Miscellaneous

I finally decided to redo and update my space at a local shop and I thought these candles might be a nice gift to add to my display.   Maybe they could give a teacher a break from receiving yet another apple thingy.   :)  

My next project was to add a few more packets to my Kids Card Kits. I made up three new ones with some old favorites, including my adorable sock monkey and crab.

Finally, I had a custom order for some bag tags.   I love making these so much.   They are quick and easy, but oh so adorable!  

Jason was nice and worked on making me a display to show off my bag tag samples.   I love it and can't wait to go hang them on there tomorrow!

Finally, be sure to check your orders very carefully.   I found a huge surprise in my last one!   :o)

Gotta love Bandit and his silly antics.  

It's time for club!

Thursday is such an exciting day!  Not only do I get to spend time with some of my great customers, but it is also the first day of the Holiday Mini catalog!  Are you excited??!!   I'm excited to show off some of the new products that Stampin' Up! is featuring in this fun new catalog!

Aren't those score lines lovely?    How exciting is it that in just 2 days, you can order your very own Simply Scored and make this card!?!   Score lines can add so much detail to a card while allowing it to remain flat and easy to stick in the mail with a regular stamp.  I did some sponging and color spritzing on my card to give it a more vintage, distressed look; Nature Walk is such a perfect set to show off that style. 

Even though it is still over one hundred degrees every day here in Texas, I think it is time to get started on some ideas for fall and the holidays we have coming up.   I love this card by Connie Babbert and was inspired to make my own pumpkins and ghost.   CUTE!   My husband always comments that I gravitate towards "cute" Halloween things rather than scary ones, but I'm okay with that.  Who doesn't like cute?  :o)

Now for the hard one...  The card is not hard, but coming up with Christmas ideas while wiping sweat from my brow sure was!    If anyone has cooler weather, please send it this way.   Last night I was so excited to see 88 as a high for later this week but it was back up to 92 today.   *sigh*   Between the heat and water restrictions, I think this is the worst summer ever.  Anyway, back to Christmas.   This card shows off yet another new product from the Holiday Mini.  Who doesn't LOVE stockings?!  And did you see the mini jingle bell?   Love, love, LOVE it!   I'm not a big fan of gifts, but I love filling stockings and grabbing mine off the fireplace on Christmas morning to see what goodies Jason has picked out for me.   There's just something about sticking your hand down in there to see what is next!  

I hope my club ladies will enjoy making these projects this month.   I do have a few spots open in my clubs, so let me know if you are interested and would like more details.  

Hot & Lazy

Sorry for the lack of posts lately.  I've worked on some cards for my design team and then totally got caught up in a book!   I love my Nook, but it can steal away much of my stamping time.   :)   I started reading The Lincoln Lawyer and couldn't put it down last night.   I think the battery finally died around 1:30am, so I had to come scramble to find the charger so that it would be ready to go when I woke up this morning.   After DH left for work at about 6:45, I started reading again and finished it.   I needed a nap after that of course. :)

Here are some of my bag tag samples that I made up this week.  I thought I'd add in a few designs and see if that would help my sales a bit.   I also did a couple custom sports ones and really liked them as well.  

With the temperature predicted to be 107 degrees today, there is not much going on here.   The kitties are all enjoying some good naps and I'm working on some ideas for next week's club cards.   I think I'm going to search for another book to read and then relax until DH gets home from work.  We have The Lincoln Lawyer here at home to watch, so that will be our together time later tonight.  I can't WAIT to watch it and hope it is as good as the book!

Bandit is enjoying some Stampin' Up! time today, as is his sister, Bella.   (They love to flatten out the brown packing paper and then nap on it).

Bailey likes to show off her petite figure by laying in the window.   She's the only one who actually fits there without a lot of extra hanging over the side.  :)

Hope all you folks on the East coast are staying safe!   

Stamps for Sale

My room is getting a bit crowded, so I need to find a new home for some stamps.   I had no idea that I had so many!   Where did they all come from?!     If you see something you like, feel free to make me an offer.   I will ship the cheapest way possible unless you want priority mail of course.  :)    Email me if interested.

Really Rust ink pad:  New in Package $5
In Color Hostess Pack (2011) $12

$3 sets:
Little Hellos (used, sentiments mounted on the side)
Beyond the Basics gently used

$4 sets:
Polka Dot Punches (new, unmounted)
Love Ya Bunches (gently used)
Best Blossoms (excellent)
Itty Backgrounds (have 2 of these, some staining)
Merci (excellent)

$5 sets:
Friendship Blooms (new, unmounted)
Yummy (new, unmounted)
Too Terrific Tags (excellent)
Botanical Blooms (new, unmounted)
Tag Time (slight staining, some unused)
Birthday Whimsy (new, unmounted)
So Many Thanks (excellent)
For a Friend (excellent)
Lots of Thoughts (new, unmounted)

$6 sets:
Wellness Wishes (excellent)

$7 sets:
I Did It (excellent)
Punches Three (new, unmounted)
So Many Scallops (new, unmounted)

$8 sets:
Greetings Galore (very good)
Print Pattern Background (good, some staining)
Occasions Collection (excellent, only 4 are mounted)
Itty Bitty Buds (good, staining on one block)
Congats (new, unmounted)

$10 sets:
Afterthoughts (clear, new)
Silhouette Sentiments (clear, excellent, some unused)
So Many Sayings (excellent, only 1 mounted)
Forest Friends (excellent)
Trimtastic (very good)
From the Garden (new, unmounted)
Best Friends Alphabet Upper (good, most unused)

$12 sets:
Basket Full of Fun (excellent)
Because I Care (clear, excellent)

$15 sets:
Birthday Bakery (clear, new)
Sanded (excellent)

Owls!!!

While Jason and I were enjoying watching The Help and having dinner at Red Lobster yesterday, the UPS man dropped of a box of goodies for me!    I love the owl punch, but I also wanted to try my hand at the larger, funkier owls as well.   I figured I could use the pillow box die for some cute holiday treats as well, so I didn't feel too bad about ordering it for the owls.  :)    I also got the woodgrain background stamp to replace the Woodland Walk designer paper from the past catalog.    I made my big owl first, but then decided he needed a matching card.   Aren't they adorable?  I used retired paper to test it out because the first attempt usually doesn't turn out.   I think this one actually did though!  

Card:
Stamps:  Woodgrain background, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Ink:  Concord Crush
Paper: Hostess In Color stack (retired), Concord Crush, More Mustard, Whisper White
Tools:  Dotted Scallop Ribbon border punch, 1 3/4 scallop circle punch, 1 3/8 circle punch, Owl builder punch

Owl Box:
Paper:  Hostess In Color stack (retired), Concord Crush, More Mustard, Whisper White, Basic Black
Tools:  Big Shot, Pillow Box die, 3/4 circle punch, 1 1/4 circle punch, Blossom Petals Builder Punch, retired heart punch
Accessories:  Basic Rhinestones

Monkeys for The Paper Players

I needed more cards for kids, so I decided to pull out one of my favorite sets, Fox & Friends, and use it with this week's sketch from The Paper Players.   I added in a few things from my recent order and I think the old and new really worked great together on this card.   The Stripes embossing folder is great for just about any type of card and look at that super fun sentiment!  Isn't that the coolest font?  I love it!   

I also added in a special element, the number.   What's so special about a number you ask?   Well, that number symbolizes what I love about Stampin' Up! and being a demonstrator.    As some of you know, I was on the Creative Crew design team on Splitcoast Stampers during much of the summer.   I had the honor of working with some great ladies, but one of them became so much more.   Kathy from Stamping Still is now one of my great friends and I enjoy our emails so much.   She's all the way over in Australia, but that doesn't matter thanks to technology.   She has created some adorable cards that have the addition of numbers on them and I had once commented that I loved that special touch.   Unfortunately, I didn't have the dies needed to do that on my cards.   Well, one day I open my mailbox and guess what was in there?   A whole bag of numbers that she had cut for me and one of her beautiful cards!   I cried of course.   :)   That's why I love being a demonstrator.  It's not just about selling stamping supplies, it's all about the bonds of friendship.  

Now before I leave you, I'll share a picture from last night.   Someone totally took over my spot on the couch.     :)   He's such a silly boy!

Cupcakes & Cards class

Just a few highlights from my class today:

My Shirley Temple cupcakes.  I am not a cake decorator, but I think they turned out pretty cute.  :)   

Rebecca & Cindy with their awesome cards.   

If that looks fun, you should come to my next class!   Even better, I have a new stamper's group starting up on September 16th!    I still have a couple of spots open, so if you are interested, contact me today for all the details!    It's a great way to build up your supplies, plus you get the opportunity to earn hostess benefits!   

Cupcakes & Cards class

Tomorrow I'll be hosting a fun day out for some lovely ladies.   We'll be making 4 cards, including this one, and snacking on some cupcakes.  I'm making these yummy looking Shirley Temple Cupcakes with a matching drink!   :)    I'll post more pictures after I get my baking finished.  (Just don't expect them to look like the website; I am NOT a cake decorator.  I failed miserably at the one Wilton class that I took!)

And seriously, I'm going to CRY on September 1st when I can't use this set for classes!   I LOVE it so much!

Stamps:  Word Play, The Open Sea
Ink:  Not Quite Navy, Riding Hood Red
Paper:  Whisper White, Not Quite Navy, Riding Hood Red, Nautical Expedition designer paper
Accessories: Cherry Cobbler Baker's Twine
Tools:  Cutter Kit, sponges, 3/4 inch circle punch

Tutorial Time :)

During Convention, my awesome roommate, Jackie Topa, challenged me to work up a tutorial to add to my blog.   So...here it is!   Button Buddies is my favorite new stamp set, so I focused on it and the Brights collection.   The cards are designed to use for a stamp-a-stack or as a class.  Or if you just like the set, get it and make the cards for yourself!    The ink pads and markers are unique for each card so that you can easily set up stations.    All the measurements and directions are included.   But wait!  There's more!  Each of these cards also has a stepped up version and the measurements and instructions are included for those as well!   It's almost like getting two tutorials for the price of one.  :)  

So for $7.50 you get:
A picture of each card, both the simple and stepped up versions.
Measurements for each card.
A supply list for each card.

No materials are provided, just directions.  Please see my Stampin' Up! website to order.  :)

The .pdf will be sent out within 24 hours of purchase.   See my sidebar to get going!

Now that I'm finished, I can go stamp for fun!  This has been quite a bit of work.  :)

Labor of Love

For my last month as a designer on the Splitcoast Creative Crew, I decided to really go all out.   I had bookmarked this really awesome shadow box by Nancy Riley ages ago, but never thought I'd have the patience or skill to make one of my own.   Well...one day I was at the craft store browsing the frames and I saw this one.  It was on sale for around $3.50, so I figured if I got it and couldn't do it, no real harm.  :)    The challenge was to use 3 colors from the Pocketful of Posies paper, so I picked Early Espresso, Poppy Parade, and So Saffron.   It took a big of figuring out, but I sat down and sketched out ideas for each of my squares and then went to work.   By the end, I was having so much fun that I hated to see it complete.   So...I now have another frame, a larger frame, in my room waiting.  :)

Thanks for stopping by to visit!  

Halloween!

I thought I'd share my losing Halloween card today.   One of the benefits of being a demonstrator is an awesome monthly magazine called Stampin' Success.   It is filled with great articles and in the back, there's always a monthly contest.   I decided to submit a card last month and the challenge was Halloween.  I didn't win, but I did have fun making my card.   I love the little owl and hope he'll be knocking on my door for some candy.  :)    

This is a picture that was in the same folder as my Halloween card.   I'm not the only crafty creature in the house.   While I was away mailing my card to Stampin' Up!, Bandit decided to make himself a tutu.   Isn't it cute?  LOL   The bag was in our bedroom and I found the remaining part of it all the way across the house.  I'm guessing that there was a bit of freaking out once he got it stuck around him.   Silly boy.  He was happy to model it for me, so enjoy the fashion show.  

Button Buddies!

It's he cute?    I love this set!   In fact, I am going to have to buy more buttons because I've been using it so much! (Stay tuned for more information on why!)   This was one of my cards for the August Creative Crew challenge (still time to play along!) to use paper piercing on your card.   I used my paper piercing tool to create a little snail trail and then added some glitter to make it look a bit shiny and slimy just like a real snail trail!    :)    Gross, huh?   lol

Stamps:  Tiny Tags, Button Buddies
Ink:  Garden Green, Cajun Craze
Paper:  Cajun Craze, Garden Green, Crumb Cake, Neutrals designer paper stack, Whisper White
Accessories:  Regals buttons, Baker's Twine (white), Dazzling Diamonds
Tools:  Big Shot, Square Lattice embossing folder, Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border punch, Jewelry Tag punch, Paper Piercing Tool

Now...if you really like this set as much as I do, then you need to come to my next class!   Here are the details:

Button Buddies Class

Sep 03 
12:00 PM - 2:00 PM  (Central)

Love buttons?   The new Button Buddies stamp set is perfect for combining the fun of stamping with the cuteness of buttons.   Come join me in some crafty time where we'll make 4 cards using this awesome set.

Cost for the class is $15 for projects only, $35 for the clear-mount stamp set and half a package of buttons, or $45 for the wood-mount set and half a package of buttons.  Please RSVP by August 25th if you'd like to order the stamps/buttons or 3 days in advance if just completing the projects.    As always, please bring along your favorite adhesive and scissors.  

Tax-Free Weekend!

If you are like me and hate crowds (and like to shop in your jammies), then I have some great information for you!   You can avoid the rush over crayons and paper this weekend and shop from home for yummy Stampin' Up! products instead!    Oh yeah!   Stampin' Up! is awesome and participates in the sales tax holiday that comes with back-to-school shopping!  Now to the list (as you can see, it is a great time to stock up on adhesives, markers, and other coloring tools!):

Item Number Description   Price

100425 2-Way Glue Pen $    3.50

100902 Dotto Refill $    6.50

101879 Watercolor Pencils (24) $   19.95

102845 Blender Pens (3) $    9.95

103179 Craft & Rubber Scissors $   19.95

103305 Dotto $   12.95

103579 Paper Snips $    9.95

103683 Mini Glue Dots $    4.95

104045 Anywhere Glue Sticks (2) $    3.95

104294 Sticky Strip $    6.95

104331 SNAIL Refill $    4.50

104332 SNAIL Adhesive $    6.95

104430 Stampin' Dimensionals $    3.95

105021 Uni-ball Signo Gel Pen $    3.95

105394 Basic Black Stampin' Write Journaler $    3.50

108360 Craft Scissors $   29.95

110755 Multipurpose Liquid Glue $    3.95

Varies Stampin' Write Marker $    3.50

119700 Subtles Collection Stampin' Write Markers (10) $   28.95

119701 Regals Collection Stampin' Write Markers (10) $   28.95

119702 Brights Collection Stampin' Write Markers (10) $   28.95

119703 Neutrals Collection Stampin' Write Markers (8) $   22.95

119801 2010-2012 In Color Stampin' Write Markers (5) $   14.95

119802 Subtles Collection Watercolor Wonder Crayons (10) $   16.95

119803 Regals Collection Watercolor Wonder Crayons (10) $   16.95

119804 Brights Collection Watercolor Wonder Crayons (10) $   16.95

119805 Neutrals Collection Watercolor Wonder Crayons (10) $   16.95

120962 Stampin' Pastels $   24.95

123002 2011-2013 In Color Stampin' Write Markers (5) $   14.95

If you are in Texas and would like to take advantage of this savings, please have your order to me by 3pm on Sunday OR you can place an online order on my website.   (and of course your order can include anything (including the designer paper from the paper promotion, but only the above items will be exempt from sales tax).  

Drum roll please...

I just realized that I totally forgot to announce my awesome news!    I think it was (well, is) still sinking in for me.  :)   A couple of weeks ago I was moping around feeling sorry for myself because I really, really, REALLY wanted to be on a design team.   I enjoyed my month as guest designer at the Paper Players so much that I wanted to have that challenge and camaraderie every month.   Well, Lesley surprised me last week by asking me to join her new sketch challenge site, Freshly Made Sketches!    Like a silly girl, I cried....and stressed...and then said YES!    I'm very excited and I hope you'll join us for our first sketch challenge on September 7th.   In the meantime, be sure to go visit the new blog and follow us!

Creative Crew Open Sea

Here's the last of my July Creative Crew projects.   I LOVE this stamp set!    I can't believe it will be gone in just a little over 2 weeks.   I hope you have added it to your collection by now; if not, what are you waiting for?   It's THE perfect masculine set and you can buy the equally perfect designer paper to match!   Shoot, you can even buy 3 packs of it and get another one free right now!    What? You don't hoard designer paper?  Really?   Hmm...  Me either.  :o)  

This set uses my absolute favorite color, Island Indigo with two neutrals, Early Espresso and Crumb Cake.    (Doesn't a coffee with some crumb cake sound delish?  We've been following the South Beach Diet for about 2.5 weeks now and I am very sugar deprived.)   Anyway...   I embossed the compass stamp with white embossing powder on watercolor paper and then used my Aquapainter and stamp pad to color the rest of the paper before stamping the ship and travel log in Early Espresso.  While I was at it, I added some personality to my Island Indigo layer by stamping the other images from the set on it.   Isn't it just screaming MAN?  Thankfully it doesn't smell like one!

Stamps:  The Open Sea
Ink:  Island Indigo, Early Espresso, Versamark
Paper:  Island Indigo, Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, watercolor paper, Nautical Expedition designer paper
Accessories:  white embossing powder
Tools:  Aquapainter, heat tool

Bright Doilies

This fun, bright card was another one of my Creative Crew designs for July.    We were asked to use some of our favorite new products from the catalog.   I dug in and used tons of new stuff; the Delicate Doilies stamp set, the Flirtatious designer paper, and two of the new In Colors!   (and notice, I did manage to overlap my doilies, but just a tad bit!)  

Stamps:  Delicate Doilies, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Ink:  Lucky Limeade, Island Indigo, Daffodil Delight
Paper:  Lucky Limeade, Island Indigo, Daffodil Delight, Whisper White, Flirtatious designer paper
Accessories:  Brights buttons, linen thread
Tools:  Dotted Scalloped Ribbon Border Punch (say that three times fast!)

Hope you are having a wonderful weekend!   Thanks for stopping by to visit.
~Rita

Pool Party!

I just realized that I haven't posted quite a few of my projects from the July and August Creative Crew challenges.   Not familiar with the Creative Crew?  It's an awesome group of Stampin' Up! demonstrators who work hard each month to design cards for super fun challenges over on Splitcoast Stampers!  We love making sure that there are plenty of cards featuring our wonderful line of products for all to see!   This was a July challenge to use one of the new In Colors.  I chose Pool Party and used my favorite tool and best friend the Color Coach to find the perfect combination for my card.   I seriously couldn't stamp without this thing.  If you don't have it yet, GET IT!   :)

Stamps:  Just Believe

Ink:  Pear Pizzazz, Not Quite Navy, Pool Party

Paper: So Saffron, ot Quite Navy, Pool Party, Naturals White

Accessories:  So Saffron Grosgrain ribbon (retired)

Tools:  Paper Piercer, Big Shot, Square Lattice embossing folder

Side Note:  I'm disappointed in the quality of photos on Blogger lately.  If you want to see a better image, you can click on the picture and it will show you a larger, clearer picture.  

Enjoy your weekend! 

Creative Sketches meets Connie & Mary

Please tell me I'm not the only messy crafter out there.   I didn't straighten up after my dinosaur card yesterday, so this was what I found when I went in my room to create today.   Oh my!   It's no surprise that I lose things a lot.   :)

Enough of my messy desk...what do you think about my card?   I combined the colors from the Creative Sketches challenge with the sketch from Create with Connie & Mary and here's what I came up with.   I love these clean and simple cards.   I used to be offended when someone called my card simple (well, I still am sometimes), but I'm learning to deal with it.  :)   It's probably fairly simple to recreate, but the concept and design part is not so simple.

I'm still not a big fan of Raining Flowers, but I have come to love the shape of the big flower.   I just stamp it, cut it out, and use the reverse side.  :)    Now I have fallen in love with Poppy Parade.  It was not a color that I was drawn to at first, but after buying the markers and a pack of the assorted card stock, I think I'm going to have to invest in the ink pad and full pack of it.  Now Peach Parfait is a whole other story...   :)  

I do need to buy some neutrals buttons; I had to pull a retired one out of my stash and it isn't nearly as pretty as the current ones.  

Stamps:  Tiny Tags, Raining Flowers, En Francais
Ink: Basic Black, Poppy Parade
Paper:  Basic Black, Poppy Parade, Neutrals DSP stack, Basic Gray
Accessories:  Basic Gray 3/8 taffeta ribbon (retired), Basic Black button (retired), White Baker's Twine
Tools:  Big Shot, Houndstooth embossing folder, jewelry tag punch, Blossom Petals punch

Hope you are having a wonderful Thursday!
Come again soon,
~Rita

Roar!!!!!

I love this new stamp set!    I couldn't wait to break it out and use it, so here's my card for today's sketch challenge from Splitcoast Stampers.   It was so fun to design and color.   I also used a few other new products, the houndstooth and stripes embossing folders.   Don't you love it?!    My BFF the Color Coach picked out the colors.  

Stamps:  Dinoroar

Ink:  Cajun Craze, Staz-On, Stampin' Up! markers

Paper:  Cajun Craze, Pear Pizzazz, More Mustard, Whisper White, In Color Hostess pack (retired)

Tools:  Big Shot, Stripes and Houndstooth embossing folders, circle punches

I thought I'd share a picture from our yard.  Eli's tree is all bloomed out now.   It always waits for his birthday month to really show how beautiful it is.

Oh sorry...

...did I wake you?  No need for coffee this morning; this bright card should wake you up in a snap!   When I saw the colors of the colourQ challenge this week I knew it would be a difficult one for me.  Tangerine Tango is another color that I struggle to use.  I only hope that it falls in love with my Daffodil Delight and they run off into the sun together one day.   I did get to play with new stuff today, so I was excited about that.  I love new stuff.  :)    (oh, before you start planning an intervention for my Tiny Tags usage, I promise not to use it on the next card.)

Stamps:  Hello Doily, Tiny Tags
Ink:   Tangerine Tango, Melon Mambo, Pool Party, Versamark
Paper:  Whisper White, Tangerine Tango, Melon Mambo, Pool Party
Accessories:  In Color Brads, Pool Party ruffled ribbon, black embossing powder
Tools:  Heat Tool, Big Shot, Stripes embossing folder, sponge daubers, jewelry tag punch

Strength & Hope Class

(inspired by Maureen)

This Saturday I will be hosting a class featuring the Strength & Hope stamp set from the Summer Mini.   Stampin' Up! is donating $2 from the sale of each set to breast cancer research and I feel blessed to be a part of such an effort.   If you'd like to attend or purchase the supplies to make these cards, contact me today for more details.   It's a wonderful stamp set that can be used for many different looks.   There's only a few weeks left to get it, so don't miss out!  

Happy Birthday, Lesley!

Happy Birthday, Lesley!    I feel so honored to be a part of this awesome blog hop celebrating the birthday of such a sweet lady.   I love your positive attitude and of course your amazing stampin' skills.   You always find some kind words to say about even the worst of my projects and for that, I absolutely adore you.  :)   I hope you have a wonderful day!    

For my card, I wanted something cheery and fun because that's what birthdays should be!  I used the inspiration picture from this week's Play Date Cafe challenge to come up with my colors and I love them together!   Be sure to hop on over to the rest of the blogs to see more fun birthday ideas and of course go by Lesley's blog and wish her a very happy birthday.   

Stamps:  Upsy Daisy, Delicate Doilies

Ink:   Lucky Limeade, Poppy Parade, Calypso Coral

Paper:  Lucky Limeade, Poppy Parade, Calypso Coral, Whisper White, In Color Hostess Stack (retired)

Accessories:  Basic Rhinestones, Lucky Limeade ruffled ribbon, homemade shimmer mist

Tools:  Scallop Trim border punch

Here's the list of blog hop participants:

Ann Marie Hile:  Stampin' Anne
Carrie Gaskin:  Artistic Avenger
Cindy Beach:  Stamps, Paper, and Ink
Jaydee:  Stampin! with Jaydee
Jen Mitchell:  I Create
Joan Jeffery:  J J Creations
Lauri Ingram:  Paperville
Laurie:  Hiding in my Craft Room
LeAnne Pugliese:  wee inklings
Nance Leedy:  Canopy Crafts
Cards by Rita:   You are here!  
Sandra Azzopardi:  Sandra's Stamping Spot
Tui Nathan:  Stampin' Time

Inkspirations Flowers

I don't know what I clicked on, but I can't get this darn background color behind the text to go away.  Sorry.  I tried and tried and then tried again to fix it.  :(   Forgive me.   

This is my card for this week's Inspirations challenge.   I love sketch challenges!   I knew I wanted to use some of my purples today and what goes better with it than green?!    I love Lucky Limeade paired with them!    I took pity on Awash with Flowers and took it off my shelf today.   I don't like it very much.   Even if you use the Stamp-a-ma-jig, the images just do not line up.   Yes, I know they aren't meant to, but I like for my color to be inside the lines.   Maybe one day I'll get on some meds that let me overlap dollies or color outside the lines, but for now I just have to be crazy and stress over that stuff.  :)   

Stamps:  Awash with Flowers (sigh)

Ink:  Concord Crush, Wisteria Wonder, Lucky Limeade

Paper:  Concord Crush, Wisteria Wonder, Lucky Limeade, Whisper White, Cheerful Treat DSP

Accessories:  In Color Brads (pretty!), Basic Pearls, Concord Crush ribbon

What?

I finally get chosen as one of the top picks on the Pals Paper Arts challenge and this is what I follow it up with?   Can you see my sad face?   I hate when I have an idea and it turns out all crappy.   This card serves as a reminder for me.  No punch art allowed in my craft room.  Just stamping.  Stamping = pretty.   Hopefully everyone makes a yucky card every now and then.  I am just dumb enough to post mine I guess.  :)  Or maybe I should have made this more positive and totally convinced you that this was a true work of art?     I blame it all on the Daffodil Delight.  We are not friends.

Okay...moving on.

Splitcoast Challenges!

Before you ask, yes, I made this.  It is not my normal style, but isn't that the point of challenges?   We won't talk about how distressing I find distressing or how I cringe when I put things on crooked...let's just focus on the card.    What do you think?   I had to channel my friend Ann a bit on this one.   She is amazing at the distressed look and is the reigning queen of the color spritzer.   I need to ask her  for some vacuuming tips now that my floor is covered with little balls of paper from all the distressing.  :)

So what possessed me to make this and do all the tearing and distressing?    Nope.  It's not the lack of carbs for a week.   It was for this week's color challenge over on Splitcoast!   They asked us to use gray, turquoise, and white.   I love turquoise with red, but I wasn't sure about this gray thing.   I do like how it turned out though.   Now it was also for a secret challenge on Splitcoast as well.   This week they are having the Dare to Get Dirty challenges for fan club members.   So...if you aren't a member of the website. go sign up!   If you are but aren't a fan club member, do that!   It's fun.   Who doesn't like fun?  

Stamps:  Grunge Rock
Ink:  Tempting Turquoise, Basic Gray
Paper:  Naturals White, Tempting Turquoise, Basic Gray, Brights DSP stack, Neutrals DSP stack
Accessories:  Basic Rhinestones
Tools: Big Shot, Stars #2 die, cutter kit, sponges

Finally...

I inked up one of the stamp sets we received at Convention today.  :)   Yay!  I figured I should try to use them all before my new stuff gets here.  

I jokingly told a friend the other night that combining a sketch challenge and a color challenge created 95% of the card for you.   This card made me eat those words a bit.  I used the colors from the colourQ challenge and paired them with the weekly sketch challenge on Splitcoast. I took me a bit to figure out where to use each color and what elements to add in, but I finally managed to get something that I liked.   What do you think?   I am not the best at coloring, so I'm trying to work on it a bit.  Just like I don't like things touching, I also don't like my coloring to go outside of the lines.   That makes watercoloring difficult, but I'm trying...  

Stamps:  Easy Events
Ink:  Lucky Limeade, Basic Gray, Tempting Turquoise, Bashful Blue, Staz On
Paper:  Lucky Limeade, Basic Gray, Tempting Turquoise, Bashful Blue, watercolor paper
Accessories:  Basic Pearls, Bright brads
Tools:  Big Shot, various embossing folders, scallop circle punch, circle punch, scallop trim border punch, aquapainter

Taking a break today...

I know my blogging has been a bit sporadic lately, but thanks for hanging in there with me.  This time of year is really hard on us.   Our son's 3rd birthday is today, but he's not here to celebrate.   He was born with a genetic disorder called Spinal Muscular Atrophy and passed away before he turned 6 months old.   As August is SMA Awareness Month, I wanted to take a minute to pass along some information on my blog.

This is SMA:

• SMA KILLS more infants and young children than any other inherited disease.

• There is NO treatment. There is NO cure.

• SMA is degenerative, eventually hindering the ability to walk, stand, sit, eat, breathe and even swallow. The mind is no different from that of a healthy baby, but the body eventually fails.

• Typical babies with SMA Type 1 have a life expectancy of between one and two years and require around-the-clock medical assistance and monitoring.

• 1 in every 40 people or nearly 10 million Americans UNKNOWINGLY carry the gene responsible for SMA — few have any known family history of SMA.

• SMA is a pan-ethnic disease and does not discriminate based on race, ethnicity, or gender.

• While SMA is currently incurable, untreatable, and drastically underfunded –> There is HOPE.

• The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) selected SMA as the disease CLOSEST TO TREATMENT of more than 600 neurological disorders.

• SMA is considered a MODEL DISEASE with direct impact on research into many other diseases, potentially benefiting millions of people.

If you made it this far, thank you.  

Happy Birthday, Eli.   I miss you.   I miss you every single day of my life and I always will.

Pay Attention to Deadlines

Ugh!   I spent so much time trying to figure out a way to use the colourQ colors together yesterday and totally didn't realize that I was going to miss the window to actually submit my card for the challenge.  Oh well.  I still used Calypso Coral and for that I feel accomplished.   I do get to submit it for my favorite challenge, The Paper Players!    This awesome sketch was done by Nance, who is a such a sweetheart!  We seem to share a love of woodgrain and pinwheels, so I enjoy chatting with her on email.    But back to the card...what do you think?   Did I manage to get the right proportions of the colors?   You probably can't see it very well in the picture, but the Pool Party layer is stamped in Delicate Doilies and embossed in Iridescent Ice.  It is so shiny and pretty in person.   I also used some homemade shimmer mist on the image panel as well.

Now I'll share a little secret with you...  I love Delicate Doilies, but I don't like for them to touch each other.   I have seen lots of pretty cards where people overlap them and they look great, but I can't do it.  It stresses me out.  I even tried it on this card and had to start over.   For the record, I don't like my food to touch either.  :)

Stamps:  Delicate Doilies
Ink:  Calypso Coral, Early Espresso, Pool Party, Island Indigo, Versamark
Paper:  Calypso Coral, Early Espresso, Pool Party, Island Indigo, Whisper White
Accessories:  Iridescent Ice embossing powder, Early Espresso 3/8 taffeta ribbon, Basic Rhinestones, Shimmer Mist
Tools:  Heat tool, Jewelry Tag punch