Happy Anniversary!

Yesterday my hubby and I went to a 25th wedding anniversary for friends of his.  He asked me to make a card for the occasion.  No problem there!  This is a terrible picture of this card.  It's so pretty in person.  Since it's a 25th anniversary, I wanted to incorporate some silver into the card and I just had to add the pink to soften it up.  I hope they like this! 

 

I used this week's Deconstructed Sketch.



 

Thanks for stopping by!

 

Recipe

Stamps:  Embellished Elegance (PTI)

Paper:  White shimmer (PTI), brushed silver and pink pirouette (SU)

Ink:  Pink pirouette, Versamark, pistachio pudding

Accessories:  Embellished elegance dies (PTI), enamel dots, embossing folder, silver embossing powder, dimensional tape



Happy Bird-Day!

Gosh, I was ready to say "Happy Monday", then I realized it was Tuesday already!  See what happens when you are on vacation and don't have to think of what day it is?  LOL! 

 

Since I was sitting here waiting to pick up my mom from her hair appointment, I decided to stamp!  I just got these Reverse Confetti stamps and dies in the mail yesterday and decided to work with them.  I just thought they were so cute.  I made it into a birthday card for my best friend Maria.  Her birthday is later in the month.  One of the first cards she made and sent to me (when she was stamping) was a flamingo card.  I thought I'd make her one all these years later.  It's a pretty self-explanatory card.  I did use some Wink of Stella shimmer on the wings of the birds.  I just adore flamingoes!

 

I used more layers than I have in a long time on this one.  I followed the Deconstructed Sketch for this week.

 

I'm also linking up to the Curtain Call challenge.

 

Hope you are enjoying your summer!  Thanks for stopping by!

 

Recipe

Stamps:  Fabulous Flamingo (Reverse Confetti)

Paper:  Neenah white, pretty in pink, kraft, Bitty Dot dp (PTI)

Ink:  Versafine onyx black, copics, signo white gel pen

Accessories:  Fabulous Flamingo die, Spellbinder's circle die, scallop border punch, Cuttlebug embossing folder, Wink of Stella shimmer brush, dimensional tape





Just Us Girls #193 - Color Challenge

Hi friends!  There's a great color challenge going on over at Just Us Girls this week!  Nancy is the hostess with the mostest this week and the colors she chose are

Aqua, Harvest Gold, Kraft, and White.

I needed a card for my father-in-law for Father's Day.  I really like this card I made for him.  It seems when I make a card with someone in mind, it seems to always come together extra special!  My FIL really won't see this card because he is 90% blind.  He has glaucoma and has had some botched surgeries.  I feel so sorry for him, but he never complains.  That's why I always want to make special cards for him.

 

I started by choosing the Super Star stamp set from WPlus9.  I embossed the starburst with white embossing powder onto kraft cardstock and then cut it out with a round nestie.  I backed it with another circle from So Saffron cardstock (I didn't have Harvest Gold).  The banner was hand cut from Aqua Mist cardstock and I ran it through a star embossing folder.  The striped background was stamped with Sahara Sand and So Saffron ink with a stamp from Background Basics:  Retro Papertrey Ink stamp set.  I used the Monarch Border die from My Favorite Things in So Saffron and added it to the striped paper.  The "Dad" stamp is from the Super Star set and was embossed in aqua ep from Zing and cut with a scalloped rectangular nestie.  The ribbon is SU's kraft taffeta and the little tag is a Martha Stewart punch.  The sentiment is from Super Star as well stamped in Sahara Sand.  The saffron and aqua stars are from the Western Star Border die from MFT.  They are the negative pieces.   This is a larger 5" x 5" card.

I used this sketch from Deconstructed Sketch as inspiration for the card.  It seems I haven't made a card with lots of layers in a while and it felt good to do a more intricate card!

Stop by these blogs to see some fabulous inspiration.

 

JUGs blog

Elise Durenberger

Marisa Ritzen

Nancy Leppek

Tangii Crain

Vicki Dutcher



Thanks for stopping by today!

 

Recipe

Stamps:  Super Star (WPlus9 Designs), Background Basics:  Retro (Papertrey Ink)

Paper:  PTI white and aqua mist, so saffron and kraft (SU)

Ink:  So saffron, sahara sand, Versamark

Accessories:  Monarch and Western Star border dies (MFT), MS tag punch, SU kraft taffeta ribbon, white embossing powder, Zing aqua embossing powder, Cuttlebug star embossing folder, dimensionals

 



Just Us Girls #172 - Color Challenge

Happy Saturday everyone!  We have a great color challenge going on over on the Just Us Girls blog.  Vicki chose these fabulous colors!  LOVE them!

Here's my take on the colors.  I used this week's Deconstructed Sketch (bummer that I missed her DT call, cause I love her sketches!).  I also loved Jen's sample with those little banners peeking out from behind the middle panel, so I just had to CASE that!  My dp is from the Family Ties pack by Pebbles.  The middle white panel was run through the canvas impression plate from PTI.  The sentiment is from the Half and Half stamp set, also from PTI.  I added the lime green candy dots on each banner.  The small banners were cut with dies from WPlus9 Designs.  

Here's the fabulous sketch.  I see my friend and fellow JUGs designer Tangii used the same sketch!  Great minds!  LOL!!

Here are some links you can go to for more inspiration.

JUGs blog

Andrea Matthews

Elise Durenberger

Maria Levine

Marisa Ritzen

Tangii Crain

Vicki Dutcher

Thanks for popping in today!  I hope you have a great long weekend!

Pretty Palette #71

Hello there!  Take a look at this week's colors at the Pretty Palette challenge.  For some reason, I thought Christmas...must have been the green and red!

So this is what I created with these colors.  I stamped the present, from Dashing Through the Snow, in red and the sentiment, from Secret Santa, in basic gray.  It's mounted on a scalloped wasabi green circle.  The pattern paper is from Mrs. Candy Claus digital paper.  I ran the red panel through a candy cane stripe embossing folder to keep with the holiday theme.  I added the pretty ribbon and bow and mounted all of that on a gray card base.  I also added some white dots around the scalloped circle and used a glitter pen on the snowflake on the present.  One Christmas card down and many to go!

I used this fabulous sketch from Deconstructed Sketch as my starting point.

Our design team has some great inspiration for you using these colors.  Check out these blogs:
 

MTME blog
Dawn Barwick
Jackie Randolph
Romaine Rancier
Tracy Holmes

Thanks for stopping by!   

Just Us Girls #151 - Inspiration Challenge

Hi there!  I'm finally getting my card done for this week's Just Us Girls Inspiration Challenge.   Vicki has once again chosen a great picture to inspire us.

 

Here's a better look at his fabulous shabby chic picture.  Love it!  See that pink polka dotted teapot in the lower right corner?  THAT was my inspiration! 

And this is where the inspiration took me.   I started with this teapot from the On Display 1 digital stamp set from My Time Made Easy.   I enlarged it (and edited out the flowers that were on it) and printed it on the polka dot paper from My Mind's Eye called Madison Avenue.  (All the papers used were from this pack.)  I fussy cut it out.  The doily was cut using the Parisian lace die from PTI.  I just used typing paper to cut it out and then distressed it with Antique Linen distress ink.  The flowers were cut using Beautiful Blooms dies and the leaves from Turning a New Leaf die, all from PTI.   The sentiment is from Women of Life from PTI too.  I added a light pink pearl on the top of the teapot.  My aunt's birthday was yesterday and of course I didn't get a card in the mail, so I'll have to give this to her soon!

 

I used this sketch from Deconstructed Sketch. 

The JUGs design team did a fabulous job with this photo.  Here are the blogs you should visit.

 

JUGs blog

Elise Durenberger

Lynn Mangan

Maria Levine

Marisa Ritzen

Vicki Dutcher

Jen Wills, August Guest Designer

 

This is Jen Wills' last week as our guest designer.  Please give her some love when you visit her blog!

 

Thanks for stopping by today!



Just Us Girls #136 - Technique Challenge

Happy Saturday!  Any Mother's Day plans this weekend?  I'm taking my mom shopping today for some clothes she wants.  Always easier when you buy them what they want!

Today begins a new challenge from Just Us Girls, and our very talented and creative Lynn is our hostess for the technique challenge.  She has chosen generation stamping.  That's where you ink up your stamp once and continue stamping to get lighter colors.  Gina K just did a video on this technique the other day that you can see here.

So here's what I came up with.  I chose this butterfly from Discover Your Wings stamp set from Taylored Expressions.  I stamped it in Old Olive and just continued stamping two more times and got these two other lovely colors from one inking.  The sentiment was stamped in Chocolate Chip.  I added some brown pearls and mounted the circle on a chocolate scalloped circle.  The dp is called Madeline from Prima.  I punched the doily scalloped border and added some twine and button.

The sketch is from this week's Deconstructed Sketches.  Loved this one!

You can see more samples using the generation stamping technique at these blogs.

JUGs blog

Andrea Matthews

Dana Gustafson

Elise Durenberger

Lynn Mangan

Maria Levine

Vicki Dutcher

Thanks for stopping by today!  I hope to see your creations over at our JUGs blog!

Pretty Palette #44

Hi everyone!  Today the Pretty Palette challenge has lovely, soft colors for you.  I saw these colors on this card by Andrea and fell in love with them!

This is my take on the colors.  I used the Occasional Labels stamp set and stamped the gingham frame in Apricot Appeal on the Occasional Label cut file I cut with my Cricut.  Then I stamped the outline on the inside with Melon Mambo ink.  The flower, from Sensational Stems, was stamped in Wild Wasabi and Melon Mambo.  The sentiment, from Sensational Sentiments, was stamped in Black Onyx Versafine ink.  All stamps from My Time Made Easy, of course.

I loved this sketch from Deconstructed Sketches.  I sort of followed it.  Creative license, right? 

The Pretty Palette design team has been busy making some beautiful cards for this challenge.  Make sure you stop by the blogs below to see for yourself.

My Time Made Easy blog

Charlene Cundy
Jacki Randolph

Pattie Goldman

Romaine Rancier

Thanks so much for stopping in today! 

Christmas Stampin' All Year Long - Spar-ka-lay!!

Happy Friday!  Boy, am I glad to see this day get here!  I'm very stressed work lately and it's really dragging me down.  Wine and chocolate are my best friends lately!  Sigh!

But what keeps me going is my stamping.  I'm really happy to go into my basement and do some crafting.  Today over at Christmas Stampin' All Year Long, we've been challenged to create something "SPAR-KA-LAY" using Bugaboo stamps.  I love snowmen, and I chose Bobble Head Christmas Snowman to work with.  I just love this little guy!

I started with this great sketch from Deconstructed Sketches and used Basic Grey's Jovial paper pack.  To make it "SPAR-KA-LAY", I used some chunky glitter on the wooden Maya Road snowflakes and the snow the snowman is standing on.  I also used it on the falling snowflakes and a little on his hat.  I colored him (or tried to!) according to an article I saw in Cardmaker magazine.  It was all about shadows.  I think I need a little more practice, but I do like it. 

Are you ready for more inspiration from the CSAYL design team?  Stop by the CSAYL blog to see for yourself!  Thanks for stopping by today!  Have a GREAT weekend!