Sea Glass & Sentiments

CASE Study #76

2012-02-02T00:01:00.002-05:00

Hello friends! So glad you stopped by--you're in for a real treat today. We're introducing a new Muse for the month of February at CASE Study, and let me just say that this designer's creations are jaw-droppingly gorgeous! Welcome to Karola Witczak!

If you have not been to Karola's blog yet, make sure you grab a beverage and settle in for a spell before clicking over. Her style is beautifully detailed, romantic and incredibly inspiring.

This week's inspiration from Karola is a stunning, nature-inspired Valentine:

By Karola Witczak

I took just a few of the elements that I was most drawn to and incorporated them into my own clean and simple style: the colors aqua, spring green, and cream; the butterflies; and the square panels.

I decided to revisit a sketch from a Paper Crafts special issue, Card Idea for Paper Crafters. I first used a pencil to lightly sketch a grid on the left side of a piece of Spring Moss cardstock, then punched 1 3/8 inch squares. After stamping a sentiment from Annabelle Stamps' Garden Silhouettes, I gave this panel a little texture with the Linen & Canvas impression plate.

In the bottom right corner of the grid, I layered two die cut butterflies with an Aqua Mist button. Then I popped the panel up with foam tape on an Aqua Mist card base. Behind the "windows", I put a square of fabulous woodgrain cardstock from A Muse Studio that my friend Suzanne gave me a while back. (Thanks, Suzanne!) A couple more aqua buttons finish it off.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Spring Moss, Aqua Mist, Vintage Cream)

Patterned cardstock: A Muse Studio (Woodgrain)

Stamp: Annabelle Stamps (Garden Silhouettes)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Early Espresso)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (butterfly dies, Linen & Canvas impression plate), EK Success (square punch), corner rounder

Accessories: Papertrey Ink (buttons), DMC floss

I'm really looking forward to seeing your take on our new Muse's creation! Don't forget to stop by and see the rest of the samples from the Design Team (and they are incredible this week, as always!) and give Karola a warm welcome.

Thanks for visiting!

ColourQ #122

2012-01-31T10:17:00.000-05:00

This is my third post of the day. Please scroll down to see my 12 Kits of Christmas post and my card for Cath!

Happy Tuesday, ColourQ fans! Are you ready for a "love"ly color combo? I couldn't resist inking up some sweet little hearts with this palette:

I stamped a grid of polka dotted hearts using a darling little stamp from DeNami Designs in Regal Rose on a white cardstock panel.

Next I cut a strip of black cardstock and heat embossed white hearts across it. I stamped the heart one more time in Versarmark onto red cardstock and added a "love" sentiment, also from DeNami, then cut it out by hand and attached it with foam tape.

I finished off the card with some Maraschino baker's twine and one of PTI's Tiny Tags.

FYI: This cutie measures just 4 1/4 inches square, if you're curious about the scale of the stamps.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Kraft, True Black, Pure Poppy, White)

Stamps: DeNami Designs (Hearts Petit Fours stamp set, Heartfelt Greetings Petit Fours stamp set), Papertrey Ink (Tiny Tags)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Regal Rose), Inkadinkadoo (Black), Tsukineko (Versamark)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (tag die)

Accessories: The Twinery (baker's twine), Filigree (embossing powder)

Won't you join us this week? I can't wait to see your designs in the ColourQ gallery!

Thanks for stopping by again today! Have a good one!

The 12 Kits of Christmas--Month One

2012-01-31T00:02:00.001-05:00

This is my second post of the day. Please scroll down to see my card for the Blog Hop for Cath!

Edited to add: Renee is generously offering up some blog candy to one lucky commenter! Be sure to see her post for more details, and leave comments on all of the designers' blogs to increase your chances of winning!

Hello friends! I'm back with my second post of the day, and it's another special one! I'm so excited to introduce you to a new group that I'm delighted to be a part of, The 12 Kits of Christmas.

The idea behind this monthly challenge came from fellow stampers Renee Lynch and Suzanne Dahlberg, who were looking for a way to get their holiday cards done in a more timely fashion. They invited 10 more crafters to join them in a monthly challenge to do just that.

Each month one of us sends a kit of holiday card-making supplies to the rest of the participants. At the end of the month, we will all post our creations on our blogs. Hopefully you'll be inspired to get some of your Christmas cards done throughout the year, or even adapt the designs to use for other occasions.

This month's kit was provided by Renee Lynch, and let me just say that she was incredibly generous with the supplies! Our kits were jam-packed with die cuts, stamped sentiments, patterned papers, gorgeous ribbons, buttons, bells, and pearls. Here's a peek at the contents:

I had so much fun working with these goodies! I have 5 cards to share with you today.

I was first drawn to the amazing die cut windows and wanted to make a couple of cards using those. The first one has a view from outside looking in at a Christmas tree. I used lots of foam tape to pop up the layers and added some scored lines on the card base to resemble the siding on a house.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Pure Poppy, Simply Chartreuse, Smokey Shadow, White)

Stamp: Waltzingmouse (2011 Holiday Ornaments)

Tools: Poppystamps (Grand Madison Window die), Cheery Lynn (O Tannenbaum Christmas Tree die), Papertrey Ink (Double Ended Banner die, Diamonds impression plate), scoring board

Accessories: Ranger (silver Stickles), Michaels (silver pearls)

For the next card, I wanted to show a scene looking out of a window. It uses die cuts from PTI's In the Meadow, embossed cardstock to resemble snow, and some gorgeous baker's twine.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Spring Moss, Pure Poppy, True Black, White)

Stamp: Waltzingmouse (Compliments of the Season)

Tools: Poppystamps (Grand Madison Window die), Papertrey Ink (In the Meadow dies, Woodgrain impression plate), McGill (tag punch), polka dot embossing folder

Accessories: baker's twine

My next card uses some of the patterned paper Renee provided, from October Afternoon's Holiday Style. I couldn't resist using the sentiment from Waltzingmouse's Compliments of the Season with some silver jingle bells.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (True Black, Pure Poppy, White)

Patterned paper: October Afternoon (Holiday Style)

Stamp: Waltzingmouse (Compliments of the Season)

Ink: Papertrey Ink (Chamomile Tea Dye), black

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Mat Stack 4 die, Sheet Music impression plate, Holiday Photo Finishers die), Spellbinders (oval die), corner rounder

Accessories: ivory seam binding, silver bells

I wanted to make a really simple card to highlight the horse-drawn sleigh from PTI's In the Meadow, so I layered the snow banks with foam tape on an Aqua Mist card base, added a sentiment banner, and adhered two die cut stars from Memory Box's Star of Wonder.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Aqua Mist, True Black, White)

Stamp: Waltzingmouse (2011 Holiday Ornaments)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (In the Meadow dies, Double Ended Banner die), Memory Box (Star of Wonder die)

Accessories: red pearls

For the last card, I decided to CASE a design from Paper Crafts' Holiday Cards & More Vol. 6. Right next to my card in this issue (on page 41), Veronica Zalis had a beautiful card made from patterned paper strips on a kraft base, and I just loved the mix and match look. I added some red seam binding and a wooden button to my version.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Kraft, White0

Patterned paper: October Afternoon (Holiday Style)

Stamp: Waltzingmouse (Say it with Style)

Ink: Papertrey Ink (Chamomile Tea Dye), red

Tools: EK Success (border punch)

Accessories: wood button, red seam binding, DMC floss, thread

Ready for more? Here are links to the rest of the 12 Kits of Christmas team:

Suzanne: The Card Yard

Cathy: EmptyNestCrafter

Joyce: Cards-by-the-Sea

Kim: CupcakesCardsandKim

Amy: Stamp-n-Paradise

Kara: KandRDesigns

Sharron: OnPapillionWings

Marybeth: Marybeth's Time for Paper

Jeanne: AKeptLife

Jessica: The Paper Parade

Renee: ItsAPatchworkLife

I can't wait to hop around and see what they've made!

Thanks for visiting! I'll be back later today with a new ColourQ palette!

For Cath (sans CHA) with Love Blog Hop, CAS-ual Fridays #37, & CR84FN47

2012-01-31T00:01:00.001-05:00

Hello, crafty peeps! Are you ready for a mega-fun blog hop in honor of Miss Moxie Fab herself, Cath Edvalson?

The idea for this hop came from talented crafters Lorena Canto and Virginia Lu, and there are dozens of amazing designers participating! Cath recently shared the news on the Moxie Fab World blog that she would be unable to attend CHA this year due to severe pain in her shoulder. To wish her a speedy recovery and thank her for keeping us up-to-date on all things trendy, we're sending her well wishes with some creations just for her!

I was also inspired by the sketch this week at CAS-ual Fridays and the sweet colors at CR84FN.

One of my go-to sets lately has been PTI's Faux Ribbon. I used it on this card to stamp rows of circles in Real Red, Regal Rose, and Pool Party. I added a Pure Poppy felt flower with a button center and a Tiny Tag stamped with the sentiment "feel better".

The eyelet border is CASEd from my friend Karen Baker's design for CAS-ual Fridays this week--I knew it would be perfect with these circles.

The Aqua Mist panel is debossed with PTI's argyle impression plate, which I thought was a fun contrast to the circular elements.

All supplies from Papertrey Ink unless noted

Cardstock: Aqua Mist, White

Stamps: Faux Ribbon, Tiny Tags

Ink: Real Red, Regal Rose, Pool Party (Stampin' Up!), Versamark (Tsukineko)

Tools: Argyle impression plate, Tiny Tags die, Beautiful Blooms dies, Eyelet border die

Accessories: Pure Poppy felt, Aqua Mist button, DMC floss, thread

To see the rest of the cards on the hop, all you need to do is stop by Lorena Canto's or Virginia Lu's blog for links to the participants.

We hope you're back in tip-top shape very soon, Cath! Best wishes to you for a speedy recovery!

Card Patterns sketch #150

2012-01-28T13:11:00.000-05:00

Ah, the weekend! I've been enjoying a lazy morning with some quality time in my crafty space. I hope your weekend is off to a great start, too!

If you need some inspiration to jump-start your next crafting session, look no further than this week's sketch at Card Patterns! It features a fun diamond shaped panel, but you'll have to check out the samples on the Card Patterns blog to see just some of the ways this element can be interpreted. I hope you'll share your creative ideas with us this week as well!

As an added bonus this week, one lucky participant will receive a $25 shopping spree from our generous sponsor, My Favorite Things. Who wouldn't love that?

Now I must admit, I struggled with this sketch. I was thrilled to have the opportunity to choose a stamp set from My Favorite Things to work with this week, but I had a hard time deciding how I would make it work with the sketch. The set I chose was the Die-Namics Polka Dot Greetings Die and Stamp Set Duo, which has the cutest sentiments and fonts and a fun label shape.

I finally decided to use the sentiment "I just can't thank you enough". I wanted to stamp the "thank you" part of the sentiment repeatedly on the background, so I actually cut the stamp apart, which is something I do occasionally if selective inking isn't an option. I stamped a piece of Early Espresso cardstock with the words in Versamark, then heat embossed them with clear powder.

The diamond shape is one of Spellbinders Labels Three Nesties, cut from Vintage Cream cardstock and stamped with the full sentiment.

I punched a border strip from Very Vanilla DSP and added a wide strip of Rose Red grosgrain ribbon tied at the side.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Rose Red, Early Espresso), Papertrey Ink (Vintage Cream)

Patterned paper: Stampin' Up! (Neutrals DSP)

Stamps: My Favorite Things (Die-Namics Polka Dot Greetings Die & Stamp Set Duo)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Early Espresso), Tsukineko (Versamark)

Tools: Spellbinders (Labels Three), Fiskars (border punch)

Accessories: Stampin' Up! (ribbon), Michaels (pearls), Stampendous (clear embossing powder), DMC floss

You will definitely be seeing more of this stamp set and its coordinating die soon! Thanks, MFT!

I hope you'll play along with the sketch this week. Thanks for stopping by today!

CASE Study #75 & Runway Inspired Challenge #4

2012-01-26T08:02:00.000-05:00

Good morning! Are you ready for a new CASE Study challenge from our January Muse, Jen Rzasa? Sadly, this is Jen's last week serving as Muse, but I doubt that it will be the last time that I CASE one of her fabulous designs!

For double the fun this week, I'm also entering my card into the Runway Inspired Challenge, which just so happens to be the brain child of Jen Rzasa herself! The inspiration this week is a rainbow striped dress.

By Jen Rzasa

I knew I wanted to replicate the colorful stripes at the bottom of Jen's card, so I stamped a rainbow using PTI's Faux Ribbon. I've been particularly fond of negative space lately, so I used PTI's Fillable Frames #11 die to cut a notch in the panel, then stamped a sentiment and butterfly from Happy Trails in the space.

Another element of Jen's card that I really like is the contrast between the colorful floss and the black sentiment, so I chose black for my sentiment and butterfly to really make them stand out.

All supplies from Papertrey Ink unless noted

Cardstock: White

Stamps: Faux Ribbon, Happy Trails

Ink: Black (Inkadinkadoo), Real Red, Tangerine Tango, Daffodil Delight, Garden Green, Pacific Point (Stampin' Up!)

Tools: Fillable Frames #11 die, Corner Chomper (We R Memory Keepers)

The rest of the CASE Study DT blew me away this week with their amazing creations, so be sure to hop over to the challenge blog to check them out.

Thanks for visiting today, friends! Have a good one!

CAS-ual Fridays #36

2012-01-25T21:50:00.000-05:00

Hello there! Just a quick post tonight before the challenge ends at CAS-ual Fridays. What a fun theme this week--use only black and white in celebration of Penguin Awareness Day!

Have you checked out the gallery for this week's challenge? Holy cow! There were over 230 entries when I last visited, and there are so many amazing creations. But hey, I finished this card so I might as well throw my hat in the ring!

I wanted to do some sort of silhouette in a negative space, so I pulled out PTI's Happy Trails and die cut the dragonfly from black cardstock. I punched a 2 inch circle in a wide strip of black cardstock to make a window, then stamped and heat embossed the sentiment with white embossing powder. I balanced it out with three dots of white Enamel Accents on the other side of the frame.

The space behind the silhouette was looking a little plain, so I added a piece of white cardstock debossed with the Cane Print impression plate.

All supplies from Papertrey Ink unless noted

Cardstock: True Black, White

Stamp: Happy Trails

Ink: Versamark (Tsukineko)

Tools: Cane Print impression plate, Happy Trails die, circle punch (Marvy Uchida)

Accessories: Enamel Accents (Ranger), white embossing powder (Filigree)

Thanks for joining me tonight! I'll be back soon with a new CASE Study challenge!

ColourQ #121

2012-01-24T11:16:00.000-05:00

Hello, friends! Glad you could join me today for a new challenge at the ColourQ! I can't wait to see your creations with this color combo:

I had a few too many things on my mind when making my card, so I'm not totally happy with the way it turned out, but sometimes that's just how it goes. The teacups seem to be floating in space and need something to ground them, but my brain was not working well enough to find a solution, so this is how it will stay for now!

I stamped the teacups in Real Red, Old Olive, and More Mustard on a kraft card base that is only 3 3/4 inches wide. I stamped the bottom using PTI's Background Basics: Tin Types, then stamped a sentiment from Tea for Two on a white strip of cardstock.

To finish the card, I added some white dots to the cups with a gel pen, scored a frame around the edge, and tied some olive floss around the card front. I suggest cutting a small notch in the edge of the card to keep your floss in place, as you can see in the photo below.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Kraft, White)

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Tea for Two and Additions, Background Basics: Tin Types)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Old Olive, Real Red, More Mustard), white gel pen

Tools: scoring board, hole punch, corner rounder

Accessories: DMC floss

Please visit the ColourQ blog to see the rest of the team's samples!

Thanks for visiting today!

Moxie Fab World Map to Your Heart Challenge

2012-01-23T11:50:00.002-05:00

Hi there, crafty people! I'm so happy I had a chance to squeeze in a challenge last night. This one is ending tonight over in the Moxie Fab World, so you'll have to run if you still want to enter!

The Map to Your Heart challenge asks us to incorporate a map on our project. I didn't have any real maps laying around, but I did have some journal cards from October Afternoon's Road Map collection that fit the bill.

I took one of those journal cards and used a frame die to cut out a space at the bottom. In the negative space, I stamped a globe and a sentiment from PTI's Masculine Motifs. The globe was stamped with Versamark and heat embossed with clear powder.

I die cut a tiny heart from another journal card with a plaid print and added some hand stitching around the edge of the map before adhering those elements with pop dots.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Aqua Mist)

Patterned paper: October Afternoon (Road Map collection)

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Masculine Motifs)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Real Red), Tsukineko (Versamark)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Fillable Frames #11 die, Heart Prints die, Linen & Canvas impression plate), corner rounder

Accessories: Stampendous (clear embossing powder), DMC floss

Pretty simple, but I like how it turned out.

Thanks for visiting today! I hope your week is off to a great start!

Card Patterns sketch #149

2012-01-21T12:00:00.003-05:00

Hello! I'm so glad it's the weekend, how about you? Even more reason to celebrate: it's time for a new sketch at Card Patterns!

I rarely make a circular card, but it's always a fun change of pace when I do. I had WPlus9's pocket dies on my desk when I went to work on this card, so I knew immediately that I wanted to use them.

I first cut a circle card base from Rustic White cardstock with my largest circle Nestie. I punched a scalloped border from Wisteria Wonder cardstock and layered a strip of Rustic White on top. The strip is stamped with stitches from PTI's Faux Ribbon and a sentiment from Tag-its #3.

I stamped the sun image from WPlus9's A Pocketful, then the stitched border on the kraft pocket. After attaching the pocket with foam adhesive, I wrapped yellow baker's twine around the card front and pocket.

The last step was cutting a Wisteria frame with my Spellbinders Nesties and attaching it to the card base.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Wisteria Wonder), Papertrey Ink (Rustic White, Kraft)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (A Pocketful), Papertrey Ink (Tag-its #3, Faux Ribbon)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Chocolate Chip, Daffodil Delight)

Tools: Spellbinders (circle, scalloped circle dies), WPlus9 Design Studio (pocket die), Fiskars (border punch), Papertrey Ink (Linen & Canvas impression plate)

Accessories: The Twinery (Lemondrop baker's twine)

I love the pop of bright yellow on this card! It reminds me of spring, even on a snowy day like today.

Be sure to hop over to the Card Patterns blog to see the rest of the Design Team samples and link up your creation!

Thanks for visiting today, friends! Hope your weekend is off to a great start!

CASE Study #74

2012-01-19T11:33:00.000-05:00

Hello CASE Study fans! Did you think I had forgotten you? I'm a little late in getting this posted, as I had to make a trip to the doctor's with my little guy this morning. He has a strange rash all over his body, and the doctor thinks it's a virus, possibly even a case of mumps or measles, even though he has been vaccinated! Not the greatest start to the day, but at least he is resting comfortably now.

Okay, on to this week's fantastic bit of inspiration from Jen Rzasa! Don't you just love the spring-like colors and mod shapes on her card?

By Jen Rzasa

I went straight for my patterned paper stash, which rarely sees the light of day! I picked up a 6 X 6 pad of My Mind's Eye Fine and Dandy last fall, and it seemed just right for this card. Jen's card had me thinking of quilt squares, so I stitched my blocks to a piece of white cardstock, then matted the panel with a square of Island Indigo.

The bird and cloud are cut from the same paper stack--I wound up cutting off the left side of the cloud because there were some flowers on it that were distracting. I stamped a teeny "hello" sentiment from PTI's Tiny Tags II in Chocolate Chip ink.

The white card base is debossed with the Linen & Canvas plate, and I rounded the bottom corners as a nod to the rounded corners on Jen's squares.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Island Indigo), Papertrey Ink (White)

Patterned paper: My Mind's Eye (Fine and Dandy Girl)

Stamp: Papertrey Ink (Tiny Tags II)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Chocolate Chip)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Linen & Canvas impression plate), corner rounder

Accessories: thread

I hope you'll find time to play along this week and visit the CASE Study blog to see what the rest of the DT cooked up!

Thanks for stopping by today!

ColourQ #120 & CAS-ual Fridays #35

2012-01-17T09:00:00.001-05:00

Hi there! So glad you stopped by today. It's time for a new color palette at the ColourQ blog, and this one was definitely a challenge for me! I turned to the current challenge at CAS-ual Fridays to use scallops, and things finally started coming together.

I first stamped a scalloped border using PTI's Boy Basics: Simple Circles in Island Indigo, Rich Razzleberry, and Wisteria Wonder. I added one more circle with a star center near the top before debossing the top half of the panel with the Linen & Canvas impression plate.

You've seen me use a star frame a few times recently, but I love it and thought it added a nice balance to the top of the card.

For the sentiment, I heat embossed the word "congrats" in white using PTI's Outline Alphabet on Bravo Burgundy cardstock, then popped the strip up with foam dots.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Bravo Burgundy, Island Indigo), Papertrey Ink (white)

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Boy Basics: Simple Circles, Outline Alphabet)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Island Indigo, Rich Razzleberry, Wisteria Wonder), Tsukineko (Versamark)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Linen & Canvas impression plate, star dies)

Accessories: Filigree (white embossing powder)

So, will you play along this week? I can't wait to see the gallery--it gets better every week!

Thanks again for your visit! Have a good one!

Card Patterns sketch #148--Sponsored by Clear Dollar Stamps

2012-01-14T12:01:00.000-05:00

Hello friends! I hope you're having a great weekend so far. I'm back to share a new Card Patterns sketch with you, and I really love this one!

We were provided with some wonderful digital images from Clear Dollar Stamps to use on our cards this week. I chose a pretty stained glass lamp and sentiment from the set called Let Your Light Shine.

I printed the lamp onto white cardstock, colored it with Copics, then cut it out with a circle Nestie. I added a yellow scalloped circle mat to add a "glow" around the lamp and some blue gems to reflect the natural light.

For the background panels, I debossed strips of Pool Party cardstock using both sides of PTI's Diamonds impression plate, then alternated the patterns on the card base and stitched them in place.

The sentiment is one of several included in this digital stamp set. I printed it onto white cardstock, trimmed it and notched one end, and attached it to the card base.

In place of the scalloped border on the left side of the sketch, I let the scalloped circle extend off the side.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Pool Party, Daffodil Delight), Papertrey Ink (Hawaiian Shores, white)

Digital Stamps: (Clear Dollar Stamps)

Ink: Copic markers

Tools: Spellbinders (circle, scalloped circle dies), Papertrey Ink (Diamonds impression plate)

Accessories: Me & My Big Ideas (gems), thread

You can find all of the DT samples and details about this week's challenge and sponsor on the Card Patterns blog!

Thanks for visiting today!

For a star teacher

2012-01-13T13:06:00.001-05:00

Hooray for Friday! I can't wait to get my weekend started, how about you?

I have a card to share with you today that I submitted to the latest Paper Crafts call, but it wasn't picked up. No worries, though, because I really love how this turned out and can't wait to give it to my daughter's teacher for all of her hard work!

I started with a Harvest Gold card base which I stamped repeatedly with the pencil from PTI's Happy Trails. I colored each of the erasers with a Copic marker, then stamped the sentiment above the border.

I used PTI's star dies to make a star frame from Berry Sorbet cardstock, added a bit of turquoise baker's twine, and popped it up with foam tape, trimming the right edge flush with the card base.

For inside of the frame, I die cut another star from Harvest Gold cardstock, stamped it with ledger lines from Scrapbook Series: Library Ledger in Versamark, and heat embossed the lines with clear powder. The tiny sentiment was stamped by selectively inking two different sentiments from Tiny Tags.

All supplies from Papertrey Ink unless noted

Cardstock: Harvest Gold, Berry Sorbet

Stamps: Happy Trails, Scrapbook Series: Library Ledger, Tiny Tags

Ink: Black (Inkadinkadoo), Versamark (Tsukineko), Copic marker

Tools: star dies

Accessories: clear embossing powder (Stampendous), Caribbean baker's twine (The Twinery)

I hope you're having a fantastic Friday, even if it is the 13th! Thanks for stopping by!

CASE Study #73

2012-01-12T00:01:00.001-05:00

Welcome back, friends! It's time for another fabulous CASE Study challenge with our Muse of the month, Jen Rzasa!

By Jen Rzasa

I love the pop of bright colors with clean white cardstock on Jen's card, so I focused on those as well as the butterfly shape and sentiment banner.

I started by die cutting a circle in a square piece of white cardstock. I used the same circle die and a scalloped circle die to cut a frame from chartreuse cardstock. This panel is popped up with foam adhesive over a piece of orange patterned paper.

I die cut a white butterfly and added polka dot embossing, then layered a smaller turquoise butterfly on top and placed them in the center of the die cut window. The sentiment, from PTI's Think Big Favorites #4, is stamped in turquoise on a double ended banner and embellished with blue gems.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Simply Chartreuse, White)

Patterned paper: My Mind's Eye (Fine & Dandy), Echo Park (Little Girl)

Stamp: Papertrey Ink (Think Big Favorites #4)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Island Indigo)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (butterfly dies, double ended banner die), Spellbinders (circle, scalloped circle dies), ProvoCraft (embossing folder), corner rounder

Accessories: rhinestones

I hope you'll find time to play along with the challenge this week!

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great Thursday!

CAS-ual Fridays #34

2012-01-11T22:00:00.000-05:00

Hello, friends! Thanks for stopping by. My crafty space was calling me this afternoon, as the last few days have been emotionally exhausting. I won't bore you with the details, but this year has not gotten off to the best start for me, and I'm feeling like I need another vacation!

Now that I think about it, maybe that's what led to the soft-hued, beach-inspired creation I made for this week's CAS-ual Fridays challenge. The challenge this week was to use chipboard, and this rosy piece with a sand dollar was calling to me from my stash.

I started by stamping the starfish from WPlus9's Guiding Light using tea dye ink on a Rustic Cream panel. I inked the edges, rounded the corners, and adhered it to a Dark Chocolate card base.

I cut two strips of Hawaiian Shores cardstock, trimming one with my pinking shears, and attached them 1/3 of the way up from the bottom. These help to ground the sentiment, from PTI's Ribbon Tails, and the chipboard piece.

I inked the edges of the chipboard and wrapped a bit of baker's twine around the top before attaching it with foam adhesive.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Rustic Cream, Hawaiian Shores, Dark Chocolate)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Guiding Light), Papertrey Ink (Ribbon Tails)

Ink: Papertrey Ink (Tea Dye duo), Stampin' Up! (Chocolate Chip)

Tools: Fiskars (pinking shears), corner rounder

Accessories: Me & My Big Ideas (chipboard), The Twinery (Caribbean baker's twine)

I actually started this card yesterday, with the sketch already in my head, and had to walk away from it because it just wasn't working. I decided to try to salvage it this afternoon, and I'm glad I did. I've found that the only way for me to break out of a creative slump is to just keep creating, even if things don't turn out quite as I'd hoped.

Thanks again for visiting me today! Don't forget to stop by tomorrow for a new CASE Study challenge!

ColourQ #119

2012-01-10T08:44:00.000-05:00

Hello! Is your week off to a good start? I have to admit, I'm having a hard time getting back in the swing of things after the Christmas break. Every couple of months or so I just get so overwhelmed by everything that needs to be done, with no time to do any of it.

Luckily for me, this week's new color combo at the ColourQ challenge gave me a chance to forget about all of my responsibilities for a while and just play with paper. I'm loving the color palette this week!

And, we have an extra special treat for you this week as we are introducing a new member of the Royal Court Design Team, the immensely talented and super sweet Silke Ledlow! I've had the pleasure of designing with Silke before, and I just know she's going to knock our socks off every week. Be sure to stop by her blog, My Life, and give her a warm welcome!

For my card this week, I had to sub Basic Gray for Going Gray, and the baker's twine is closer to Tangerine than Pumpkin, but it works.

I managed to CASE my own ColourQ card from 2 weeks ago without even realizing it! I stamped a sentiment from PTI's Faux Ribbon onto the white panel, then debossed it with the Polka Dot impression plate and rounded the top corners.

I added some striped Basic Gray paper at the bottom and layered an eyelet border along the top edge. For just a pop of orange, I tied Mandarin baker's twine across the border. Finally, I added a trio of pink hearts cut with PTI's heart dies and mounted the whole panel onto a Raspberry Fizz card base.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Raspberry Fizz, white), Stampin' Up! (Basic Gray, Pretty in Pink)

Patterned paper: Stampin' Up! (Neutrals paper pack)

Stamp: Papertrey Ink (Faux Ribbon)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Melon Mambo)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (heart dies, eyelet border die, Polka Dot impression plate), corner rounder

Accessories: The Twinery (Mandarin baker's twine)

I can't wait to see all of the creations with these colors! I hope you'll play along, too.

Thanks for your visit today, friends! Have a great Tuesday!

Card Patterns sketch #147--Sponsored by DRS Designs

2012-01-07T11:00:00.001-05:00

Hello, friends! Thanks so much for all of our wonderful comments and congratulations over the last few days. You really make a girl feel special. *grin*

I'm here to share my debut creation as a Design Team member for Card Patterns, and I tried to go outside my comfort zone with this one. Our sponsor this week is DRS Designs, and they generously provided rubber stamps for the DT to use on their cards.

Here is this week's sketch:

I chose to use a beautiful little stamp called Swirling Snowflakes. Those tiny flakes are wonderfully detailed. I decided to create a background by spraying white cardstock with turquoise glimmer mist. I then stamped and heat embossed the snowflakes repeatedly across the panel. It's really pretty and shimmery in person.

The panel was stitched to a white cardstock mat and adhered to a Royal Velvet card base. For the sentiment, I used Doodlebug Alphabet stamps to heat emboss "Brrr!" on a strip of purple cardstock, then tied some silver ribbon around the end.

Finally, I punched four snowflakes from vellum, added silver pearls to the centers, and adhered them to the card.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Royal Velvet, white), vellum

Stamps: DRS Designs (Swirling Snowflakes), Hampton Art (Doodlebug Alphabet)

Ink: Versamark, Tattered Angels (Peacock)

Tools: Martha Stewart Crafts (snowflake punch)

Accessories: Filigree (embossing powder), Michaels (silver pearls), silver ribbon, thread

I forgot to take a picture of it, but the inside of the card reads "Let's snuggle!" If it ever snows here, I might give it to my hubby.

I'd love to see your take on the sketch this week! Be sure to drop by the Card Patterns blog to be inspired by the rest of the Design Team and get all the details on this week's challenge.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Did you see?

2012-01-06T11:54:00.000-05:00

I'm joining the Design Team at Card Patterns ! Check out the post over on the Card Patterns challenge blog to see the rest of my new teamies, and check back tomorrow for the new sketch.

It's going to be a fun start to the new year!

I'm designing for CASE Study!!

2012-01-05T00:01:00.001-05:00

Well, hello there! I'm just bursting at the seams to share some wonderful news with you today, and if you hadn't guessed it already by the title of my post, I've been invited to join the amazingly talented Design Team at the CASE Study challenge blog!

What an honor--I'm still pinching myself! I can't wait to play along with some of my favorite designers every week, not to mention draw inspiration from the fabulous Muse in the spotlight each month. And what a treat to start off the New Year with a new Muse, the incredible Jen Rzasa of Our Change of Art. Jen's cards are always clean, fresh, and utterly striking, and this week's inspiration is a perfect example.

By Jen Rzasa

I was instantly drawn to the stark black and white house, the white on white clouds, and the pop of pastel color, so these are the elements I focused on for my card.

I started by stamping a row of houses along the bottom of a white cardstock panel, adding some simple shadows with a Copic marker. (They're also outlined with a pale aqua marker to help them pop, but that doesn't show up in these photos.) Next I stamped a sentiment from PTI's Happy Trails.

I die cut and stamped the bird from Happy Trails, as well as several clouds, then arranged them around the sentiment and adhered them with foam tape. The panel is matted with Pool Party cardstock and popped up with foam adhesive on a black card base.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (True Black, white), Stampin' Up! (Pool Party)

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Boards & Beams, Happy Trails)

Ink: Inkadinkadoo (Black), Stampin' Up! (Melon Mambo), Copic markers

Tools: Papertrey Ink (bird, cloud dies)

This is going to be such a fun adventure for me each week! I hope you'll join me at the CASE Study blog, and be sure to visit the rest of the Design Team members to see how they've been inspired.

Iwona Palamountain

Clare Buswell

Debby Hughes

Teresa Kline

Julie Lacey

Jean Martin

Maureen Plut

Teneale Williams

and January Muse Jen Rzasa

Thanks so much for stopping by to share my great news! Have a good one!

ColourQ #118

2012-01-03T09:00:00.001-05:00

Hey, strangers! As you read this I will be making my way to Ohio to visit friends, then flying home to Boston on Wednesday. Our visit with my family has been much too short, but we've enjoyed every minute. I hope you're all having a great start to the New Year!

Are you ready for a new ColourQ challenge? Check out the cute purse that inspired this week's color palette:

I welcomed the chance to make a card with some fresh, spring-like colors. This was the first time I'd inked up WPlus9's A Pocketful stamp set, and it is so darn cute! I cut the pocket from Pool Party cardstock and added texture with PTI's Linen & Canvas impression plate.

The bunch of flowers was stamped twice to fill the entire pocket. I added some scattered red blooms and filled the flower centers with a clear Spica glitter pen.

To add a "stitched" border, I simply inked up the top edge of the pocket stamp with Pool Party ink and added it along the top of the scalloped border.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Pool Party, Cherry Cobbler), Papertrey Ink (white)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (A Pocketful)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Pool Party, Pear Pizzazz), Clearsnap (Chianti, Papaya Cream)

Tools: WPlus9 Design Studio (pocket die), Papertrey Ink (Linen & Canvas impression plate), Fiskars (border punch), corner rounder

Accessories: Spica glitter pen

I hope you'll play along with the ColourQ palette this week! Thanks so much for stopping by!

ColourQ #117

2011-12-27T11:05:00.000-05:00

Hello! It's ColourQ Tuesday! Hooray!

Arielle is taking it easy on us this week, as many of us are likely still in Christmas hangover mode. *heehee* This week's color palette is black, white, and your choice of any one color. Fun!

I'm still recovering from hosting my husband's family for Christmas, and now I'm trying to get everything ready for our trip to Indiana to see my family. So things will continue to be a little quiet around here for the next week or so.

I kept my design fairly simple, using red as my third color to make a Valentine's Day card. The white cardstock is stamped with music score at the bottom and debossed with the sheet music impression plate at the top. I die cut 2 heart-shaped windows at the top and placed red cardstock behind them.

The black border was cut with PTI's Photo Finishers die, then stamped and heat embossed with a sentiment from WPlus9's Spring Post. The largest heart was die cut and wrapped with Maraschino baker's twine.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (True Black, Pure Poppy, white)

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Background Basics: Sheet Music), WPlus9 Design Studio (Spring Post)

Ink: Inkadinkadoo (Black), Versamark

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Heart Prints, Photo Finishers dies, Sheet Music impression plate), corner rounder

Accessories: Filigree (embossing powder), The Twinery (Maraschino twine)

I hope you'll find time to play along this week! I'm looking forward to seeing the rainbow of colors in the gallery. And one of my New Year's resolutions is to do a better job at making comments on the blogs I visit, so I'll be sure to stop by and leave you some love when you post your creation!

Thanks for your visit, friends! Have a great day!

Sending Holiday Cheer!

2011-12-24T10:03:00.000-05:00

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Dark Chocolate, Pure Poppy), Stampin' Up! (Garden Green)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Poinsettia Patterns)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Chocolate Chip)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Photo Finishers die, Sheet Music impression plate), Martha Stewart (holly punch)

Accessories: Ranger (Candy Cane Stickles)

Hi friends!

I just wanted to pop in before the day gets away from me and share the Christmas card that I sent to family and friends. Most of them have come to expect a photo of our kids, but I wanted to add a handmade touch to the traditional photo card this year.

I kept the design fairly simple so it would be easy to mass produce. I debossed a Dark Chocolate card base with the music score impression plate to give it a subtle texture.

I ordered PTI's Photo Finishers dies a long time ago anticipating being able to use them with the coordinating stamps, but since those didn't arrive I used a sentiment from WPlus9's Poinsettia Patterns. Don't my kiddos look full of holiday cheer?

I considered leaving it at that, but then decided to add a simple embellishment in the form of punched holly leaves with red Stickles for berries. Much better.

To those of you celebrating Christmas this weekend, I want to wish you a wonderful holiday filled with the joy of being with family and friends. I hope Santa is good to you this year!

Much love to you, friends, and Merry Christmas!

Papertrey Ink update

2011-12-22T23:43:00.000-05:00

Hi friends!

As you probably remember, I recently vented my frustration over the fact that I had not received the September release prize package that I won from Papertrey Ink, and that I had not heard from Customer Service in several weeks.

I am happy to report that I received an email from Julie at PTI today, in which she apologized and explained that the package had been shipped weeks ago. I still don't have any tracking information in order to find out where it went, but it obviously didn't make it to me.

Julie generously offered to send another package, and offered to let me replace the Christmas sets in my prize package with other PTI stamp sets. This seems more than fair, and I greatly appreciate Julie's willingness to make it right.

It was very difficult for me during the last PTI release, feeling disconnected from the festivities and disgruntled over the lack of service I had received when I had a complaint. I am hopeful that this is a step in the right direction, and that in the future I will be able to put as much faith in PTI's customer service as I already do in their products.

I will keep you all posted here on the blog if there are further developments.

I'll be back with a card tomorrow! Thanks for stopping by!

One more Fair Isle Holiday card--three variations

2011-12-21T21:03:00.000-05:00

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Kraft, white)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Fair Isle Greetings, Winter Wishes)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Bravo Burgundy, Pear Pizzazz), Clearsnap (Frost White), Inkssentials (white pen)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Mat Stack 3, double ended banner die, Linen & Canvas impression plate)

Accessories: DMC floss

It's quiet out here in blog-land, isn't it? I'm guessing many of you are like me, with to-do lists growing by the day. Whether you're celebrating Hanukkah, preparing for Christmas, or putting the finishing touches on your list of New Year's resolutions, I hope you're finding some time to enjoy it!

I finally got my holiday cards in the mail yesterday, so I thought I'd show you the final set I made with WPlus9's Fair Isle Backgrounds and Winter Wishes. I just had to use those cute mittens!

As you can see, I stamped the Fair Isle pattern on the bottom half of each card front, then added a die cut Mat Stack 3 at the top. Each one is stamped with the mittens and debossed with the Linen & Canvas impression plate. I pierced holes at the top of each mitten, threaded some floss through, and tied a bow. The bow is adhered with a tiny drop of Glossy Accents to keep it in place.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Enchanted Evening, white), Stampin' Up! (Baja Breeze)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Fair Isle Greetings, Winter Wishes)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Not Quite Navy, Baja Breeze), Inkssentials (white pen)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Mat Stack 3, double ended banner die, Linen & Canvas impression plate)

Accessories: DMC floss

For the sentiment, I die cut a double-ended banner and stamped my favorite greeting from Winter Wishes.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Scarlet Jewel, Spring Moss, white)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Fair Isle Greetings, Winter Wishes)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Bravo Burgundy), Clearsnap (Lettuce), Inkssentials (white pen)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Mat Stack 3, double ended banner die, Linen & Canvas impression plate)

Accessories: DMC floss

Thanks for taking some time to stop by! I'll be grocery shopping and cleaning tomorrow, then baking cookies on Friday. It will be our first year making grain-free treats for Christmas, so hopefully we'll find some recipes that are good substitutes for past favorites.

Enjoy the rest of your week!

Fair Isle Greetings, take 2

2011-12-16T10:24:00.000-05:00

If I remember correctly, I think I promised you more cards with WPlus9's Fair Isle Backgrounds! I have two more to share today, both with the same design but different colors.

This is a quick and easy card for mass producing, plus it's relatively flat for mailing. You could easily leave off the gems and eliminate the foam adhesive to make them totally flat.

The first version uses Not Quite Navy and Baja Breeze, a combo I used previously with this set and really liked. I used a snowflake punch to create a simple embellishment that highlights the sentiment, from WPlus9's Winter Wishes.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Enchanted Evening, white)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Fair Isle Backgrounds, Winter Wishes)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Not Quite Navy, Baja Breeze)

Tools: Martha Stewart (snowflake punch)

Accessories: Michaels (rhinestone)

Version two uses burgundy, spring green, and evergreen and some punched holly leaves embellished with pearl berries. I scored a "vein" along the length of each holly leaf to make it a little more realistic.

I made 5 of each design in no time at all. These stamps are incredibly easy to line up, especially if you use a block that has gridlines. And they stamp beautifully. :)

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Scarlet Jewel, white)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Fair Isle Backgrounds, Winter Wishes)

Ink: Clearsnap (Evergreen, Lettuce), Stampin' Up! (Bravo Burgundy)

Tools: Martha Stewart (holly punch)

Accessories: Queen & Co. (pearls)

I'd love to make a version of this card with Real Red and Garden Green, but my red ink is looking pretty washed out and needs replenished. Maybe Santa will put some in my stocking. *grin*

That's all for today! I still don't have my photo cards finished that will be sent out to family and friends, but I'm planning to have a marathon crafting session tonight to get them done. I'll share those soon!

I also have one more design to share that I made with Fair Isle Backgrounds and Winter Wishes, so come back soon for that.

Hope you're having a great day! Thanks for your visit!

A Message about Papertrey Ink

2011-12-14T21:14:00.000-05:00

Those of you who come around often know that I generally keep things pretty upbeat on my blog. I usually go by the old adage, "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."

I'm sorry to say that this post is different.

I know that most of you come here to see a card, be inspired, or just say hello. You don't expect to hear me complain. If that's you, I won't be the least bit offended if you decide not to keep reading. I promise to be back soon with something more cheerful!

As you may know, on September 15 I was thrilled to be named the winner of Papertrey Ink's monthly release night giveaway. Tomorrow will mark 13 weeks since that announcement. That's three months. I was told that prizes usually arrive in 4-6 weeks. That struck me as ridiculous to begin with, considering how quickly I have received prizes from other companies, but I didn't feel I had any right to complain. I was getting free stamps after all, right?!

But 3 months have passed, and I still have not received my prize. A prize that consists of Christmas stamp sets, which I will obviously not be able to use for making holiday cards this year. I even purchased two of the coordinating die sets that were not included in the prize package, anticipating being able to use them before Christmas.

Unfortunately, that's only half the story. I emailed PTI Customer Service after 7 weeks had passed, to politely inquire about whether the package had shipped. Jennifer responded, saying that she would pass the message on to Julie.

Two weeks later, I got an email from Julie saying only "Your prize package was shipped out a while ago. Please let me know if you did not receive it." I also received an email from Jennifer saying that the status had been changed to "shipped".

So of course I was a little concerned. I emailed Customer Service again, asking if they had a tracking number or ship date, thinking I could at least talk to someone at the post office about whether it had been mis-delivered.

Six days later, Julie emailed me to say, "I don't have the tracking number at this moment as I am working from home. I will get that information for you. However, if you don't have it by now, I think there is a problem. I will definitely look into it and get it taken care of. I am very sorry for the delay."

That was two and a half weeks ago, and it was the last update I received.

Mistakes happen. Sometimes things get overlooked, lost in the mail, whatever. But what I will not accept from a company is being ignored and treated like I'm not important to them. I did not pay for these stamps, but they were promised to me nonetheless, and it is incredibly misleading to customers to promote a giveaway that never happens. But more than that, I never expected to be given the run-around by a company I respected and admired.

You all know how much I love PTI products. I promote them regularly on my blog, enthusiastically recommend them to other crafters, and even attended the PTI Stamp-a-faire event last summer. I spend a lot of money on PTI products. But even that shouldn't matter. Every single one of their customers, no matter how much they buy, or whether they are receiving products as a prize, should be treated with the utmost respect. The customer is always right. Unfortunately, I have been given the impression that my issue is of no great concern to them, and that makes me both sad and angry.

I sent one last email to Julie last Thursday, December 8. In it, I explained how frustrated and disappointed I am in the lack of communication and the way this whole thing has been handled. I have yet to hear back from her.

Yes, I have read Nichole's posts on the PTI Forum and her blog enumerating the excuses for why their Customer Service has not been meeting expectations. Most businesses would never get away with that kind of hand-wringing. PTI's customers, and their satisfaction, should be the company's number one priority. If they don't have time to respond to customer complaints or ship packages in a timely fashion, they should hire people that can. I no longer have any sympathy for pleas to respect their space and time while they figure out how to best handle complaints. All I asked for was a simple email; an acknowledgment that I had been heard, understood, and respected.

It was never my intention to publicly complain, either here or in the PTI Forum, about this issue. But since being completely dismissed by Customer Service, I feel I have no other recourse if I want to be heard. I also feel like this is an issue that many of you would want to know about. I've gotten lots of comments and emails asking me why I haven't been using my new stamps, or wondering whether they've arrived. Many of you put your faith and trust in PTI just like I did, so I think you should be aware of what's going on.

You will still see me using PTI products on my cards, because I love them and because I've invested too much money in them not to use them. But I doubt that I will be ordering anything new from them in the near future.

I have closed comments on this post, as I don't want this to become a forum for complaints, either about PTI or about me. I just wanted to express my opinion, and I won't say any more about it here unless there are further developments.

Thank you so much for letting me get this off my chest, if you've made it this far! I appreciate having this space to be able to vent, though I promise not to make it a habit. :)

Thanks again for listening! I hope you'll come back soon for something crafty!

ColourQ #115

2011-12-13T09:04:00.000-05:00

Good morning! It's ColourQ day! I'm still finishing up my Christmas cards, and you'll be seeing more of them this week, but thank goodness this fresh color combo came along to inspire another design. Isn't it a fun twist on the traditional holiday colors?

I had to substitute Garden Green and Lucky Limeade for the greens, but they worked just fine!

I had this design buzzing around in my head since I started working with WPlus9's Fair Isle Backgrounds. I stamped the pattern on a square of white cardstock, then placed it behind a die cut window. I used PTI's Linen & Canvas impression plate to add canvas texture to the stamped piece and linen texture to the red panel.

My red ink is looking a little washed out in these photos, but I really did use both red and Regal Rose to stamp the pattern!

The sentiment, from WPlus9's Winter Wishes, is stamped onto a double-ended banner and embellished with punched holly leaves and rhinestone berries.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Pure Poppy, white)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Fair Isle Backgrounds, Winter Wishes)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Regal Rose, Garden Green, Lucky Limeade), Clearsnap (Cranberry)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Mat Stack 4, Double Ended Banner dies, Linen & Canvas impression plate), Martha Stewart (holly punch)

Accessories: Michaels (rhinestones)

I think I might make another version of this card using Garden Green cardstock in place of the red. What do you think?

Be sure to stop by the ColourQ blog today to check out the rest of the DT samples and get the details on how to play along. I hope you'll join us this week!

Thanks for visiting today!

Fair Isle Greetings

2011-12-11T22:24:00.000-05:00

Hey there! Are you ready to see *lots* of cards using WPlus9's Fair Isle Backgrounds? I have the first two today, but I've been playing with this set all weekend, along with Winter Wishes, to make my holiday cards.

The first thing I wanted to do with this set was to CASE a gorgeous card by Amy Kolling. (Thanks Amy!) I stamped the Fair Isle pattern onto kraft cardstock using Bravo Burgundy, Pear Pizzazz, and white ink. I tied a white twill ribbon around the panel and added a punched tag, which I stamped with one of the medallions and a sentiment from Winter Wishes.

I don't often ink edges on my cards, but I added some soft white sponging around the edges of the kraft panel and tag for a snowy look.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Scarlet Jewel, Kraft)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Fair Isle Backgrounds, Winter Wishes)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Bravo Burgundy, Pear Pizzazz), Clearsnap (Frost White)

Tools: McGill (tag punch)

Accessories: white twill ribbon, jute twine

The second card is a clone of the first, only I swapped out the colors for wintry blues and used Enchanted Evening grosgrain ribbon.

These cards will be perfect for some friends of ours who don't celebrate Christmas, but enjoy getting an end-of-the-year card with updated photos of our kids.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Enchanted Evening, White)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Fair Isle Backgrounds, Winter Wishes)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Not Quite Navy, Baja Breeze)

Tools: McGill (tag punch)

Accessories: Papertrey Ink (ribbon), DMC floss

This set is so much fun to stamp with! I'll be back tomorrow with another set of cards using Fair Isle Backgrounds in these two color schemes. I hope you'll stop by!

Have a great start to your week, friends!

A Note of Thanks

2011-12-10T21:05:00.000-05:00

Hello! I'm thrilled to say that I received a happy email from Paper Crafts magazine yesterday, as one of my cards was accepted for publication in Card Creations. Thank you, PC!

I thought I'd share one of the cards that wasn't picked up, which I happen to love nonetheless. *smile*

This purple number features stamps from WPlus9's Woodgrain Silhouettes Additions. After stamping the leaves on a Rustic Cream panel, I added a Kraft die cut frame that is debossed with woodgrain. I die cut a piece of Rustic Cream cardstock to go in the "window" and stamped it with a sentiment from PTI's Gracious Vases.

The little birdie and leaves were stamped and cut out by hand, then perched on the corner of the frame.

The design seemed a little unbalanced, so I added some brown "pearls" to create a visual triangle with the bird. I just used some die cut circles and gave them a coat of Glossy Accents for shine.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Plum Pudding, Rustic Cream, Kraft, Dark Chocolate)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Woodgrain Silhouettes Additions), Papertrey Ink (Gracious Vases)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Perfect Plum, Chocolate Chip)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Mat Stack 4, Fillable Frames #7 dies, Woodgrain impression plate)

Accessories: Ranger (Glossy Accents)

I've been working feverishly on my Christmas cards today, so I'll have some of those to share with you in the coming days.

Thanks for your visit! Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Warm Wishes--a simple holiday card

2011-12-09T10:05:00.000-05:00

Hi friends! It's probably time I started on my Christmas cards, don't you think? *giggle* I've had a serious lack of crafting motivation since being sick, but I'm hoping to get a stack of simple holiday cards done this weekend. I thought I'd pop in and share one today that I made last during a crafty get-together last weekend with Jessica Davis and Suzanne Dahlberg.

I finally inked up WPlus9's set, Winter Wishes, which I adore. I stamped the large medallion onto a white cardstock base, then centered one of the sentiments from the set below it. I added a pretty scalloped edge with PTI's Edgers #4 die (thanks, Jessica!), then adhered a panel of red cardstock behind it.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Pure Poppy, white)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Winter Wishes)

Ink: Clearsnap (Fireberry, Evergreen)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Edgers #4 die), corner rounder

Accessories: Michaels (rhinestones)

This would be a great design to mass produce, and it's relatively flat for mailing.

Thanks for visiting today! I'll have more holiday goodies to share with you soon!

ColourQ #114-Anything but a Card

2011-12-06T09:04:00.000-05:00

It's ColourQ Tuesday! So glad you stopped by for this week's challenge. This week we have a fun and festive color palette, as always, but we are also challenging you to make something other than a card. Fun, right?

This is the time of year when I'm always scouring the web looking for creative ideas for holiday gift-giving, so with that on my brain I decided to makeover a travel mug that's been sitting around on our counter. Someone gave my hubby one of those decorate-it-yourself mugs from Starbucks, and I can't see him breaking out the craft supplies anytime soon, so I took it upon myself to give this sad little travel mug a new life.

My colors aren't the exact ones from the palette, but I used what I had in my stash that was closest. I started with some pretty patterned paper by SEI from the Wintersong collection. I've had this in my stash forever! I simply removed the template that came with the mug and traced it onto the back of my patterned paper, cut it out, and slid it into place. What's great is that I can change the paper out with the seasons!

To decorate the outside, I chose to add a felt wrap, just like all of those cute coffee cozies I see on Etsy. Using one of those corrugated Starbucks wraps as a template, I cut a piece of PTI's Fine Linen felt, pinked the bottom edge, and sewed it together at the back.

To decorate the wrap, I cut snowflakes from Ocean Tides felt using Spellbinders Create-a-Flake dies and stitched them with basic embroidery stitches to a piece of cream felt. A few button centers add the finishing touch.

Patterned paper: SEI (Wintersong)

Felt: Papertrey Ink

Tools: Spellbinders (Create-a-Flake One & Two), pinking shears

Accessories: Papertrey Ink (buttons), thread

I hope you'll join us this week at the ColourQ to make a non-card project using these colors! And be sure to stop by and see what the rest of the DT gals have cooked up.

Thanks for your visit today!

CR84FN43

2011-12-01T08:46:00.000-05:00

Hello again! Thanks for all of your well wishes yesterday. The kiddos are much better today, and I'm starting to get my voice back. I think an afternoon nap today should have us all feeling as good as new!

Today's card is one I made for my hubby's birthday, which was yesterday. His favorite color is green, and he likes any earthy tones, so this week's CR84FN color palette was a perfect fit.

My hubs is not a big fan of white space. He's stopped saying so directly, but every time I show him a clean and simple card I can hear the voice in his head saying "Why don't you put something there, in that empty space?" So I knew that his card shouldn't be too CAS, but who can resist a bit of white space? Certainly not me!

I think this card is my CAS version of a collage. I always admire crafters, especially scrapbookers, who can execute a perfectly balanced but seemingly random arrangement of elements. I long to be that scrapbooker, but my attempts always wind up looking, well, random. I think I found a happy medium on this card. Not too busy, but just enough elements to keep it interesting, with an empty space where the eye can rest.

Stamps are from PTI's Postmarks and Star Prints. I used the Linen & Canvas impression plate to add a worn look to the kraft panel, and PTI's star dies to make the star frame.

All supplies from Papertrey Ink unless noted

Cardstock: Pinefeather, Kraft, Rustic Cream

Stamps: Postmarks, Star Prints

Ink: Vintage Cream, Chocolate Chip (Stampin' Up!), Evergreen (Clearsnap)

Tools: star dies, postage die, Linen & Canvas impression plate

So what did hubby think of his card? He said he really liked it, especially the green, but he thought the sentiment should read "First Class MALE". *snort*

I hope you have a great day, friends! Thanks for your visit!

CAS-ual Fridays #29 & Get Inspired by Fashion Challenge in the Moxie Fab World

2011-11-30T09:20:00.000-05:00

Hi there! My friend, Karen Baker, has a wonderful sketch over at the CAS-ual Fridays challenge blog this week, and this is one of the many challenges I've been missing lately. I paired it up with this fashion inspiration in the Moxie Fab World, part of a week of challenges to celebrate their new special issue, Card Creations: Get Inspired.

I wanted to capture the look of the houndstooth fabric in the photo, so I stamped PTI's Background Basics: Houndstooth onto Vintage Cream cardstock, cut around it with pinking shears, and debossed it with the Linen & Canvas impression plate. I added a stitched border to reinforce the fabric theme.

The jeweled brooch on the jacket inspired me to make a rolled flower with cream colored seam binding and a brad that had been gathering dust in my stash. The leaves were cut with a Sizzix die from SU's Pear Pizzazz cardstock.

I stamped an elegant sentiment from WPlus9's Very Vintage Greetings on the cream card base, then debossed it with the other side of the L&C impression plate. I popped the houndstooth panel up on foam dots and stitched a simple frame around it.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Vintage Cream), Stampin' Up! (Pear Pizzazz)

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Background Basics: Houndstooth), WPlus9 Design Studio (Very Vintage Greetings)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Pear Pizzazz)

Tools: Sizzix (leaf die), Papertrey Ink (Linen & Canvas impression plate), Fiskars (pinking shears)

Accessories: seam binding, brad, thread

I'm noticing that my photos once again look darker on Blogger than they did when I edited them, so just imagine them a little brighter. *smile*

I'm home today with a sore throat, laryngitis, and two kids with pink eye, so it sounds like the perfect excuse to do some stamping. Hope you find some time for yourself today, too!

Thanks for stopping by!

ColourQ #113 & CASE Study #67 revisited

2011-11-29T08:26:00.000-05:00

Hi friends! It's time for a new ColourQ challenge, and this week's color combo is full of frosty blues. The palette comes from this beautiful Jim Shore angel, which is likely to inspire some wintry creations.

I used the layout of Kryssi Ng's card at CASE Study as a jumping-off point again. This was actually the first of the two cards I made for this challenge.

I used WPlus9's Woodgrain Silhouettes Additions, stamping the large branch in Marina Mist. I stamped the small branches in pale blue onto a scrap piece of cardstock, cut them out and attached them to the card base with foam adhesive. Since I didn't have any Sahara Sand ink, I stamped the bird in Versamark onto Sahara Sand cardstock, heat embossed with clear powder, and cut it out to nestle in the branches.

The sentiment is from Verve's New Mercies, stamped with PTI's Enchanted Evening ink. I wanted to accent it with a few pearls but didn't have any in the right color, so I improvised by using small die cut circles dotted with Glossy Accents. Hole punches would also work, but I didn't have the right sizes. The larger circle comes from PTI's Eyelet border die, and the smaller ones were cut using the Harvest Berries die. They make a nice, low-profile accent, don't you think?

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Night of Navy, Sahara Sand), Papertrey Ink (white)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Woodgrain Silhouettes Additions), Verve (New Mercies)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Marina Mist), Clearsnap (Cape Cod), Papertrey Ink (Enchanted Evening), Versamark

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Eyelet border die, Harvest Berries die), corner rounder, piercing tool

Accessories: Ranger (Glossy Accents), Stampendous (clear embossing powder)

This card went in the mail yesterday to my brother and his girlfriend, whose dog lost her battle with a thyroid tumor over the weekend. She was a sweet pup who underwent surgery a few years ago to remove a tumor, but sadly it came back and her health was starting to deteriorate. It was a heart-wrenching decision for them to have her put to sleep, but I know they will have lots of wonderful memories of her as time goes on. It's amazing how much space our furry friends take up in our hearts, isn't it?

Thanks for spending a bit of your day here with me. I appreciate your visits and comments so much!

I hope you'll play along with us at the ColourQ this week! Don't forget to leave some love for the rest of the Royal Court DT while you're at it.

Have a great day!

Color Throwdown #169 & CASE Study #67

2011-11-27T20:39:00.000-05:00

Hi there! I needed to make a card for a wonderful male friend of ours who is having a birthday this week, and the palette at the Color Throwdown seemed just right. My design inspiration came from the perfectly clean and simple card by Kryssi Ng over at CASE Study this week.

This is the first time I've inked up PTI's Dot Spot, which I had my eye on for ages before I finally ordered it. There's nothing Earth-shattering about this design, but I'm happy with the way it came out.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Dark Chocolate, Pure Poppy, white)

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Dot Spot, Birthday Basics)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Baja Breeze, Island Indigo, Chocolate Chip), Clearsnap (Cranberry)

I hope you enjoyed your weekend! Thanks for stopping by tonight!

A Week of Thanks and Giving Winners

2011-11-25T11:38:00.000-05:00

Hi friends! It's time to announce the winners from my week of giveaways, but first I wanted to share a card I made for all of you, my wonderful readers. I used PTI's Gracious Vases stamped in Early Espresso and highlighted with Copic markers. A strip of Early Espresso cardstock was debossed with the Woodgrain impression plate to make a shelf, which is popped up with foam adhesive. Glossy Accents on the red vase add a bit of shine.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Early Espresso, Cherry Cobbler), Papertrey Ink (white)

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Gracious Vases)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Early Espresso), Copic markers

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Woodgrain impression plate), corner rounder

Accessories: Ranger (Glossy Accents)

I made a set of these simple cards so that I could include one with each of the prizes. Just another way to say "thank you" and let you know how much I appreciate the visits and comments here on my blog!

Now for the winners, chosen by Random.org:

Day 1--Holiday Cards & More magazine
Alanna

Day 2--PTI Botanical Silhouettes Anniversary stamp set
LeAnne

Day 3--PTI Forest Friends and Forest Friends Sentiments stamp sets
Mandy LaCroix

Day 4--Smash Journal and decorative tape
Jessica Wekenman

Day 5--WPlus9 Winter Wishes stamp set
WinterBerry Glen

Day 6--365 Cards magazine
{kelly jo}

Day 7--My Mind's Eye paper, Kraft Outlet packet, and embellishments
Jinny Newlin

Winners, please email me at christinamaclaren at yahoo dot com to claim your prize and give me your shipping info. Congrats!

Thanks to everyone for playing along this week! Have a wonderful weekend!

A Week of Thanks and Giving--Day 7

2011-11-23T08:31:00.000-05:00

Hey there, friends! It's the day before Thanksgiving here in the U.S., and today I am definitely thankful that the inch or two of rain expected today is not going to be a foot of snow!

It's the last day of my Week of Thanks and Giving here on the blog, and I have thoroughly enjoyed all of your comments and visits. I will be counting all of you, my dear readers, among my blessings this Thanksgiving!

Don't forget that today is the last day to leave comments for your chance to win on days 1-6, as well!

Now on to today's prize:

This prize package includes lots of goodies for your holiday cards and projects. There is a wonderful packet of assorted tags, twine, envelopes, kraft paper, and dictionary pages from The Kraft Outlet; rolls of pearls, clear rhinestones, and glittered tape (in silver and white) from Recollections; two 6X6 designer paper pads from My Mind's Eye (Holly Jolly and The Merry Days of Christmas); and a package of Christmas washi tape from Martha Stewart Crafts.

For your chance to win, just leave a comment on this post telling me one thing that you are thankful for, whether it be serious or silly. All comments must be received by Wednesday, November 23 at 11:59 PM EST (that's tonight!).

Again, friends, thank YOU for stopping by and leaving me lots of love and encouragement every day of the year. I appreciate you more than you know!

For those of you celebrating with family and friends this week, I wish you safe travels, good company, and a full belly! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

A Week of Thanks and Giving--Day 6

2011-11-22T13:03:00.000-05:00

Hi again! You didn't think I'd forgotten about today's giveaway, did you? *smile*

I finally found a copy of the latest Paper Crafts special issue, 365 Cards, and I have an extra to share with one of you! I love all of the fun and quirky holidays celebrated in this issue. Every year I make calendars for family members that include obscure holidays, along with silly pictures of my kids. It's always a big hit, and I'm glad I have some new ideas for this year's edition from perusing the pages of 365 Cards.

For your chance to win this issue, just leave a comment on this post telling me what holiday you would celebrate if you could invent one of your own. I really look forward to your ideas on this one! Comments must be received by Wednesday, November 23 at 11:59 PM EST. Don't forget you still have time to comment on Days 1-5, too.

Thanks for visiting yet again, my friends. See you back here tomorrow for the last giveaway!

ColourQ #112

2011-11-22T09:51:00.000-05:00

Happy ColourQ day, friends! Are you ready for a new challenge? Check out these rich autumn tones:

I saw a kiosk in the mall last week that was selling triptych artwork, which inspired me to stamp an image onto three panels. I chose Hero Arts' Tall Wheat rubber stamp, which I stamped in white using my Stamp-a-ma-jig to get it lined up just right. I popped the panels up on foam adhesive on an Espresso card base, added a sentiment from WPlus9's Season of Thanks on a white cardstock strip, and embellished it with a chocolate button. Quick and simple, but it packs a punch because of the wonderful color palette.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Early Espresso, Cherry Cobbler, Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight), Papertrey Ink (white)

Stamps: Hero Arts (Tall Wheat), WPlus9 Design Studio (Season of Thanks)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Early Espresso), Clearsnap (Frost White)

Accessories: Papertrey Ink (button), DMC floss

I hope you'll play along with the challenge this week! Don't forget to leave some love for the rest of the Royal Court DT while you're at it.

Thanks for visiting! Have a great Tuesday!

Peace Tag for Christmas

2011-11-21T22:31:00.000-05:00

Hi again! Just popping in tonight with a tag I made a while back that I happen to love. *smile*

I stamped snowflakes from PTI's Peace Be Still in white onto a kraft tag, then added some accents with a white pen. Once the ink was completely dry, I stamped the word "peace" and heat embossed it in white.

The ornament was die cut from Aqua Mist cardstock and stamped with a coordinating solid image from Vintage Ornaments using Versamark Dazzle ink, which has a hint of shimmer. I stamped one of the decorative bands onto Sweet Blush cardstock, cut it out, and adhered it to the ornament. I dotted silver Stickles in the center of each starburst, used the white pen to add a "string" to hang the ornament, and tied some white satin ribbon onto the tag with jute twine.

All supplies from Papertrey Ink unless noted

Cardstock: Kraft, Aqua Mist, Sweet Blush

Stamps: Vintage Ornaments, Peace Be Still

Ink: Versamark Dazzle, Frost White (Clearsnap), Pretty in Pink (Stampin' Up!)

Tools: ornament die, Tag Sale 1 die

Accessories: Stickles, white embossing powder (Stampendous), white pen (Inkssentials), jute twine

I hope your week is off to a great start! I have lots of blog-hopping to catch up on, so sorry to keep it short tonight. Be sure to check back tomorrow for a new ColourQ challenge and Day 6 of my week of giveaways!

A Week of Thanks and Giving--Day 5

2011-11-21T09:42:00.000-05:00

Hello again! It's just a few days until Thanksgiving here in the U.S. Can you believe it? I'm not sure what happened to fall, but I'm definitely ready for a long weekend of relaxing with family and friends.

It's Day 5 of my week-long expression of gratitude here on the blog--my chance to say thank you to all of my cherished readers and friends who stop by to visit. I hope you're enjoying it so far! Feel free to scroll down if you missed the first 4 days, and don't forget to comment for your chance to win some crafty goodies.

Have I mentioned recently how much I love WPlus9 Design Studio stamps? I have quite the collection, including a few new sets I have yet to ink up. I just happen to have an extra of one of the newest sets to share with one of you today.

This darling set is called Winter Wishes. I just love those cute mittens! Would you like to win this set? Just leave a comment on this post telling me your favorite season. Comments must be received by Wednesday, November 23 at 11:59 PM EST. One comment will be chosen at random and announced here on my blog on Friday, November 25.

I'll be back with something crafty to share tonight, friends! Thanks for stopping by!

A Week of Thanks and Giving--Day 4

2011-11-20T08:33:00.000-05:00

Hello! So glad you stopped by today, friends. It's time for Day 4 of my week of giveaways in honor of the Thanksgiving holiday here in the U.S. If you've missed the first three days, you can scroll down to check out the prizes being offered each day and leave comments for your chance to win.

Today's prize is a particularly fun one, in my opinion. Have you seen the Smash Journals from K & Company? I love the concept of having a place to collect random notes, quotes, ticket stubs, magazine clippings, etc. So I couldn't resist picking up one of these journals (in the Mod style) and some decorative tape for one reader to start their own Smash journal.

SMASH Journal-Mod style

Decorative tape--Black with white dots

I've included links to these items at Scrapbook.com, so you can check them out for yourself. Just click on the captions above!

Would you like to win your own Smash journal? Just leave a comment on this post telling me how you collect memories. Do you make traditional scrapbook pages? Paste random bits and pieces in a notebook? Keep photos in traditional albums? Write in a journal?

For a chance to win, leave your comment by Wednesday, November 23 at 11:59 PM EST. This contest is open to everyone, regardless of location. Winners will be posted here on my blog on Friday, November 25.

Thanks for stopping by today! Have a good one!

Embellish Leaves Color Challenge

2011-11-19T09:24:00.000-05:00

Good morning! I finally have a card to share! It's been a long time since I played along with an Embellish Color Challenge, but I couldn't resist this one.

These rich fall colors are so fantastic together. I pulled out PTI's Harvest Berries to use the beautiful ginkgo leaves. I stamped the larger images in Ripe Avocado onto a kraft card base. Then I added some texture with the Linen & Canvas impression plate to the entire card front and selectively debossed a strip at the bottom with the Woodgrain plate.

Two strips of Enchanted Evening cardstock ground the design and a sentiment from PTI's 2009 Autumn Tags.

I die cut the small ginkgo leaves from Rustic Cream cardstock and stamped them with Ripe Avocado, then popped them up with foam tape and tucked them behind a Scarlet Jewel button. A few randomly stamped red berries are the finishing touch.

All supplies from Papertrey Ink unless noted

Cardstock: Kraft, Enchanted Evening, Rustic Cream

Stamps: Harvest Berries, 2009 Autumn Tags

Ink: Ripe Avocado, Enchanted Evening, Chianti (Clearsnap)

Tools: leaf dies, Linen & Canvas, Woodgrain impression plates

Accessories: Scarlet Jewel button, rustic jute twine

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I'm hoping to get around to your blogs this weekend to see what I've been missing. Have a great one!

A Week of Thanks and Giving--Day 3

2011-11-19T09:04:00.000-05:00

Hello there! I know I promised you a card last night, but I lost track of time and didn't get to it. But it's coming up in my very next post today, so stay tuned!

It's time for Day 3 of my week of giveaways to show gratitude to all of you, my wonderful readers. If you missed the first 2 days, be sure to scroll down to enter.

From all of your comments so far, Papertrey Ink products definitely seem to be at the top of many wish lists, so I thought I'd offer up 2 more PTI stamp sets today. I was one of the lucky gals who attended the PTI Stamp-a-faire event in Cincinnati last summer, and our goodie bags included two fun and whimsical stamp sets, Forest Friends and Forest Friends Sentiments.

Cute, huh? Now, I love cute stamps and punny sentiments on other people's cards, but I don't tend to use them much myself, so why not share these sets with someone who can make them shine!

For your chance to win, just leave a comment on this post telling me what is your go-to card making style. Fun and cute? Shabby and vintage? Clean and simple? Whatever strikes your fancy at the moment? To be in the running for these stamps, all comments must be received by Wednesday, November 23 at 11:59 PM EST. The randomly selected winner will be announced on my blog on Friday, November 25.

Thanks for all of your visits and comments! Keep them coming!

Have a great start to your weekend!

A Week of Thanks and Giving--Day 2

2011-11-18T10:14:00.000-05:00

Hello again! It's Day 2 of my week-long celebration of Thanksgiving here on the blog. If you missed Day 1, be sure to scroll down to check it out the first day's prize!

I've enjoyed reading all of your plans for your holiday cards this year, handmade or not. As for myself, I have done photo cards of my kids every year, but I'm hoping to add some small embellishment to them this year to personalize them. We'll see if it gets done!

Are you ready for today's giveaway? One lucky commenter on this post will win Papertrey Ink's 2010 Anniversary Stamp Set, Botanical Silhouettes. Here's a peek:

This set is not available for purchase but was only shipped to PTI customers as part of their reward program. I just happen to have an extra set to give to one of you. For your chance to win, just leave a comment telling me what stamps or other crafty goodies are at the top of your holiday wish list. Comments must be received by Wednesday, November 23 at 11:59 PM EST. The randomly selected winner will be announced on my blog on Friday, November 25.

Thanks again for your wonderful comments, and for sharing a bit of your day with me. I'll be back tonight with a card, so I hope you'll come back for another visit! Have a great day!

A Week of Thanks and Giving--Day 1

2011-11-17T08:32:00.000-05:00

Hi friends!

You've picked a great day to visit, as I'm kicking off the first day of a week-long celebration that I'm calling A Week of Thanks and Giving. This is my chance to say "thank you" to all of my loyal readers, followers, and friends who make blogging so rewarding. I appreciate each and every one of your visits, comments, emails, and votes of confidence!

As you might have guessed, it wouldn't be a Week of Thanks and Giving without the giving, so I'm offering up a little prize today. I have an extra copy of Paper Crafts' Holiday Cards & More, which just happens to include one of my cards on page 41.

What do you need to do to win? Just leave me a comment telling me whether you plan to send handmade holiday greetings this year. The contest will end on Wednesday, November 23, 2011 at 11:59 pm EST. The randomly selected winner will be announced here on my blog Friday, November 25. This contest is open to everyone, including my international readers!

Thanks again for stopping by today! And don't forget to come back tomorrow for another giveaway, as the party continues up until Thanksgiving!

Have a great day, friends!

ColourQ #111

2011-11-15T08:42:00.000-05:00

Hello! It's time for a new ColourQ challenge, and this week's palette was just what I needed to get another card whipped up for Thanksgiving. Check it out:

I wound up adding just a touch of dark brown for the frame and sentiment, too.

I first tried stamping PTI's Houndstooth pattern directly onto the white card base, but it was looking a little too busy for what I had in mind, so I stamped the pattern in Versamark onto Pear Pizzazz and Rich Razzleberry cardstock strips and adhered them to the card.

I had a scrap piece of kraft cardstock that was embossed with woodgrain, so I used it to die cut a frame with PTI's Mat Stack 4 and Fillable Frames #10. I cut a piece of white cardstock with the same Mat Stack and stamped the frame and a sentiment from 2009 Autumn Tags.

To embellish the frame, I simply inked up the two pumpkins from WPlus9's Season of Thanks using Spiced Marmalade Distress Ink and a Chocolate Chip Stampin' Write marker, then cut them out by hand.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Rich Razzleberry, Pear Pizzazz), Papertrey Ink (Kraft, white)

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Fillable Frames #10, 2009 Autumn Tags, Background Basics: Houndstooth), WPlus9 (Season of Thanks)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Chocolate Chip), Ranger (Spiced Marmalade), Versamark

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Mat Stack 4, Fillable Frames #10 dies, Woodgrain impression plate)

I need to finish up my Thanksgiving cards to get them in the mail by the end of the week, so I'll definitely be looking to your creations using this week's challenge colors for inspiration!

I'm planning a special week-long event to celebrate Thanksgiving here on my blog starting this Thursday, so I hope you'll stop by.

Have a great day, friends!

Celebrating Hobbies Challenge in the Moxie Fab World--National Sewing Month

2011-11-13T09:56:00.000-05:00

Hi friends! I hope you're having a great weekend so far. Hubby and I got some Christmas shopping done yesterday, and by the time we were done I was exhausted! But it feels good to have gotten a good chunk of it done.

Over in the Moxie Fab World, Cath spent a week celebrating the release of the new Paper Crafts special issue, 365 Cards. Although I can't find it locally just yet, I thought I'd play along with one of the challenges issued during last week's festivities. For the Celebrating Hobbies Challenge, you can make a card to give to someone during National Sewing Month. While my card isn't specifically for that occasion, it definitely has a sewing theme!

I wanted to use a fall-ish color palette, so I chose Papertrey Ink's Summer Sunrise, Dark Chocolate, and Aqua Mist. I used PTI's Quilter's Sampler to stamp a quilt on a square of Rustic Cream cardstock and colored it with Copic markers. I used the Linen & Canvas impression plate to give the panel the look of fabric, then stitched it to a Dark Chocolate mat.

A get well sentiment from the set was stamped on a double ended banner and embellished with a pair of scissors, also from Quilter's Sampler, that I cut out by hand.

All supplies from Papertrey Ink unless noted

Cardstock: Summer Sunrise, Dark Chocolate, Rustic Cream

Stamps: Quilter's Sampler

Ink: Chocolate Chip (Stampin' Up!), Copic markers

Tools: Double ended banner die, Linen & Canvas impression plate

Accessories: thread

I hope you enjoy the rest of your day! Thanks for stopping by!

Make it Monday #40

2011-11-10T21:50:00.000-05:00

Hey, friends! Just a quick post to share a card for this week's Make it Monday with Papertrey Ink. The challenge is to use reverse applique, and I couldn't resist giving it a try.

This card started with a Dark Chocolate card base, in which I die cut a window with Mat Stack 5. Behind that is a piece of Rustic Cream cardstock debossed with woodgrain and die cut with a maple leaf to create another "window". I added a piece of Terracotta Tile felt as the bottom layer to give the leaf a soft texture.

For the reverse applique, I stitched around the leaf with brown thread and around the Mat Stack with cream thread.

To finish the design, I stamped a sentiment from WPlus9's Season of Thanks onto a double ended banner and added some Terracotta button accents.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink: Dark Chocolate, Rustic Cream

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Season of Thanks)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Chocolate Chip)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Mat Stack 5, Double Ended Banner die, Leaf die, Woodgrain impression plate)

Accessories: Papertrey Ink (felt, buttons), DMC floss, thread

Thanks for stopping by tonight! Have a great one!

ColourQ #110 & Card Patterns #140

2011-11-08T08:30:00.000-05:00

Hello, strangers! It's so good to be back with a card to share, even if I did struggle to get back in the swing of things. Since our power outage last week, I hadn't even walked into my craft space until last night. Thank goodness the ColourQ has some wonderful fall colors to work with this week! I love the look of traditional fall colors with a bit of cool blue thrown in, so this palette is just perfect. I hope you'll play along this week!

To jump-start my mojo, I turned to the current sketch at Card Patterns. It's been far too long since I played along with one of their challenges.

This was the first chance I've had to ink up a new-to-me set from WPlus9, Season of Thanks. I used Spellbinders' Labels 8 with PTI's Terracotta Tile cardstock, then stamped and heat embossed one of the large images from Season of Thanks. I added the Peach Parfait circle behind it and a double-ended banner tucked in next to the sentiment. The little stamped leaves are included in the Season of Thanks set, and the line borders are from PTI's Faux Ribbon.

The Pool Party panel is debossed with PTI's Woodgrain impression plate and stitched to the Soft Suede borders. Some Cappuccino twine from The Twinery "ties" it all together. Hee.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Pool Party, Peach Parfait, Soft Suede), Papertrey Ink (Terracotta Tile, white)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Season of Thanks), Papertrey Ink (Faux Ribbon)

Ink: Versamark, Clearsnap (Terracotta)

Tools: Spellbinders (circle die, Labels 8 die), Papertrey Ink (Woodgrain impression plate, double ended banner die), Fiskars (border punch)

Accessories: The Twinery (Cappuccino twine), Filigree embossing powder, thread

I'm hoping to get back on track this week with stamping, as I have plans to send out a pile of Thanksgiving cards this year. I told my hubby that I think Thanksgiving is like the middle child of holidays. First comes Halloween, the fun and slightly rebellious one, and last is Christmas, which is secretly (or maybe not so secretly) everyone's favorite. Poor Thanksgiving, living in the shadow of all those holiday store displays. I can say all of this because I'm a middle child myself, of course. *wink* Anyway, you'll probably be seeing several more cards expressing thanks and gratitude over the next couple of weeks.

Thank you all for your patience during my absence from blog-land! I hope you'll take some time to play along with the ColourQ palette this week, friends. Have a great day!

Power outage--be back soon!

2011-10-30T20:09:00.000-04:00

Hi there, friends!

If you haven't heard, we had a bit of a snowstorm last night here in New England. Unfortunately, my neighborhood is without power, our city has cancelled school tomorrow in order to use one of the schools as a shelter, and Halloween trick-or-treating has been postponed until Wednesday. Seriously?! I had to ask my husband once again why we moved to MA. LOL!

I'm at work right now catching up on a few projects, then heading up to my MIL's in Maine until we get power back. I hope to have internet access so I can at least catch up with what's been happening in blog land over the weekend.

I'd hate for you to leave empty-handed, so I thought I'd share this masculine card I made for my hubby's cousin, who turned 16 this past August.

All supplies from Papertrey Ink unless noted

Cardstock: Enchanted Evening, Orange Zest, Kraft, white

Stamps: Just the Ticket, Star Prints

Ink: Frost White (Clearsnap), Spiced Marmalade (Ranger), white gel pen

Tools: ticket border die, Limitless Layers die, Linen & Canvas impression plate, star punch (Fiskars)

Accessories: button, twine, embossing powder (Stampendous)

Thanks for stopping by tonight! I hope to be back soon!

Papertrey Ink October Blog Hop

2011-10-25T20:37:00.000-04:00

Hey folks! I'm a little late to the party, but I made it! Today is the monthly Papertrey Ink Blog Hop, and this time Nichole supplied us with another fun inspiration photo.

Aren't those fabric pumpkins beautiful? I had a few false starts with this card, but I finally settled on replicating the striped pattern on the front panel of the largest pumpkin, the colors, and the leaves.

On a Rustic White cardstock panel, I adhered strips of Fine Linen and Orange Zest. Then I stamped some faux zig-zag stitching between the stripes. The whole panel is debossed with the Linen & Canvas IP.

The tag and sentiment are from 2009 Autumn Tags and the leaves were die cut and stamped using the Delightful Dahlia set. It's hard to see it, but the Ripe Avocado card base is debossed with the Polka Dot IP, as well.

All supplies from Papertrey Ink unless noted

Cardstock: Ripe Avocado, Orange Zest, Fine Linen, Dark Chocolate, Rustic White

Stamps: 2009 Autumn Tags, Delightful Dahlia, Patterned Borders (TPC Studio)

Ink: Ripe Avocado, Chocolate Chip (Stampin' Up! ), Spiced Marmalade (Ranger)

Tools: Dahlia leaf dies, Limitless Layers, Linen & Canvas IP, Polka Dot Basics IP, hole punch (Fiskars)

Accessories: buttons, twine (Pebbles, Inc.)

Sorry to post and run, but I have a heap of grading to do! I'll be back to see the rest of the entries soon. Have a great night, friends!

ColourQ #108

2011-10-25T08:45:00.000-04:00

Hello, friends! It's Tuesday morning, and you know what that means--a new color palette to get your mojo going over at the ColourQ challenge blog! I hope you can tolerate one more Halloween project from me, because I got just the inspiration I needed yesterday in the form of happy mail from WPlus9. I was the lucky winner of A Pocketful: Halloween during a recent contest on Lea Lawson's blog, and I was excited to sit right down and ink it up for this week's ColourQ. Thanks, Lea!

I started with PTI's spiral notebook die on white cardstock, which was then stamped with lines in So Saffron using Mini Scrapbook Series: Library Ledger. I stamped the bats directly on top of that, and the little spiderwebs were stamped in opposite corners. Since I don't have the pocket stamp or die that coordinate with this set, I used a label cut from Peach Parfait and stamped with a cute Halloween sentiment from the Pocketful set.

The Daffodil panel is textured with the Linen & Canvas impression plate and stitched to a Peach mat, then adhered to the Black card base. I popped the notebook page up on foam dots, added some peach gems, and tucked a strip of Saffron ribbon under the label to finish things off.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Daffodil Delight, Peach Parfait), Papertrey Ink (True Black, white)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (A Pocketful: Halloween), Papertrey Ink (Mini Scrapbook Series: Library Ledger)

Ink: Inkadinkadoo (Black), Stampin' Up! (So Saffron)

Tools: Spellbinders (Labels 18), Papertrey Ink (spiral notebook die, Linen & Canvas impression plate)

Accessories: Stampin' Up! (ribbon), Queen & Co. (gems), thread

I'm thinking these colors could work well for a Thanksgiving or fall-themed card, too, so I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with.

Be sure to stop by the ColourQ blog for all of the challenge details and to see the rest of the DT samples!

Thanks for visiting today!

Halloween goodie bags

2011-10-23T21:26:00.000-04:00

Warning: Photo-heavy post

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (True Black, Orange Zest, Royal Velvet, white), Stampin' Up! (Lucky Limeade)

Patterned paper: DCWV (Ghosts & Goblins Stack)

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Tiny Treats: Halloween, Tag-its #7, Tiny Tags)

Ink: Ranger (Spiced Marmalade), Stampin' Up! (Lucky Limeade), Versamark, Inkadinkadoo (Black), Copic markers

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Mat Stack 2, Limitless Layers, Tiny Tags dies), Fiskars (slot punch)

Accessories: ribbon, baker's twine, paper bags

Hi there! As promised, I'm back to share the goodie bags I've been working on for our annual Halloween party. It was supposed to be last night, but my little ones were not feeling 100% so we postponed it until next weekend. I like to put together a few things for the kids that come to the party, and this year's loot includes some mini boxes of stickers, two mini tubs of Play-Doh, and a notebook that I altered with Halloween papers and stamps. Wanna see?

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (white)

Patterned paper: DCWV (Ghosts & Goblins Stack)

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Tiny Treats: Halloween)

Ink: Inkadinkadoo (Black), Copic markers

Tools: Fiskars (hole punch)

Accessories: notepads, Mod Podge

These notepads were so easy to put together, I made 18 of them in one afternoon. I got the 3 X 5 inch memo pads in a pack of 3 at Target for $1.99. I used Mod Podge to cover them with patterned paper from the DCWV Ghosts & Goblins stack. Then I cut a strip of white cardstock and stamped an image and "happy halloween" sentiment from PTI's Tiny Treats: Halloween and colored the images with Copics.

For the bags, I used small white paper bags that I covered with more of the same patterned paper. I punched slots at the top and tied them up with ribbon and a coordinating tag. The tags were made with PTI's Mat Stack 2 die. After stamping the circle frame and sentiment from Tag-its #7 in the middle of the Mat Stack, I trimmed off one side of the die cut so that I would have a round tag. I added a pinked circle mat, a Tiny Tag, and some baker's twine to finish it off.

I'm so happy with the way these turned out, especially the notepads. You can click on any of the photos to enlarge, and feel free to send me a message if you have any questions!

Thanks for stopping by, friends! Have a great night!

Make it Monday #37 & PDCC#104

2011-10-22T21:19:00.000-04:00

Hi friends! I've participated in very few challenges of late, so I jumped at the opportunity to make something for The Play Date Cafe's second anniversary. Congratulations on two wonderful years, ladies!

This week I'm also joining the Make it Monday challenge to use layered mats and frames. Easy peasy!

For my color palette, I used PTI's Ripe Avocado and Lemon Tart and Stampin' Up!'s Rose Red. I would have used PTI's new Autumn Rose, but I am still (very anxiously) waiting for my September Release winnings. They said it would be 4-6 weeks, but I had no idea what torture it would be waiting for it to arrive! My heart skips a beat every time I hear the mail or UPS truck rumble down our street.

Okay, on to the card! I started with a Rose Red base and die cut a window with Mat Stack 1. I layered a piece of white cardstock behind the window and stamped it with one of the frames from the Mat Stack 1 Collection.

I die cut Fillable Frames #11 from Lemon Tart cardstock and clear embossed the frame from the set. The sentiment is from the Mat Stack 1 Collection. I centered the label over the Mat Stack window and popped it up on foam dots.

The leaves are die cut and stamped with Harvest Berries and embellished with Ripe Avocado buttons and a bit of SU's Old Olive striped ribbon.

To add some interest to the bottom of the card, I used a faux embossing technique. I die cut three strips of Rose Red cardstock with the Victorian Lace border die and adhered them directly to the card base. I think it adds a fun textural detail.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Ripe Avocado, Lemon Tart, white), Stampin' Up! (Rose Red)

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Mat Stack 1 Collection, Fillable Frames #11)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Rose Red), Papertrey Ink (Ripe Avocado), Versamark

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Mat Stack 1, Fillable Frames #11, Victorian Lace, Harvest Berries dies)

Accessories: Papertrey Ink (buttons), Stampin' Up! (ribbon), Stampendous (embossing powder), DMC floss

Be sure to come back tomorrow to see my Halloween goodie bags! They turned out SO cute this year, if I do say so myself. *smile*

Thanks for visiting!

Rainbow Hearts Birthday

2011-10-21T08:49:00.000-04:00

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Pure Poppy, Orange Zest, Harvest Gold, New Leaf, Blueberry Sky, white)

Stamp: Papertrey Ink (Signature Series: Dress Form)

Ink: Inkadinkadoo (Black), Copic markers

Tools: Papertrey Ink (heart die, Linen & Canvas impression plate), corner rounder

Accessories: Papertrey Ink (buttons), twill ribbon, DMC floss

Hi there! I have several projects lined up to share with you in the next few days, if I can just get them all photographed! In the meantime, I remembered that I hadn't shared this card that was made for a recent PC call.

I used the medium-sized die from PTI's Heart Prints die set to cut heart "windows" along one side of a piece of white cardstock. It took a few tries to get them lined up just right. It would have been much easier to cut the hearts from colored cardstock and layer them on top of the panel, but I just love using negative space on a card, so I was determined to make it work.

I stamped a sentiment from Signature Series: Dress Form, rounded two corners, and added some texture to the main panel with the Linen & Canvas impression plate. Colored squares are adhered behind the heart windows, and I embellished them with a few color coordinated buttons.

I added rainbow stripes to a piece of white twill using Copics, then tucked it under the main panel, which is popped up on foam dots.

Thanks for stopping by today! Enjoy the start of your weekend!

ColourQ #107

2011-10-18T09:00:00.001-04:00

This is my second post for today--please scroll down for Karen's virtual birthday party & blog hop!

Hi there, friends! Are you getting in the Halloween spirit yet? In our house, we love Halloween and throw a costume party every year that just seems to keep growing. It's coming up this weekend, so I've got to get busy planning a menu, finding a costume, and making goodie bags for the kids. It's always fun, but a bit stressful until it's all done.

This week's ColourQ challenge is another bright and festive combo that called out for another card using my cute Halloween stamps from Michaels.

I've seen a few designers use a "filmstrip" recently, and I thought it would be a fun idea to CASE on this card.

I would have liked to use a larger sentiment, but I was shocked to realize that I don't have any Halloween greetings besides those in PTI's Tiny Treats: Halloween and Tag-its #7. So I stamped the bats and a star (also from TT: Halloween) framing the sentiment to keep it from getting lost in all of the white space.

The card front and colored squares are debossed with the Linen impression plate for a little bit of texture on an otherwise flat and easy-to-mail card.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Rich Razzleberry, Lucky Limeade, Pumpkin Pie, Early Espresso), Papertrey Ink (white)

Stamps: Michaels (vampire, witch, mummy, bats), Papertrey Ink (Tiny Treats: Halloween)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Early Espresso, Rich Razzleberry), Copic marker

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Linen & Canvas impression plate)

Accessories: Queen & Co. (rhinestone)

Be sure to stop by the ColourQ blog for the rest of the DT samples and to link up your creation!

Thanks for visiting!

Happy Birthday Karen!

2011-10-18T05:00:00.001-04:00

Welcome, friends! You've come on a very special day. Today some blogging buddies and I are throwing a virtual birthday party for our sweet and talented friend, Karen Baker! Each of us is bringing something to the party to share with Karen, so be sure to see the bottom of my post for the full list of participants.

I was delighted to be asked to be a part of this blog hop, as I have long admired Karen's creations as well as the stories, quotes, and memories she shares on her blog, The Bald Dragonfly. More importantly, Karen has become one of those treasured blog friends who never fails to leave encouraging comments wherever she goes. Karen, you are a constant source of inspiration and a wonderful friend, and I wish you a birthday full of fun and surprises!

Because of Karen's gift for writing and sharing bits and pieces of her life through her blog, I made an altered notebook that she can use for recording memories, ideas, poems, or whatever comes to mind.

There are a few details of my design that make me think of Karen, too. First, I went with a nature theme because Karen always uses earth tones so beautifully, and her cards often have a rustic look or natural elements. Next, I went with a stamp set that she and I recently used in her Carbon Copied feature, WPlus9's Woodgrain Silhouettes Additions. Finally, I stamped a quote that goes well with the nature theme but also speaks to Karen's amazing creativity and ability to do things in new and unexpected ways.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Garden Green), Papertrey Ink (Rustic Cream)

Patterned paper: Stampin' Up! (Neutrals collection)

Stamps: WPlus9 (Woodgrain Silhouettes & Additions, Spring Post), Unity (quote), Papertrey Ink (Postmarks, Background Basics: Text Style)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Garden Green, Chocolate Chip), Papertrey Ink (Dark Chocolate)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Woodgrain impression plate, postage die), EK Success (border punch), Fiskars (hole punch)

Accessories: Papertrey Ink (buttons), muslin fabric, DMC floss, Mod Podge

As promised, there are lots of talented ladies attending this virtual party, so hop along and see what they've created for the occasion. And a very special thanks to Erin Thiem for organizing this event!

Erin, http://www.homemadecardsbyerin.blogspot.com

Cristina, http://mypapersecret.blogspot.com

Kelly Marie, http://lawnfawn.blogspot.com

Christina, http://christinamaclaren.blogspot.com

Kelley Eubanks, http://myfrontporch-kelley.blogspot.com

Yvonne, http://yyam.blogspot.com/

Virginia, http://virginialusblog.blogspot.com/

Laurel, http://laurelbeard.wordpress.com/

Jen, http://jenshearsdesigns.blogspot.com/

Dana, http://kismetartlife.blogspot.com

Michele, http://studiomsg.blogspot.com/

Lynn, http://themangoboysandme.blogspot.com/

Lindsay, http://lindsayamrhein.blogspot.com/

Amy, http://tsurutadesigns.blogspot.com/

Aimes, http://craftingconfessions.blogspot.com/

Jen R, http://ourchangeofart.blogspot.com/

Lisa, http://bellalistona.blogspot.com/

Lynn, http://www.millers-ink.net/

Karen, the birthday girl, http://thebalddragonfly.blogspot.com/

Thanks for stopping by!

Bridal silhouette

2011-10-17T08:40:00.000-04:00

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Vintage Cream)

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Iconic Images, Tiny Tags), Waltzingmouse (Vintage Labels 18)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Chocolate Chip), Clearsnap (Dune), Papertrey Ink (Tea Dye duo)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Music Score, Linen & Canvas impression plates, tag die), Spellbinders (Labels 18 die), EK Success (circle punch)

Accessories: Martha Stewart (ribbon), Ranger (Perfect Pearls), Michaels (pearls), thread

Hi there! Just popping in to share a card I made for a recent Paper Crafts call that wasn't picked up. The category was silhouettes for brides and babies, which led me to create this little number perfect for an engagement.

To make this card, I stitched a piece of Vintage Cream cardstock debossed with PTI's music score impression plate onto a Cream card base.

For the focal point, I die cut and stamped the large frame from Waltzingmouse's Vintage Labels 18 and punched out the center circle. The silhouette from PTI's Iconic images was stamped onto another piece of Vintage Cream cardstock, debossed with the Linen & Canvas impression plate, and adhered behind the frame, which is popped up on foam dots.

You can't see it in the photo, but the frame was sprayed with Perfect Pearls mist to give it a nice shimmer. For the finishing touches, I added a crown of pearls to the silhouette and a tiny tag tied with wrinkled ribbon.

I hope you'll come by tomorrow, as I have two posts lined up, including the newest ColourQ challenge. Thanks for visiting!

Carbon Copied & CR84FN40

2011-10-12T07:00:00.001-04:00

Hello out there! You're in for a special treat this morning. I am absolutely thrilled to be posting alongside my friend Karen Baker from The Bald Dragonfly as her guest for Carbon Copied. This is a fun little feature on Karen's blog where she and another designer use the same stamp set and same challenge, then post their creations at the same time. You can read more about it HERE.

Karen and I decided to use a favorite pair of stamp sets, WPlus9's Woodgrain Silhouettes and Additions, along with the color challenge at CR84FN.

I used just Woodgrain Silhouettes to create my CAS card, as well as a couple of other WPlus9 goodies. First I used the Label Layers 3 die to mask and stamp a woodgrain frame onto kraft cardstock. A gorgeous sentiment from Very Vintage Greetings was stamped directly on top of that, then the panel was debossed with PTI's Linen & Canvas impression plate.

I stamped the flowers (from Woodgrain Silhouettes) onto cream cardstock and cut them out by hand, then adhered them with foam dots. A few red pearls and a red satin bow add a punch of color.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Kraft, Vintage Cream, Dark Chocolate)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Woodgrain Silhouettes, Very Vintage Greetings)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Chocolate Chip), Papertrey Ink (Dark Chocolate)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Linen & Canvas impression plate)

Accessories: Papertrey Ink (ribbon), Queen & Co. (pearls)

I can't wait to see what Karen has created with the same stamps and color combo--it is sure to be inspiring! Make sure you hop over and leave her some love.

Thanks for inviting me to play along this week, Karen! And thanks to everyone else for stopping by today!

ColourQ #106

2011-10-11T08:32:00.000-04:00

Good morning! I hope my Canadian friends had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend. We had a gorgeous long weekend for the Columbus Day holiday here in the U.S., which fell on my son's birthday this year. But it's back to work today, and I'll be confused about what day it is for the rest of the week!

I did manage to remember that today is Tuesday, which means a new ColourQ challenge! I think I would carry a backpack every day if I could get one this cute:

This seemed like a perfect combo for a Halloween card, which gave me a chance to use more of the $1 stamps I found at Michaels a few weeks ago. I don't do cute cards very often, but I just can't resist images like this at Halloween!

This card was fairly quick and easy to make. I used my Stamp-a-ma-jig to line up the images on a white cardstock panel, colored them with Prisma pencils, and blended with OMS. The open circle border is from PTI's Faux Ribbon, and I originally planned to fill the circles with bling, but decided against it in the end. The sentiment is from Tiny Treats: Halloween.

The panel is matted and stitched to a piece of Summer Sunrise cardstock, tied with Mandarin twine from The Twinery, and adhered to a Basic Gray card base.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Summer Sunrise, white), Stampin' Up! (Basic Gray)

Stamps: Studio G (vampire, witch, mummy), Papertrey Ink (Faux Ribbon, Tiny Treats: Halloween)

Ink: Inkadinkadoo (Black)

Coloring medium: Prismacolor Premier pencils, odorless mineral spirits

Accessories: The Twinery (Mandarin twine), thread

I hope you'll find time to play along with the challenge this week and check out the rest of the inspiration from the always-amazing Royal Court DT.

I have a special post lined up for tomorrow, so be sure to stop by! Thanks for your visit today!

Operation Julie's Smile, CR84FN39, & Textured to Perfection

2011-10-07T08:00:00.001-04:00

Happy Friday, friends! I'm thrilled today to be participating in a special blog hop for the sweet and talented Julie Ranae. If you are following along on the hop, you should have arrived here from

the blog of Vera Yates. If not, make sure you stop by the Sweet Stamp Shop blog to start at the beginning and learn how you can win some fabulous prizes while helping a fellow stamper.

There are over 120 blogs participating in this hop, so if you encounter a broken link at any time, just head back to the Sweet Stamp Shop blog for the full list of participants. You have all weekend to visit and comment, so take your time and have fun!

Please keep reading to learn more about Julie's story and how you can help give her back her smile!

“The creative blogging community is coming together this weekend to help one of our friends, Julie Ranae. You may know her as the Design Team Coordinator for many wonderful companies from bakers twine, die cuts, rubber stamps and more. What many people don’t know about Julie Ranae is that she has had some pretty major dental surgeries in her lifetime due to medication she had to take as a child. It was in her plans to think about having all of her teeth replaced at some point in the next 5 years, a decision that was pretty easy to plan out. But then it happened…she chipped her front teeth on a weekend a month ago. The dentist told her there was no way to save them & that it was his recommendation that she give in and have them all her teeth removed soon, but for that day, they needed to get her front teeth done so her gums could begin to heal. He said he would 'work out payments with her to have ALL this work done...but when she called to make her appt for the first step of impressions, they told her the amount of money that was needed and that the 'payments' applied only to the two teeth that were extracted that day. Her husband Paul was with her & that too, was his understanding as well. So this is how she has found herself in this situation…Needing at least $4000 to get started and another $3000 to finish the process…a total of $7000.

Nicole Rixon, owner of Sweet Stamp Shop put together this benefit after finding out about this situation and before Julie Ranae knew it, it took flight!

Because she is an event organizer by trade, she has taken on the job of organizing all of the blogs in this hop as her way of ‘working overtime’ for what she needs, the same as if she were able to work overtime at an outside job to pay for the work to be done.

It is the goal of all of these generous friends & sponsors to help make this situation more do-able for our friend so that she can share a brand new smile with all of us soon.

If there is anything you can do to help with a financial donation, there is a donation button ready for you to click. Any amount is appreciated and ALL DONATIONS will be eligible for prizes from our sponsor pool of over $2500.”

You can find the donation button on my blog's sidebar, and on all of the other blogs along the hop.

Now to share the card I've made for today, with Julie in mind.

I combined the colors of the current CR84FN challenge with the Textured to Perfection challenge in the Moxie Fab World to create a fall-inspired card of encouragement.

I cut a piece of cream felt with pinking shears and embroidered vines in two shades of orange (although one looks red in the photos) and yellow. This was adhered to an Early Espresso card base and embellished with buttons.

I stamped a sentiment from PTI's Think Big Favorites onto a strip of Vintage Cream cardstock, notched one end, and adhered it with foam dots.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Early Espresso), Papertrey Ink (Vintage Cream)

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Think Big Favorites #4)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Early Espresso)

Accessories: Papertrey Ink (felt, buttons), DMC floss

I'm so glad you stopped by today for this special post! Your next stop on the hop is Carisa Zglobicki. Don't forget to leave a comment here before you go for a chance to win prizes, and please click on the donation button to help our friend, Julie.

Have a great weekend!

WPlus9 WCMD Halloween Challenge

2011-10-05T23:24:00.000-04:00

Hello! I'm popping in with an entry for a challenge over on the talented Lea Lawson's blog. She has a WPlus9 stamp set up for grabs, so you know I have to play for a chance to win! The challenge is to make a stamped Halloween project. Easy peasy!

I don't have any fall or Halloween stamps from WPlus9, but I wanted to use some of Dawn's stamps that I do have, so I pulled out two favorites: Spring Post and Postmarks. On a kraft panel, I repeatedly stamped the postage in white ink. I love this image because you can customize it with any small stamps in your collection. I chose the pumpkin from PTI's Tag-its #7.

I stamped the tag and sentiment from Tag-its #7 onto a Mat Stack 2 label, then added an orange postmark with "October" and "31", from WPlus9's Postmarks. Orange buttons and some brown and white twine finish the card front.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Orange Zest, Kraft, white), Stampin' Up! (Early Espresso)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Spring Post, Postmarks), Papertrey Ink (Tag-its #7)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Early Espresso), Clearsnap (Frost White), Ranger (Spiced Marmalade)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Mat Stack 2, Limitless Layers dies)

Accessories: Papertrey Ink (buttons), baker's twine, thread

I haven't given you a peek at the inside of a card for a while, so here you go:

Thanks to Lea for hosting this challenge! And thanks to you for stopping by, friend!

ColourQ #105

2011-10-04T08:43:00.000-04:00

Hello again, friends! It's ColourQ day!

I'm sorry I haven't been around for the last week, but I just got back from a long weekend in Indiana for my brother's wedding. We had a wonderful visit with family, but I missed being able to participate in the World Card Making Day festivities, and coming around to see what all of you have been up to. I hope things are great in your corner of the world!

For this week's ColourQ challenge, Arielle has chosen another combo that I never would have come up with on my own, but I love it! Combining black and brown can be a challenge, but they look striking together on the chair in this inspiration photo:

I really like the look of the multi-colored leaves on the chair, so I used that as inspiration for my leaf-stamped background. First, I stamped two outline leaf images repeatedly onto a white cardstock panel. Then I cut the panel into four strips and stamped them with the coordinating solid leaf images in Chocolate Chip, Pear Pizzazz, and Wisteria Wonder.

To assemble the background, I adhered the stamped strips onto a black card base, leaving a thin margin between them. For the sentiment, I die cut and stamped a frame from WPlus9's Very Vintage Greetings, then stamped a sentiment from PTI's Healing Touch Sentiments and another solid leaf image as an accent.

The label is popped up on foam dots over a loop of black satin ribbon, and I added two black buttons to the top corner for balance.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (True Black, white)

Stamps: WPlus9 Design Studio (Woodgrain Silhouettes, Woodgrain Silhouettes Additions, Very Vintage Greetings), Papertrey Ink (Healing Touch Sentiments)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Chocolate Chip, Wisteria Wonder, Pear Pizzazz), Inkadinkadoo (Black)

Tools: WPlus9 Design Studio (label die)

Accessories: ribbon, buttons, DMC floss

I hope you'll find some time this week to play along with the challenge! I'm off to peruse the hundreds of unread posts in my Reader before I head off to work. Thanks so much for your visit today!

Happy Birthday ColourQ!

2011-09-27T08:48:00.000-04:00

Hello, friends! I'm so glad you stopped by today, because it's a very special week at the ColourQ. The challenge is celebrating its second birthday with color combo #104, and there's a fun twist this week. In addition to a fabulous color palette (as always!), we are choosing a past Colour Queen to CASE! Arielle has worked hard to create a photo album of all of the past winners, which you can find linked on the ColourQ blog. I hope you'll take some time to browse through all of the amazing creations and choose a favorite to CASE!

For my card, I chose an awesome grid design by Colour Queen #74, Lindy G. You can check out her winning card along with all of the fabulous Courtiers HERE.

I love the versatility of Lindy's design! She used some wonderful patterned papers on her card, but since I didn't have patterned papers in the challenge colors, I used a few different techniques on the blocks to give them some interest.

Lots of Papertrey goodies on this one! Three of the colored squares are stamped with medallions from Iconic Images. Three more squares are debossed with impression plates (Polka Dot Basics, Cane Print, and Diamonds). Two squares use the faux embossing technique, where I die cut a shape from the same color cardstock and adhered it to the square, trimming the edges to fit.

The squares were adhered to a white panel, then I stitched a grid with brown thread just like in Lindy's original. For the ribbon, I decided to wrap it around the top corner and add a simple die-cut tag, from PTI's Tiny Tags.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Early Espresso, Rose Red, Pool Party, Old Olive), Papertrey Ink (white)

Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Iconic Images, Tiny Tags)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Rose Red, Pool Party, Old Olive, Early Espresso)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Polka Dot Basics, Cane Print, Diamonds impression plates, flower, heart, tag dies)

Accessories: Michaels (ribbon), thread

It was so much fun revisiting the past Colour Queens for this challenge, and I hope you'll take a peek at the gallery, too! Happy birthday to the ColourQ, and many thanks to Arielle for inspiring us every week with amazing color palettes and for all of the hard work she puts into the challenge! Be sure to stop by the ColourQ blog to congratulate her!

Thanks for visiting!

Papertrey Ink September Blog Hop

2011-09-25T11:16:00.000-04:00

Hello friends! It's time for another Papertrey Ink Blog Hop, and I'm happy to have found time to play. The challenge this month is to be inspired by a photo of this fun and colorful striped floor:

I pulled out the colors Pure Poppy, Summer Sunrise, Smokey Shadow, and Hawaiian Shores from the stripes in the photo. I cut strips of cardstock and debossed them with the Cane Print impression plate, then adhered them to a white panel.

I attached a strip of white twill across the bottom and stamped a sentiment above it, from Faux Ribbon. Finally, I added a trio of Hibiscus Burst buttons threaded with black floss.

All supplies from Papertrey Ink unless noted

Cardstock: White, Pure Poppy, Summer Sunrise, Smokey Shadow, Hawaiian Shores

Stamps: Faux Ribbon

Ink: Black (Inkadinkadoo)

Tools: Cane Print impression plate

Accessories: Hibiscus Burst buttons, twill ribbon (A.C. Moore), DMC floss

Thanks for stopping by today, and happy hopping!

Card Patterns #133

2011-09-22T21:39:00.000-04:00

Hi there! I've been working on this card a little at a time for the last few days. So glad to see I'm not too late to enter it for the sketch challenge at Card Patterns!

When I saw the three background panels, I decided I wanted to try something I saw Jennifer McGuire do for Inspiration Showcase, using an embossing folder for a faux letterpress technique. I inked up both sides to create positive and negative versions of the pattern, then stitched the panels to a piece of Wisteria Wonder cardstock.

The die cut panel is stamped with a label from Waltzingmouse's Vintage Labels 18 and a sentiment from WPlus9's Very Vintage Greetings and heat embossed.

I rolled a few cardstock flowers and adhered them to the label with some die cut kraft leaves.

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Lemon Tart, Kraft, white), Stampin' Up! (Wisteria Wonder)

Stamps: Waltzingmouse (Vintage Labels 18), WPlus9 Design Studio (Very Vintage Greetings)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Wisteria Wonder), Versamark

Tools: Sizzix (embossing folder, leaf die), Spellbinders (Labels 18)

Accessories: Michaels (pearls), Stampendous (embossing powder), thread

This card will go out to my parents for their anniversary next week!

Thanks for your visit, friends! I hope you're having a great week.

ColourQ #103

2011-09-20T08:26:00.000-04:00

Welcome back, friends! It's a dreary day here, so I'm more than happy to be sharing some cheerful hues for this week's ColourQ challenge. Wouldn't these dishes brighten up anyone's day?

The florals had me thinking immediately of Stampin' Up!'s Fabulous Florets. After a few trials on scrap paper to get the right placement, I stamped the leaves with Pear Pizzazz in the bottom left corner of a white cardstock panel. I added the large solid blossom in Wisteria Wonder.

It's hard to tell in the photo, but the large open flower is stamped in red and the smaller flowers are stamped in Calypso Coral. I cut these out and popped them up on foam dots.

The sentiment is from PTI's Signature Greetings, and the whole panel has a pretty texture from the Linen & Canvas impression plate. I adhered it to a Wisteria Wonder card base and wrapped some gorgeous Coral ruffled ribbon around the top.

Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Wisteria Wonder), Papertrey Ink (white)

Stamps: Stampin' Up! (Fabulous Florets), Papertrey Ink (Signature Greetings)

Ink: Stampin' Up! (Wisteria Wonder, Pear Pizzazz, Calypso Coral), Clearsnap (Scarlet)

Tools: Papertrey Ink (Linen & Canvas impression plate)

Accessories: Stampin' Up! (ribbon)

This card is on its way to an amazing friend of mine. I think she'll like it!

I hope you'll play along with us at the ColourQ this week! Be sure to check out the samples from the rest of the Royal Court DT and link up your creation to be in the running for Colour Queen.

Thanks for visiting today! Have a good one!