :)

so that's my card! are you ready to play along?
for even more inspiration (if you can stand it!), check out the lawnscaping facebook page! we're dedicated to keeping your creative juices flowing! :)

this week we're sponsored by a brand new sponser for the Lawnscaping Challenge - Ellen Hutson! so get your card making on, and you could win a $25 gift certificate! hello!! :)

a little watercolor, a little embossing paste and a layout

it's the first friday of the year! i can't believe it's 2015...i know i'll be writing 2014 on things for a while! ha!

today i am up on the Create a Smile stamps blog sharing this super sweet layout of my little four-legged feline friend!

i used a few different stamp sets and even a stencil with some embossing paste! i LOVE that skinny chevron stencil! it's perfect for adding just a little bit of interest to the background! 

i always joke that my fluffy friend is 'beige' colored, because it's such a soft orange and white, so i used some Soft Sand ink from Hero Arts  to stamp the images directly onto the background on my layout! the kitties are from Comfy and Your View. and that little arrow is from the german sentiment set, Fur Alle Falle. 

all of the details on how this layout came together can be found on the Create a Smile blog! 
thanks for stopping by!
enjoy!