Happy Days

So, my husband and I are celebrating our 15th anniversary this month!  Where has the time gone?!  So I made him this sweet little card.  Nothing too frilly, but enough to let him know I love him. : )  Don't you love that cute little ticket die?  So cute and so fun!

 And here is the inside of the card:  I carried over the front design by adding the cutout heart border.  (I used the negative space on the front--a fun little detail)

Challenges:
Your Next Stamp #14--sketch

Verve July Diva Dare--Inside Out (carry over the outside of your design to the inside)
Word Art Wednesday #142--anything goes with uplifting sentiment
Crafter's Cafe #73--anything goes
The Stamping Chef #39--anything goes
The Paper Shelter--anything goes
Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Wonderful Wednesday--anything goes
Brown Sugar #104--for the boys
Sister Act Card Challenge #67--anything goes
Crafty Catz #25--anything goes
Dis Digi Designs--dies and/or punches
Fussy & Fancy #119--words; it's about feeling
CAS-ual Fridays #134--tic tac toe (I used the column "black, white, gray"

Supplies:
Stamps: Verve "Be Blessed" sentiment on ticket die and "Take Note" small sentiment; Sweet n' Sassy "Celebrating Milestones" inside sentiment
Dies: PTI "heart border die"; Spellbinders "Just the ticket" ticket die

Gift Set

Happy Friday!!  Wahoo!!  And that means it's time for another challenge from Christmas Stampin' All Year Long.  We don't have a sponsor this week; instead the winner will get a chance to be a guest designer with us on a future challenge.  This week the challenge might be a little bit more tough, but I know you can handle it.  The challenge is to create a 3-piece gift set.  

 The three pieces are up to you. I decided to make a card, a tag and a gift bag.  Here's a picture of everything together:

 The gift bag:

 The card:

 And the gift tag:

The layout on each is pretty much the same, I just changed up the size of the flowers (and the bag has 3 instead of just one) and the sprigs and their orientation.

Challenges:
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge #186--layer it up
Lexi's Creations #121--Christmas in July
Love To Scrap #34--scheming crafters (use a color scheme--mine is cool tones)
Tuesday Morning Sketches #259--sketch

Sweet Stamps #179--Christmas tags
Creative Knockouts #47--Christmas in July
Tuesday Throwdown #205--handmade flowers
Die Cuttin' Divas #175--Christmas in July

Supplies:
Stamps: Verve "Merry & Bright" sentiment on bag and card; PTI "Mat Stack 2" sentiment on tag
Dies: spellbinders "Fleur Di Lis Squares", "Layered Poinsettias"; Verve "Sprightly Sprigs"

Celebrating

Here's another birthday card.  I think it is my last for this month.  Phew, it's been a busy month.  This one is for my brother-in-law.  He lives in New York City, so I thought this skyline of a city would be a perfect fit for him.  I added the fireworks to add to the celebratory feel.  You can't really see it, but the fireworks are really sparkly, too.  I embossed the gold one with really glittery gold embossing powder and the other two with a holographic clear powder.  I really wish it showed up in the photo.

Challenges:
Crating Musketeers #15--Summertine (fireworks are a definite summertime activity around here)
Sarah Hurley #94--celebration
Raisin Boat #25--summertime
Suzy Bees #38--anything goes
Craft Hoarders Annonymous #12--Who's the Boss (embossing) (the item I was hoarding is that strip of red paper.  I had to cut it down a bit but it really wasn't much bigger; I just can't bear to throw anything away)
Our Daily Bread Designs #210--sponging or use a stencil
Loves RubberStamps #113--Summer Fun
Creative Inspirations #275--Here come summer
The Paper Nest Dolls #15--anything goes

Supplies:
Stamps: Sweet n' Sassy "Landscape Silhouettes"; Cloud 9 Designs fireworks; Verve "Be Blessed" sentiment

Merry Christmas from a little one

 Just about a month ago, I shared a Christmas card that one of my daughters had made.  Well, she actually won a couple digi images and that motivated my other two girls to want to make a card and have me "put it on the computer" so they could win some images.  This one was made by my 5-year-old (twin to the one who created the first card).  I drew the stable for her, but she drew the manger scene (I believe those pointy things behind Mary and Joseph are the ears of a horse and a donkey respectively); I'm pretty impressed with that; they are very recognizable as to what they are.  She also stamped the stars and colored them in with my glitter pen.  All of my girls are very infatuated with my "sparkly" pen. : )  So cute.

Challenges:

Sparkles Christmas Challenge #42--a winter scene

Flat Friends #22--one-layer card

Christmas Cards All Year 'Round--non-traditional colors (orange is definitely NOT traditional, but a 5 year old doesn't care!)

Divas By Design--Christmas in July

C.R.A.F.T. #268--Christmas

Suzy Bee's Blooming Challenge #38--anything goes

Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge Extra--anything Christmas goes

Supplies:

Stamps: Verve "Star of Wonder" large star and "To the Moon" small trio of stars

Sweet 16

This sweet card is for a sweet girl in our family who is turning 16 next week!  I couldn't resist going all girly on this one. : )

 Here is the inside.  I added a strip of the same patterned paper and use the same border punch to tie the inside together with the front.

Challenges:

Twisted Tuesday #80--pearls are sooooo heavy (use lots of layers and pearls)

Fussy and Fancy #118--It's all about girls

Card Mania #51--how charming (use a charm)

Verve July Diva Dare--inside out (tie in the inside with the outside of your card)

Word Art Wednesday #141--anything goes with uplifting sentiment

The Stamping Chef #38--anything goes

Milk Coffee--birthdays

Time Out Challenge #10--inspiration photo (I really loved that background wall with the minty green and white stripes; it inspired my choice of papers though I used chevrons instead of stripes)

Frosted Designs--flowers & stitching (flowers in my dp)

Sister Act Card Challenge #66--anything goes

Viva La Verve July week 3--sketch

Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Saturday Challenge--anything goes

Supplies:

Stamps: Verve "Borderline" so sweet; Sweet n' Sassy Stamps "Celebrating Milestones" 16; SU! sentiment inside; Your Next Stamp "Silly Monsters" happy birthday

Dies/punches: spellbinders "Floral Doily Motifs", "Classic Circles, large";Fiskars "Apron" borderpunch

Monsterous

Hmmm . . . what to put on a card for a fourteen-year-old boy?  What do teenage boys like?  I think: bold colors, no frills, and monsters (cute ones that is).  Yep, I think this one fits the bill.

Here's the inside:

I think this little one with all the eyes is so funny, and I love the sentiment that goes along with it: "All eyes on you  . . ."

Challenges:
Your Next Stamp #14--sketch (used it the long way instead of the short way)

Digi Stamps 4 Joy #96--for the boys
Through the Purple Haze--birthdays
The Crafter's Cafe--birthdays
Milk Coffee--birthdays
Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Wonderful Wednesday--anything goes
Sister Act Card Challenge #66--anything goes

Supplies:
Stamps: Your Next Stamp "Silly Monsters"
Dies: spellbinders A2 matting basics rectangles; PTI numbers border die

Beautiful Poppies

July is a busy birthday month for us, so I have a bunch of birthday cards to share.  This one is for my husband's grandmother.

 And here is the inside.  I kept it similar with the same colors and the ovals and, obviously, the poppies.  But instead of coloring them with markers like I did on the outside, I colored them with colored pencils for a much softer look.

Challenges:

Crafting Musketeers#15--summertime (around here--southern New England--poppies are definitely summer flowers)

Twisted Tuesday #80--pearls are sooooo heavy (use layers and pearls)

Fab n' Funky #223--feels like summer (when I see poppies starting to bloom, I know it is summertime)

Fussy & Fancy #118--it's all about girls

The Squirrel and the Fox #73--ribbons and lace

Through the Purple Haze--birthdays

Sugar Pea Designs #007--sketch

Verve's July Diva Dare--Inside Out (carry over some part of your card design to the insides)

Shopping Our Stash #160--can't put it down or away (I use that little sentiment die a LOT; it is just perfect for a little sentiment)

The Crafter's Cafe--birthdays

ART Impressions #140--Big birthdays

Milk Coffee--birthdays

DRS Designs #131--strawberries & cream (use the colors from the inspiration photo)

Sister Act Card Challenge #66--anything goes

Supplies:

Stamps: Fred She Said "Poppies" digi; Our Daily Bread Designs "Crochete" background; Hero Arts French script; Verve "Birthday Phrases" sentiment outside; PTI "Damask Designs" sentiment inside

Dies: Spellbinders classic ovals and scalloped ovals, large; Verve "Charming Ovals"

Noel

I'm so not ready for it to be Friday; feels like I have a billion things to do before the weekend gets here!  But Friday it is and that means it's time for another challenge from Christmas Stampin' All Year Long.  This week, the challenge is to CASE (copy and share everything) your favorite crafter.  Our sponsor is Pretty Papers, Pretty Ribbons and, boy, DO they have some pretty papers!  Before I show you the card I CASE'd, here is what I came up with.  (Isn't that little snowman cute?!)

It wasn't hard at all figuring out WHO I would CASE because, hands down, Nicole Heady from PaperTrey Ink is my absolute favorite crafter.  She is amazing!!  But I did think it would be hard to find a card to CASE since I was given this cutie snowman cutting file to work with.  But a quick look through her blog and I found this card:

Right away, I loved the ombre stripes and the dark centered sentiment with all the white background.  I was also given some patterned paper from our sponsor to use, so I cut thin stripes of several different colors and adhered them to a white panel so mimic the ombre stamping.  And I cut out and layered my snowman all together and set him right in the center.  Then he looked like he still needed something and I still needed to tie in a sentiment and the twine Nicole used.  In steps my little banner with the sentiment stamped and embossed on it.  Now it's your turn.  I can't wait to see who your favorite crafter is and what you can do with their inspiration.

Challenges:

Christmas Cards All Year 'Round--non-traditional colors (I do have some green, but the pinks, blues and line greens are not traditional)

Divas by Design--Christmas in July

C.R.A.F.T. #268--Christmas

The Stamping Chef #38--anything goes

Supplies:

Papers: Pretty Papers, Pretty Ribbons "Christmas Brights: Circles & spots" 

Cutting File: Pretty Papers, Pretty Ribbons "Nerdy Snowman" from the Snow Peeps cutting file collection

Stamps: PTI "Fresh Alphabet"

Dies: Verve "Pennant Trim" die

Birthday Wishes

My last post showed the birthday card I made for my brother; this is the gift card holder that goes along with his gift:

 Don't mind the card in the photo; it's what I had on hand and I hadn't picked up the actual gift card before I needed to take the picture.  I actually got a Starbucks gift card, hence the coffee cup on the front.

I made the holder following this tutorial; it was really quite simple and just a bit different from the ones I have made before.

Challenges:

Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge--anything goes as long as it is covered in patterned paper

Viva La Verve July week 2--sketch

Wags 'n' Whiskers #135--anything goes

Treasured Times #20--anything goes

Sweet Stamps--anything goes

Crafting By Designs--use a sentiment

Crafter's Cafe #72--birthday

Supplies:

Stamps: PTI "Heart 2 Heart #1"; Verve "Birthday Phrases"

Dies: PTI "Heart 2 Heart #1"die

Birthday Fishes

July is another big birthday month for my family so there will be lots of birthday cards showing up over the next few days.  This one is for my brother and I know the sentiment "Birthday Fishes" is a bit cheesy but he really loves fish.  In my previous post I showed a shaker card I had made and the idea was still in my head when I came across this fishbowl digi in my files.  I printed it out twice and cut the center out of one of them, backed it with acetate to give the glass look, inked the second image with blue and glued sand onto the bottom of the image.  Before I layered them together, I colored and cut out the fish and suspended them with a nylon filament to give them some movement as if they were swimming around.  And I have to say, it came out just as planned.

Challenges:

Cards Galore--use a stamp or digi (I have both)

Sarah Hurley Challenge #94--Celebration (celebrating my brother's birthday)

Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge--anything goes as long as it is covered with patterned paper

Charisma Cardz #15--anything goes

Sister Act Card Challenge #65--anything goes

Suzy Bee's Blooming Challenge #37--anything goes

Treasured Times #20--anything goes

Through the Purple Haze--birthday

Tuesday Morning Sketches #258--sketch

Word Art Wednesday #141--anything goes

Supplies:

Stamps: SU! "All Wrapped Up" fishes; Eureka Stamp "Fish Bowl" digi

Dies: Verve "Charming Ovals"

Joy to you

Hi, everyone!  Just popping in with a mid-month reminder for Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge Extra.  Remember that it is "Anything Goes" all month long.  You can enter with any Christmas/holiday creation.  For today's inspiration, I decided to make a fun shaker card.  I've been seeing them around a lot lately and thought I'd give it a try.

 The following picture shows the glitter in the "box" in action.  So fun to play with!

Don't forget to come play along with us.  You can enter as many times as you want.

Challenges:
Milk Coffee Challenge--white on white with a colored image
Viva La Verve July week 1--sketch

Cards Galore Challenge--use a stamp or digi
Paper Nest Dolls #14--anything goes
Twisted Tuesday #80--pearls are soooo heavy (pearls with lots of layers)
Word Art Wednesday #140--anything goes with uplifting sentiment
Crafting by Designs--use dies
The Stamping Chef #37--anything goes
Wonderful Wednesday at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps--anything goes
Sweet n Sassy--Christmas in July
DRS Designs #130--Big Chill (use cool colors or cold theme--I think I've got both)
Winter Wonderland--3 of 3 (I have 3 snowflakes, 3 pearls and 3 letters in my image)
Sister Act Card Challenge #65--anything goes
The Squirrel and The Fox #7--ribbon and lace

Supplies:
Stamps: Beccy's Place "Joy" digi; Verve "Merry and Bright" sentiment
Dies/embossing folders: Verve "Classy Labels" die; Sweet 'n Sassy small snowflakes dies; spellbinders "Address Book" for the little tab; Cuttlebug snowflake embossing folder

Downhill

Happy Friday!  Time for another challenge from Christmas Stampin' All Year Long.  This week, it's a fun one: a recipe.  All you have to do it use 2 cardstock/patternpapers, 1 image, 2 embellishments, and 1 sentiment.  The sponsor is Eureka Stamps and the winner will receive some of their adorable images.  I got to work with this cute little Santa on Skis.  Now, I'm not normally a Santa fan, but I think this card is adorable!!  I just couldn't bear to let him stand all by himself, so I created a sweet little ski hill scene.  I've been in a scene building mood lately; it's really fun!

I started out by masking the hill, then inking up the background with a mid-tone blue then a dark blue around the very edges.  Then I stamped the trees.  I cut out the image and made it look like he was on the fast track downhill. : )  I used two cardstocks (navy and white) AND papers (just to be safe!), and my two embellishments are ribbon and gumdrops (oops, just realized I also used a brad in the center of the snowflake--just ignore that for now, ok?)

Challenges:
Sugar Pea Designs #6--sketch

Sparkles Christmas Challenge #42--A winter scene
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge--make your mark (I used markers to color the picture)
Sentimental Sundays #214--red, white, and blue
Verve July Inspiration Challenge--red, white & you (my third color is blue)
Cutie Pie Challenge #73--use a cute digi
The Paper Girls #59--red, white, blue
Our Daily Bread Designs--red, white, blue
Loves Rubber Stamps #111--red, white, blue
Creative Inspirations #273--Your Favorite Occasion (definitely Christmas!)


Supplies:
Stamps: Eureka Stamps "Santa on Skis" digi; Verve "Merry & Bright" sentiment; SU! "Lovely as a Tree"
Dies: PTI "Fancy Flakes"
Papers: DCWV Christmas pack
YNS: blue gumdrops

Silent Night

Hello, all!  Happy 4th of July!  I hope you all have a fabulous holiday!  Since it's Friday, it's time for another challenge from Christmas Stampin' All Year Long.  This week the challenge is to use your favorite color combo.  Our Sponsor is Emma Canning with her fabulous and adorable "Flat Friends" images.  I have a confession to make: I did not use my favorite color combo.  Nope, sorry.  But since it is the 4th of July, I HAD to use the red, white and blue combo.  See, it works for Christmas, too. (I have actually used if for Christmas cards before, and I do really like it--it's something different).

 I got to work with this adorable little deer.  He's so cute!  I did really have to resist coloring his nose red and making him into Rudolf. : )  When I received the image, I was a little unsure how to work with it, because there are two flowers with foliage growing by his feet, and these are not winter flowers people. So, I colored them with a straw brown color to simulate hay/dried grass and then added a little picket fence in front that mostly covers them up.  So, now I have an image that can be used for summer/spring AND winter.  I printed out a second image and used it as a mask so I could sponge in the winter sun and the hills.  Then I splatted on some white paint to make a gently falling snow storm.

So, now it's time to play along.  I can't wait to see what your favorite color combinations are; maybe I will get some new favorites myself.

Challenges:

Twisted Tuesdays #79--red, white, and blue with the twist of stars (my stars are small--in the blue border die cut)

Fab n' Funky #222--Christmas in July

The Squirrel and the Fox #73--Christmas in July

Christmas Card #31--anything goes

Card Mania #50--circles (I used a circle die cut, circles on my top paper and the blue enamel dots)

Tuesday Morning Sketches #256--sketch

 

Sweet Stamps #176--dreaming of snow

Loves Rubberstamps #110--anything goes

Tuesday Throwdown #202--anything goes

Shopping Our Stash #158--red, white & blue

V's Sweet Ideas #25--red, white & blue

One Sweet Challenge--red, white & blue

Crafter's Cafe #70--red, white, blue

Supplies:

Stamps: Emma Canning "Deer Scene" digi;

Dies: Spellbinders classic circles, large; PTI "Fancy Flakes"; Verve "Scalloped Trim Trio" star border die; Sweet n' Sassy fence die

Sweet Reindeer

Ack!!  It's July already!  Dare I mention that the year is now half over??  How are you coming on your Christmas card stash?  It's time to start and here's the perfect reason: today starts a new challenge on the Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge Extra.  As always, it is anything goes as long as it is Holiday (Christmas) related.  The sponsor is Bugaboo Stamps and the winner will win 7 images of their choice.  Here's my card:

I absolutely LOVE this reindeer!  Oh, he's so cute!!  I just love his little face; kind of like a little lost puppy don't you think?  I've had that blue trim for ever and decided it was finally time to use it.  I never really know what to do with it as it is adhesive backed (kind of tricking to stick down straight) and the color is hard to match.  But I think it added a really fun element to this card.  I also used a bit on the inside.  And there is still a bunch left; but at least I managed to use up several inches.  I don't have a photo of my bits and pieces stash as I am pretty sure I didn't use up a single thing from it, AND I know I added at least one image.  I really need to get back to working on it.  Don't forget to play along with us this month.  I can't wait to see what you are creating.

Challenges:
Sister Act Card Challenge #63--anything goes
Your Next Stamp--sketch

Lacy Sunshine Challenge #36--anything goes
The Stamping Chef #35--anything goes
Fab n' Funky #222--Christmas
Divas by Design--favorite stamp--I absolutely love this reindeer image.  I could use him all the time (for Christmas Cards at least)
Little Miss Muffet #87--anything goes
Crafty Catz #237--anything goes
Completely Christmas--anything goes
Suzy Bee's Blooming Challenge #35--anything goes
The Squirrel and the Fox #73--Christmas in July
Christmas Card Challenge #31--anything goes


Supplies:
Stamps: Bugaboo Stamps "Plush Reindeer" digi; Verve "Ornamental Christmas" sentiment