FTL #57

I had lots of fun playing around with Fall to Layout #57, from the Clean & Simple blog. This is just a happy looking card and all those pretty colors make me smile!

There's not a lot to explain here, so I'll keep this post short and sweet. :) Have a happy Monday!

Stamps: Flight of the Butterfly, Wow Flowers
Paper: Pretty in Pink, Whisper White, Tea Party dsp
Ink: Pretty in Pink, Certainly Celery, So Saffron, Almost Amethyst
Accessories: Big Shot, Scallop Square die, 1" circle punch, 1 1/4" circle punch, Mat Pack, Paper-Piercing Tool, Fresh Favorites I Buttons, Dimensionals

Bookmarks for a Friend

I made these pretty lil' bookmarks for my friend, Bridget, who will be moving to another state in about a month. I am going to miss her so much! Not only is she one of my regular stamping buddies, but she's just one of those people you look forward to seeing whenver you can. I know that she loves to read, as we used to be in a book club together, so I decided to make up this set of jumbo paper clip bookmarks for her as a going away present.

I used the Blossom Party Originals Die with my Big Shot to make these bookmarks. I had lots of fun adding little embellishments like buttons and ribbon to make each one unique. I also deocarated this tin to house the bookmarks.

One more picture of the bookmarks - here you can see how I used magnets behind each bookmark to hold them in place inside the tin. I know I'm always losing my bookmarks, and I wanted to make sure that Bridget had a place to put them when she's between books. :)

I want to take a moment to thank you all for your kind comments of support for my submissions for the CAS design team - they mean so much to me. I truly appreciate it! This has been an especially long week, with VBS at church, lots of meetings in the evenings and getting ready for Jevin to start Kindergarten next week. Your wonderful comments have been like little breaths of fresh air - thank you, thank you, thank you! :) Have a super weekend!

Stamps: None
Paper: Melong Mambo, Bermuda Bay, Rich Razzleberry, Crushed Curry, Soft Suede, Dusty Durango, Thoroughly Modern dsp
Ink: None
Accessories: Big Shot, Blossom Party die, Scallop Square die, jumbo paper clips, clear button, Filligree Designer Brad, Button Latte Designer Button, Bermuda Bay, Rich Razzleberry and Soft Suede Polka-Dot Grosgrain, magnets, tin

Give Thanks

Today's card is another submission for the Clean & Simple Design Team search on Splitcoast. I have now completed at least one card for each of the three challenges - wahoo! This card is for the 3rd challenge, which is to create an autumn or holiday card.

I kept this one SUPER simple, using my Holiday Best hostess set. I colored the image with Soft Suede, Crushed Curry, Old Olive and Dusty Durango markers and used my Stamp-a-ma-jig for perfect placement. I added a few Vintage Brads and some Old Olive wide grosgrain ribbon. Love it! :) I like this card so much, I'm thinking I may make a one-layer card for each of the stamps in this set and create a little gift pack out of them. Thanks for stopping by today!

Stamps: Holiday Best
Paper: Whisper White
Ink: Soft Suede, Crushed Curry, Old Olive, Dusty Durango
Accessories: Stamp-a-ma-jig, Vintage Brads, Mat Pack, Paper-Piercing Tool, Old Olive wide grosgrain ribbon

Clean & Simple Design Team

The Clean & Simple team on Splitcoast is looking for some new designers for the next quarter an I've decided to throw my hat in the ring. Y'all know I love those CAS cards (giggle)! I applied during the last round, but was not selected. I was a little bummed at first, but, after an afternoon of moping, remembered that God's timing is perfect, and I should know better than to second guess Him. So, here we go again! :)

For this DT call, we have been asked to complete at least one of three challenges, and, as my husband wisely stated, "Of course you are going to complete all 3!" Does he know me, or what? This first card is for the sketch challenge, which is based on a card by Kerri Michaud. Click here to view her gorgeous Christmas card. This is my take on the challenge:

I know, I know, I used the Asian Artistry set again. I can't seem to put it down! I really like that pierced partial circle - it adds that little something that the card was crying for! I used my handy-dandy circle plastic canvas to make sure my piercing came out just the way I wanted it to.

This card, made with the Owl Together Now set, is for the color challenge: use shades of brown with a little red thrown in. I love that cheeky little owl - he's too funny!

Wouldn't this make a great anniversary card? Too bad my anniversary isn't until next June - I'm sure to lose this card between now and then. Maybe I'll just have to give it to my hubby because he's so darn cute (wink)! Here you can see the detailing I added with Crystal Effects on the owl's eyes and the lil' hearts.

Well, wish me luck! I still have one more challenge to complete, and I'm planning to get that done today, so I will hopefully be able to share tomorrow. Have a good one!

Stamps: (Card 1) Asian Artistry, Teeny Tiny Wishes, (Card 2) Owl Together Now, Woodgrain
Paper: (Card 1) Confetti Cream, (Card 2) Kraft, Real Red, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White
Ink: (Card 1) Soft Suede, Crushed Curry, (Card 2) Black Staz-on, Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa, Creamy Caramel
Accessories: (Card 1) Soft Suede Polka-Dot Grosgrain, Mat Pack, Paper Piercer, (Card 2) Aqua Painter, Big Shot, Stampin' Up! Backgrounds 1 Texturz Plates, 1 1/4" circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, Scallop punch, Crystal Effects

FTL 56

Ooo-whee! I'm having fun playing with my new Holiday Mini goodies. I LOVE this new Halloween set - it's called Twick or Tweet. Definitely one of my new faves. :) For this card, I used the Fall-to-Layout #56 from the Clean & Simple blog.

First, I stamped the image twice with black Staz-On ink - once on my main panel and once on a piece of Whisper White scrap. I used my Aqua Painter to color the pumpkins with Pumpkin Pie ink and cut out the pumpkins on my scrap piece and layered it onto the main panel using Dimensionals. I added some Dazzling Diamonds glitter to the witch's hat with my 2-Way Glue Pen.

I put the rest of the card together with a piece of Night & Day Specialty designer series paper (also available in the Holiday Mini), some black brads and some ribbon. I also added some paper-piercing around the edges of the card. I love those pumpkins - they really do make me smile! :)

Stamps: Twick or Tweet
Paper: Whisper White, Basic Black, Night & Day Specialty dsp
Ink: Black Staz-On, Pumpkin Pie
Accessories: Aqua Painter, Vintage Brads, Basic Black grosgrain ribbon, Pumpkin Pie grosgrain ribbon, Black and White gingham ribbon, Mat Pack, Paper-Piercing Tool

Trendy Trees Birthday

I'm finally getting around to doing this week's Clean and Simple challenge on Splitcoast - whew! The challenge: create a clean and simple masculine card.

I am very happy with the way this came out - I had to putz around with the piercing a bit in order to get it just right, but I really like the finished product. :)

I played with my Creative Consortium friends this evening - the ladies came over to my place to stamp the night away. As usual, we enjoyed yummy treats and catching up with all our goings on. I truly treasure out get togethers - thanks, ladies!

We have a quiet weekend ahead and then a CRAZY week next week...MOPS meeting, VBS, open house for Jevin's Kindergarten and a meeting with Jevin's teacher and the school nurse to come up with a game plan for his food allergies. I think I will enjoy the calm before the storm. Have a great weekend!

Stamps: Trendy Trees, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Sahara Sand
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Old Olive
Accessories: Mat Pack, Paper-Piercing Tool, Old Olive wide grosgrain ribbon

Fancy Favor Gift Bag

Holy crapola! Where has this week gone?!!! I have been having a heck of a time getting back into the gear of daily life after our trip. But I did manage to get a *little* stamping time in today and I put together this little gift set using some of my new goodies form the Holiday Mini Catalog, which becomes available September 1st.

I used my Fancy Favor Bigz Die to make the bag - how easy is that? This was my first time using this die and I have to say that I loved how simple this was to put together. I see many more of these in the future, so just be prepared. :)

I used the same die to give my 3"x3" gift card it's deckle edge. I simply cut my cardstock to 3"x6", folded it in half and placed the opening on the die so that it would trim off just a smidge of cardstock. Voila! Don't you love it? And...the bag just happens to be 3" wide, so it fit perfectly (*grin*).

I used my new Sizzlit die (Merry Details) to make the snowflake on both projects and some of the new Christmas Cocoa Specialty dsp. The paper has a slight metallic sheen to it - gorgeous!

Here's another shot of the bag - love that bow!

Stamps: None
Ink: None
Paper: Christmas Cocoa Specialty dsp, Whisper White, Soft Suede
Accessories: Big Shot, Fancy Favor Bigz Die, Merry Details Sizzlit, Metal Edge Tags, 1 1/4" circle punch, Clear Rhinestone Brads, Whisper White satin ribbon, Soft Suede polka-dot grosgrain ribbon, Mat Pack, Paper-Piercing Tool

Catching up...

You know what it's like when you get back from vacation... There's unpacking to tend to, endless laundry, grocery shopping to do and the business of life to get back to. Sigh... I haven't had time to get my stamp groove on, so I thought I would share some of my favorite pictures from our trip. Keep in mind this is my top 5 out of about 200, so I've narrowed it down quite a bit for you (*wink*).

Jevin, on the boat, using the binoculars. I don't know if he could actually see anything with them, but he and Enavi sure liked using them.


Here are the cousins, all lined up, eating lunch. Six kids, one per year, ages 3 to 8. They had so much fun playing together and they all got along!


This is my nephew, Tovin, who is 7. I just love this picture of him - what a cutie!


This is Enavi and Jevin at Looney Days in Vergas, Minnesota. Their fire station has THE BEST open house - the kids can climb into all of the different vehicles, try on the fire fighter gear, jump around in the jumpy house and receive complimentary helmets, coloring books and stickers. Definitely worth the trip!


If you know me, you know that I'm kind of a sunset fanatic and one of my absolute favorite things about Rose Lake is the amazing sunsets. We had fantastic weather while we were there and I saw several sunsets that were just as breath-taking as this one.

OK, OK...back to folding laundry... :)

Pick-A-Petal

I have another card to share with you today that was created by Susie. She is such a sweetie to put all of these cards together for me while I'm enjoying our family vacation.

What a fun use of the Pick-A-Petal set! Isn't fun to take a set that you've had sitting on your shelf and do something completely different with it? I always feel so frugal when I can use a favorite stamp in a new and unusual way. Susie did want me to mention that she saw this layout on Splitcoast - I'm not sure who the original creator was, so if you know, feel free to leave me a comment! You can see more of Susie's work at her Etsy shop, Artful Embellishments.

Here's a shot of that gorgeous detail work on the flower petals:

We have only a couple of days left at the lake. :( The last couple of days have been sunny and hot - perfect for lots of swimming and boat rides. We are all going to be very sad to leave.

Lovely as a Tree

Sorry I've been such a slacker this week...but I guess that's what vacation is all about, right? LOL! I'm back today with another card from my fabulous friend, Susie Cramer. I love all of the detail on this card, and the overall effect is rustic and elegant at the same time.

I think this card would make a terrific masculine card - I especially like the way Susie distressed the gold edging on some of the card's layers. And isn't that stick wonderful - who would have thought that something from your yard could make such a perfect embellishment? You can see more of Susie's creations at her Etsy shop, Artful Embellishments.

Today I will heading off to the spa for an afternoon of beauty. I can't wait! I am going for my annual girls' day out with my mother- and sister-in-law. We have such a fun time and come back relaxed and rejuvenated. I've often thought that we should really do this more often - maybe once a month? LOL! :) I hope that you have a wonderful day!

Thoughts & Prayers Diorama

Check out this beautiful eye candy! My wonderful friend, Susie Cramer, made this card to share with you all. She is a super talented stamper and a member of my group of friends who gather once a month to stamp, chat and nibble. We call her the Embellishment Queen.

I love this diorama - it is just lovely. I especially like how Susie sponged ink on the background to create the sky and grass. And the piercing...and the eyelets... OK, I love it all! :)

Here's one more view, so you can get a sense of the dimension of the diorama.

Susie has just opened a shop on Etsy to sell her cards, paper and beading creations. Her shop is called Artful Embellishments - go check it out! I'll be back tomorrow to share another creation by Susie.

We are enjoying our time in Minnesota. Our drive here went very well, and we actually did make it on the road by 4:15am on Saturday. We arrived at my in-laws by early afternoon, and it was so nice to have plenty of time for the kids to play with cousins and relax before bedtime. The weather the last couple of days has been perfect lake weather - sunny and warm with a little breeze. Today my big adventure was going to Wal-Mart to buy an ice cream maker in order to make homemade soy ice cream. I made cookies-n-cream ice cream and it turned out really well! Everyone loved it - even the kids who normally eat ice cream with cow's milk. Tomorrow, I plan to try raspberry cheesecake ice cream - yum! :)

Curry Medallion

This is another card from last week's Clean & Simple stamp-a-stack.
I was inspired by this card I saw by Tara Fullmer on Splitcoast - I added the sentiment and ribbon, but kept the same colors and layout. I love the warm look of Crushed Curry and Chocolate Chip - yummy!

We are heading out EARLY tomorrow morning for our trip to northern Minnesota. We're going to attempt to leave our house around 4am... We've never done this before, but we're hoping the kids will sleep for a little while in the car. I have a feeling that this plans sounds really good in theory, but may not work out *quite* as planned. I'll let you know... Anyway, I am looking forward to spending a week at the lake! I'm packing several books, my latest Real Simple magazine (just came in the mail today - wahoo!) and my SU! cattie. :) Oh, and of course all of the other lake essentials - swimsuit, Crocs and comfy clothes. Don't worry, though - I have a guest designer lined up for you for next week, so be on the look out for some terrific cards! Have a fantastic weekend!

Stamps: Medallion, Heard from the Heart
Paper: Crushed Curry, Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip
Ink: Crushed Curry, Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Chocolate Chip grosgrain ribbon

Sweet Sunday Sketch #29

I actually had time to play along with Karen Giron's Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge this week! It's been awhile, but when I saw this week's sketch, I knew that I had to play along.

I thought the sketch would work well with a Christmas theme, so I went with that. I used some of my Merry Moments dsp and my Dasher individual stamp (only $8.95!), along with Teeny Tiny Wishes. All those colors have a rich, merry feel.

The next couple of days are going to be very busy around here. We're getting ready to leave for vacation for a week and I haven't even started packing! I see lots of laundry and last minute running around in my near future. :)

Stamps: Dasher, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Real Red, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla, Merry Moments dsp
Ink: Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Real Red polka dot grosgrain ribbon, Button Latte designer buttons, Mat Pack, paper piercer, Scallop Edge punch

Mojo Monday #98

I haven't played along with a Mojo sketch in ages! It was fun to work with one this week, and it's a contest week, which means scads of other stampers are feverishly working on their most Mojo-licious cards. :) Here's my take on this week's sketch:

I pulled out some of my new Thoroughly Modern dsp and paired it up with my Asian Artistry hostess set. I used my Rose Red and Soft Suede markers to color the stamp and highlighted the flowers with a touch of Dazzling Diamonds.

I added some paper piercing around the edges of the card and the circle image in the center. I accented the focal image with some Vintage Brads and I used a sentiment from the set Hope Happens. I topped it all off with a big ol' bow made with some Whisper White satin ribbon.

I'm looking forward to seeing some of the other Mojo Monday creations! See you back tomorrow...have a wonderful day! :)

Stamps: Asian Artistry, Hope Happens
Paper: Soft Suede, Whisper White, Rose Red, Thoroughly Modern dsp
Ink: Rose Red, Soft Suede
Accessories: 2-Way Glue Pen, Dazzling Diamonds, Large Oval punch, Scallop Oval punch, Circle Scissors Plus, Vintage Brads, Whisper White satin ribbon, Mat Pack, paper piercer

Trick or Treat

I made this card for this week's CAS challenge on Splitcoast, which is to use stitching on your card. I decided to pull out my dusty sewing machine and do some actual sewing on my card. My kids were asking me all day about the sewing machine - they were fascinated by it! Of course, I had to explain to them that *normal* people put fabric in a sewing machine, in order to make useful things like clothing and quilts - LOL! :)

I went a little crazy with my stitching around the edges of my card, but I'm OK with it. I think the end result is kind of cool!

I got to play around with my new Scallop Square die to make my card base out of Basic Black cs and added my stitching to the Whisper White layer. I stamped the sentiment (from the Holiday Best hostess set)with Basic Black ink on more Whisper White cs. I stamped it one more time in Pumpkin Pie, so that I could cut out the pumpkin and layer it on to the black image. I added this onto a piece of Groom Specialty Paper (love that stuff!), rounded the bottom corners, and added some more stitching. I tore off the excess Whisper White cs and I topped it all off with a bow - of which I frayed the ends.

Hope you enjoyed today's creation - see you soon with my Mojo Monday madness. :)

Stamps: Holiday Best
Paper: Basic Black, Whisper White, Groom Specialty Paper
Ink: Basic Black, Pumpkin Pie
Accessories: sewing machine, black grosgrain ribbon, Big Shot, Scallop Square Bigz Clear Die

Soft Suede Silhouettes

Today was a long day. My daughter has croup (which we found out when she woke up wheezing late Sunday night/early Monday morning) and Sunday night was filled with worry and very little sleep. Thankfully, she is doing much better now and I'm hoping that we will all sleep better tonight. I had every intention of sitting down to work on one of the many wonderful challenges that I have had my eye, but it's not going to happen. My brain is running on auto-pilot - time to post this puppy and go to bed!

Anyway, enough about me! On to my card, which is a reincarnation of this card from a couple of months ago, with a little twist. We made this card on Saturday, during my Clean & Simple stamp-a-stack.

What a quick and easy card to make! I like that zippy little ribbon treatment, too. :) To make it, I opened my brad up, placed the ribbon in-between the prongs, closed the prongs and then placed the brad in the hole on the card front, re-opening the prongs to secure the brad and ribbon in place. Here's a closer look:

I have to say that I have really become quite fond of Soft Suede. At first, it was my least favorite of the latest In Colors, but it is such a lovely neutral - so many possibilities... I'll try to have something new for you tomorrow - have a fabulous day!

Stamps: Pocket Silhouettes
Paper: Confetti Cream, Soft Suede
Ink: Soft Suede
Accessories: Word Window punch, gold brad, Soft Suede polka dot grosgrain ribbon, Mat Pack, paper piercer

Artfully Asian Sympathy

I've been itching to break out my new Asian Artistry hostess set for about a week and I'm finally getting a chance to put it to use! I'm playing along with Stamping 411's Saturday Sketch Challenge for the first time. I love this layout - I think the circle spilling off the front of the card is especially nice.

I combined Soft Suede, Sahara Sand and Very Vanilla to make this card. I used some of my To The Nines dsp, added some paper-piercing (my paper piercer hasn't seen much action lately - had to remedy that!)and a jumbo Vanilla brad. I like the simple, elegant feel of the card.

I had a fun weekend - my stamp-a-stack was on Saturday morning and our theme was "Clean and Simple" cards - I'll be sharing some of those with you later this week. I also had a chance to meet with my friend, Susie, on Sunday afternoon to set up an Etsy site for her lovely cards. We call her "The Embellishment Queen" - you'll see what I mean sometime in the near future (hint hint). :) I hope you have a great start to your week - see you tomorrow!

Stamps: Asian Artistry, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Soft Suede, Very Vanilla, To The Nines dsp
Ink: Soft Suede
Accessories: Circle Scissor Plus, Word Window punch, Small Oval punch, 5/16" Jumbo Brads (vanilla), Paper Piercer, Mat Pack, Soft Suede polka dot grosgrain ribbon