Happy Thanksgiving!!!

    Stopping in to wish you all a VERY Happy Thanksgiving!   May your day be full of lots of love and happiness as you gather to celebrate with your family and friends.

   I'll be off for today taking time to relax and have a nice day with my family!   I plan to be back tomorrow and look forward to shopping for some fabulous "Black Friday" specials!   

   Have a wonderful day!

Be Happy, Healthy and remember.... 

Hugs to all,

Lisa and Family

Are you ready?

.... for Thanksgiving, that is!    At least for those of us living in the US that's the big day we'll be celebrating tomorrow!   And for me, it's going to be a quite, relaxing low key day, since Hubby and I will be going out for our Thanksgiving dinner.    Once we realized that I'd be cooking for only two of us this year, (boring and far too much work), we made plans to go out and I'm actually looking forward it!  Yay!   We'll be heading to a lovely seaside restaurant, where I plan to enjoy a delicious seafood dinner, which is more is far better than the traditional turkey dinner, in my book.   I'm actually delighted to have seafood this year and already drooling over having some of my favorites -- scallops and haddock!  Oh joy!

      I'm also pretty happy that I won't have all the work to do either and can use some extra rest, with all the craziness going on lately.   Sure, I'll miss my kids, like crazy and wish everyone was here, but I know that's not possible, so I'm going to enjoy my day and relax!   Not having to cook that huge meal, will be one thing I will not miss, especially since it's not my favorite.  I'm sure we'll roast a turkey sometime over the weekend, but that'll be very easy and stress free!  I'm looking forward to a nice day and hope to start my Christmas Shopping later in the afternoon or evening.  I love to shop for the deals and also love doing almost all my shopping online, which is a JOY when you don't want to fight the crowds and traffic at the Malls!

     Today, I have a fun new post for your over at the a2z Scrapobooking Blog as well as new card that was inspired by our "November Challenge"?  Here is a little sneak peek !

    I also want to invite you ALL to stop back by on Friday, for a special and very fun event we have planned as our way to Celebrate -- "Black Friday" and the big Thanksgiving weekend of shopping, that is so popular these days.   We have a fun contest we'll be hosting over the weekend and will also have a special promo code for your shopping pleasure, which you'll find posted on Thanksgiving Morning in Zoeys post!     Be sure to head on over to the a2z Blog at 8 AM on both days for all the exciting details on both events  -- !   I think you'll really enjoy what we have lined up for you.  \

    My thanks to my DT Teamie "Kymona" - who will be posting all the BIG "Black Friday" announcement over on the a2z Blog for you on Friday.   It was a pleasure to work with Kymona to put together the fun contest we planned for ou and truly HOPE it you'll play along!!  A second shout out to Zoey for posting for us tomorrow, another post you will not want outon --  especially if you like saving money, while shopping at the a2z Store -- Hint Hint!!

    In addition to the Black Friday and Thanksgiving Weekend of events, you still have until Midnight EDT -- Monday, November 30th to upload your projects for our current "Anything Goes - Using Hero Products" challenge, which you'l find HERE!

    Before I sign off for today,  I want to take a moment to wish you all a very Happy Thanksgiving!  I hope you have safe travels and enjoy a wonderful day with your family and friends.    See you all back here on Friday -- I know I'm looking forward to starting my Christmas Shopping -- 'Tis the Season!!

Hey.....!

.... this is a short little post where I'm here to share two fum new cards that I created yesterday as part of the latest 90 Minute Scramble over at the Hero Arts Flickr Group.   I totally LOVE these scrambles and try to play in EVERY one.

    Yesterday's scramble was hosted by Theresa, (one of the Group Members), and she came up with the fun theme of using "Snow" (in any way) on our projects.  And as always, since this is a Hero Arts challenge, it's always a requirement to use some of your favorite Hero Product.  To anyone who may be new, the Scrambles are hosted every two weeks and members of the Group all take turns in playing Hostess for each one.  I have had had the pleasure to being a hostess three time, and totally enjoyed that, almost as much as playing along!!

      I was thrilled to manage to get two cards completed in the 90 minutes and I'm happy to share them both you here, started with this one, which was the first card I completed.

  All the details and products I used for this card can be found with my my Photostream version, which you can see HERE!  

   And this is my second card, and you'll find all the details for this one, again in my Photostream, at this LINK.

  The second card turned out to be my favorite and I think it was the combo of the adorable "blinged" out little Tree, along with the sweet little "Snowy Hills" that I created with my wonderful Mama Elephant dies!   Hope it brings some JOY to you, when you see it.

   If you would like to play in the next Scramble, it's already been announced and you'll find all the details HERE!   This link, will take you to the "Master List", which shows all the scrambles that have been completed as well as the themes used!

    Before I go, I want to encourage everyone who played yesterday, to also take the time to enter ALL your projects to our current -- Anything Goes - Using Hero Arts Products -- Challenge over on the a2z Scrapbooking Blog.   We still have another week to go and I can't wait to see all the new projects you too can create and upload to our Inlinkz Gallery!   ALL the cards from the challenge, will be perfect, as they were created with Hero Products and that makes every one eligible!   Come on over and play along.

     Today, I am working on some new projects that will be part of our next "Challenge" which will be posted on December 1st.  It's a theme I love and one that I think is going to be VERY popular!   We also have some fun activities lined up for you starting on "Thanksgiving Day", which is coming up on Thursday.  I'll be posting more hints on our FUN events over a the a2z Blog on Wednesday and your'l find posts ALL week from each of the DT Members!    Be sure to check out our blog daily for wonderful inspiration for all the super creative DT members!    Have a wonderful Sunday evening and a great start to the upcoming Holiday Week.

   I'll be off tomorrow, as I'm finally seeing an Orthopedic Specialist, which I hope will lead to more treatments that will help alleviate some horrible hip issue, I've been dealing with for the last several weeks.  I'm NOT exactly looking forward to this, but do HOPE it will be worth my time and effort and since it's taken weeks to get in, I'm very happy it's finally here!   I do hope to be back online with new projects and cards on Tuesday or Wednesday at the latest!

      Wishing you all a very safe, happy and healthy "Thanksgiving" week -- please be well - travel safely and have a wonderful time creating new memories with your family and friends!      And for those of you who are not celebrating "Thanksgiving" this week -- I wish you a very "Happy Fall" and hope you are enjoying this festive season!    Before you know it Christmas will be here -- it's hard to believe it's only a month and 2 days from today!   Yikes!  I need to get shopping and may start tomorrow after I see my doctor!   Wish me luck!!  

 

What a Busy Week....

...and in looking at my calendar it looks like I will be just as busy next week, especially with Thanksgiving coming up.  UGH!!

   I have rushed in and out all week, I have had some fun things to do, like having my nail and hair done, but them some not so fun things, like taking my oldest dog to the Vet yesterday, (twice) for lab work to see if the poor guy has Cushing's Disease, which I do HOPE is not the case, even though it does sound like it's fairly easy to treat.  But, it means yet another med for Scoutie and I hate the idea of him having to take anymore -- not to mention the added costs!    I am now looking into purchasing Pet Insurance for both the girls, so if they ever do become ill or get hurt, it won't be so pricey to have them treated.  I love Scout so much, but admit, paying for all his visits, meds and tests has put a big DING into my budget lately.   Just the one test yesterday was $195..  His vet bill for this month is already up to like $1,000 and that is a lot for us.  We had to put off doing our new floor upstairs, as it was ONE or the other...the floor can wait...Scout can not...but that's still NOT easy.    Seems to me, that it is even MORE pricey for dogs to have meds and tests than humans.   We both, (Scoutie and me) as an example,  have low thyroid and both take meds...even the same med, just different doses and HIS is four times  the cost of mine and he takes less?  His blood work to detect the hypothyroidism, was also triple?  Sad, but true and I have a vet who is very cost conscious too!  And insurance is not cheap either...I love my dogs like family, but they can quickly become very expensive....and that can be heartbreaking when you want to help them be well?  Another reason that I think insurance will be vital for the girls.  We started them on a Trial plan today (free for two months), through Embrace, a company that my Vet's office uses and likes.   I hope it works out for them and also that they never have as many health issues as poor Scout.

   UPDATE:   Scoutie did test positive for Cushing's Disease and has been started on new meds.  They good news is that the meds work well, but the bad news is that they are NOT cheap and will cost us about $61 each month, in addition to his other meds -- plus he will also have to have the lab work repeated at $195 to check his levels - from time to time.  I'm happy and sad.  Happy that this could really help him, and sad that he has to have more meds and another illness in his life.  I sure wish he could just have lived a nice long life, without all this added illness!   But, that's not reality, so we'll do the best we can to treat him, hope he does well and feels better soon.   I also found out that this disease is NOT curable, only treatable -- so he'll need the meds forever!   Again, another reason as to why we MUST buy insurance for the girls --- so we can treat them for any unforseen illness down the road.  I would never want to find out, they needed care that I could NOT pay?  That would be so upsetting!    Please keep him in your prayers - hope the meds work well and that they will have him here for us for a long time!

   ,,,,It's also hard seeing them being uncomfy, having testing done.  I was very  happy when it was over and went directly home to let him get into his snuggly bed for a nice nap.   I then gathered up "Skye and Zeva" to took them both to Petco for nail trims, something they both hate and boy was that a challenge.    They LOVE getting ready to GO in the car, but it's as if they figure out where we're going about halfway there and are NOT happy.  Luckily, I have them seat-belted in the car, because as soon as I open the door they are ready to bolt, which is a bit scary.  They also do LOVE to RUM in the big grassy field right besides our Petco and we always take time for that before we head into the store.     As soon as we get near the Groomer's door, they immediately act up.   Needless to say, I was very happy to be back home with all three and we were ALL wiped out and in bed very early last night.  It was one exhausting day for all three pups and for me!!

Scout

My Senior PureBred Dacshund!

(Picture from 2013)

And the girls Skye and Zeva

My two Rescued Chiweenie Sisters

(Picture from December 2013)

  Today was another crazy day as I had my hair styled and then had to go back out again to my doctor to have a little "suspicious" skin thing taken off of my forehead for a biopsy.  Every day is rush, rush, rush and tomorrow is more of the same.   They are hosting a HUGE event at my LSS and it's one I want to go to, plus there is a 90 Minute Scramble, (I love them) being hosted over at the Hero Arts Flickr Group in the afternoon, and I really hope to play.   And shortly after that ends, I'll need to get ready to go out again as we are off to meet our friends  to celebrate a birthday at one of our favorite local seafood restaurants.

  On Sunday, I MUST to get my DT projects done for next week and also need to work on my craft room move and organization, which sadly is STILL not done?  UGH!   I'm also halfway through a major "closet" cleaning in my old room and that is one VERY large and overstuffed closet.  It runs length of our house--so you can only imagine how much "Stuff" is in there!  We do NOT have an attic or cellar, so this is pretty much the main storage closet for the entire house.    YIKES!!   And I won't have much time for it even next week, since I finally have my "Ortho" doc appointment on Monday with even more appointments to follow.

  I could go on and tell you about even MORE I have to do, but at this point, I'm sure you'll might be feeling a bit overwhelmed, like me.

  So, for a nice little break, I'm finally going to share some pics of cards that I recently created and never had time to blog.   I'm started with two gorgeous cards that were inspired by a fun little class I took at my LSS on Tuesday.  The class, as it turns out was totally inspired by some recent cards that Jennifer McGuire had shared on her blog -- HERE!   We used the exact same technique and even the same stamp set "Christmas Crystals" by Hero Arts!!

    I am in awe with this amazing technique that Jennifer came up with and the best part is that's is easy, fun and the results are amazing.  Love Love Love the sparkle that you achieve by coloring, using a Wink  of Stella Clear Marker much like you would use an "Aqua Brush".   A look that I am NOW loving and will be trying with a variety of colors, stamps and assorted markers.  We used Tombow Markers for these cards, but I think this will be awesome with Copics, and I also want to experiment with my newest markers, which is this set called "Chameleon" markers.  Another brand new line of alcohol based markers that I just added to my marker collection.

Pink Peace Card

This is was my first card and had me in love with the technique

And my second card, which I close to color in Teals and Purples, 

two of my favorite colors.

    This is a little peak at the cards that "Terri" our class teacher had created as the class samples.  I like to do my "own" thing, so took my colored images home and used my own cardstock and background papers for my cards, which only made sense, since I had also chosen different colors. 

  

   The funny thing about all this is that I follow both Jennifer and Hero Arts, and I had ironically missed out on Jennifer post on these cards.  Just my bad luck and of course the fault of "Verizon" after our darn internet was out "again" !    I also had not caught up her viewing her videos and only saw this one, 'last night" --- two days after I took the class.    Had it watched it first, or had internet when she posted, I have a feeling I would have saved myself some money and would have made these two cards, at home--especially since, I aleaday had this stamp set too!   UGH!  But--- I do LOVE my LSS and it did get me out, so that was a plus and I did have fun.   I'll also be there again tomorrow for a big SALE event that I hope will be extra fun.  I'll share more on that "after" I go and see what "prize" my "Mystery" envelope contains.

    While I'm here I'm sharing a couple more cards, created and entered into challenges earlier this week.  I did manage to upload each to Flickr, to  be sure I had them entered into each challenge, but them never found time to do a blog post.  If you would like to know more about the specific challenges I played in, you'll find more details over with the pics on my Photostream!  Sorry to be so behind and late in getting these blogged.

    I'll start with one my favorite, which was created based on a Sketch For You To Try over at Reverse Confetti,  It's also done in my signature colors, which I why I really love it

  And them we have this card, which was created for fun and seems to be one that has received lots of very kind comments over at Flickr -- Thanks so much.   It was shared in the "Die Cut Diva's" Flickr Group and also submitted to the new Die Cut Challenge, being hosted over at the Simon Says Stamp Flickr Group.

   And this too was one more that I made for fun using up some of the adorable little pre-colored images that I have in stock from Lili of the Valley!  I love these sweet little design and they are perfect to have on hand for some super cute and easy to create cards.

       

  Time for me to sign off, hit the shower and get ready for bed.  If I am going to my LSS, I want to go fairly early since I'm sure the store will be packed and I do want to try and be back for the Scramble...we'll just see how it all works out!

   Hope you are having a nice night and a much more relaxing week.  I know Thanksgiving week is busy for many, especially those who will be traveling or hosting this year.  I am very grateful that I do NOT have to cook this year and since both my boys are off with their "girls", Hubby and I would be alone, so we are going out for our dinner, which is perfect.  We do have turkey in the freezer that he brought home for work, but that can wait and we'll cook that another weekend, when Alex and Acacia can come for dinner.  Personally, it's not even close to my favorite meal, so going out and having seafood, is even better to me!      

Goodnight everyone!   Sweet Dreams!

Weeeeeeeeee!!!

.....when I look at this adorable Bugaboo image the fun and fond memories of sliding down a hill makes me smile and say -- Weeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

    Today, I am also smiling because of the sweet honor that Arlene and the gals over at Die Cut Divas, have given me today!   I was asked to be the "Guest Diva "(me a Diva, now that's funny), on their blog today and to share a little bit more "About me".  Isn't that sweet?  I sure thought so and was delighted to be asked!

     This is a group that I first found over on Flickr and I happily joined right away and always enjoy sharing some of my favorite "Die Cut" card designs in their fun Flickr Group.   As someone who love die cuts and owns several hundred, not to mention also having my Silhouette Cameo, this group is one that I fit into very well.  It's also a really sweet group, lots of great people and everyone is so nice and easy to know, they make everyone feel so welcome!  And if you love challenges, then you'll also want to visit and follow the monthly challenges they host on their Blog, which you'll find Here!

     And is that isn't enough, they also have some fantastic sponsors and for this month's challenge I was thrilled to learn that  "Bugaboo Stamps"  was the sponsor.    I just happen to love Bugaboo's images and own several of those, so it made it a perfect challenge for me to enter.   Die Cuts and Bugagoo images -- plus a lot of fun Coloring with my Copics.  Woohoo!!  

    This is my card and as you can see, included my signature "Purple" in my coloring, my card background and also in the purple foil snowflakes, which I die cut for this card!  Hope you like it and I also hope it might remind you of the fun winters you had as a child.  It sure did for me and not only memories of sliding in the neighborhood I grew up in, but also taking my boys sliding in some of those same fun places, when they were little!   Those were the days, and back then I kind of enjoyed winter -- imagine that?   Now, I long for the warmth of Summer, but still love to make fun and happy Winter inspired Christmas Cards!
           

    I will be submitting this card to the current "Any Holiday" challenge which you'll find over on the  Die Cut Diva Blog.    I would love for you to join me.  All you have to do is a create your own project, in the challenge theme, using some of my favorite die cut!   If you need some more inspiration, please visit the blog or take a peek at the other cards I created for this challenge last weekend.   Needless, to say, Die Cuts, Copics and Bugaboo are a few of my favorite things and I had a blast coloring up each card.   You'll find them all on this post from last weekend!

    It's been a lot of fun to be a "Guest Diva" today -- I invite you all over to see the answers I had for the interesting questions that Arlene asked me as part of today's fun interview!  Special thanks again to Arlene for this very sweet opportunity -- I truly feel very lucky and honored that you asked me!   YAY!

Happily back online....

...and all it took was having the perfect "Verizon" repair tech "Nick", to come down and troubleshoot our phone lines--and sure enough, just down the street, at one of the main "junction" locations he found a cross in our line, which is what has been causing us ALL this hassle for week and months.   Kudos to him for making sure he did NOT give up, until he found the true problem.  Had one of the previous repair techs done what he did today, this could have been fixed a LONG time ago!   I'm thrilled with him and thankful that he is one of the "Good Guys", who really cares.   I also had a second "nice" call with a local Verizon Customer Service rep today -- and was delighted that she graciously credited our account for the loss of service!!   It's amazing how much having people who "care" can make things so much more pleasant.  I was thrilled to give "Nick" a glowing review today - he certainly deserved it, as did the representative who called later to follow up!  I guess the "very poor" review I left yesterday, must have been seen by someone who made certain, I was VERY happy with Verizon today!

      Once that was done, I was eager to catch up on some emails and to also then work on some new cards -- two which I have to share with you now.  Both, cards were designed for challenges and the first card is for a fun challenge called "Fusion".   I love the concept of how this challenge works and think it's such a creative idea.  You have two images, a nice photo inspiration and also a sketch and it's all your choice as to which you use as your inspiration, or if you want to "FUSE" them both together, which is what I did for today's Fusion Card.

 
    First, let's start with the sketch and the photo inspiration, which I have copied from the challenge blog to share with you here -

My Card

    In addition to the Fusion Challenge, this card has also been submitted to the Die Cut Challenge that Simon Says Stamp is hosted over on their Flickr Group!   Come on over and play along!!

    As you can see, my card was created based on the gorgeous shades of teal and aqua from the photo and designed based on the sketch, which I also loved.   I started by picked out some scrap of teal and aqua papers, and layered them out on a white background in the design from the sketch.  I then die cut this wonderful snowflake die "Rylynn", which is one of the wonderful selection in the Simon Says Stamps "Exclusive" die cut line!   I Love Love Love snowflakes dies and theirs are by far some of my favorites!    While I may now love the "real" snowflakes that fall from the sky, I sure do love to use snowflake stamps and dies on my winter cards and the ones that SSS has designed are amazing.

    I actually ordered three more yesterday after seeing an amazing card that Kristina Werner shared in our 'last day' of the 2014 Holiday Card Workshop!  It was stunning and I can hardly wait to create something similar once my new "snowflakes" arrive.   Note:  If you took the class you'll find the card I am referring to on the class wrap up day!  It's a beauty and the colors she chose make it extra special!   Unfortunately, I can't share it with you others, as it's part of the workshop and as always, every project there is copyrighted and for the students only.  But, I have a feeling if you were in the class, you already know exactly the card I feel in love with!  

   Moving on -- I went back to my desk to create another new card and this one was created for the latest challenge at "Cas(E) this Sketch" which is one I play in pretty much every week.  I really love the sketches and it's a great way to come up with new cards ideas.   I'm happy to share the sketch with you here and hope you'll all come on over and play too!!   It's hard to believe, but this week we are creating with Sketch #100!!   Congrats to CTS on hosting 100 awesome challenges!!!

Sketch #100

My Card

    I loved the design of this sketch and at first, I was going to create my card using this Chevron stamp set, by "Winnie & Walter", but then had a feeling that everyone might have that same idea, so I decided to create my own little "chevrons" using dies and picked a brand new die set "Stitched Square Mats", that I bought from Lil Inker Designs.   I did however, pick my "Awesome" sentiment from this fabulous Winnie & Walter "Big/Bold" set -- one of my favorites from that collection.   This card was a fun one to create and another great way to use scraps.   As you can tell, my "chevrons" are a bit "off center" but I kind of liked that fun look and allowed myself to leave them alone, versus trying to make everything 'perfect', something that can be a challenge for me.    I added the black "dots" which a black marker to tie in with the black ink I used on my Sentiment!  I also added two simple pearls as a little extra whimsy.   I really like the way the stitching from the dies adds some extra texture to the card.   It almost reminds me of a very modern looking "Christmas Tree".    

    My third project today was created for an upcoming Design Team project that you'll find here and on the a2z Scrapbookign Blog on Wednesday, November 26th -- the day before Thanksgiving.   I'll also have some extra fun news to share with you that day including a super fun "Black Friday Event" event -- and some special "Thanksgiving Weekend" deals - all for your shopping pleasure.  

   For those of you who may be new to the a2z Scrapbooking Supply Store, it's a fabulous online store you'll find over at Etsy.  A wonderful place to shop for all the latest and greatest "Hero Arts Products" - a2z is the leading online retailer for Hero Arts products and always offers you the best value for your Hero supplies.   As one of my blog followers, you are welcome to use my DT promo code  -- LISAH15 -- to save 15% on any order of $25 and up (excluding shipping).  You can use it more than once and for every product in the store, whether its' a brand new release or something in our Sale section.   We are also the exclusive retailer for all of Hero's Digital productl line, along with a nice variety of products that compliment the Hero line perfectly!   Personally, I have been shopping at a2z for the past few years and I love their service and value.  All orders ship super fast, the shipping rates are very reasonable and the service is excellent.  I have happily promoted a2z and the Hero line for a long time now,  long before I was asked to be part of their Design Team!  To me that's simply an added bonus and I feel fortunate to be part of a very talented and creative team.

    PS:  Don't forget that there is still plenty of time to play in our current challenge -- "Anything Goes" using Hero Arts products!   More details can be found on the blog HERE and you'll want to be sure to upload your projects to the Inlinkz Gallery HERE!   Good Luck and as always -- Happy Crafting!!

Thank goodness for my creative outlet....

....if not for this wonderful hobby, I think I'd be screaming on the phone right now with Verizon?? But, but instead of letting them and their horrible internet get to me any MORE today...and after being through minutes of "Voice-mail Hell" and then being constantly put on hold while they ran "tests"---I finally was so frustrated I asked the tech, to PLEASE call me back, after she "ran" her tests and please give me some idea of when they will actually do  something about their lousy internet service.....Grrrr!  It's been months of frustration and far too many annoying calls and it's the same old thing, nothing is ever resolved and I give up again for a few more months, because I can't stand what you go through to 'connect' to a person and then it's always someone with an accent I can't seem to understand!   UGH!  

     It's been a few hours, and I've yet to hear back, so instead of making my headache even worse, I did my very best to calm down and de-stress, and for me that meant it was time to CREATE!  Which is exactly what I have been doing ALL afternoon -- maybe Verizon will actually call me back sometime and truly fix our Internet....I am not convinced, but one thing is for sure, having a creative outlet is very good and for me, was much-needed today!

     I'm now happily here to share four new cards, all of which were inspired or created with some of my favorite new challenges in mind.   And today was the perfect day for me to "escape" into my littl world of relaxation and was just what I needed!

     My first card and one of today's favorites is one that was inspired by the current challenge over at MUSE, where I was sad to read that we'll only have the very talented "Therese" with us for one more challenge!   I do wish her well in her new creative endeavors, but I know I'll miss her too!   She actually designed the MUSE card for this eek and I just LOVE it.  Truly a classic "CAS" card and one that was really fun to use as today's inspiration!

Therese's Muse Card

My Card

\

   As you an see I loved her design so much that I created a card with her same design, although instead of stamping, I used Die Cuts for my "Tree" as well as my sentiment.  My card base is the fabulous wood-grain cardstock from Simon Says Stamp, as is the adorable "Deco tree die cut".  My "Peace" sentiment is a Memory Box die and I cut both from Brushed Gold Stampin' UP cardstock.  I also loved the gems that Therese added and used all Hero Arts Pink Gems on my little card -- also very much in a CAS style.

   In keeping with my Gold theme, I moved on to create my second card which was inspired by the brand new "Seeing STARS" themed challenge being hosted by Simon Says Stamp on their Wednesday Challenge Blog.

  This card also started with the left over wood grain cardstock from my Muse card, along with more of the fabulous Brushed Gold SU Cardstock.  Using this fun SSS Exclusive die, I first cut it in white which I used for my "outline" and then die cut the same design in gold and punched out a few stars to add to the background of my white cut.  I then layered that onto some pretty new lavender cardstock also from SSS!   I  adhered that panel onto my on angle, so I could fit in all the stars.  I then grabbed my sentiment from this fabulous set "Brushstroke Christmas"  "Julie Ebersole" and stamped it in Versamark and them heat embossed it with the Ranger's Liquid Platinum Embossing powder -- a new favorite that is perfect for any card.  It's such a pretty color, almost a cross of old and and silver and is a color that I learned about from Jennifer McGuire, who uses it often on her cards! The picture does not show you how truly Gorgeous, this color is!  

     And in the themw of gorgeous colors, I am sure you all know how much I LOVE the color "Purple", but I do also love other colors and one that I find myself using over and over again lately is Aqua and Teal and I think it all started with the wonderful "Pool" and "Tide" colored products that Hero Arts has in their line.   It's a color I love year round but a color that is very much one that reminds me of the Beach or the Sea and that's exactly why I chose it for this next card, which was created for the "Sea" inspired Challenge at -

    From the moment I saw the cue card the very first thing that came to my mine is the ocean or the beach and living on the Coast, I'm blessed to see the "Sea" every day and especially love spending a Hot Summer day, floating in the waves at one of my favorite beaches -- Good Harbor Beach.  It's a "beautiful" place and another fabulous place to be when you simply need to escape and relax.   

  NOTE:  As it turns out, I was TOO late for the "SEA" challenge at CASology, I guess the time went buy a bit to fast for me.  

     However, on a happy note, I am exited that I can still play in the brand new challenge which is "FESTIVE".   And I'm submitted my lovely gold tree card to that challenge, since I think it's very festive and a tree I'd happily have in my home !!

    My final card today is once again, one that was inspired by a challenge and this time if the latest challenge over at "The Cutting Edge", and I'm delighted to share a copy of the wonderful card that was created as our inspiration -- love it!

The Cutting Edge # 14

My Card

   I happen to own this wonderful "Heart Die" - another SSS exclusive and when I saw the inspiration card, I decided to use mine, but went with a "Christmas" theme for my card.  I started by cutting my 'heart banner" from white cardstock and then coated it with a layer of Wow's white/gold glittery embossing powder which heat embossed onto my panel.  I then created a base using some of Hero's Layering Paper and cut that out with one of my Stitched Rectangle dies.  I then added pop dots to my heart panel and adhered that to the red layer which was then added to a nice white card base.  My sentiment is from also from Hero Arts - Holiday Sayings set and seemed to fit perfectly with this card!

    Before I go I want to remind you to hope on over to the a2z Scrapbooking Blog, where there is still plenty of time to play in this month's Challenge !   Be sure to check out all the amazing projects the Design Team has created to help inspire you -- they are all wonderful and the new team is full of some amazing designers, who love to create with the fabulous products sold over at the a2z Scrapbooking Store!  My go to store for all my Hero Arts goodies and so much More!

     Thanks for visiting and as always Happy Crafting!

In Honor or our Veteran's!

   Today, on Veteran's Day, I would like to take a moment to say special thanks to each and every Veteran who has served our Country and to Veterans all over the world who protect us all.  You are ALL Heroes to me and I am very grateful for your sacrifices and all the time and devotion you committed while serving our Country!   Thank you for your service and bless your hearts!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

      Today, I am also here to invite you over to the a2z Scrapbooking Blog, where I have a new post and some fun new cards to share, and to inspire each of you to join our November Challenge, where the theme is "Anything Goes" with Hero Arts Products!   You'll find all the challenge details over on the blog HERE!

        I also have two little sneak peeks of the cards I created for you--both from this adorable stamp "You Make me Smile" Hero Art/BasicGrey Stamp set: 

Hero Arts BasicGrey Grand Bazaar

 You Make Me Smile - CL781

  

   

    Thank you for stopping by and please remember to thank all your Veteran friends today and let them know how much you appreciate them and their service.