Cards, cards, CARDS!

Did you survive the time change?  It's rough when you have a little one in the house.  No extra hour of sleep here for sure!   We've had a busy day, but I found a bit of time to stamp and then blog tonight.   I have a few days worth of Hope You Can Cling To cards to share.  This first one is for Kathleen's challenge to honor our elders.  I tried to do a vintage card with gold... I don't like vintage OR gold, but I do like doilies and Fun Flowers.  :)

This simple shaker card was for Judy's challenge to use acetate.  I still love this snowman and am sad that he's retired.  He's too cute to not use! 

Joyce's challenge was a subway art one.  I used the So Many Thanks photopolymer set and some Gorgeous Grunge splashes for this one.  Simple, but we won't discuss how many times my tired self smeared it and had to start over.

This last one is for Holly's challenge to make a holiday card with glitter.  I used my old snowflake die and some silver glimmer paper to add some sparkly snowflakes mixed in with some Midnight Muse ones stamped with the Endless Wishes photopolymer set. 

Whew...that's a lot of cards.  

My little mischievous pumpkin.  

FMS: One Year!

Time to celebrate!  Today is challenge #52 from Freshly Made Sketches.  We have officially been going for one year now.  I wish I could say I'd done all 52, but pregnancy and a baby had me taking some time off.   I'm hoping to return with this sketch, but we'll see how things go.  Anyway, for this week we invite you to pick any of our previous sketches and work your magic!

This is one of the sketches that I missed while on my break. I really wanted to play along that week but just couldn't get things together to do it.  I jumped at the chance to do it this week and it was just as much fun as I thought it would be!  If you want to see the original creations from the design team, you can find them here. 

Look at all that Very Vanilla.  You already know that it's stressing me out.  :)   lol  I think it's a fun card though and it used up a few strips of DSP that were in my scrap pile.  I can't ever seem to use up my scraps.  If you see me on a episode of Hoarders, my house will probably be covered in paper scraps from my cardmaking.  

Stamps:  Bright Hopes (retired)

Ink: Cherry Cobbler

Paper: Cherry Cobbler, Very Vanilla, Lucky Limeade, Festival of Prints DSP

Tools/Accessories:  Big Shot, Snowburst, Petals-a-Plenty, and Lacy Brocade embossing folders, Regals buttons, Cherry Cobbler Baker's Twine, Basic Pearls

She's found her hands and thinks they are quite tasty!  :)

Many Mini Trees

I really wanted to find time to play along with my ladies over at Freshly Made Sketches last week but time just got away from me and I didn't get my card made in time.  I had the idea for one in my head so I sat down last night to make it anyway.  :)    

White space tends to stress me out, but I'm trying to learn to embrace it and use it like any other color.  I think I actually like this one!  The embossing distracts me and I forget that it's SO white!  :)   I used the fun new Merry Minis punch pack that I received as a gift from my sweet friend Mindy.   They are just adorable!   I'm not sure I love the sentiment on the banner, but I wasn't sure what else to do with it.  Any ideas?

Stamps:  Bright Hopes (retired)

Ink:  Real Red

Paper:  Whisper White, Lucky Limeade

Tools/Accessories:  Big Shot, Lace Brocade embossing folder, Merry Minis punch pack

Here's another image from Laila's Hope Calendar photo shoot.  I just love how peaceful and sweet she looks!

PP76: Gold, Cherry, & Vanilla

It is time for the final Paper Players challenge of the year!  Ann is taking us out with a bang and a gorgeous clean-and-simple color combination.   It is perfect to sneak in one more Christmas card for the year!  

I HAD to use Bright Hopes again.  It has less than a month left as a current stamp set and I am going to miss it so, so much!   It is one of my all time favorite sets for sure!   I was excited to use my birthday present too!  I treated myself to the Tasteful Trim die with my birthday discount and I am so happy to finally own it!    I couldn't wait to use it, so it is an early birthday present of sorts.  :)   I love looking at creations with a lot of white space, so I tired to leave a bit more on my card this time.  I'm not sure that I'd call it successful, but I did try at least.   

I found this cool sketch at Card Patterns and wanted to use it for my card:

  

I hope you will join us in this final challenge for the year!  

Stamps:  Bright Hopes

Ink:  Versamark

Paper:  Brushed Gold, Cherry Cobbler, Very Vanilla

Tools/Accessories:   Big Shot, Tasteful Trim die, Scallop Circles #2 die, 3-inch circle die, Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder, Cherry Cobbler embossing powder, Cherry Cobbler seam binding, Champagne Shimmer Paint

Bright Hopes for Club

I have stamp club on Thursday and needed another project for it, so today I came up with this one.   It's similar to one I'd made before, but I went with more traditional colors, added a bit of bling, and changed the ribbon to the gorgeous red satin.  Instead of embossing the image, I stamped it twice and cut out one to get some dimension.   Now I initially didn't do that, but when I showed the card to my husband he said it needed dimension.  :)   He has a good eye, so back to work I went!   I hope the ladies will enjoy making this one.   This set is one of my favorites and I can't wait to share it with them!  

I did try setting up a little station to take pictures after dark, but I see that my Garden Green card stock looks more like Wild Wasabi.   Back to the drawing board on that I guess!

Stamps:  Bright Hopes
Ink:  Real Red
Paper:  Real Red, Garden Green, Whisper White
Tools/Accessories: Big Shot, Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder, Frost White shimmer paint, Real Red Satin ribbon, Basic Rhinestones

Red and Pink Christmas

Well, I've said many times that I love non-traditional colors for Christmas, so here's a bit more proof!     When I saw the color combination at Just Add Ink this week, I knew I'd be doing a Christmas card.   Cherry Cobbler always makes me think Christmas and I knew I could somehow work in Blushing Bride with it.   One of my favorite products is Cherry Cobbler seam binding, so that was my first thought when I saw the Pals Paper Arts challenge to use ribbon.   Nothing makes bows quite like the seam binding.  I love it!

What do you think?   I have a friend who just loves pink, so I know where this one is going next month!   :)

Stamps:  Bright Hopes
Ink:  Versamark
Paper:  Cherry Cobbler, Blushing Bride, Whisper White
Tools/Accessories:  Cherry Cobbler embossing powder, Cherry Cobbler seam binding, embossing buddy, heat tool, Big Shot, Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder

Try Stampin' On Tuesday #37

I hope you enjoyed the posts from the weekend.  We took a trip to Florida so I was away and didn't stamp for a whole 4 days!   I was ready to get back in my room and create today, especially since I got some new goodies yesterday!   I decided to try a new challenge today, the Try Stampin' On Tuesday challenge!   It was a very fun sketch to work with and I loved how my card turned out.    Bright Hopes is such an awesome set!  Do you have it yet?  :o)

The beaches of Florida were amazing, so I thought I should share a picture.  :)   Our friends got married on the beach at Navarre and it was just gorgeous there.    This picture was taken in Pensacola; we decided to stay there at a neat little bed-and-breakfast.   It was a nice trip and we stayed busy for the few days we were there.   I would love to go back someday and do a bit more exploring of the area.

Stamps:  Bright Hopes, Woodgrain background
Ink:  Garden Green, Real Red, Crumb Cake
Paper:  Garden Green, Real Red, Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla, Neutrals DSP stack
Tools/Accessories:  Big Shot, Vintage Wallpaper and Stripes embossing folders, basic pearls, white baker's twine, Brights buttons, sponges, paper snips, Dotted Scallop Ribbon border punch

Catalog Inspiration: Bright Hopes

Yesterday I posted a card that I copied from the Holiday Mini Catalog.   For today, I wanted to share another card inspired by the catalog, but this one is a bit different.   I loved the card on page 23 of the catalog, but I didn't have the stamp set that I'd need to recreate it.   Instead, I looked at it and decided what parts I could do exactly and what I'd need to find in my supplies to do the rest.   Looking at the image panel, I knew I'd need something to stamp in the background and a large sentiment of some sort.  I looked over my stamps and decided to go with my new favorite, Bright Hopes, for the background image.  My largest Christmas sentiment was from the hostess set in the Holiday Mini, Warmest of Wishes, so I decided to use that as well.

Here's the original card:

It's not quite the original card, but it is still gorgeous!  Well, I think so anyway.  :)   I am enjoying the inspiration I'm getting from the catalog, so stay tuned for more cards.  I'd love for you to try one too!  If you do, be sure to come back and post a link to your blog or online gallery so we can all go check out your beautiful work!

Stamps:  Warmest of Wishes, Bright Hopes
Ink:  River Rock, Cherry Cobbler, Versamark
Paper:  Cherry Cobbler, River Rock, Very Vanilla
Tools/Accessories:  Big Shot, Fancy Fan Letterpress plate, Dotted Scallop Ribbon border punch, Itty Bitty punch pack, heat tool, clear embossing powder, basic pearls, Cherry Cobbler seam binding

Catalog Inspiration: Stitched Stocking

One of the questions I get a lot as a demonstrator is where I come up with my ideas.   For those of you who visit frequently, you know I love participating in various challenge blogs.   I really enjoy starting out with a sketch and have quite a few of them printed out to use as a reference.   If that sounds like too much work, you have inspiration right at your fingertips!  If you look at the front of your Stampin' Up! catalog, you should notice that it doesn't just say catalog; it is also an idea book!  There are so many gorgeous samples that you can copy or use as inspiration.   You might like the design of one, the colors of another, and an embellishment you find on yet another one!   I kept it simple with this one and copied a card from the Holiday Mini catalog.  You can find it on page 34 of your catalog and here's what it looks like:

I did change mine to a normal A2 card and, but other than that, it is pretty much the same!   Cool, huh?

Stamps:  Stitched Stockings, Bright Hopes
Ink:  Real Red, Old Olive
Paper:  Real Red, Whisper White, Brights DSP stack, Flirtatious DSP
Tools/Accessories:  Stocking Builder Punch, paper snips, White baker's twine

FMS6: Bright Hopes

It's time for another sketch from Freshly Made Sketches!  This one has a lot of fun elements, so I think you'll have a blast playing along with us!   Lauri Ingram is our featured designer this week, so be sure to stop by her blog to say hello.   She has some gorgeous clean cards on her blog and I love her beautiful creations.  

Here is my second take on the sketch.  I'll show you the first one in a bit.  :)     Jen Timko, one of my fellow design team members, made some beautiful cards with the Bright Hopes stamp set and I had to have it after seeing them.   Isn't it gorgeous?  It is such an elegant set of stamps and one I know I'll be using for years to come.   I paired the set with some equally elegant colors, River Rock and Cherry Cobbler.   I love how it turned out!  I haven't purchased the Cherry Cobbler embossing powder yet, so I did the next best thing and inked my stamp with Cherry Cobbler, then Versamark, and then embossed it with clear embossing powder. It gives it a much richer look than simply stamping it in Cherry Cobbler alone. 

Stamps:  Bright Hopes

Ink:  Cherry Cobbler, Versamark

Paper:  River Rock, Cherry Cobbler, Very Vanilla, Neutrals Designer Paper stack

Tools/Accessories:  Big Shot, Northern Frost Decorative Strip die, heat tool, clear embossing powder, embossing buddy, Cherry Cobbler seam binding, Basic Rhinestones

This was my first card for the sketch.   I think it turned out nice, but it wasn't quite what I wanted for the challenge.   I do love non-traditional colors for Christmas and I can't say that I've seen many pink and brown ones.  :)    Greeting Card Kids is such an adorable set of stamps and I'm so glad I finally purchased it.   

Stamps:  Greeting Card Kids

Ink:  Blushing Bride, Early Espresso, Pear Pizzazz, Bashful Blue

Paper:  Blushing Bride, Early Espresso, Whisper White, 2010 In Color Hostess stack (retired)

Tools/Accessories:  Big Shot, Fancy Favor die (for the border), Backgrounds #1 Texturz plates, Northern Frost Decorative Strip die, blender pen, mica flakes, Early Espresso taffeta ribbon (retired), In Color Glimmer brads

Be sure to stop and say hello to my fellow designers:

Tui Nathan

Lesley Croghan

Linda Callahan

Jen Mitchell

Cindy Hall

Jen Timko