It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas....

Okay. Maybe not. BUT...it IS a good time to have some fun making Christmas cards! Nothing cools you down on a hot July day like getting into the holiday spirit! So...our latest challenge from The Alley Way is ready and waiting for you! Here is the inspiration photo for the Be Inspired Challenge #6!

Are you ready for the card I created based on the challenge? I don't know if you are truly ready for this much cuteness. I mean...you might actually explode. Just say'n. HA! I used the super fun Fa-la-la set and pulled some super fun eyes from the Tropic Topic set!



ACK!!! Could that deer BE Any cuter??? And those EYES!!!! *sigh* I love it. I really really do. Just say'n.



QUICK!!!! Call a doctor! We have cuteness overload over here, folks! HA! And the jingle bell!!!! *sigh* That adorable JINGLE bell! I love jingle bells. I'm guessing you can imagine why. Just say'n.

SOOooooo....head on over to The Alley Way Stamps Blog, check out what the other girls have created and then make your own card based on the challenge! There are STAMPS to be won! You do need to use The Alley Way stamps, but there are lots of freebies to choose from if you don't have any on hand!

Jingle Out!

Missing U

I have a new card up over on the The Alley Way blog today!  I played with the brand new Alphabet Soup stamps!  I love these!!!!  



Tee-Hee...get it? Missing U? ....okay....well, at least I thought it was cute! HA! I stamped the vowels with periods between them. I really love that this set comes with appropriate punctuation! You get an apostrophe AND a period! Both are often left out of alpha sets, so that makes this girl happy! Just say'n.



A bit of May Arts twine circles where 'u' is supposed to be! FUN!!!

Head on over to the The Alley Way blog to check out what the other girls have been coming up with! It's some pretty fun stuff!!! Just say'n. I hope you are enjoying your holiday week!

Jingle Out!

ATC's, Tim Holtz, and Stampendous!? It must be time for a Simon Says Challenge!

Yup! It's time for a brand new challenge over at the Simon Says Stamp Challenge Blog and this is a fun one! We are creating ATC's or tags this week! And..the DT has been playing with LOTS of Tim Holtz goodies, so you don't want to miss the inspiration!

I decided to create an ATC for the challenge and I pulled out some favorites for this one! I used the Stampendous! Tiled Quad Cube as the background image of my ATC. I embossed it with Aged Silver Embossing Enamel and then inked over and around it with Distress inks.




I added a bit of vintage lace and then adhered the Tim Holtz spinner, the Fractured Doll, and the flower to finish off my ATC!




I love how this one turned out! Now it's your turn to create a tag or an ATC to link up to the challenge over on the Simon Says Stamp Challenge Blog! Of course, Simon Says Stamp is offering a wonderful prize! One winner will get a $50 voucher to the store! YAY!!!

Skipping Stones Design and Ribbon Carousel Blog Hop Time!

The Skipping Stones Design Team is thrilled to be teaming up with the fabulous designers from The Ribbon Carousel to bring you a blog hop that is sure to impress!  

Here is the card I created for today's hop!  I used the Cupcake Cuties set from Skipping Stones!

I love that gorgeous navy grosgrain with the fun star ribbon from the Ribbon Carousel!  SO CUTE together!

Lets talk prizes!

Hop along and leave some blog love for our designers for a chance to win one of 2 great prizes!  The Ribbon Carousel will be giving away a ribbon carousel and Skipping Stones Design will be giving away a stamp set of the winner's choice!   Winners will be announced on Saturday at 8:00 PM EST!  

Ready to hop?!  

Lets do it!

...

Birthday Butterflies with Watercolor Crayons

Well, I, for one, was very excited to see Cath back in action over on the Moxie Fab World blog! She has a bunch of new challenges up and I plan to make cards for as many as I can! I started with the Stamp It! Cards Birthday Challenge and I want to share my card, and how I created it, with you today! YAY!



I had a little fun stamping with watercolor crayons on this card! This is a super fun technique and I thought I would show you how I used it! The crayons I use are from Stampin' Up! but I know others are out there, too. I colored the stamp directly with the crayons. I used the Calico Borders set from Hero Arts.



Now, these won't stamp as they are, so I spritzed them with water, carefully wiped the block clean to avoid unwanted drips on my card, and then stamped the image onto the card.



You can use more or less water depending on how 'messy' you want it to get. I hit this with a heat gun after stamping to preserve the shape of the stamp, but sometimes I let it sit to dry so that the watercolors seep out a bit more. You can really play with this technique a lot to get different results!

I then stamped the butterflies with Tsukineko Tuxedo Black (Momento) over the colored stripes! I love the beautiful background it created! I then stamped the sentiment and viola! A bit of twine from The Twinery and I have a beautiful birthday card!



Now...go make something fabulous!

Jingle Out!

It's a Good Day to Have A Good Day!

First of all, I want to take a moment to thank each and everyone of you who voted for me throughout the Paper Crafts Gallery Idol competition.  As you may likely know by now, no, I did not win the grand prize, however, I am SO honored to be included in the Top 5 and your show of support was overwhelming! You guys seriously brought me to happy tears more than once!  This was such an amazing experience, and I am so happy to have had the opportunity to participate!

Now...being that it is a brand new month, Scrapbook Circle has a brand new kit for you! And, it's pretty much amazing. Just say'n. It's called Sunshine Day and it will make ANY day feel JUST.LIKE.THAT. For reals, though, you guys. I wouldn't lie about something this serious. HA!

I have had SO MUCH FUN playing with this kit! I love it! Absolutely love it! Here is one of the first cards I created with this kit.



LOOK AT ALL THAT FUN HAPPY STUFF! LOL! No, for reals, though, I love this one! The colors make me happy, the shapes make me happy, the butterfly stickers make me happy, AND the sentiment makes me happy. So...pretty much there is just a whole lot of happy going on up in here today! YAY!



So, there you go! A nice happy for your Monday! I hope your day is AMAZING!!! See ya later, bye!

Jingle Out!

Just a Bit of Old Fashioned Fun!

That's what Gourmet Rubber Stamps is bringing out this month! The latest Diners set is AMAZING, you guys!!! It's called Old Fashioned Fun and it is so stuffed with amazingly fabulous images, I can't even stand it! For reals, though. Totally. Here is the first card I've created (of MANY) with this awesome collection!



Umm....LOVE!!!! I used three images for this card! And as for the cowboy stuff, well, yes, I've used those on other cards that you will see soon enough. I LOVE cowboys!!!! LOL! Check out this kit, you guys! It's AWESOME!!!

You can order this set now at Gourmet Rubber Stamps! *sigh* You will love it. Just say'n. It's seriously one of my favorites EVER!

Jingle Out.