Oh so sorry

There are some cards that you wish you never had to make and for me that is a sympathy card. But if you do have to make one it might as well be as pretty as possible, right? I also discovered that I have a major hole in my stockpile of stamps... sympathy sentiments. Apparently I think of flowers and giggles when picking stamp sets to order. However I did find a "so sorry" stamp in the Fundamental Phrases set that did the trick... just barely! But enough with the chit chat and to the card.

Notes: The card base is a 4 1/4" x 11" piece of Almost Amethyst cardstock folded in half. A piece of Always Artichoke Designer paper was matted on matching cardstock that was a bit taller. Paper piercing was added to the top of this piece and then it was adhered to the card base. Flower/fruit image from Oh So Lovely was stamped twice in Black StazOn on Naturals Ivory cardstock and colored with Classic ink and a blender pen. The corners were ticked (ticket corner punch) and paper piercing was added before sponging the edges with Always Artichoke Classic ink. Ribbon was knotted around the image and then layered on Elegant Eggplant cardstock. A piece of black cardstock was scalloped and layered behind the image. So Sorry from Fundamental Phrases was stamped in Black StazOn on Almost Amethyst cardstock, punched out with the small oval punch and the edges were sponged with Always Artichoke classic ink. The tag was tied to the ribbon with linen thread. The main image was finished by adding black brads to the corners and adhering to the card base.

All images copyright Stampin' Up!. Stamps: Oh So Lovely hostess (retired), Fundamental Phrases. Paper: Almost Amethyst, Always Artichoke, Elegant Eggplant, Naturals Ivory, Basic Black, Always Artichoke Designer. Ink: Black StazOn, Lovely Lilac Classic, Always Artichoke Classic. Other: Black Striped ribbon (May Arts), Elegant Eggplant grosgrain, Linen Thread, vintage brads (black), mat pack, paper piercer, 1/16" circle punch, small oval punch, ticket corner punch, small corner rounder, Stampin' dimensionals, sponge, blender pen.

Happy Yoga Day

One of my favorite activities is yoga so when I saw this new set by My Favorite Things I HAD to buy it. Had to! :) Then I had to make this card for my yoga instructor to go with the gift we bought her. Yes, we bribe our instructor... she's great and gives us an awesome deal so we have to keep her happy! :)

Quick notes: card base is 5" x 10" folded in half. Using Classic ink pads and a blender pen watercolor the lady, clothes and mat. Stamp image a second time on a scrap piece of paper and cut out. Apply a removable glue to the back of this piece and layer over first colored image. Sponge over the whole image with Bashful Blue Classic ink. Remove mask to expose image. Add Dazzling Diamonds glitter to the tank with the Sakura Quickie Glue pen.

All images copyright My Favorite Things. Stamps: Serenity Now. Paper: Pretty in Pink, Ruby Red, Old Olive, River Rock, Basic Grey Two Scoops Designer. Ink: Archival Brilliance Graphite, Regal Rose, Ruby Red, Old Olive, Bashful Blue, Blush Blossom. Other: Old Olive Twill tape ribbon, Kraft Taffeta ribbon, photo corner punch, vintage brads, small corner rounder, mat pack, paper piercer, Stampin' dimensionals, sponge, Sakura Quickie Glue pen, Dazzling Diamond glitter.

Paper Pretties Wednesday

This is a little late but only because I was hanging out with a couple of my fellow crafters making cards earlier tonight and didn't have access to my 'puter to post this very Paper Pretties card. What do you think of the color combination? I went out on a limb while making this card and used a very different color combo (at least for me): So Saffron, Pretty in Pink, Bravo Burgundy and a touch of More Mustard. If you love the combo and make a card with it let me know... better yet, include a link in the comments for this post so everyone else can see it. :)

Quick notes: The pretty lady bug from Love Bugs was stamped in Archival Brilliance Graphite ink on watercolor paper and colored with Watercolor Wonder Crayons and a blender pen. A little glitter was added to her dress, flowers and shoes. The sentiment and snowflake stamps are from the Snowflake Kisses stamp set.

All images copyright Paper Pretties. Stamps: Love Bug, Snowflake Kisses. Paper: Bravo Burgundy, Pretty in Pink, So Saffron,, More Mustard watercolor. Ink: Pretty in Pink Classic, Bravo Burgundy Classic, More Mustard Classic, Archival Brilliance Graphite. Other: Watercolor Wonder Crayons, blender pens, Sakura Quickie Glue Pen, Dazzling Diamonds glitter, clear crystal brads, American Crafts ribbon (pink and yellow), mat pack, paper piercer, Word Window punch, Stampin' dimensionals, sponge.

A Window Into My... Card

I've been wanting to play with the new Sale-a-bration Love and Happiness rub-ons... and I did tonight! I decided to make a cute shaker card to showcase how you can use rub-ons on slick surfaces such as acetate (aka transparencies). I really like how this card turned out... and it is very blue! Bonus!!! :)

Some sort of step-by-step notes (pics would be better but it is late... maybe next time):
1.) Apply a rub-on to a piece of Aectate.
2.) Punch opening in a piece of Bashful Blue cardstock with 1 3/8" square punch. I punched multiple times.
3.) Adhere acetate to back of Bashful Blue cardstock.
4.) Optional: Add paper piercing, ribbon and brads.
5.) Optional: cut a piece of Night of Navy cardstock slightly larger than Bashful Blue cardstock, cut a window in this layer too (although it doesn't have to be perfect since it won't be seen if ya know what I mean). Adhere the two layers together.
6.) Optional: Apply rub-on to white cardstock, cut out and attach to shaker front.
7.) On the back of the shaker front build some walls using Scotch Foam Mounting Tape (or similar product). I did two layers since I was going to use some bulky beads. Make sure the "walls" completely surround the window and that there are no cracks or openings, otherwise all the beads will leak out and then you have an empty shaker and a mess everywhere. :(
8.) Fill shaker with beads
9.) Cut piece of white cardstock slightly smaller than Bashful Blue cardstock layer and apply to back of shaker box to close the whole thing up.
10.) Adhere shaker box to cardbase. I added a some stamping, matting and ribbon to my cardbase before adding the box.
11.) SHAKE SHAKE SHAKE!

Other notes: used the slot punch to cut a little opening on the left side of the card base to thread the ribbon through. Edges of Bordering Blue layer were sponged with the same color of ink.

All images copyright Stampin' Up!. Stamps: Sprinkles. Paper: Night of Navy, Bordering Blue, Bashful Blue, Whisper White. Ink: Bashful Blue, Bordering Blue. Other: Love and Happiness rub-ons, mat pack, paper piercer, vintage brads (black), Bashful Blue striped ribbon, Blue Bayou double stitched ribbon, Scotch Foam Mounting Tape, sponge, acetate, Blue Duo beads, 1 3/8" square punch, slot punch.

In other news: my new Blackberry Pearl cell phone is now able to make calls, receive calls and connect to the internet. I LOVE it! Never thought I would say that about a cell phone. :)

Sneak Peek and a Little News

What have I been doing? Not crafting! Instead I've been shopping for a new cell phone. You would think this would be an easy task but I just happen to live in the Black Hole of Technology. DSL? Not at my house! Cable high-speed internet? Just in the last year or so! Cell phone service? Apparently only one company!

After much research and trial and error I am back with my original cell phone carrier and now have a Blackberry Pearl 8100... it is totally sweet but doesn't work... yet. I have to wait until tomorrow and see if the porting of my phone number worked. 'Cause I tried switching to another carrier (and wanted to keep my current number) but that didn't work (no signal at my house)... so my number was ported back and there was that whole canceling of my account when I tried switching. Needless to say, it's a complete mess but supposedly by tomorrow afternoon my new oh-so-beautiful-and-totally-awesome phone should actually be able to make and receive phone calls (snicker).

In the meantime here is a sneak peek at one of the new Stampin' Up! sets that will be available March 1st: Time for You. I like the card and the layout but the ribbon is a bit too distracting. If I did the card over I would use a yellow or cream colored ribbon (vanilla taffeta most likely). Other than that the card is cute. At least I think so, how about you?

All images copyright Stampin' Up!. Stamps: Time for You (Occasions Mini), Sprinkles. Paper: Bordering Blue, More Mustard, So Saffron, Shimmery White. Ink: Black StazOn, More Mustard Classic, Bordering Blue Classic, Regal Rose marker. Other: gold brads, blender pen, bluebird (retired) grosgrain ribbon, 1 3/8" circle punch, mat pack, paper piercer, Stampin' dimensionals, sponge.

Paper Pretties Sale:
Paper Pretties has reduced the prices in their Sale section even more! If you are looking for a good deal you can check them out here. They've also added some new American Crafts Easter ribbon to the Seasonal section. This ribbon is soooo pretty! Leave some of the dotted for me please! :)

Ann Arbor Jaycees Crop
When: Sunday, March 9th from 1-5PM
Where: Scrapbook Memories in Chelsea, MI
Cost: $5 (free for Ann Arbor Jaycees)
Guess where I will be hanging out on the 9th? At the big scrapbook store in Chelsea with my fellow Ann Arbor Jaycees and any other peeps that want to gather around while crafting the afternoon away. There will be some munchies, prizes and a good time for all! If you too would like to join in the fun, just click on the contact me link up there under my picture and shoot me an email with your name, phone number and email address. See you there! :)

WSC #35: A Sweety Bird

I finally got a chance to upload this pretty card that I made for Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge. I've been buried under cardstock, glue, little Stampin' dimensional papers and ribbon while working on some swaps but finally I can see the light at the end of the stamping tunnel! I'm almost done... with this batch at least! However if I ever say I am going to watercolor 40 images again someone has to take my blender pen away and thump some sense into me. :)

Enough of the whining and onto my lovely card. I really like this card, can you tell? Even though it is actually a rather simple card. The only trick I did was to stamp the bird from Always in Regal Rose on Whisper White, cut out and then sponge the edges with more Regal Rose. Then I just had to add some background stamping, a bit of sponging, a teeny touch of ribbon and a couple of jumbo eyelets (love 'em) to finish the card. Oh and an itty bitty rhinestone sticker by K&Company for the eye of the bird. I can see you... well, no not really but that is what the bird is thinking.

All images copyright Stampin' Up!. Stamps: Always, Pretty Petals Background. Paper: River Rock, Old Olive, Pretty in Pink, Whisper White. Ink: Regal Rose, Old Olive, Black StazOn. Other: Antique Brass jumbo eyelets, rhinestone from K&Co, Sherbet Ribbon Originals, Stampin' dimensionals, sponge.

Paper Pretties Wednesday

Woo hoo... It's another Wednesday which means it is time for a new Paper Pretties card! :) This one uses the newly released Look Who's Perky stamp set.

Quick notes: The mugs from Look Who's Perky were colored with Watercolor Wonder Crayons and a blender pen. I made one all girly and feminine and the other kind of clunky and masculine (kissing cups!). I used the "How ya bean?" sentiment, although if you know me you know it is not the coffee bean that I am thinking of... it's all about the cocoa bean! Card size is 4 1/4" x 4 1/4". The layout is from last week's sketch challenge (SC163) on SplitCoastStampers.

Images copyright Paper Pretties and Stampin' Up!. Stamps: Look Who's Perky (Paper Pretties), Rough Texture jumbo wheel. Paper: Chocolate Chip, Perfect Plum, Pale Plum, Creamy Caramel, White. Ink: Black, Pale Plum, Perfect Plum. Other: Watercolor Wonder Crayons, blender pen, mat pack, paper piercer, vintage brads, brown satin ribbon (May Arts), Scotch foam mounting tape.

Double-take Tuesday

Just wanted to share the last couple of cards that my class attendees made this weekend. I do try to keep the projects a little simpler since they have so many to make... twelve of them to be exact. Heh heh... I was a total slave driver and kept them working for many hours and of course I forced them to eat oodles of goodies too. :)

The first card uses the new Sale-a-bration set So Many Scallops and some yummy Sherbet Ribbon Orignals which I layered on top of Twill Tape. The sentiment is from another Sale-a-bration set Lots of Thoughts. I omitted the smaller words that were part of the stamp.

All images copyright Stampin' Up!. Stamps: So Many Scallops Sale-a-bration set, Lots of Thoughts Sale-a-bration set. Paper: Barely Banana, Really Rust, Cameo Coral, Shimmery White cardstock. Ink: Summer Sun, Cameo Coral, Really Rust. Other: clear crystal brad, twill tape, Sherbet Ribbon Originals, Stampin' dimensionals, 1 3/8" circle punch, scallop circle punch.

This second card may look a bit familiar, indeed it is a redo of this card. I changed the colors a bit (I didn't have enough Chocolate Chip cardstock) and wheeled the Pretty in Pink layer to add a bit of texture. It's gorgeous... at least that is what I think! :)

All images copyright Stampin' Up!. Stamps: One of a Kind, Forever Flowers wheel. Paper: Basic Black, Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, Sahara Sand, Berry Bliss Designer (lt. pink paper). Ink: Black StazOn, Regal Rose Classic. Other: paper piercer, black grosgrain ribbon, ticket corner punch, sponge, Stampin' dimensionals.

Box Full of Laughter

I have to admit that I have a large collection of tins, boxes, chipboard coasters, paint cans and other alterable items taking over my craft room. So many that I am running out of room to store my new stamp sets, but does that stop me from buying more fun things to alter? No, of course not! I just couldn't resist buying a couple of these wood purse bag things from Michael's the other day when I saw them (in the wood/paper mache aisle). I also had to buy some yummy new American Crafts ribbon while there (the striped and checked kind). Of course I justified these purchases by pushing aside all the other tins and paints cans cluttering my room and decorating one of my new toys. I'm loving how it turned out! Of course I did buy a second one... but that one will be saved for later (like the rest of my collection). :)

Directions:
1.) Trace box onto designer paper and cut out.
2.) Coat the box and the back of the designer paper with Perfect Paper Adhesive and apply the paper to the box pressing out all air bubbles. I did this one section at a time (front, back, inside back, inside front, right side and then finally the left side).
3.) Allow box and paper to dry.
4.) Using the Basic Grey Precision File Set sand the edges of the box. This removes any excess paper and gives the edges a nice distressed look.
5.) Coat the entire box with Perfect Paper Adhesive and set aside to dry.
6.) Decorate as desired. I knotted various ribbons around the handle and added a stamped image and sentiment to the front. Of course I also had to do some paper piercing and sponging. :)

All images copyright Stampin' Up. Stamps: Merci (Sale-a-Bration set), Sweet Serendipity. Paper: So Saffron, Tempting Turquoise, Naturals White, Certainly Celery, Bali Breeze Designer. Ink: Black StazOn, Tempting Turquoise. Other: Wood Bag (Michaels), vintage brads, Soft Sky double-stitched ribbon, Striped and Checked ribbon by American Crafts, Watercolor Wonder Crayons, blender pen, small corner rounder, Designer Label punch, Basic Grey Precision File Set, mat pack, paper piercer, Perfect Paper Adhesive, Stampin' dimensionals.

*** Edited to Add: Perfect Paper Adhesive is similar to Modge Podge. However it is not as strong smelling, leaves a very smooth barely noticeable finish (if using Matte) and cleans up easily with just a bit of warm water.

Sweet Saturday

Whew! It has been a hectic last couple of days finishing up the prep work for my card classes this weekend... one today and one tomorrow! :) I haven't even been on the internet since yesterday afternoon... wow 24 hours away from the 'puter! I was starting to go through withdrawals, but now I'm back (while I wait for a project to dry).

I am working on a couple of projects but they are not finished, so instead I thought I would share another card that all of the attendees of my classes this weekend will/have made. This one is a super simple and sweet card... the layout and colors would also be perfect for a baby card.

Quick notes: all layers had Soft Sky Classic ink sponged along the edges. Soft Sky designer paper was matted on cardstock of the same color. A piece of River Rock ribbon was tied around the layers and then the before adhering them to a Sahara Sand card base. A sentiment from It's Your Birthday was stamped on Whisper White and punched out with a 1 3/8" circle punch and matted on a Soft Sky scalloped circle before adhering to a chipboard star with dimensionals. The star was also adhered to the card base with dimensionals. To finish the card, the "Happy Birthday" from It's Your Brithday was stamped on the bottom.

All images copyright Stampin' Up!. Stamps: It's Your Birthday. Paper: Sahara Sand, Soft Sky, Whisper White, Soft Sky Designer. Ink: Black StazOn, Soft Sky Classic. Other: On Board Simon Upper chipboard, Scallop Circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, River Rock double-stitched ribbon, Stampin' dimensionals, sponge.

Paper Pretties Wednesday

On Monday when Stampin in my Jammies at the Paper Pretties party I made this fun card featuring Wade E. Bug for the layout challenge. I just really like this stamp... especially coloring him in funky and fun colors! :)

Notes: Wade E. Bug was stamped in Brilliance Archival Graphite Black ink on Confetti White cardstock. To quicken the drying time I used my Heat Tool. The ink would have dried on its own in a few minutes but I'm not that patient. I then used a blender pen and Classic ink pads to color Wade. The image was matted on Really Rust and two small Chocolate Chip punch outs were folded around the left edge and were attached with gold brads. The next layer is Blue Bayou whose right edge was scalloped with the small corner rounder. Each scallop was pierced once with a paper piercer. Wade was adhered to this layer with dimensionals. The card base is an 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" piece of Blue Bayou cardstock. A piece of designer paper was matted on Really Rust before knotting a couple pieces of ribbon and adhering to the card base. A few more dimensionals and the card was complete. I don't even know why I list dimensionals in my recipes any more... I should just put a big notice somewhere on my blog: "All projects require bookoos of dimensionals!". :)

All images copyright Paper Pretties. Stamps: Wade E. Bug. Paper: Blue Bayou, ReallyRust, Chcolate Chip, Confetti White, Vintage Carnival Designer (Bo Bunny Press). Ink: Archival Brilliance Graphite Black, Creamy Caramel Classic, Close to Cocoa Classic, Blue Bayou Classic, Ruby Red Classic, Bravo Burgundy Classic. Other: Atyou Spica pens in gold and black, gold brads, May Arts ribbon, small corner rounder, small oval punch, paper piercer, Stampin' dimensionals, blender pen, sponge.

Super Simple Tuesday

I'm posting a super simple and quick card tonight. Stamp a few times, cut out a flower and glue it all together. Can't get any easier than that, can it? Oops, you do need to punch a hole and add a brad. :)

All images copyright Stampin' Up!. Stamps: Friendship Blooms. Paper: Garden Green, Ruby Red, River Rock, Cameo Coral, Whisper White, Ginger Blossom Designer. Ink: Black StazOn, Ruby Bed, Certainly Celery, Garden Green. Other: Mellow Moss grosgrain ribbon, clear crystal brads.

Is anyone else freezing and tired of winter? I arrived home a bit late tonight and there was enough snow that I had to use the snow thrower and do a bit of shoveling. That way I could walk out to my Jeep tomorrow without getting snow in my shoes. Yick (wet socks)! Hope none of my neighbors were bothered by my ridiculously noisy little snow blower so late at night. :) But I really didn't want wet socks tomorrow and you can't avoid that if you are wading through the white stuff. :(

In other news I've been nominated for an Excellent Award by two awesome bloggers: Nancy Riley (iStamp) and Michelle (A Stamping We Will Go...). He he... my blog is Excellent Squared. I love it! Yes, I am so geeking at the moment. Thank you ladies, you made my day! :) I'm going to pass this award on to a couple of blogging friends that I enjoy visiting: Mary Beth of Stampin' Space and Lori of Stamp Scents.

Stay warm everyone!

Sunglasses are mandatory!

Put your shades on because I am about to post a very pink card! I made this one for the Stampin In Your Jammies party that is taking place in the Paper Pretties forum. In specific it is a color challenge to use light pink, vanilla and brown. I used a bit of vanilla, a tad of brown and a heaping of pink. What do you think, is it too much? :)

Here is an up close look at the background I created using the Faux Silk Technique. I stamped the hearts from Sealed with a Kiss multiple times in Archival Brilliance Graphite Black ink on tissue paper and then colored the hearts with a couple of pink markers. I also sponged a bit of Regal Rose all over the tissue paper to add even more color. I then crumpled the tissue paper and smoothed it back out before adhering it to a piece of Whisper White cardstock that I had run through my Zyron sticker maker machine. Very pink, no? But I wasn't finished! I layered the background on Chocolate Chip and added some faux stitching using the mat pack, paper piercer and a white gel pen.

This is what the finished card looks like after I added some ribbon, a sentiment and a couple of accent circles. I just have to note that I must have been in a two by two frame of mind when I made this card: two strips of ribbon, two circle accents and two brads on the edge of the sentiment. That wasn't my intention when I started the card but it worked out in the end!

All images copyright Paper Pretties. Stamps: Sealed with a Kiss. Paper: Pretty in Pink, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Very Vanilla. Ink: Archival Brilliance in Graphite Black, Regal Rose Classic, Pretty in Pink marker, Regal Rose marker. Other: mat pack, paper piercer, white gel pen, vintage brads, felt ribbon by Offray, pink textured ribbon by May Arts, tissue paper, Zyron sticker maker, 1 1/4" circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, Stampin' dimensionals, sponge.

And the winner is!

Drumroll please! The lucky winner of the something something (aka blog candy) is lucky #41!
I used the Random Integer Generator from www.random.org to do the work of picking the winner and then I just had to count the posts until I reached 41 to find the winner (I had to count twice to make sure), who is:

Melissa D. said...

What great blog candy. Can you believe I don't have any Bella stamps? Congrats on 25000 hits, what an exciting time.
There is so much I am looking forward to, seeing my brother get married, visiting my sister and her family, spending so much time with the rest of the family, celebrating my Grandmother's 90th bday, etc. What a great year I have in store. :)

February 10, 2008 11:53 AM

Congrats Melissa! Just click on the contact me link under my picture on the upper right side and let me know where to send your new goodies! :)

I just wanted to let everyone know that I had a great time reading all of your comments and finding out what you were looking forward to in the upcoming year. They were fun, interesting and inspirational. Thanks for participating! :)

I think I need a cupcake now!

I think I just discovered a new favorite color combination: Old Olive, More Mustard and Apricot Appeal. What do you think? If you love the combo and make a card with it, please let me know so I can check it out! )

Notes: Cupcake from Cause for Celebration was stamped in Black StazOn on Naturals White cardstock. A thin layer of Crystal Effects was applied to the frosting area and some beads poured over it, shake off excess. Make sure and trim your image before doing this step... the beads are a bit bulky and do not cooperate with the trimmer. Ask me how I know! :) Then an Old Olive marker was used to color along the lines of the cupcake base and a blender pen was used to pull the color into the rest of the white areas. The flame was colored with an Apricot Appeal marker. The edges were sponged with More Mustard Classic ink and the image was matted on cardstock of the same color. I used the slit punch to make a notch on the right side (sponge the notch too!).

A flower stamp from the same set was randomly stamped in Apricot Appeal Classic ink on cardstock of the same colors. The edges were sponged in More Mustard Classic and then the layer was matted on another piece of More Mustard cardstock. I knotted a piece of the new Old Olive polytwill ribbon (available March 1st from SU!) around the layer, lining it up with the notch on the cupcake layer. This ribbon is awesome and it comes in Chocolate Chip too!!! A sentiment from A Little Birthday Cheer was stamped and the layers assembled on an Old Olive card base. A rater simple and quick card... except for the drying time of the Crystal Effects. :)

All images copyright Stampin' Up!. Stamps: Cause for Celebration hostess set, A Little Birthday Cheer. Paper: Old Olive, More Mustard, Apricot Appeal, Naturals White. Ink: Black StazOn, Apricot Appeal Classic, More Mustard Classic, Apricot Appeal marker, Old Olive marker. Other: Old Olive Poly-twill ribbon, slit punch, Stampin' dimensionals, beads (retired), Crystal Effects, sponge, blender pen.

Blog Candy: And You Thought I Forgot

I'm continually amazed at all the wonderful comments and emails that you (my awesome readers) send me and I appreciate every single one of them! This is just my little way of saying thanks for making my day, week and month!

So I managed to find all of the something something that I wanted to include in my first Blog Candy to celebrate 25000 hits! It was a bit of a hunt at times... I really need to organize my craft room. Oh, you want to know what the something something are? Well, here goes:

• 1 Veggiebella unmounted rubber stamp by Stamping Bella. This is courtesy of Christy at Paper Pretties (thanks Christy!).
• 1 Package of alphabet rub-ons by Colorbok. These letters are nice and BIG!
• 1 Happy Birthday embossing folder by Cuttlebug. If you don't have a Cuttlebug or similar machine perhaps you can share this with a friend who does.
• 1 small pack of clear stamps in star shapes by Autumn Leaves
• 1 yard of Purely Pomegranate satin ribbon
• 1 yard of Chocolate Chip satin ribbon and
• 1 card made by me using the Snowflake Kisses stamp set from Paper Pretties. You can see a bigger version of the card here.

To participate in this contest just leave a comment on this post. To make it interesting, tell me something that you are looking forward to in the upcoming year. Contest ends at 8PM (EST) on Monday, February 11th when I will pick a name using Random.org. Oh... and only one comment per person please!

I'm back and so are the Deer

Yikes! I've been super-duper busy the last few days and haven't had any time to post much less craft (a shocker, I know). Although it has been fun busy... ending with the movie night on Friday watching all three of the Indiana Jones movies (yes, I am a geek!) and only getting 5-6 hours of sleep before waking up this morning and rushing out the door to do Motor Meals. The volunteering gives me the feel good fuzzies but makes me wonder why the great city of Ann Arbor, MI does not plow the side roads. Messy!

And did you know that 2AM is social hour for deer? First there was the one I almost pegged while driving home last night after the movie marathon! Whew! It was a good thing I was going a little slower because of the blowing snow and even slower because it was very dark and my night vision is not the greatest. But that wasn't the only deer wandering the roads. I also discovered where the cool deer hangout is and it's a farm field just around the corner from my house. How do I know it is the cool spot? 'Cause there were dozens of them!!! And I think they know my Jeep because they sure aren't afraid of it!

However, not all of my time was preoccupied with avoiding deer over the last few days. I also needed to finish some swaps and get them out in the mail on Friday. Sigh... I am such the swap player. I (gasp) joined a second group and this is for that one. I feel like I am playing the field and double-dating at the moment (and we won't talk about that other group I met last month). He he... Danielle is a bad swap girl! But what do you think? Aren't they pretty? And they are using the new One of a Kind stamp set.

The main flower was stamped three times. Once on Sahara Sand (the base layer), again on Pretty in Pink (the middle layer) and finally on Regal Rose (the top layer). Trimming the flowers was actually a little easier than it looks because of the nice thick black lines of the image. As long as I cut into the black line I was happy. I didn't worry about getting an extremely consistent trim. I also added some paper piercing to the center of the flower for a little extra texture.

It doesn't show up very well in the pictures but the very pale band of pink paper is the Berry Bliss Designer paper. Also the Pretty in Pink layer was stamped with the Sanded background stamp in the same color to add a little texture.

P.S. For the peeps attending one of my classes next weekend a slightly different (colors) version of this card will be one of the projects that everyone will be making.

All images copyright Stampin' Up!. Stamps: One of a Kind, Sanded background. Paper: Chocolate Chip, Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, Sahara Sand, Berry Bliss Designer paper. Ink: Black StazOn, Regal Rose Classic, Pretty in Pink Classic, Chocolate Chip Classic. Other: Chocolate Chip Taffeta ribbon, vintage brads, mat pack, paper piercer, ticket corner punch, Stampin' dimensionals, sponge.

*** Edited: fixed a weird link thing that was hanging out in the middle of the post.

Paper Pretties Wednesday

Guess what I got in the mail a couple of days ago? The latest stamps released by Paper Pretties. :) I finally had a chance tonight to sit down and ink 'em up. Yay!

This card uses the showy Wade E. Bug stamp set and well... I had to use glitter since he's all about making a splash as he parties it up at all of the swank clubs and VIP parties. He's such a show off! I love that sentiment and I think it will be perfect to send to friends and family as a congrats card when they accomplish something coolio or buy something flashy like an awesome new car!

Notes: Wade E. Bug was colored with Watercolor Wonder Crayons and a blender pen. Except for the red of his bow tie, cape and antenna doodads, I colored those with a Real Red marker and then coated with Dazzling Diamonds glitter. A touch of glitter was also added to the top hat. The scalloped edge on the bottom of the pink designer paper was created with the small corner round and a little piercing was added to each scallop. All layers also had Chocolate Chip Classic ink sponged on the edges. Ain't he just the cutest bug? This from someone who is anti-bug... especially after (oh I'm squirming just thinking about it) a Japanese Beetle fell down into my shirt while I was staining the deck! The horrors... but Wade E. would never do anything like that... I hope...

All images copyright Paper Pretties. Stamps: Wade E. Bug. Paper: Real Red, Chocolate Chip, River Rock, Whisper White, Basic Grey 6"x6" Infuse pad. Ink: Chocolate Chip Classic, Palette Hybrid Black, Real Red marker. Other: Watercolor Wonder Crayons, blender pen, Lemon Atyou Copic pen, Striped Ribbon (American Crafts), Dazzling Diamonds glitter, Sakura Quickie Glue pen, small corner rounder, paper piercer, mat pack, Stampin' dimensionals, small clear crystal brads, sponge.

P.S. Have you seen my counter? I can't believe it has reached 25000 hits! Wow, I really appreciate all of you that visit my blog and check out what I have been working on. I also delight in each and every comment that you post... so keep 'em coming! So you know what this means right? In the next few days I'll be posting a little something something (aka blog candy) to show my appreciation. Why am I making you wait? 'Cause my stamp room is to put it simply a mess and I have to rescue the something something from the masses of stamp stuff overflowing everywhere and then take a pic to post. Yup... I am soooo organized! :)

Roberta Rhino and the Muumuu

So what does a hip and cool rhino who is up on all the latest fashions wear while out on the town shopping and hanging with her peeps? Why, the Tempting Turquoise Muumuu of course! Roberta is stylin' in her bright floral dress and she really knows how to accessorize... see the pretty toenail polish? Mwah-ha-ha!

All images copyright Stampin' Up!. Stamps: Zoofari, Smarty Pants, Rough Texture jumbo wheel. Paper: Naturals White, Not Quite Navy, Soft Sky, Tempting Turquoise, Creamy Caramel, Tempting Turquoise Prints Designer. Ink: Black StazOn, Tempting Turquoise Classic, Creamy Caramel Classic, Creamy Caramel marker, Tempting Turquoise marker. Other: Blue Bayou double-stitched ribbon, gold brads, Stampin' dimensionals, 1/2" circle punch.

This is just a quickie post! Talk to you all later! :)

A Bit of Window Shopping

What would you do with an extra $500? I was asking myself this question while pondering the proposed Economic Stimulus Plan. You know... counting my chickens before they hatch and all that. I was a little surprised but I apparently have quite the wish list... here are a few of the things on it:

Copic Markers: I have been drooling over these for quite some time. Will they make my coloring any better? Well, there is only one way to find out and that is to try them (and practice)! Of course there is the additional question of which ones to get and how many.

Nestabilities: I really really like scallops and these little dies are so compact and space saving (bonus!).

New Cuttlebug Embossing Folders: Alrighty, I'll be honest... I'm probably not going to wait a couple of months to pick up a few of these. The Paisley and Swiss Dots are just begging to be united with the rest of my Cuttlebug collection.

Plastic Containers: yup, I'm addicted to organizing my supplies so you can bet that there will be a couple of plastic containers on my wish list.

Light Box: I'm at the mercy of my current lighting situation which basically is a piece of foam board cut in half and a little Ott-lite lamp. Plus, I'm a night owl and usually take pictures after the sun has set... needless to say I'm looking for a solution that will provide more reliable results.

Stampin' Up!: C'mon, you know I still have a ton of stuff on my wish list! Like the Schoolbook Serif Alphabet, Priceless (I can't believe I don't have this set yet!), more glitter, some of those cool duo beads and maybe a little bit of ribbon.

Chocolate: to keep my energy up while shopping! :)

Okay, so my list is a little long... but hey, it's more fun than shopping for new tires for the Jeep! Which is what I will be doing with a portion of my income tax refund... woo hoo (insert copious amounts of sarcasm here).

Of course you didn't come here to read about my shopping habits (I window shop a lot!), so I better quit stalling and show you one of my latest creations: another bird card! But this time I used the A Little Birdie Told Me stamp set so that makes it totally different from yesterday's post. :)

Quick notes: Card base is a 4 1/4" x 8 1/2" piece of Night of Navy cardstock folded in half. I colored the bird and hats with my Stampin' Up! markers. The hats were cut out and adhered to a round tab punch with Stampin' dimensionals. Hmmm... the rest should be self-explanatory but drop me a line if you have any questions. For those of you attending my class on February 17th this will be one of the projects!

All images copyright Stampin' Up!. Stamps: A Little Birdie Told Me, Itty Bitty Backgrounds. Paper: Night of Navy, Bordering Blue, Bashful Blue, Mellow Moss, Whisper White. Ink: Black StazOn, Bashful Blue, Mellow Moss, Bashful Blue marker, Pumpkin Pie marker, Night of Navy marker, Bordering Blue marker, Mellow Moss marker. Other: Round Tab punch, small oval punch, Always Artichoke grosgrain ribbon, Stampin' dimensionals.

Oompa Loompa: How Tweet It Is!

Oompa, Loompa, doom-pa-dee-do I've got another sketch card for you! This time I used one that the very talented Anna Wight posted on her blog on Friday. When I grow up I want to be able to color like her! :)

Quickie Notes: The very pink bird was stamped in Black StazOn on Shimmery White cardstock. I colored the bird with a Pretty Pink marker... for the darker pink I just colored over the area a couple of times... yup, another reason to love Shimmery paper. The paper is so durable that you can apply several layers of color without the paper pilling. The beak was colored with Only Orange and the hat with Rose Red and Pretty in Pink.

All images copyright Stampin' Up!. Stamps: Pun Fun. Paper: Purely Pomegranate, Chocolate Chip, Shimmery White, Berry Bliss Designer. Ink: Black Stazon, Pretty in Pink marker, Rose Red marker, Only Orange marker. Other: vintage brads, Sherbet Ribbon Originals, Stampin' dimensionals. Tools: mat pack, paper piercer.

P.S. Sorry... you probably have the oompa song stuck in your head after reading my opener. And if not... here it goes again: "Oompa, Loompa, doom-pa-dee-do. If you are wise, you'll listen to me...". :)

My Hearts Gone Green :)

Wow! This set used to be one of my favorites but lately it has been neglected, sitting there at the bottom of the pile wishing for the chance to be inked, pressed and colored. Well, a couple nights ago I pulled out the set and this is what it inspired me to make... I wasn't disappointed!

The main flower image was stamped in Black StazOn on Whisper White cardstock and then colored with a Real Red marker. The Sakura Stardust glitter pen was used to add a touch of shimmer to each of the little red flowers.

The heart was stamped in Old Olive Classic ink on a scrap of Sahara Sand cardstock and then trimmed. A little button with linen thread knotted through the holes was adhered to the heart with a glue dot. The sentiment is from the Many Happy Returns set and perfectly fits this very content card.

All images copyright Stampin' Up!. Stamps: Simply Said, Many Happy Returns. Paper: Real Red, Soft Sky, Tempting Turquoise, Sahara Sand, Whisper White, Bali Breeze Designer. Ink: Old Olive, Black StazOn, Real Red marker. Other: Fresh Favorites II buttons, Chocolate Chip wide grosgrain ribbon, Red gingham ribbon, linen thread, Sakura Stardust glitter pen, Bold Brights brads, ticket corner punch, small corner rounder, Stampin' dimensionals.

WSC33: Sweet Sophia's Posing for the Camera

I've had the idea for a while to do a photo strip of Sopia (from the Need a Cuddle stamp set by Paper Pretties) posing with her favorite teddy bear. But did I sit down and make the card? No, of course not! It took the perfect sketch challenge to motivate me! :) Yup, Beate has posted another awesome Weekend Sketch Challenge which I recommend that you check out (or just browse her blog... she posts the most amazing cards!).

I also copied Beate's card dimensions and made my card big... well at least bigger than normal for me. A whopping 4" by 8 1/2" cardbase! Yikes! However it does fit in a normal business sized envelope which I just happen to have a big box.

On to the notes: Sweet Sophia from Need a Cuddle was stamped two times in Ranger Jet Black Archival ink on Naturals White cardstock. From what I have read you should avoid using StazOn on acrylic stamps. Why? Because the StazOn Cleaner can be a bit rough on the acrylic. Which means I needed to try a different black ink... thought I would give the Ranger Archival ink a try and see how well it held up to watercoloring with Watercolor Wonder Crayons and a blender pen. Seems to have worked, although I should have probably give it more time to dry because there was a tiny bit of smearing. After coloring both images I added a bit of Dazzling Diamonds glitter, adhered with a Sakura Quickie Glue Pen. From one image the feet and head were punched and from the second the teddy bear was punched (1 1/4" square punch). The three images were layered on 1 3/8" squares of Old Olive before being adhered to a Chocolate Chip panel with Stampin' dimensionals.

Other little notes: I distressed the edges of Sophia's Chocolate Chip background with the distressing tool. I also roughed up the edges of the Outlaw Designer paper (I'm so sad this paper was retired). The Chocolate Chip layers were not standing out from the Bravo Burgundy card base enough so I sponged a little Whisper White Craft ink onto both pieces with a sponge. Did the same with the Bravo Burgundy circles upon which a Felt Fusion flower and silver vintage brad were added. Some ribbon, a Friend tag and paper piercing were added to finish up the card.

I really like how this card turned out! It's a little vintage-y and a bit distressed but oh so sweet! Nothing like the perfect sketch to make a perfect card with!

Images copyright Paper Pretties, Stampin' Up!. Stamps: Need a Cuddle (Paper Pretties), Fundamental Phrases. Paper: Bravo Burgundy, Chocolate Chip, Old Olive, Sage Shadow, Naturals White, Outlaw Designer (retired). Ink: Ranger Jet Black Archival Ink, Whisper White Craft. Tools: 3/4" circle punch, 1 1/4" square punch, 1 3/8" square punch, small oval punch, mat pack, paper piercer, blender pen, sponge, sharp scissors. Accessories: Watercolor Wonder crayons, Dazzling Diamonds glitter, Sakura Quickie Glue Pen, Linen Thread, Kraft taffeta ribbon, Felt Fusion flowers, vintage brads, Stampin' dimensionals.

Q&A: Sticky Stuff and Glitter

I've had a couple of questions about the big glittery "S" on the mailbox for my niece Stephanie. Here they are and the answers to the best of my knowledge.

Q: "where did you get the double sided tape letter?? never heard of those and I'm suddenly "needing" some.."

A: Oh, this is an easy one! The Sticky Cuts Letters are a new product that Stampin' Up! released in the Spring~Summer Collection '08. They are located on page 186 in the top right corner... very easily missed. You get two 12" x 12" sheets of letters, numbers and shapes for $8.95.

Q: "How much glitter did you have to use for the letter? I'm wanting to order these letters, but I want to make sure I have enough glitter for many of the letters! more specifically, how many letters do you think you would get out of one container of that particular glitter?"

A: Good Question! Looking at the container and how much I used, I would think you would be able to use one of the Fine Cosmo glitter containers to cover 8 or more letters (and maybe many more). Of course this all depends on how messy you are with glitter... but I have the feeling a little can go a long ways. Also there are five different colors of glitter in the set so I think one set would provide plenty of glitter to dust everything sticky in sight with and yourself and the cat sitting by your feet.

That's it for this session of Q&A. Will there be future Q&As? Only if you ask the questions! :)