The 12 Kits of Occasions--November 2013

Hello, friends!  It's my favorite time of the month--time for the latest installment of the 12 Kits of Occasions reveal!

Kelly is our hostess this month, and she sent us an incredible kit full of trendy chalkboard sentiments and iconic holiday images.  Be sure to head over to The 12 Kits blog to see the kit contents and get sneak peeks of projects from the rest of the crew!

I've made 4 cards so far with my kit, but I anticipate working more with it over the next couple of weeks once I'm done teaching.  :)

My first card uses one of the fantastic chalkboard greetings with holly leaf accents and a debossed music score in the background.

The next card might be my favorite.  I simply stitched some of the patterned papers along an angle and added one of the tags from the kit, tying it with gorgeous red ribbon.

This was actually the first card I made, on which I hung the ornaments from the top of the card using silver embroidery thread.  I'm not exactly sure where I was going with the label frame behind the ornaments, but I guess it works!

For my last card, I stitched some papers at an angle again and placed the die cut tree at the intersection.  I used the pretty, silver sheer ribbon to add some interest at the bottom.

In addition to our amazing regular designers, we have a special guest this month, so be sure to stop by The 12 Kits blog to find out who it is.  There is also a prize up for grabs this month, so head over to check out the details!

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge--CAS-ual Christmas

Ready for a new Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge?  We have another wonderful sponsor and a beautiful image to work with for this week's theme:  CAS-ual Christmas.

We're fortunate to have one of the best stamp companies sponsoring us this week:  CAS-ual Fridays Stamps!  I was lucky enough to design with many of Michele's stamps when I was a member of the CAS-ual Fridays Challenge Design Team, and I still love the graphic illustrations and beautiful fonts of these versatile sets.

The Curtain Call Crew got to choose a CFS holiday set to work with for this challenge, and I chose Christmas Carols:

Doesn't the holiday scene in the inspiration photo look cozy and relaxed?  I love the rustic touches of burlap and the unexpected use of cool blue, so I included those elements in my design.

To create the tree as the focal image, I repeatedly stamped the four-petal flowers and decorated the centers with silver pearls.  I stamped one of the sentiments in Early Espresso right on top.

I finished my clean and simple design with a stitched border and a strip of burlap ribbon for texture.

Cardstock:  Stampin' Up! (Baja Breeze), WPlus9 (Oatmeal)

Stamps:  CAS-ual Fridays Stamps (Christmas Carols)

Ink:  Stampin' Up! (Old Olive, Baja Breeze, Early Espresso)

Tool:  corner rounder

Other:  Michaels (pearls), thread, burlap ribbon

Don't forget to stop by the Curtain Call Challenge blog to see the rest of the Design Team samples and link up your creation.  This week's LEAD will receive a CAS-ual Fridays stamp or die set of their choice!

Thanks for stopping by today!  Have a great start to your weekend!

Moxie Fab Thanks Blog Hop!

Today I'm participating in a very special (and enormous) blog hop for the one and only Cath Edvalson!  

You should have arrived here from Leigh Penner's blog, but you can find the full list of participants at the Moxie Fab World blog.

Like many of you, I was saddened when I found out that Cath would be saying goodbye to the Moxie Fab World and Paper Crafts magazine.  Cath has been such an incredible source of inspiration to those of us in the world of paper crafting, it's hard to imagine what it will be like in the blogosphere without her daily posts.  Not only did she make the Moxie Fab World the go-to source for everything trendy and beautiful, but her posts were always engaging, enlightening, and written in a friendly voice that made it feel like we were having a chat.

Cath, thank you for showing us that it really is a Moxie Fab World!  You will be missed!

My card for Cath is simple to keep the focus on the message.  I used an inset die cut "thanks" and the coordinating stamp from Simon Says Stamp, Echo Park paper, and Studio Calico wood veneer stars.

Cardstock:  WPlus9 (White)

Patterned paper:  Echo Park (A Perfect Summer)

Stamps:  Simon Says Stamp (STAMPtember Stamps Thanks)

Ink:  Stampin' Up! (Island Indigo)

Tools:  Simon Says Stamp (STAMPtember Thanks Craft Die), Papertrey Ink (Linen & Canvas impression plate)

Other:  Studio Calico (wood veneer stars)

To continue on the hop, your next stop is Heidi Van Laar.

Thanks again to Cath, and thank you for stopping by today!

Happy Birthday Tracey!

Hello, friends!  I have an extra special post today to celebrate the birthday of a talented designer and all-around fabulous lady, Tracey McNeely!

Lots of people want to wish Tracey a happy birthday, so our friend and fellow 12 Kits of Occasions designer, Joyce, is hosting a Linky party over on her blog.  Feel free to join in with your birthday wishes for Tracey by linking up there!

I hope Tracey doesn't think my card for her is too masculine.  :)  I wanted to incorporate an autumn theme and keep the design very clean and graphic, as Tracey's own designs tend to have lots of white space and perfect stamping.

My favorite part of this card is the stitching for the leaf veins, which adds just the right amount of texture to otherwise flat images.

Cardstock:  Stampin' Up! (Baja Breeze), Papertrey Ink (Vintage Cream),  A Muse Studio (woodgrain)

Stamps:  Paper Smooches (Leafy Greens), Clearly Besotted (Tag Along)

Ink:  Stampin' Up! (Baja Breeze, So Saffron, Peach Parfait, Chocolate Chip)

Other:  sequins, thread

I hope you have a wonderful birthday full of all of your favorite things, Tracey!  Enjoy your virtual party!

Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge--Welcome Home

Wow, how did it get to be November?!  The weeks are just flying by, and it's already time for a new challenge at the Curtain Call.  Check out our lovely inspiration photo:

Our sponsor for this challenge is Paper Issues, and they are offering a $20 gift certificate to the LEAD for the Welcome Home challenge.  Thank you, Paper Issues!

I was drawn to the soft blue, weathered wooden door in the background and the placement of the wreath off the edge of the photo.

To create this card, I first stamped the woodgrain pattern with white ink onto blue cardstock.  I ran my finger over the ink while it was still wet to soften it and remove any excess ink.

I don't have a wreath stamp large enough for the design I had in mind, so I created one using the single pine bough stamp from WPlus9's Merry & Bright.  I traced a circle in pencil where I wanted the wreath to go, then stamped the pine sprig repeatedly along that line.

The pine cone stamp is also from Merry & Bright.  The berries, sentiment, and ribbon are from WPlus9's Silver Bells.

Cardstock:  WPlus9 (Lake House, White)

Stamps:  WPlus9 (Merry & Bright, Silver Bells, Woodgrain Silhouettes)

Ink:  WPlus9 (White), Stampin' Up! (Old Olive, Chocolate Chip, Raspberry Ripple)

Tools:  WPlus9 (Silver Bells companion dies), corner rounder

Other:  Zig (Wink of Stella glitter brush)

I'm sorry if the colors seem a little washed out in my photos.  My computer is one that was issued by the college where I work, and it was recently upgraded to a newer version.  Unfortunately, the screen resolution is not as good and I will have to get used to editing my photos on it.

There's more inspiration from the talented Curtain Call Crew to help you get started!  I look forward to seeing all of the beautiful entries in the gallery this week.

Thanks for stopping by today!  I hope you have a wonderful start to your weekend.