LID:: December Release Day 3

It's the final day of the December Release for Lil' Inker Designs! I hope you enjoyed seeing the release. If you are following the hop, you should have arrived from Jen's Blog, although the complete line-up and details can be found at the Lil' Inkers Design Blog.

My final project features the Love Cover Up Die. I just "love" this line of products! So easy to make a simple card, and so easy to dress it up for a more detailed card too! I started by die cutting from peach paper the Cover Up. I adhered this to a slightly darker cardstock panel. Then I ran the Die through two more times, one with white cardstock and then with some patterned paper. I selectively cut the word Love from White and the heart from the patterned paper and adhered them to the card as well, on top of the existing peach color.

I hope you enjoy hopping through to the Lil' Inker Designs Design Team Blogs. Remember to leave comments, for a random winner will be chosen to win a gift certificate! Your next stop is Sarah!

LID:: December Release Day 2

Did you enjoy yesterday's projects? Today is the second day of the December Release for Lil' Inker Designs! If you are following the hop, you should have arrived from Jen's Blog, although the complete line-up and details can be found at the Lil' Inkers Design Blog.

 

 

My first card today showcases the fun new Love Tags Die Cuts. (It also features embossing of a little hearts border which is so sweet!) I die cut two tags, one from purple and one from white. I stamped a greeting from the new Love Things Stamp Set, designed by Laura, onto the white tag and added a die cut heart from a previously released product,  Of the Hearts Die. I adhered the tags to a kraft card base with May Arts 3/4" Purple Chevron Twill Ribbon and Pink Waxed Cord.

Then my next card features the fun, newly released, Floating Hearts Die. I started with a white cardstock panel. I placed the die at an angle and ran it once through my die-cutting machine. I then moved the die up and ran it through again, at the same angle. I folded the card in half, stamped a sentiment from Flags & Tags, and finished the card with a May Arts Burgundy Silk Ribbon bow and Gold String Bow.

I hope you enjoy hopping through to the Lil' Inker Designs Design Team Blogs. Remember to leave comments, for a random winner will be chosen to win a gift certificate! Your next stop is Sarah!

LID:: December Release Day 1

With two growing boys in the house, I often times find myself reading between the lines, trying to figure out the true meaning of their stories...Today is the first day of the December Release for Lil' Inker Designs and yet again, there is a fantastic line-up of products being released! If you are following the hop, you should have arrived from Jen's Blog, although the complete line-up and details can be found at the Lil' Inkers Design Blog.

The first product I'm showcasing is this hilarious set designed by Laura. It is called The Fine Print. I stamped two of the sentiments onto a skinny cardstock base, stamped the magnifying glass, added a punched heart and some glossy accents.

My next card features two new products! I went for a bold, graphic and FUN look for this card.

I started by die-cutting with pink cardstock a panel with the Cover Up Die: Stitches & Stripes and before adhering it to the bright orange card base, I glued yellow cardstock under the pink panel in selective areas. This was so easy and simple to do, and I can only imagine the fun color combinations and designs one can come up with! To finish the card, I stamped two sentiments from the Shiny Happy Sentiments Stamp set, designed by Laura, onto a handcut banner and ahdered it to the card with dimensional adhesive.

I hope you enjoy hopping through to the Lil' Inker Designs Design Team Blogs. Remember to leave comments, for a random winner will be chosen to win a gift certificate! Your next stop is Sarah!

May Arts:: Handmade Christmas

Have you checked off all your names on your Christmas List yet? The May Arts Ribbonistas have a whole lotta Handmade Christmas Gifts inspiration for you today with their Handmade Christmas Gift Hop! I made some custom, chic bobby pins for my Handmade Christmas Gift, with the help of May Arts Ribbon and our Partner in Craft, Imaginesce.

The ribbons I choose for this coordinating collection of hair accessories were May Arts 2 Toned 1.5" Grosgrain Ribbon in Black/White (EH10), 2" Two Tone Satin Reversible in Black/White (446-2-10), 1.5" Silver Metallic (464-15-31), and 1.5" Grosgrain Ribbon in White (QH01).

I used the i-top tool and snap daddies with bobby pin accessories to make the pins. Such an easy process-just make sure to choose wide enough ribbon to be able to tuck your ends under! (For this side of button, I chose 1.5" inch or wider ribbon).

I dressed up the gift with a handmade tag using another Partner in Craft product, DCWV, Inc.'s  Metallic Paper and some 1.25" Black Silk Ribbon (SK10) and 1/2" Solid Black Wrinkle Ribbon (EA10).


Giveaway Alert:: Three Spools of your choice! (Winner selected at random from comments left on the May Arts Blog and participating Ribbonistas' Blogs.)

Here's the hop line-up, but of course, please be sure to visit the May Arts Blog as well!

Christina Colón

Charlene Driggs

Courtney Lee

DeeDee Catron

Emily Lanham

Gini Williams Cagle

Jen Shears

Jenifer Cowles

Karen Baker

Lalo IK

Shellye McDaniel

Virginia Fynes

May Arts:: A Scrapbook Adhesive Christmas

I don't think there is any object out there that doesn't pair well or work well with May Arts Ribbon. I'm pretty particular when it comes to adhesives I use, especially when working with ribbon on cards, and I love how Scrapbook Adhesives products adhere the ribbon. May Arts has teamed up with Scrapbook Adhesives this week for a fun blog hop, it is the second day of inspiration. Complete details can be found on the May Arts Blog.

My first card features some luscious satin ribbon in the traditional Christmas Colors. I laid a line Scrapbook Adhesives' Crafty Power Tape on my card base and then made some long ribbon tabs with May Arts' 1.5" Satin Grosgrain Edged Ribbon in Olive (HN16) and Burgundy (HN25). Then I looped and layered a length of the 1" Sheer Gold Ribbon (C30) on top, also adhering that with the Power Tape. I finished the card with a die cut word (Lil' Inkers Designs Joy Word Die) adhered with E-Z Dots onto a white panel. The panel itself was affixed to the card with Scrapbook Adhesives' foam squares.

My second card is sleek and contemporary, and so easy to put together! I die cut the word from a white card base and stamped the sentiment (from Lil' Inker Designs Jolly & Joyful Sentiments). Then I adhered a 4.25" length of the amazing May Arts 1.5" Silver Metallic Ribbon (464-15-31) to a panel with Scrapbook Adhesives' Crafty Power Tape and then affixed the panel with the Tape on the underside of the card front.

Please stop by the other designer's blogs today, and check out the May Arts Blog through the rest of the week to for more inspiration. In case you missed it, here was yesterday's line up:
--> Virginia
Shellye
Latrice

And here's today's line-up:
Lalo
Me!

**Today is also Jen's Birthday, a fellow Ribbonista! (You can see her project tomorrow!) So I'd like to take a quick minute to wish her the very happiest of birthdays...**

May Arts:: Christmas Card Hop

The May Arts Ribbonistas have joined together for a Christmas Card Blog Hop, featuring May Arts Ribbon, of course!

If you are following the hop, you should have arrived from Jenifer's Blog, and if you want to start at the beginning or to get more details, please visit the May Arts Blog.

My card today features my most favorite of all May Arts Ribbon, the silk! I started by embossing a quilt pattern onto a card base then stamped the sentiment. I cut out a tag from some patterned paper and then adhered the tag with 1.25" May Arts Silk Ribbon in Olive (SK16). Before tying the knot, I slipped in a length of the 1/2" Solid Wrinkle Ribbon in Red (EA14), in which I tied a nice bow on top of the knotted green silk. Since both these ribbons are lightweight and so easy to manipulate into flat bows, the card hardly has any bulk and will mail with regular postage.

A simple card, but perfect for mailing and that ribbon sure packs a punch! Now, there are prizes for commenting on any stop along the way... you could with three spools of May Arts Ribbon from their Christmas Category!

I'm going to send you along to Lalo's blog now, but remember,  you can find the complete list of participating blogs over at May Arts. 

TCM:: Farewell

Every good thing must come to an end, eh? The Craft's Meow Store is closing its doors at the end of December. Present and past designers and stamp illustrators are saying farewell with a hop. I've really enjoyed stamp designing for The Craft's Meow and sending my thanks to Lisa, the owner, for giving me the opportunity!

All stamp sets have been marked down by as much as 75%! Stock is limited... shop early for the best selection. All orders of $25 or more will receive a free gift with purchase. Flat rate shipping is $3.00 for all US orders and $12 for all International orders. Please see the store blog for details, or click over to The Craft's Meow Store to start shopping!

I'm the start of the hop, you can find more details at The Craft's Meow Store Blog if needed. The next stop is Sharri!

May Arts:: Christmas Wreath

Welcome to the Christmas Season! I spent a wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday celebrating with my family, and it was wonderful. I have a Christmas Ribbon Wreath up on the May Arts Blog today to start off the holiday, I hope you have a spare minute to check out the full wreath...

May Arts:: Engagement Hop

**It's been busy here on The Bald Dragonfly.
Please scroll down or click here for my Lil' Inkers Designs November Release Posts
as well as my The Craft's Meow and Perfect Paper Crafting Hop posts!**

The ever-so-nice, ever-so-professional, and ever-so-wonderful Ribbon Lady, aka Bethney, just recently got engaged! The Ribbonistas, aka May Arts Ribbon Design Team, have gathered together today to congratulate her with a Blog Hop!

I went classic today for my congratulations card, teaming up the amazing May Arts Ribbon with one of May Arts Partners in Crafts, Dreamweaver Stencils. I first misted silver ink over white cardstock and a stencil to create a background. I wrapped the panel with 1" Sheer Twinkle Ribbon in White (so heavenly!), tied a bow and added another bow of 3/8" Silver Sheer Metalic Ribbon. A stamped sentiment on a velum banner finished the card after the panel was adhered to a white card base.

I wish Bethney and her fiance all the happiness in the world! They certainly deserve it!

Head on over to the May Arts Blog or Facebook Page to send your well-wishes to Bethney! There's some amazing, truly amazing, prizes up for grabs!

Here's a hop list:  

Candy Rosenberg

Charlene Driggs

Emily Lanham

Jen Shears

Jenifer Cowles

Karen Baker

Lalo IK

Virginia Fynes

Christina Colón

Courtney Lee

DeeDee Catron

Gini Williams Cagle

Jessica Kephart

Latrice Murphy

Rhea Weigand

Shellye McDaniel

Erin Thiem

(Thank you to the wonderful Jen for putting this together for us!)

LID:: November Release Day 3

Welcome to the third and last day of the Lil' Inker Designs November Release Blog Hop! If you are following the hop, you should have arrived from Jen's Blog, but a complete list is available on the Lil' Inker Designs Blog.

I saved my favorite card from this release to show you last. It is rare that I craft these days, and when I do, projects take a long time to make and I hardly ever am happy with them anymore. But I love this one! I started with a patterned paper base that has dashed of gold through it. Then I layered on top of it the new Cover Up Die: Leaf Patterns. Instead of the vertical orientation, I used it horizontally... just because I think it looks cool that way too. I added a sentiment from Flags and Tags Stamp Set that was stamped onto a die cut Sentiment Flag, and then finished the card with a bow made from May Arts Rust Silk Ribbon and Gold String.

Didn't you just love this release?! I'll send you on your way to Sarah's Blog for more inspiration. There is a three $15 store credit winners for each day of the release hop and the winner will be picked from a secret prize blog, so remember to comment along the way! I wanted to wish Taheerah and Isha a fond farewell too! You ladies are so talented!

LID:: November Release Day 2

**Please scroll down for my The Craft's Meow and Perfect Paper Crafting Blog Hop Post**

Welcome to the second day of the Lil' Inker Designs November Release Blog Hop! If you are following the hop, you should have arrived from Jen's Blog, but a complete list is available on the Lil' Inker Designs Blog.

I've always admired how Lil' Inker Designs flawlessly creates products that work so well with each other release after release. My cards today both feature previously released products as well as the new releases.

So the above card uses Rain Boy, all colored up and distressed! He was adhered to the card base that has the amazing Cover Plate Die, Swirls on it. It reminded me of splashes and puddles, so I thought these two products went really well together! I added the sentiment right down on the bottom, to let the swirls and the little boy take center stage, but highlighted it with a tab from May Arts Chevron Twill Stripes in Yellow.

I had my nephews in mind when I made the first card, and this card too! This bright birthday card features the new Stitched Ovals Die, as well as other previously released favorites such as the Balloon Dies, the Original Sentiment Banner Die,  Balloon String Die and the sentiment comes from the Sun Sentiments Stamp Set.
 

Ok, so I hope you are as excited as I am for this release! I'll send you on your way to Sarah's Blog for more inspiration. There is a one $10 store credit winner for each day of the release hop and the winner will be picked from a secret prize blog, so remember to comment along the way!

TCM:: Perfect Paper Crafting Hop

**Please scroll down to see my Day 1 project for the
Lil' Inker Designs November Release!**

The Craft's Meow and Perfect Paper Crafting have teamed up for some mighty inspiration! You should have arrived from Jessica Fick's Blog. (More details on the Hop and the complete hop order can be found on the The Craft's Meow Blog.)

My card today focuses on the stamp set, Hope Blooms. I used the really cool Perfect Paper Crafting Tool Layers #1 to create my mats that framed the stamped and fussy cut flowers. The cool thing about this ruler/tool is that it was easy to create these borders, I think you'll be seeing a lot more matting of images on my future cards! To finish the card, I tied May Arts Burlap String in Natural and Linen, and stamped a sentiment from Hope Blooms.

I hope you enjoy the inspiration along the hop! There are two $50 Gift Certificates to be won... one from Perfect Paper Crafting and one from The Craft's Meow! Winners will be randomly selected by each of the stores from all comments left on hop. You have until midnight PST on Friday, November 22nd, to comment for your chance to win!

Also, just a quick reminder: The Craft's Meow just announced a sale on retiring stamp sets, with prices marked 25%-50%-75% off!!! This is an incredible deal. (Shop early for the best selection. Stock is very limited on most of them, and they will not be restocked once they are sold out.) Check out all the retiring sets here!

Your next stop on the hop is: Eva!

LID:: November Release Day 1

I looooovvvveeeee the time when the Lil' Inker Designs Design Team get to showcase products from the New Release. These next three days are going to blow you away...fabulous products are here for the November Release! If you are following the hop, you should have arrived from Jen's Blog, but a complete list is available on the Lil' Inker Designs Blog.

I've got two projects today. The first one is an all occasion "special day" card, could be used for weddings, graduations, anything! I started with a card base and then a panel that I embossed with dots. I wrapped some May Arts Wrinkled Black Ribbon around the panel and tied it in a bow. Then came a stamped sentiment from the new Modern Mehndi stamp set, which I've fallen head over heels in love with. I then stamped two of the three leaves from the Mehndi set onto cream cardstock with gold ink and die cut them out with the new matching Mehndi dies. Finally, a stamped and die cut flower was added, and for a finishing touch, black enamal accents were used to highlight the flower.

Next I have a card that also showcases a Modern Mehndi Stamp set sentiment, plus the new On The Diagonal Die, and a previously released favorite, the Fanfare Scalloped Border Die. I started creating the diagonal orange and pink paper by using the On the Diagonal Die. Such a cool, functional little die that takes all the guess work out of creating a sleek, perfect diagonal design element on your cards. After adhering those to the card base, I stamped the sentiment onto the lower panel and then added a die cut Fanfare in black along the same diagonal line. Before adhering, though, I touched up the die with orange dots for added interest!

Ok, so I hope you are as excited as I am for this release! I'll send you on your way to Sarah's Blog for more inspiration. There is a one $10 store credit winner for each day of the release hop and the winner will be picked from a secret prize blog, so remember to comment along the way!