A Friend to Friend Valentine

Good evening! I made this card today for the OCC challenge of the week, which was to use 2 or more hearts, as well as for the Taylored Expressions cupcake sketch challenge (TECC53).  I wish you could see the card in real life, because it packs more punch with all of the glitter I've added!  I used the stamp set "Love You Much" from SU! as well as some older dp by SU! The Au Chocolat and Cerise collections.  I love brown and pink for Valentine's day, but brown and red look fabulous together too!  I used a bunch of new punches on this card, including a Martha Stewart heart punch (in the upper left corner). These are matted on a SU! flower punch.  For the heart border, I used another Martha Stewart Valentine punch, and colored the hearts in on it with my Copics.  I loved Taylor's sentiment placement hanging from the ribbon, so I (sorta) copied that, just changed it a bit to fit my card.  For the main image, I stamped it with Chocolate Chip ink and then colored it with Copics.  I added glitter to the dots on the heart, and then ran my glue pen around the outside edge of the square, and then sprinkled it with glitter.  

Thanks for stopping by today!

Snowy Day

Wow! My 3rd post for the day.  I made this card in honor of my snow day today! I thought it'd be cute to send to some teacher friends, since this time of the year, we are all praying for snow days!  I used Mercy's Tuesday Sketch (MTSC 28) for this card, as well as participated in the All That Scraps Design Team #34 challenge to use as many brads as possible.  I used 6, which I think is just about enough without going overboard!

I used the Itzie Inkies Stamp set called "Wintertime Fun" by CC Designs.  It's another set I ordered last month with my CC Designs order, and I hadn't used it yet.  I colored the image with copics and stamped the snowflakes, then added some glue with a glue pen and sprinkled it with glitter.  The dp is from the SU! holiday mini catalog, called "Ski Slope". I know it's a bit Christmas-y, but I thought it looked okay enough to pass for winter.  I punched a snowflake and layered it with a felt flurry in the corner. I actually moved my sentiment to the bottom because it seemed to fit better.

Thanks for stopping by!

Cupcake Sketch

Would you believe this is like the most popular sketch week ever!?  There are so many sketches out in blogland this week, and so many prizes to win!  This card is for Taylor's cupcake sketch challenge (TECC52TV).  I used a Hanna Stamps Riley stamp that I've had for quiet some time now, but never used.  I colored him with copics and watercolored his face because I didn't have a lighter shade of brown in my Copics.  The dp is The Sweet Stack from Die Cuts with a View, again.  I used a Sizzix flourish die cut for the Baja Breeze flourishes under my main image, and some SU! buttons in Pink Pirouette.  The "Got Cupcakes" sentiment is from my Flopsey Cupcake set from MFT.

Enjoy the rest of your day!

Happy Cupcake Day Mom!

Happy Birthday to my Mom today! I have off because of a snow storm, so I got to spend the day with my Mom on her special day.  As of this morning, I still had not made her a birthday card, so I searched for some sketches to help as a starting point to get her card made! I used this week's OCC challenge, which was a sketch challenge (my fav!), designed by Jennifer Meyer.  There is also a prize this week, a custom banner and watermark for your blog! I'd loooove to win this, since I can't figure out how to do it on my own! Jennifer's blog is super cute too, with the most adorable cupcake graphics!

Onto some card details: I used the SU! set "Crazy for Cupcakes," along with a Martha Stewart cupcake punch for my cupcakes in the circles.  The dp is by Die Cuts with a View called "The Sweet Stack".  SU! paper colors are Baja Breeze, Pink Pirouette, and Chocolate Chip.  I added glitter to my cupcake icings with a glue pen and loose glitter.  

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great day!

Hugs and Kisses Bella

Good Morning! I have the day off today in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr.  I am spending the afternoon with some college friends, but I did have time to finish up a card this morning that I started yesterday.  This is for the BSC #63, on the Splitcoast Bella boards.  I used topiarybella, who is colored with Copics, and has some Sakura glitter on her hearts.  I used my nesties to cut out Bella and the scallop mat.  I added some dots on the scallop mat, and around the dp underneath her with my white gel pen.  The dp is "Sweet Always" by SU!.  I used my heart punch by SU! for the hearts in the bottom corner, along with some brads and a sentiment from a SU! set, which was stamped on vellum and cut out with a circle punch.

Thanks for stopping by this morning!

Always Sweet Sadie

Here's one more for today, using Birthday Sadie from CC Designs.  I followed Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge #26 for this card.  This is my first time participating, but I've been seeing cards in blogland with her sketches and I really like all the layers she incorporates.   For my card I used dp by SU! called "Sweet Always".  Sadie was colored with Copics, and her balloons were paper pieced with the dp (all except the brown one, I colored that and added dots with a white gel pen).  I used some machine stitching as well.

Thanks for taking a look!

Need a Cuddle?

Happy Snowy Sunday! I woke up to about 2 inches of snow outside (yes, on my newly washed car!) this morning.  I started to make this card yesterday afternoon, but got side tracked, and finally finished it this morning.  It follows the Taylored Expressions Cupcake Challenge #51 (TECC51), which is actually a sketch challenge that doesn't require cupcakes, unless you want it to!  I used a paper pretties stamp called "Cuddle Me" for my card.  I thought she was adorable, and I think I'll be sending this particular card to my Grandma, who is in major need of a cuddle or two right about now.

Here are some card details:  I used the designer prints packs from SU! in Certainly Celery, Close to Cocoa, and Pink Pirouette.  The felt flowers are also from SU!, and the brads are Basic Grey, which I picked up in Michael's clearance section last week.  I stitched around the card with a zig zag stitch.  

Thanks for stopping by!

Warm Thoughts

Warm thoughts are key on these frigid days! It has been so cold and snowy around here lately.  I took my car to the car wash this morning to get it sparkly clean, and it sure is pretty now!  I spent some time with some old friends this morning.  I think there is some kind of saying about how old friends are the best friends, and that sure rings true for me!  I met with my cooperating teacher from when I student taught 2 years ago, as well as a friend who did some field work with me during that semester.  On these chilly days, it's important to keep warm with close friends!  One of our buddies couldn't make it because of a cold, so I thought I'd send her some warm thoughts in the form of a Flopsey card!

This card features "Snow Bunny Flopsey" holding a yummy mug of hot cocoa.  I made this card to follow the SC211 on Splitcoast, as well as this week's OCC challenge which was to do the technique Embossing Resist.  This is a fun technique I hadn't used in awhile, and the results always look so pretty! The panel that Flopsey is sitting on was first stamped with some snow flurries in Versamark (on Whisper White), and then embossed with clear EP.  Next I sponged Soft Sky ink on the paper, wiped off the excess and voila the stamped images 'resist' the ink!  Flopsey was colored with Copics and his belly was paper pieced, plus some glitter was added to his mitten cuffs and hat pom-pom. I zigzag stitched around the resisted panel which was mounted on a nestie rectangle.  I also straight stitched around the brown panels.  I added the buttons which were tied in a bow with linen thread.  All paper is from the SU! print packs in Pink Pirouette, and Close to Cocoa.

Thanks for stopping by!

A Flowery Hello

Hi (finally)! It's been such a busy week! I started this card on Monday, when the Mojo Monday Sketch was first posted, and it sat on my desk all week until tonight, just waiting to be finished.  I had this image in my head of how I wanted it to look, and I wanted to feature this large flower from "Time Well Spent," but I'm just not sure if I really like it.  It's a weird feeling to not really like one of your own cards (unless of course you are making it by force..I mean request, and it's not your style).  Guess it happens, right?

Here are some card details. The layout is from Mojo Monday #69. I used the SU! set "Time Well Spent," and well as a sentiment set I'm not sure the name of.  The paper pack is called Bali Breeze, which is retired.  I used a Marvy punch for my scallop circle, and a Martha Stewart butterfly punch.  I colored the flower with Copics.  

Thanks for stopping by, I'm hoping to get some stamping time in tomorrow too!

Baby It's Cold!

Here is just one more card for today. I followed the BSC62 on the Bella message boards, but turned the sketch on it's side to accommodate my image.  Funny thing is after I made this card, I realized my layout from the previous card is very similar! Guess you've gotta go with what works!

I used snowbunnybella for my card, who is colored with Copics.  Her snowbank is covered in glitter.  I used the colors Pink Pirouette, Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip, and Creamy Caramel, along with the prints pattern paper packs.  For my sentiment, I created a shaker box with supplies I had ordered from Jody at Confessions of a Ribbon Addict this summer.  The shaker box is filled with glitter which moves around when you shake it.  The sentiment is from a MFT set.

Thanks for stopping by!

Feeling the OCC Blues!

Happy Saturday! I made this card this afternoon for the OCC challenge this week, which was to use 2 different shades of blue and a neutral color on your card.  I made this card to match our current snow storm, which is said to leave about 4-6 inches of snow between today and tomorrow.  I chose the colors Baja Breeze and Soft Sky, along with creamy caramel and chocolate chip to make this card. I used another CC Designs stamp set called "Sugarplum Snowmen."  I cut my main image with my nesties after I colored her with Copics.  Her shirt and part of her skates are paper pieced.  The paper is from the Soft Sky and Baja Breeze prints packs.  For the sentiment, I cut a clear acetate snowflake with my Big Shot (which actually didn't cut all the way through, so I cut it out from the impression left), used a Felt Flurry, and rhinestone brad along with my sentiment cut from my Word Window punch.  The clear acetate snowflake is a bit hard to see in the picture, but it is layered on the bottom.

This was the first time I decorated the inside of my card. Since it's so difficult to write on Chocolate Chip paper I thought I'd give it a try. I showed my Mom and was met with enthusiastic approval, so it might be a new regular for me...

Have a great rest of your day!

More new stuff!

I just got my order from All That Scraps today, with my CC Designs stamps.  When I saw these images in blogland, it was love at first sight, and I knew I had to have them!

My first card is for SC210 on Splitcoast, and features the Gingersnap "Angels Everywhere" stamp set. I colored her with my Copics, and cut her out with my nesties.  I stamped her wings twice, and then cut them out and pop dotted them up over the original wings for some depth.  This paper came with the fancy cut around the edge, its from K& Co, called "Swell Noel".  I used my Curvy Label punch, and a oval bookplate from the Stylized Silver hodgepodge set for the sentiment panel.  I used my sewing machine to zig zag stitch and to straight stitch around the fancy edge of the paper.

My next card is for the All that Scraps DT challenge #31 over on the ATS blog.  The challenge was a to use the colors Lovely Lilac, Craft, and Pink Passion.  I immediately though of Valentine's Day.  I used another Gingersnap set called "Snow Bunnies".  I stamped the girl and colored her in with my copics, and then cut her out.  I mounted a bunch of hearts on the nestie oval and then stitched over them with my sewing machine. I mounted the girl on top of the heart mountain (almost like she had a heart-attack...lol).  The heart that is attached to the ribbon is an oldie from Making Memories. The border is made with a Martha Stewart punch, and I added the craft colored hearts polka dotted with glitter (of course!).  The sentiment is from SU! "Warm Words" and was stamped and cut out with my Curvy Label punch.

That's all for now. Happy almost Friday!

Flutter Your Mojo!

I got some new stamps yesterday, from Paper Pretties, and had NO time to stamp with them yesterday, but I finally found some time tonight! I used the mojo monday #68 sketch challenge for the week, as well as "Flutter By" by Paper Pretties.  Isn't she just adorable?!

For the card, I used BasicGrey dp, called "Two Scoops," as well as matching SU! cardstock.  I colored the girl with my Copics, and paper pieced her dress with the dp.  Instead of stamping the butterfly flying out of her hand, I used a Martha Stewart punch to punch out some butterflies.  The butterflies are coated with a Sakura glitter pen, and a teeny tiny pearl was placed in the center. For the larger butterfly, I used a BasicGrey brad.  For the green grass the girl is standing on, I used a bit of the faux tearing technique with some ink and scrap paper.  The sentiment was stamped on vellum, and layered over a green oval with a punched butterfly adhered to it.  This is actually only part of the sentiment, the whole reads "Flutter your wings and fly."  The green baubles are from Stamping Bella.  I sewed with my Sew Mini around the border of the small plaid/blue piece.  

I think that's all! Thanks for stopping by, and have a fabulous day!

Hoppy Birthday!

Hoppy Sunday!  I made this cupcake Flopsey card for my neighbor, who is celebrating a birthday tomorrow. I followed the MFTSC #62 for the layout of my card.  The dp is by Imaginesce again, their "Loves Me" line.  I embossed the red and green layers with my Cuttlebug Hearts embossing folder.  Flopsey was colored in with Copics, his cupcake wrapper was paper pieced, and I added some glitter to the frosting, as well as a rhinestone.  The sentiment is in a Hodgepodge bookplate.  

I think that's all for now, I am returning to the real world tomorrow, since it'll be my first day back from break.  I was talking to a friend earlier and she gave me great advice for that first day back, "Ease into it and give lots of coloring activities!"

Cyber Hugs

Good evening! I made this card this afternoon for the OCC challenge, which happened to feature a sketch.  I think I'm a sketch junkie, like I can't pass one up, so this was a perfect challenge for me!  I used the MFT set "Who's That E-Girl" which features this main image and then a bunch of cyber related sentiments.  I used an Imaginesce paper pack called "Loves Me," as well as SU! cardstock in matching colors.  The felt flowers are also from SU!, as are the buttons.  I paper pieced the e-girl's skirt and the wallpaper.  I drew the hardwood floor detail onto the main image, courtesy of a tutorial on the MFT threads on Splitcoast.  I actually used my Copics to color this! I haven't pulled them out in awhile, but I found colors to match my dp pretty closely.  

Thanks for stopping by, and enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Love Birds!

Good evening!  I made this card tonight for a few reasons.  First and foremost, I needed an anniversary card for my parents, who are celebrating 27 years together next Friday.  Second, I wanted to participate in Taylor's TECC49 challenge, and last I wanted to make something for the OCC Lovey Dovey challenge (from a few weeks ago). Whew, I think that's all!

I made the sentiment on my computer, and I chose is specifically because it is something my brother used to say when we were kids.  He once got an anniversary card for my aunt and uncle, and wrote something about them being 'crazy love birds' (keep in mind he was maybe 4 years old, and came up with this sentiment all on his own!), and my aunt and uncle are sooo not crazy love birds.  It cracked me up and stayed with me 20 years later!  I like how the sentiment goes with the image of the birds, and I know my parents will get a kick out of it!  I cut the scalloped squares out with my nesties, and the scallop circles with my SU! scallop punch.  The hearts were a punch also (from the Love You Bunches bundle), and I adhered and stitched them to the scallop circles. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy 2009!

Don't you just love the start of a fresh new year? New opportunities for all!  I rang in the new year by making some more Valentine's cards.  I am really enjoying the Love You Much bundle the SU! is offering. The stamp, paper, and punch coordinate so well together!  

I don't think I've mentioned this, but my brother proposed to his girlfriend on Christmas Day (so our house is a-flutter with wedding plans!), so I made this card for the 2 of them as a congrats.  The birds are from the Love You Much set, and the sentiment is from a Hero Arts set.  I punched the hearts out of the dp, and then added them to the bottom of the main panel and stitched over them.  To make the oval the birds are sitting on, I cut an oval out of scrap paper, then used the negative part left after I punched the oval, and added ink with a dauber.  The flowers are prima, and the pearl stones in the center are from Kaisercraft.  This card uses Mojo Monday #55 sketch challenge.

This second card uses a set from the Holiday Mini called "Love Owl-ways".  I stamped and colored in the main images and cut them out with my nesties.  The heart border is created exactly like the hearts in my previous card.  I added stickles to the heart the owl and bird are holding for some glam. This card uses Mojo Monday #57 sketch challenge.

Thanks for stopping by!