One card, three looks

While perusing the latest SU catalog, I came across a sample on page 142 using a set called "Circle Circus".  I loved the simple layout and decided to "case" it, adding my own twist.  Here's my version using Bermuda Bay, Melon Mambo, So Saffron and Kiwi Kiss...

I added a few jewels and some faux stitching with a white pen. 

Then I decided to try the same look with another color combo... 

Black, Riding Hood Red, More Mustard.

And I couldn't resist trying one more combo... 

Elegant Eggplant, Old Olive, Perfect Plum and Pacific Point. 

Instead of jewels, I added a couple of green pearls to finish this one off.  I love how each card is the same, but the different color combos give each one a completely different feel.  Thanks for stopping by today!

Feeling Sketchy

It's time for another challenge over at Christmas Stampin All Year Long!

This week I was feelin' a little sketchy, so I doodled up a little something for us to play with.

  Here's my take on it...

I used my favorite image from SU's "Winter Post" set.  I have NO idea why, but I just can't seem to get enough of this skating couple for some reason. (?)

I stamped the image with Sahara Sand ink and kept the rest of the colors clean and simple with a combo of Kraft and Very Vanilla.  I threw in a bit of gold cording and some pearls to finish it off.

I hope you'll play along with us this week.  There's a guest dt spot up for grabs!  For more inspiration, check out what the rest of the design team did with the sketch by clicking here.

Have a great weekend :-)

Sew cute!

Don't you just love getting new stamping goodies in the mail?! I just got a boatload of new stuff from the Stampin Up mini catalog. Oh my gosh.....did you fall in love with all of the sewing themed items too?
Seriously....I bought all of it.
Let's just keep that between us though, okay?

Of course I had to ink something up right away! I inked up this image called "Pattern Pieces" with Versamark and clear embossed it on Melon Mambo cardstock. I used a couple of patterns from the new pack called "Sweet Stitches" and paired it up with some Garden Green cardstock.
I pierced around the edge of the bottom panel and used a white gel pen to create some faux stitching. I finally found a white pen that works PERFECTLY! I've tried so many and finally found the best one out there. It's the White Gelly Roll pen by Sakura - love it!! I went back and bought two more, just to have in my stash. I'm so sick of white pens clogging and not being reliable. Seriously...go get one of these.

Okay, okay...enough about the pen. I finished off this fun card with some real buttons and some buttons I cut with the new SU button Sizzix die. The sentiment is from an old SU set called "Bubble Queen", remember her?! My mother-in-law is an amazing seamstress, so this is going to be her Mother's Day card - if I can hold off giving to her until May! Well, I guess I'm out of exclamation points for today, so that's it for me :-)
Thanks for peeking.

It's Official...

I literally have a stamp for just about everything. We came home last week to a giant box on our doorstep. Inside were the most beautiful chocolate covered strawberries from Sherri's Berries! My Aunt and Uncle are the best! I tell ya....getting spoiled just never gets old!For our thank you card, I whipped out an oldie but a goodie from Stampin Up called, "Oh So Sweet". I used three different inks for all of the strawberry parts and then popped up the chocolate layer on dimensionals. It was looking a little dull, so I added some Stickles for a bit of sparkle and finished it off with some of my favorite polka dot ribbon.
The kiddos and I have a whole week to spend together. I'm soooo looking forward to sleeping in every morning, taking them to the farmer's market and enjoying the beautiful weather. Thanks for stopping by!
{{{hugs}}}

For the boys

I don't know about you, but I never seem to have enough boy cards. And as my son and his friends get older, the cute cartoon-y images just don't cut it.I just got this "Extreme Skateboarder" image from Stampin Up and thought it would be perfect to whip up a batch of "big boy" cards :-) I used colors, patterns and embellishments from an SU Simply Scrappin Kit called "Cool Kids".
I'm loving the color gray at the moment. And I just stocked up, so brace yourselves because I'll be using it lots!
I try to go easy on the embellishments when I'm making masculine cards. I usually don't put ribbon on them, but I think it works here. I cut about 12" of polka dot ribbon and applied double stick tape to the back of it. Then I just squished it all together at the bottom of the tag and accented with red brads. All I had on hand were fluorescent pink brads - ewwwww. Why do I have these!? Thank goodness I had my handy-dandy red Copic marker that came to the rescue!

Zoophabet

My cousins daughter just turned six and this is what she got in the mail. I picked up this "Zoophabet" set by Penny Black a couple of years ago, and I've only used it one other time. I had so much fun inking up these cuties, that this is now my go-to set for kiddo cards. Didn't you love to get things with your name on it when you were little?
I paired up Pumpkin Pie and Bermuda Bay cardstock with a fun striped pattern from the SU "Sunny Day" kit.

Thanks for stopping by!
I'll be back on Thursday to share the new release from Pink Cat Studio.

Whoo's your valentine?

Seems like forever since I've played along with a Splitcoast sketch challenge. I decided to ink up this cute set by SU and whip up a little something for someone special. I adore all of the colors and patterns from the SU "Sunny Day" Simply Scrappin' Kit. It definitely makes it easy to put together a bright and cheerful card.


I used a glitter pen to outline the owl and accent some of the heart stickers.
Quick post today. I've got TONS of dt applications and blogs to go through! Thanks to all of you who applied! Have a great Monday.

A week of ups and downs

The last week has been full of ups and downs, and I'm looking forward to getting back into the ol' daily routine now that the kiddos are back in school. Yesterday I spent the afternoon making a gingerbread house with my daughter and a gingerbread train with my son. I'm really trying to cherish each and every moment with my family - even the daily stuff.

During Thanksgiving week, a very dear family friend died in a horrible fishing accident. It was a total shock, because he went fishing practically every week and was in familiar waters. I'm horrible at making sympathy cards, but wanted to pop something in mail to his wife and son.

I always seem to reach for this tulip set by Stampin Up when I need a sympathy card.I used a pattern from SU's "Urban Oasis" pack and paired it with some Riding Hood Red cardstock and grey ribbon.

I used black ink for all of the tulip images and just stamped off on scrap paper when I needed a lighter shade.
I finished it off with a sentiment banner and some half-back pearls.

In brighter news, I have a couple of fun announcements that I'll be sharing with you in the next few weeks, so stay tuned :-) Thanks bunches for stopping by my corner of the world today - it means a lot! Have a super Monday and go hug someone you love.

From owl of us

One of my favorite people in the whole world has a birthday coming up. She has a bit of an owl fetish, so here's what I came up with for her using Jen's sketch...I used a small flourish stamp on the green cardstock to create my own background paper. I really like how it came out and need to use that technique more often. The main images are from a set called "Aviary" by Stampin Up and the sentiment is by Inky Antics.
For some special finishing touches, I added small jewels to the tops of the birdcages and then went over the scroll work with a glitter pen.

The family and I are headed to Vegas later this month. Any recommendations on things to do with the kids? Stamp stores? Scrapbook stores?

Christmas Stampin' All Year Long

Hope everyone is doing well on this beautiful Friday. I'm off to do Halloween parties in 2nd and 4th grade today. In 2nd grade we'll be making globes out of pumpkins and in 4th grade we'll be making care packages for our troops to send out for the upcoming Veterans Day holiday. I went through my card stash last night and picked out 30 cards to add to the care packages. It feels good to know that they'll be going to a good home and surprising a soldiers loved one in the mail.

Today is also challenge day over at the Christmas Stampin All Year Long blog! The assignment this week is to use purple and silver on your card. I absolutely love these colors for a holiday card. Here's what I came up with using all Stampin Up goodies.
The sponging technique was totally inspired by Michelle Zindorf and the snowflake was stamped with Versamark and popped up on dimensionals. For the silver requirement, I wrapped some yummy silver cording around the card base and adhered the trimmed ends beneath the main image panel.

I hope you'll play along with us this week. We've only got about another month of challenges and then we're all finished! Thanks for stopping by today. Have a super weekend and a Happy Halloween.

Quick and easy moving cards

My husband is on an 8 hour field trip with 60, yes SIXTY fourth graders! I'm not quite sure how I weaseled my way out of that one, but I'll be thinking of him while I'm stamping today. But before I do that, I wanted to share a little gift set that I made for a friend.Between school obligations, family commitments and dt deadlines,I only had about 2 hours to get this done, so I kept it super simple. I paired up SUs "Good Neighbor" set with some rub-on letters and cardstock scraps from my stash.
After all of the cards were done, I bundled up some envelopes and wrapped them with a band of cardstock to keep them together.

After a few quick measurements, I came up with a box and wrapped it with some yummy ribbon.

I decorated the front to match the cards and finished it off with a chipboard sentiment. Okay....I'm off to play in my workshop, ehem.....I mean do the laundry.

For two little love birds

Thank you so much for your sweet comments and e-mails regarding yesterdays post. I'm glad that I decided to share that with you.

I'm back today on a much brighter note and needed a card for a happy occasion. My cousin just got engaged, and I wanted to pop a card in the mail to her. I figured this was the perfect opportunity to finally use a cute new set by SU called "Aviary". I used the "Kioshi" paper pack by BasicGrey and paired it with Perfect Plum, Bashful Blue and Mellow Moss inks. I popped up a mini heart at the top of the cage for some dimension.
Here's a detail shot of the top corner. I colored some Scrappers Floss with a Copic marker before I threaded it through the button, and then added some pearls to "fancy" it up.

I finished off the bottom half with a rub-on sentiment and a chipboard heart from my stash.

This was the perfect opportunity for me to play in my purple room and get my mind off all the drama of the past few days. Thanks for stopping by - {{{hugs}}}

It's a keeper

I spent many hours over the weekend re-organizing my workshop and sorting through old stamp sets that haven't been touched in ages. One of the sets I considered getting rid of was SU's "Sip by Sip".I printed out Jen's Saturday sketch , dusted off "Sip by Sip" and decided that it's a keeper. I've been SO obsessed with coloring and Copics lately, that many of my SU stamps have gone untouched. I forgot how fast a card can come together!
This one was done in 10 minutes! That's a big deal for me, because I usually spend at least an hour on my cards. What can I say? I find coloring therapeutic.