It's time to CELEBRATE!

Yes, my friends, it is time to CELEBRATE! It's our Seventh Birthday over on the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge blog, so, naturally, you get the presents! We are giving away SEVEN $50 Gift Certificates to the Simon Says Stamp Store this week, instead of just one! WHAT?! Yup! Totally! You don't want to miss out this week! The challenge is to create something birthday inspired! The Design Team is using Simon Says Stamp exclusive products this week for your inspiration. You don't have to use them, but if you have some, OF COURSE, we love to see how you rock 'em!



I simply had to pull out this adorable Birthday Farm Animals stamp set for this one. It's not necessarily the newest of all sets, but MAN, do I love it! It is so perfect for all kinds of birthdays and totally fun! I used the Firework Burst dies from Simon to create a fun, party-style background behind my goat. MY GOAT!!! I just got to use that in a sentence. Yup. That made me happy.

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And now it's YOUR turn! Create a fabulous birthday inspired creation and link it up over on the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge blog for your chance to win one of SEVEN $50 Gift Certificates to the Simon Says Stamp Store! WHAT?! Totally, you guys! For. Reals.

And, with that, my dear friends, I wish you well! Happy creating... and WINNING!!!!

Have a Happy!

Instead of Green, We're Going PINK!

Why? Because while, yes, it is St. Patrick's Day and that's pretty awesome, it is ALSO the 17th of the month and that means it's time to check your boobies! We have our monthly blog hop with CAS-ual Fridays Stamps to not only remind you, but to remind you to remind your friends, too! This is also a great chance to encourage those who are fighting through breast cancer right now!



Yup. It's true. And important. And you are important.



Michele is kindly giving away one $25 Gift Certificate to the CAS-ual Fridays Stamps store to THREE people who hop along and comment! Winners will be announced on the CFS blog on 20 March.

If you LOVE these encouraging stamps or any other CAS-ual Fridays Stamps, you can shop with a pretty awesome discount! Just use the code JINGLE2016 for 15% off your order! Fifty percent of the proceeds for the Calling All Sistahs collection is donated to breast cancer awareness research!

Here is the full hop list! Happy Hopping!!!

CAS-ual Fridays Stamps http://cas-ualfridaysstamps.blogspot.com/

Jingle http://justjingle.blogspot.com/

Kelly http://notablenest.blogspot.com/

Laura http://www.lauralscott.com/

Deana http://www.designcreativelybling.com/

Jasmine http://journeywithjasmine.blogspot.com/

Emma http://heartofcraft.blogspot.com/

Lisa http://royalpumpkinart.blogspot.com/

Robbie http://inkedx2.blogspot.com/search/label/CAS

Angie http://schwooo.blogspot.com/

Archana http://handmadecardsbyarchana.blogspot.com/

Joanna http://www.hartybyheart.com/

It's so FLUFFY!!!

Because any opportunity to use a Despicable Me! quote as a post title is a good one. Obviously. Welcome to another Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge, folks! This week, we want to see your CUTE & CUDDLY creations! The Design Team is using Simon Says Stamp exclusives in our projects this week. You don't have to use them to play along, but we LOVE them super lots and if you have some we'd LOVE to see you rock 'em, folks!

I decided to use the super cute bunny in the Melody's Easter clear stamp set for my card. I LOVE this bunny! And, due to the fun Cute & Cuddly theme of this challenge, I decided to pull out a supply I haven't used in AGES! My fun flock! Yup. I flocked that bunny up, yo! 

HAHAHAHA! I crack myself up. It's sad, really. For reals, though. I pulled out the Stampendous! white flock and covered my bunny with it using a zig glue pen to adhere the flock. I love how fluffy he looks! I added a strip of the fabulous new plaid patterned paper from Lawn Fawn and some enamel dots to bring on the color. It's a happy card. I like happy cards. 

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IT'S SO FLUFFY!!!! Yes. It bears repeating. Because it is. And that is fabulous.

Now it's YOUR turn to get your Cute & Cuddly on! Create something fabulous (it's gotta be new, remember!) and link it up to the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge blog for your chance to win a $50 Gift Certificate to the Simon Says Stamp Store! WHAT?! Yeah, dude. That's pretty darn CUTE, if you ask me. Okay... maybe cute is the wrong word, but give me a break, I'm trying to stick with a theme here, folks. You want to win it. You know this. I know this. Let's do this!

Heh, heh... See What I Did There?

So, here's the thing. I don't usually do sketch challenges. For some reason I tend to struggle a bit with using a sketch for my inspiration. That being said, every now and then I see one that just catches me and I simply MUST give it a shot! This MFT Sketch Challenge sketch, was so very much one of those.

Isn't it fabulous? I had a few ideas, but decided to pull out a few Simon Says Stamp inks and an MFT stamp set I've had for awhile and haven't used yet for my design. I wanted to use a unique color combination, as I've found myself reaching for the same few colors a lot recently and wanted to shake things up a bit. This combo is different, but I kind of love how it turned out!



I stamped the equalizer image repeatedly to create the 'stripes' represented by the sketch. I then die cut the super cute headphones and added those along with the sentiment to complete my card. I super love punny sentiments. Heh, heh...see what I did there? (Okay, so I didn't do it, so much, as MFT kindly did that for me by offering awesome punny sentiments in their sets, but... let's just go with it, K? K. Glad we had this talk.)



The colors are teal, pale blush pink, and thistle. I used black and grey on the headphones to keep them neutral, but also to allow them to pop off the patterned background. I had a ton of fun creating this card! I was quite happy for the sketch challenge and the inspiration it provided!

Have a Happy!

Happy FREAKING Birthday!

Yesterday was my wonderful Daddy's birthday! We got together with the family (we always do for birthdays...it's our thing) and had dinner down in the North End and hung out enjoying Boston in September. (It's particularly fabulous this time of  year!)

Naturally, I made him a fun card, and naturally, I used a dinosaur on it. HAHAHAHA! No, but for reals... he can totally take it. LOL!



Seriously. That Paper Smooches dinosaur is one of my favorite stamps. I just LOVE HIM!!! I combine him with some AWESOME snarky sentiment stamps from Paper Issues. He is colored with Spectrum Noir markers and he makes me smile. Lots.



I am also entering this card in the Paper Smooches Sparks Anything Goes Challenge!

Have a Happy, folks!

What They Said

So, Kathy Rac (yes, there is more to her last name, but that's what I call her in my head. Thanks, Instagram!), is doing her awesome 30 Day Coloring Challenge. The thing of it is... Kathy is really GOOD at coloring. Jingle, on the other hand... is okay at coloring. I mean, I don't suck at it and I can hold my own, but that's about the extent of it. Sooo... I decided to play along here and there for this challenge. We'll see how it goes. I know every day isn't feasible for me, but I plan to color MORE this month than usual. That's the level of commitment I am willing to make. PRACTICE! That's what it is all about, folks!



So, I stamped these little adorables. These little adorables, while adorable, are a tad bit intimidating due to the coloring required to make them even more adorable. Naturally, I decided to stamp ALL THREE of them on ONE CARD because I like to give myself more work to do. Naturally. Seriously, though, I used a combination of Spectrum Noir pens and Copics (two critters with SN's and two with Copics... can you tell the difference? *wink*) to color the critters and then used them even more to add shadow at the bottom. Whoa. That was a LOT of coloring, folks. For reals, though.



Okay, I admit it. They were super fun to color. Also, I did a little research to help choose my colors. Did you know that raccoons apparently have a thing for jazz hands? For REALS. Do a google image search. You will totally see it! Actually, I need you to see it. So... here.

SEE!!!!! JAZZ HANDS!!!! Oh, MAN, I love it so much. For reals, you guys. These are the kinds of things that just make my freaking day. For. Reals.

Have a Happy, folks!

Supplies:

Stamps: Mama Elephant Three Amigos

Ink: My Favorite Things Hybrid Black Licorice, VersaFine Onyx Black

Pens: Spectrum Noir, Copic

Washi Tape: Shhhh! It's a tiny sneak from the next Pinkfresh Studio kit. Don't tell. It's a day early.

Sequins: Studio Calico

Because Puppies Make Me Smile

They really do. And I like to smile. And I REALLY love puppies. (And for the record, age does not define a puppy in my world. They are ALL PUPPIES!!!) Even though it makes me a little sad to pull out my puppy stamps, it reminds me of both of my sweet girlies and THAT makes me happy. I recently got these adorable Mama Elephant Playful Pups from Simon Says Stamp and I just love them. The puppies are just so sweet!



I colored that sweet little chubby puppy with my Spectrum Noir pens and stamped and colored the tennis ball, as well. I then added the line for the floor by hand. I really like doing this, as it is never perfectly straight and adds a touch of visual interest to the card whilst grounding the images quite well.



I used some fun washi tape in a few places to accent the card. I love this tape! It's super cuteness! It is made by Little B so it comes in a cute little dispenser thingy, too. I think you can find it at Michael's. A single Spellbinders® sequin finishes it off. Did you know Spellbinders even HAD sequins? They do. And they don't have holes in them. And I LOVE that. Also, the colors are amazing and they come in a wonderful little pot. Seriously. I love them. Lots.

I hope this little puppy has made you smile today! You can find my complete supply list below.

Have a Happy!

Supplies:

Stamps: Mama Elephant Playful Pups

Pens: Spectrum Noir, Sakura Fine Line Micron Pens

Ink: Momento Tuxedo Black

Sequins: Hip Hooray by Spellbinders®

Washi Tape: Little B Designs

Let the Good Times Roll!

Did you see Friday's Pinkfresh Studio Blog Hop post? Be sure to check it out! First of all because I love that card and I want you to see it, but also because there is a giveaway you will want to win, so....yeah, there's that. *wink*

Today I have another Pinkfresh card to share with you here and on the Pinkfresh Studio blog! I used the same kit I used yesterday to create a totally different design that was so fun to pull together.



My favorite part? That shaker! I created it using packaging from the kit. I mean, for reals, you guys... I HAD to use that awesome vellum envie for something other than storage. I just sprinkled in some of the sequins from the kit and, there you have it! Insta-shaker! Woot!



I also super love these gorgeous layered tags in the kit! I may save one to just be a bookmark I love it so much! I chose to make this one both the sentiment and the focal point on my card. It's full of texture, but a great graphic design, as well. Basically, it's fabulous!

Be sure to check out the May Embellishment kit, you guys! It has awesome stamps designed by Winnie & Walter, a fantastic die designed by Spellbinders, super cute wood veneers, enamel shape and sentiment stickers, and more! You won't want to miss this one!

Have a Happy!

From Me, To You

Have you ever sat down to create something, finished it, and then said, "That was too easy. What did I do wrong?" Yeah. That is pretty much how this particular project went. BUT, the truth of the matter, is, the tools MAKE it easy and I LOVE the results so much! CUTENESS! For reals, though.



Three gift tags. Bright, happy colors. Happy playful shapes. Yes. All of those things. But, seriously, you guys... SO EASY! You guys, all I had to do was combine the new Spellbinders® Tag Trio with the Build a Tag 2 set and stamp a couple of sentiments. Oh...and tie some ribbon onto them with some adorable twine. But, for reals, that's it. That is the sum total of the steps for this project. And CUTENESS!



I used May Arts ribbon and twine from The Twinery. The stamp set is, well, okay, after searching the internet for a bit I am just coming to grips with the fact that I have no clue what stamp set I used. But to and from stamps are pretty common. You can find some. I believe in you.

Go make some tags, you guys!

Have a Happy!

With Sprinkles, Please!

Hello, friends! It's time for another new challenge on the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Blog! This week we want to see you MAKE YOUR OWN BACKGROUND! You can use stamps, ink, dies, papers, or whatever your little heart desires to create a masterpiece of your own! The Design Team is using products from the ever fabulous My Favorite Things this week! You don't have to use MFT goodies to enter, but we would LOVE to see them if you have some!



I used the SUPER cute Donut Die-Namics sprinkles die to create my background. I simply ran it through my Grand Calibur multiple times in different spots to create a fun, sprinkled-fulled background! I then used the MFT Donut and Sprinkles stamp set for the sprinkles on the little die cut donut and the sentiment. This set is TOO MUCH FUN, you guys. For reals, though.



Naturally, some googly eyes and a bow tie were necessary. Naturally.

Now it's YOUR TURN! One lucky participant will win a $50 Gift Voucher to the Simon Says Stamp Store! WHAT?! Yup. You know you want it, folks. You know you do.

Simply create something fabulous (if you have some MFT, feel free to use it!), and link it up to the Simon Says Stamp Challenge blog so we can come check it out! 

Supplies:

Stamps: MFT Donuts and Sprinkles
Dies: MFT Donut Die-Namics
Ink: VersaMark
Embossing Powder: Stampendous White, Ranger Pink (THAT PINK, THOUGH! For reals...I love it. So much.)
Puffy Sticker: Pinkfresh Studio Up In The Clouds
Eyes: Darice
Cardstock: Bazzill Card Shoppe In Love pack,

Because Hilarious Sentiments Rock

Have you ever been shopping for some new supplies, looked at a stamp set, read the sentiments and INSTANTLY needed it? Yup. That's pretty much what happened when I saw this Paper Smooches Incognito stamp set hit the Simon Says Stamp store.

Therefore, naturally, I bought it. 'Cause that's what we do. We buy stuff.

And then... lots of stuff happened, I focused only on assignments, my blogging wasn't really happening, etc. etc. etc. (You know how it goes.)

Well, my friends, for the first time in a couple of weeks, I sat down to create and FULLY ENJOYED it again last night. I cannot even TELL you how good that felt. And, I knew I just HAD to ink up this Incognito set. So I did. For reals.



YOU GUYS! That sentiment, though. For reals. Seriously. It CRACKS. ME. UP. Maybe it's just because I am a former teacher. Perhaps it is due to the fact that I am married to a middle school teacher who works at a school where grades rarely exist. I don't know. But it makes me laugh. Wicked hard.



I also have to alert you to the presence of this Ranger Pink Embossing Powder. I used it for the glasses. You need it. I need it. Well, actually, I don't because I already own it, but, FOR REALS, you guys, it is fabulous. It's pink. And a good pink, at that.I also covered the mustache with a clear glittery powder because: sparkle. The bow is from the Open Book Maggie Holmes collection of Glitter Ribbons. SO CUTE!

Yeah, so ... fun. This card is just plain ol' fun. And that's all there is to it. For reals, though.

Have a Happy!

A Simple Holiday Gift

Are you still looking for some great last minute stocking stuffer ideas?  Today I have a cute little project that is not only easy and quick to create, but makes a wonderful gift that you can personalize for anyone!



Last time I went to the CK Convention I picked up a few of these clear glass paper weights.  To create this fun one, I simply used Glossy Accents to evenly coat the bottom of the weight and then added my paper design.  To the paper, I adhered cork to make it safe for all surfaces and to protect the paper, as well.  The monogram is added to the top of the paper weight to personalize it!



For this one, I happened to make a coordinating card, as well.  You could easily change up the design to make it a Christmas card that coordinates with your weight, as well!  :)

So, there you have it!  A fun little handmade gift idea that is super cute and totally simple!

Have a Happy!

Hipster Coasters for some Moxie Fab fun

Hello, friends!  I have a fun little gift idea to share with you today.  I know... yesterday an album, today a 3-D project, what is going on around here?!  HA!  No worries, I have a very cute card on deck for tomorrow.  I promise!

This one is for the Gift Challenge in the Moxie Fab World that Cath posted as part of the 350 Cards and Gifts Challenges!  I actually have two fun projects in that issue - a tag and a card set.  You should totally check it out!  Just sayin'.  Anyway, I thought I'd have some fun with some super fab hipster stamps and decided to make these cute coasters!


Teeeee!!!!! I kinda love 'em. LOL! Here is the complete supply list for them.

Cardstock: (white) Staples
Clear stamps: (glasses, mustache from What's Up! set, bowtie from Hipster-Potomus set) Avery Elle, (be, you from Simply You set) Technique Tuesday
Die: (Banner from Holiday banners set)Simon Says Stamp
Embossing Powder: (white) Stampendous!
Ink: (watermark) Tsukineko, (white dye ink) Hero Arts
Coasters: Michael's Stores

That's all for today! It's busy busy time! I hope you are having an absolutely delightful week full of smiles, and if not... smile. Right now. It will add one to your week to help it get filled up with smiles mighty quick! YAY!

Have a Happy!