Follow the Star

Don't you love images that just take hold of your spirit the minute you see them? This new Penny Black To Follow Star image did just that for me - as perfect a holiday image as I can imagine! I stamped in Ranger Walnut Stain Distress Ink onto one of the patterns in Holly Jolly by My Mind's Eye, distressed the edges, then created a pretty simple card base out of two other patterns in the Holly Jolly collection. Embellishments include some gathered twill (I hand-basted down the center of the twill, then pulled the ends of the thread - reminds me of sewing lessons my mom gave me when I was a young girl), an accordian-fold medallion, and one of Webster's Pages gorgeous sparklers. Love these sparklers! I think the exact one I used is no longer in the Stamper's Dream store, but it is very similar to these and these. For the sentiment, I stamped the "For Unto Us A Child Is Born" border from JustRite's Holiday Demi Phrases and tucked it behind the medallion.

Thanks for stopping by and sticking with my sporadic blog postings lately. Hope all is well with all of you! I'm looking at a very dreary, rain-filled day - perfect for stamping. And it's a preschool day, too :)

A Cupcake For You

Helloooooo weekend! What are your plans? For us, it's football/cheer today (go Chargers!), then maybe a trip to our CSA farm for the weekly U-Pick bonus (edamame this week - YUM, but not nearly as fun as digging for potatoes last week). Tomorrow, a little theme park adventure, I'm thinking. Somewhere in there I've *got* to stamp! One thing I'm sadly not doing is heading to Stamping Bella for Paula's and Linda's classes ... sniff, sniff. I mentioned a few weeks ago that these two coloring superstars would be teaching at Stamping Bella this weekend, and oh, how I would desperately *love* to watch them work their magic (and hopefully learn a thing or three or twenty). I suppose my frugal, practical, boring self won out, because at the end of the day, I just couldn't justify the trip :( Maybe next time.

Enough of that, how about some card chit-chat? I used Jen's very cool Sketch For You To Try ...

... my favorite cupcake (Verve's Carpe Cupcake), and the gorgeous new Restoration Collection by Crate Paper. I am forever and always sponging *everything* with my Distress Inks these days, so today I changed it up a bit and brushed the edges of the two background panels and the Kraft card base with some ivory acrylic paint instead (and then distress inked the paint). Love the messy, shabby look the paint gives. The sentiment is from Verve's Great Friend and the notebook page image is from Verve's Blue Skies.

Jump-start your sketch mojo with these gorgeous samples by my fabby SFYTT teammates:

Jen del Muro with guest designer Tori Wild
Amber Hight
Amy Rohl
Carole Burrage
Jenn Diercks
Jodi Collins
Kelly Lunceford
Leigh O'Brien
Megan Lock
Sonja Christoph
Susan Liles

Would you like to be an SFYTT guest designer? Jen picks future guest designers from challenge participants, so be sure to get your creation linked to her blog to be considered!

Have an awesome weekend, friends!



Stamps: Carpe Cupcake, Blue Skies, Great Friend (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Papertrey Kraft and Rustic Ivory, Crate Paper Restoration Collection
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black, Ranger Frayed Burlap and Brushed Corduroy Distress Ink
Accessories: Stampin' Up punches, 5/8" natural lightweight twill, May Arts burlap string, foam adhesive, Making Memories button, distressing tool, ivory acrylic paint, foam brush, needle and thread
Size: 4 1/4" x 5 1/2"

JustRite Friday Sketch Challenge

This week, Stamper's Dream is sponsoring the Friday challenge on the JustRite Inspiration Blog . The challenge is a sketch, and the prize is a $50 shopping spree at Stamper's Dream. That's definitely something worth playing for!

Just use the sketch challenge #037 to make your card, then post it on the JustRite Inspiration Blog using Mr. Linky. You have until Thursday, September 30 at 9 am.

Check out the rest of today's Dream Team sketch creations:

Michelle
Tosh
Cammie
Laurie
Christina
Karen

Thanks for visiting!



Stamps: Whimsical Christmas (JustRite)
Paper: Prismatics Suede Brown (Dark) and Sunflowers (Medium) card stock, Neenah Classic Crest Natural White card stock, Crate Paper Snow Day designer paper
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black, Ranger Frayed Burlap and Vintage Photo Distress Inks
Accessories: Spellbinders classic circle and lacey circle Nestabilities, 5/8" natural twill, Copic markers, ivory liquid pearls, Buttons Galore buttons, Papertrey baker's twine, May Arts brown burlap string, Tim Holtz "Scallops on the Edge" Alterations die, paper piercer, needle, and thread
Size: 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" (A2)

Last Call - Breast Cancer Fundraiser Auction

Just a quick reminder that the Skipping Stones Design "Blogs for Boobies" silent auctions all end tonight at 8 pm Mountain Time! Here is the card I'm donating to this wonderful cause:

The current high bid is $25 from Michelle S. Thanks Shell, and everyone else who has bid so far! If you're interested in helping out this cause, there's still time! Go HERE (to my original post) to continue bidding on my card. You'll find all the "how-to-bid" details there. Or, go HERE for links to all the other designers' cards that are also up for auction. Thanks so, so much for your support!! Remember every dollar of your bid will go to the Susan G. Komen Foundation to hep the fight against breast cancer. 

Another great way you can help out with the cause is to purchase a Skipping Stones Design stamp set. Through midnight tonight, for every stamp set sold, SSD will donate $2 to the Komen Foundation.

(Comments on this post are disabled to avoid confusion. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me. All bidding will take place HERE.)

The Best Day Ever

I put together today's card for this week's Mojo Monday sketch challenge (#157). I stamped the frame from Verve's Framed Wishes onto designer paper with VersaMark ink, clear embossed, then used the emboss resist technique to reveal the stamped frame. The inks I used for the emboss resist were Ranger Pumice Stone and Walnut Stain Distress Inks. I love the way Julee used an accordian-fold medallion for the circle element on her sketch sample, so I did the same. I topped it with a Melissa Frances glittery heart and a sentiment flag. One vertical border is punched with a Martha Stewart Optic Dots punch, and the other was cut with pinking shears. The bow was made from some super gorgeous crinkled seam binding that was a gift from Julee (thanks again, Julee!).

I really, really, really {heart} this sketch:

Wishing YOU, my friends, the Best Day Ever - today and every day!

Love and hugs,





Stamps: Framed Wishes (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Papertrey Dark Chocolate and Aqua Mist, Prima Fairy Flora designer paper
Ink: Ranger Pumice Stone, Vintage Photo, Walnut Stain Distress Iks
Accessories: Melissa Frances glittered chipboard heart, Prima mini roses, Cotton Candy Stickles, distressing tool, crinkled seam binding, Martha Stewart Optic Dots border punch, pinking shears, needle and brown thread, Dew Drops
Size: 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" (A2)

One Groooooovy Gal

I'm loving the new A La Modes line of cling rubber stamps at My Favorite Things. (And did I spy a *new* Christmas one in my jaunt through blogland this morning? Yay!!) This one is Groovy Girl. How about that oversize peace sign she's carrying and the flower garland she's wearing? Cute! I did my coloring with Copics and Prismacolor pencils. All of the designer papers are from Crate Paper's new Restoration line.

Thank you for the sweet comments yesterday about the missing mojo. I love all the support in this papercrafting community! Some of you asked to see pictures of Rocki, our new kitten. I thought you might chuckle over her making a toy out of the ribbon/cord accent on yesterday's card.

Have at it, sweet girl. I didn't like that card anyway! :P

Here's another one that shows more of her. She isn't what I would necessarily call a "pretty" cat, but she won us over with her sweet personality and her willingness to tolerate all of our crazy chaos :) Our family is evenly divided over changing her name to Roxi to make her name more feminine. (Rocki, even with an "i" on the end, still seems like a boy cat's name) What do you think?

So glad you paid a visit today. Hope your day is blessed!



Stamps: Groovy Girl A La Modes (My Favorite Things)
Paper: MFT Perfect Paper Panels, Crate Paper Restoration dp
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Stampin' Up So Saffron, Ranger Old Paper, Vintage Photo, Walnut Stain, and Pumice Stone Distress inks
Accessories: Copic markers, Prismacolor pencils/blending stump/Gamsol, Spellbinders Mega Curved Rectangles Nestabilities, sewing machine, foam adhesive, 5/8" lightweight ivory twill, Papertrey button
Size: 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" (A2)

Real Flowers Birthday

Can I just first say that my mojo is G-O-N-E, gone! I think I left it at the animal shelter last weekend when I finalized kitten adoption paperwork, because ever since we brought sweet Rocki home, I've wanted to do little else but cuddle with her! Good times! Except for this morning at 4 am, when the meowing began in earnest. Thus (in part) the delay in my post today. Just didn't have time get this photographed between oversleeping and rushing off to back-to-back football games. I feel like I'm letting y'all down double today!

Today's card is my sample for Jen's Sketch For You To Try. The flowers are from Hero Arts' Real Flowers set. I stamped them onto Prism Simply Smooth White in various VersaMagic inks. The fun die-cut frame is the Frame Back Ornate #6 by Sizzix. Patterned paper scraps are from Prima's new Fairy Flora 6x6 pad. The tag holds the sentiment "Celebrate Your Day" from Flourishes' Fanciful Flourishes set.

Here's the sketch:

And here's the rest of the gang with more sketch inspiration:

Jen del Muro with guest designer, Tori Wild
Amber Hight
Amy Rohl
Carole Burrage
Jenn Diercks
Jodi Collins
Kelly Lunceford
Leigh O'Brien
Megan Lock
Sonja Christoph
Susan Liles

Another look in different lighting:

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Skipping Stones Blog Bounce!

Today, I'm joining Skipping Stones Design for it's first annual "Blogs 4 Boobies" blog bounce/hop! This is the second day of a two-day hop, so be sure to go to Skipping Stones Design to check out yesterday's post for even more cards, projects and fun! I have a lot of info to share about the fundraiser part of this hop, so let's get started.

There are three ways that you can be a part of the event:

1. Go Shopping!
For every stamp set that you purchase between September 15 and September 23, SSD will donate $2 to the Komen Foundation. Stamping and shopping that you can feel good about! Skipping Stones Design is celebrating "Blogs 4 Boobies" with the release of two new stamp sets as well: Bras Volume #2, a follow-up to the best-selling Bras Volume #1, and a beautifully illustrated Christmas set called Wise Men.

2. Bid on Blog Bounce Cards/Projects!
EVERY card/project along the "Blogs 4 Boobies" bounce is up for auction. You'll find detailed bidding instructions at the end of this post. The auctions close September 23 at 8 pm Mountain Time. All projects will go to the highest bidders, and all proceeds will go to the Komen Foundation.

3. Spread the Word!

Help us spread the word about "Blogs 4 Boobies"! The more people that know, the more money we can raise, so tell all your friends!

For today's card, I chose to work with Healing Wings, one of my very favorite SSD stamps. Since this is a blog hop, you should have come from Sharon Harnist's blog, PaperFections. When you're finished here, you'll visit Jennifer Buck at The Buck Stamps Here. If there is a break along the way or you just need to make your way to the beginning, you'll find the entire blog bounce list below. Enjoy the designs and remember to make a bid or two! This is a great opportunity to take home cards or projects made by some of your favorite designers and fight the war against breast cancer at the same time!

Here's the full line-up for today:
Kim Hughes
Kandi Phillips
Sharon Harnist
Amy Sheffer (you're here)
Jennifer Buck
Amy Tsuruta
Tammie Beaton
Rae Ann Barthel
Wendy Jordan
Sarah Martina Parker
Lea Lawson
Teri Anderson
Deb Felts

Kimberly Crawford
Gladys Chia
Jen del Muro
Maile Belles

How to place a bid

1. Find the comment section of the blog that shows the "Blogs 4 boobies" card or project that you want to buy.
*Please note you may only bid on the card/project shown in the specific "blogs 4 boobies" post.*
Any bids not placed on the correct post will be considered invalid.

2. In the comment section, fill in the dollar and cents amount of what you are willing to pay for the card/project. A starting bid of $5 or more is recommended. Remember, your bid includes shipping as well as the card/project. One hundred percent of your bid will go to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.

3. Next to your bid, please type in your email address. During a silent auction bidders sign their name next to their bid. Typing your email address is the electronic equivalent of signing your bid. Also it will help the blogger contact you if you are the highest bidder.

4. Watch and wait. Once you have entered your bid/comment sit back and wait. If someone out bids you then you may bid again. Bidding will continue until 8:00 p.m. Mountain Time September 23rd.

* Please note that participating stampers/bloggers will re-post their Blogs 4 Boobies card/project on September 23. When the blogger re-posts the project, the bidding will continue on the NEWEST post in that comment section. The winner of the auction will be the highest bid (that includes an email address) at the close of the silent auction.

Things to keep in mind:

Near the end of the bidding you may not see bids as they come in. Some blogs have a comment feature where the blogger must approve comments before they are published. So bid high. You might have the highest bid that is published, but someone might have outbid you in an unpublished comment/bid.

The blogger/designer will declare who has won the silent auction. Skipping Stones Design will send you an invoice for your donation/bid ammount. Please pay that invoice as soon as possible, so the designer can get your card/project in the mail to you.

Good luck! And don't forget to visit the next stop on the hop -- Jennifer Buck!

JustRite 12 Weeks of Christmas Blog Hop #2

Today The Dream Team from Stamper's Dream is joining JustRite Stampers for their newest Wednesday feature, 12 Weeks of Christmas Blog Hops. Every Wednesday until Thanksgiving some of your favorite designers will be joining some of the JustRite design team for a series of Christmas blog hops, showcasing the JustRite Christmas Collection of stamps. This is Week 2, but you can catch up on Week 1 HERE. And going forward, be sure to mark your calendars for Wednesdays at 9am Central for great Christmas gift, card and project ideas, starting at the JustRite Inspiration blog.

I've been itching to ink up one of the cuddly, adorable snowmen from the Groovy Snowmen set. This one was stamped in Versafine Onyx Black ink onto watercolor paper, then watercolored with Tombow Markers and a water brush. For the sentiment accent, I stamped the "Let It Snow" border from Holiday Cheer and sandwiched it between a button and a Heidi Swapp ghost snowflake. I accented the main image and the ghost snowflake with various Stickles (Stardust, Frosted Lace, and Christmas Red). The papers are from my current holiday fave -- Holly Jolly by My Mind's Eye. JustRite stamps and accessories, as well as many of the other supplies I've used, are available at Stamper's Dream.

Please visit these designers' blogs to see what fabulous Christmas projects they have for you on the hop today!

JustRite Inspiration Blog
Michelle Rodgers
Amy Sheffer
Heidi Blankenship

Christina Fischer

Kazan Clark
Tosha Leyendekker
Laurie Schmidlin
Sankari Wegman
Cindy Lawrence
Kellie Fortin
Denise Marzec
Stephanie Kraft
Karen Giron
Kathy Jones
Leslie Miller
Carolyn King

Angela Barkhouse
Michele Kovack


Thanks so much for stopping by!

Woohooo!!!!!

Okay, maybe I should tone down my excitement just a little bit, but today is a big day! It's my littlest one's first day of preschool this year. With my middle child in first grade this year, both of the older two are now in school a full day, which means (here's the *real* reason for my excitement) I get the whole FOUR HOURS of preschool to myself! As in alone! Alone - in my house without having to lock myself in a bathroom or something! I'm a little giddy for sure!

I haven't stamped in a few days due to a busy weekend with football, family, and birthday celebrations (thanks so much for all the happy birthday wishes!), but I do have something I made a while back with one of Verve's newest sets - Love Story. I wanted something soft, romantic, and a little bit shabby, but also simple and uncluttered. Here's what I came up with:

The beautiful frame around the sentiment, as well as the sentiment, are both part of Love Story. The glittery heart is by Melissa Frances. I topped it with a pearl swirly flourish that just about goes unnoticed in the photograph, but adds a really nice touch in real life and two rolled flowers. Some pleated thick ivory satin ribbon and some ivory trim finish off the bottom.

I'd love to chitchat a bit more, but I have only an hour of solitude left and two blog hops later this week. I'm off to stamp something!

Hugs,

42 {Rocks}!

Today's Sketch For You To Try is sponsored by The Stamping Boutique. One lucky sketch participant will win three digi images of her choice! Hope you'll play along!

Here's the sketch:

I've used a fun, cool digi image - Madyson - to make a birthday card for my younger sister (by three minutes, hehe.) Today is our day!! Here's the finished inside:

Some card particulars:

• Printed on Neenah Classic Crest Solar White with an HP inkjet printer (had some noticeable bleeding on the black hair, by the way)
• Colored with Copics and Prismacolors
• Designer paper from Cosmo Cricket's Pixie-licious Mini Deck
• Embossing done with Rays and Retro Circles Texture Fades embossing folder by Tim Holtz
• lots of hand-stitching and distressing
• the numbers on the inside are vinyl Thickers by American Crafts and the brackets and letters for {rocks} are Boho Chic Tiny Alphas by Making Memories

Be sure to visit my fellow SFYTT sisters for more sketchy yumminess:

Jen del Muro with guest designer, Tori Wild
Amber Hight
Amy Rohl
Carole Burrage
Jenn Diercks
Jodi Collins
Kelly Lunceford
Leigh O'Brien
Megan Lock
Sonja Christoph
Susan Liles

To play along, link up your creation to Jen's blog and remember to use keyword SFYTT in online galleries.

Thanks for visiting, and have a wonderful weekend. I hope we can all spend some time today remembering the 9/11 victims and heroes as well.



Stamps: Madyson (digital image by The Stamping Boutique)
Paper: Neenah Classic Crest Solar White, Papertrey Kraft, Cosmo Cricket Pixie-licious Mini Deck
Ink: Stampin' Up White craft ink
Accessories: Copic markers, Prismacolor pencils/Gamsol/blending stumps, Stampin' Up star, circle, and spiral punches, 5/8" natural twill, Making Memories and Papertrey buttons, May Arts burlap string, needle and thread, Tim Holtz Rays & Retro Circles Texture Fades embossing folder, Papertrey steel border die, distressing tool, American Crafts Thickers, Making Memories Boho Chic Tiny Alphas, paper piercer
Size: 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" (A2)

Wanted: Peace on Earth

Today's card features a new holiday image from Impression Obsession - Stockings. As soon as I saw this image, I knew I wanted to go with a rustic look. The monochromatic stockings are watercolored with various brown/neutral Tim Holtz Distress Inks (Antique Linen, Old Paper, Frayed Burlap, Brushed Corduroy, Vintage Photo, and Walnut Stain), and the colorful fruit is done with Tombow markers. The fabric strip behind the image is something from my stash (once upon a long time ago, something, maybe a gift basket, was tied with yards and yards of this stuff - of course I saved it!). On top of that is a length of brown twill, and last is a button/burlap ribbon/twine accent. Love all the texture these materials add! The sage green woodgrain patterned paper is from Cosmo Cricket's Wanted Mini-Deck. Vintage brads, zigzag stitching on the image panel, and lots of distressing complete the look. Stockings and tons of other Impression Obsession holiday images are available at Stamper's Dream.

One small detail: I hand-stitched around the patches on the stockings with some ivory heavyweight thread.

Thanks for visiting!



Stamps: Stockings (Impression Obsession)
Paper: Prismatics Ivory Simply Smooth card stock, Strathmore Series 400 watercolor paper, Cosmo Cricket Wanted Mini-Deck
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black, Tim Holtz Distress Inks by Ranger
Accessories: clear embossing powder, Tombow markers, water brush, distressing tool, needle and thread, SU vintage brads, fabric strip, Offray brown twill, SEI burlap ribbon, Papertrey button, May Arts burlap string, foam adhesive
Size: 5 1/2" square

Happy Birthday Matilda

I am loving all the awesome new Cosmo Cricket 6x6 Mini Decks! The Halloween prints in Matilda are completely adorable, and I can't wait to cut into them, but for today, I've used some of the non-Halloween-specific patterns to create a birthday card. The cake, cupcake, sentiment, and star accents are all from Birthday Bash by Verve. I colored the image with Copics and accented with clear glitter. The focal panel is cut with the new Lacey Circles Nestabilities (I'm giving these things a real workout!). I added some hand-stitching around the circle panels and the background layer as well. The sentiment tag also includes a circle frame stamp from Happy Hello (another thing that's getting quite the workout - I think I've used that little circle on almost all of my Verve projects lately!).

The layout is from Julee's Mojo 155 sketch.

It's a contest this week, too, which means if you play along and link your creation to the Mojo Monday blog, you have a chance to win a Verve set of your choice. Do you know I acquired my very first Verve stamps by winning a Mojo contest? I bet it was two and half years ago at least, and oh, how my collection has grown!

Here's a little detail shot:

As always, thanks so much for stopping by. Your visits are a highlight of my day!



Stamps: Birthday Bash, Happy Hello (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Papertrey Vintage Cream and Plum Pudding card stock, Cosmo Cricket Matilda 6x6 Mini Deck
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black, Ranger Spun Sugar Distress, Stampin' Up So Saffron
Accessories: Spellbinders Lacey Circle Nestabilities, Copic markers, Sakura Quickie glue pen, Art Institute clear ultrafine glitter, Papertrey ribbon, Stampin' Up binder clip, Creative Memories 1" circle punch, My Favorite Things Die-namics Scalloped Scallops border die, needle and thread, SU dimensionals
Size: 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" (A2)

For a Berry Special Friend

The slightest hint of crispness in the air, a schoolbus rumbling down the hill this morning, late summer's garden bounty ... Fall is on the way! Before I get knee-deep into all things Halloween and Christmas here on the bog, I just had to give summer a farewell with this sweet Strawberry Girl digi image from Mo's Digital Pencil. I printed onto Neenah card stock and colored with Copics and Prismacolor pencils. The papers are from October Afternoon's Fly A Kite 8x8 pad. I stamped the sentiment (from Feelin' Fruity by My Favorite Things) onto a cloud that I die-cut with MFT's Cloud Trio Dienamics. Finished with the usual suspects -- sponging, twine, ribbon, stitching, a button....

Have a great week, friends!



Stamps: Strawberry Girl (Mo's Digital Pencil), Feelin' Fruity (My Favorite Things)
Paper: Neenah Classic Crest Solar White card stock, October Afternoon Fly A Kite, Papertrey Rustic Cream, Stampin' Up Riding Hood Red and Chocolate Chip
Ink: Stampin' Up So Saffron, Ranger Old Paper, Vintage Cream, Walnut Stain Distress Inks
Accessories: Labels Ten Nestabilities, MFT Cloud Trio Die-namics, Copic markers, Prismacolor pencils/Gamsol/blending stumps, Martha Stewart butterfly punch, Stampin' Up ribbon, May Arts burlap string, Papertrey button, needle and thread, foam adhesive
Size: 6" square

Cheers Throughout the Years SFYTT

Today's Sketch For You To Try is one that I can see myself coming back to again and again - hope you'll play along! My sample uses Winter View by Impression Obsession. I stamped the focal image in Forest Moss Distress Ink, then added a hint of blue color to the ornament using Copic Markers (BG0000 and BG000). (And I learned something new in the process ... I was able to color over the distress ink with the Copics without any bleeding. Didn't realize that about the distress inks - wonder if all of them hold up to Copics?) See the pine garland peeking out from under the ribbon/label treatment? It's part of the Winter View set, too. I stamped it in Ranger Forest Moss Distress ink, fussy cut around the branches, and sponged the edges.

The papers are from the new Cosmo Cricket Mitten Weather designer paper. Loving the wintry colors included in this collection, but I will say, I had a beastly time photographing this one. It really looks quite different in real life. Have another look in different lighting:

Still doesn't do it justice, but hopefully you'll get the idea :)

Here's the sketch for the week:

And here's the gang of sample-makers:

Jen del Muro with a brand-new guest designer, Tori Wild (welcome, Tori!!)
Amber Hight
Amy Rohl
Carole Burrage
Jenn Diercks
Jodi Collins
Kelly Lunceford
Leigh O'Brien
Megan Lock
Sonja Christoph
Susan Liles

To play along, just link up your sketch creation to Jen's blog using the linky widget. Remember to use keyword SFYTT in online galleries, too - makes it easier to find each other!

Hope you have a great weekend!



Stamps: Winter View by Impression Obsession
Paper: Prismatics Island Mist Light card stock, Neenah Classic Crest Natural White card stock, Papertrey Rustic Cream card stock, Cosmo Cricket Mitten Weather designer paper
Ink: Ranger Forest Moss, Old Paper, Pumice Stone Distress Inks
Accessories: Copic markers; Spellbinders lacey circle Nestabilities, classic circle Nestabilities, and label die; Kaisercraft pearls (Bliss Blue); foam adhesive; May Arts ivory burlap string; natural 5/8" twill
Size: 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" (A2)

Taylored Expressions Birthday Bash!

Guess who's turning TWO? Taylored Expressions! I'm thrilled to join in with a group of fabulous stampers to help celebrate with a Birthday Bash Blog Hop. If you arrived here from Laurie, you're right on track. When you're finished here, your next stop will be Ana. And if you just happened to stop by, swing by Taylor's blog to get started!

TE has just released a host of new stamps, which are all available in the TE store. Check out these awesome specials, too:

- Purchase ANY 4 full-size stamp sets and receive a free Binder Box
- Purchase ANY 8 A la Carte stamps and receive a free set of Stamp Storage Panels
- FOUR orders will be selected at random (one each day from Friday - Monday) to win a $25 TE gift certificate.

Among the new releases is an adorable A La Carte belated series. Every single one of these is right up my alley! I especially couldn't resist Belated Birthday - Stand Out. The birds are just way too cute!

The sentiment comes in two parts - perfect for finishing the inside:

I did my coloring with Copics and Prismacolor pencils. The papers are from Cosmo Cricket's new Togetherness mini deck, and the various die-cuts were cut with MFT's Die-namics.

Congratulations to Taylor on two years in business! Can't wait to see what's coming this next year!!

Thanks, everyone, for visiting, and don't forget to hop on over to Ana next!

Hugs,




Stamps: Belated Birthday - Stand Out (Taylored Expressions)
Paper: Papertrey Harvest Gold, White, and Kraft card stock, Cosmo Cricket Togetherness Mini Deck
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Stampin' Up So Saffron, Ranger Frayed Burlap Distress Ink
Accessories: Copics, Prismacolor pencils/Gamsol/blending stumps, foam adhesive, Papertrey buttons, May Arts burlap string, 5/8" natural twill, MFT Die-namics, white liquid applique
Size: 5 1/2 x 4 1/4" (A2)

Verve Project Parade: Something Old, Something New

It's Project Parade time at Verve, and today is my day to post. Our challenge this month is to use a previously released Verve stamp set with one of the new sets that was just released on August 20th. Hope you'll visit me over at the Verve blog today for more info on my Something Old, Something New project:

There are two chances to win Verve goodies:

1. Play along with us and link up your new SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW creation (posted August 25th or later) to the linky widget on the DAY 1 PARADE POST before midnight on Wednesday, September 15th. One lucky stamper will win a $30.00 gift certificate to the Verve Store. (By the way, if you don't have the newest Verve sets, no worries, just mix an older set from your stash with a "new to you" stamp set and join the fun!)

2. For another chance to win, be sure to give the Divas a little shout-out in the comments section of the Verve blog as we parade our SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW creations. One lucky commenter during the course of the parade will win the Verve stamp set of his or her choosing!


Thanks for stopping by!





Stamps: Love Story, Grateful Elegance, Swan Song, One Person (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Papertrey Rustic Cream card stock, Basic Grey Cappella designer paper
Ink: Ranger Pumice Stone, Old Paper, and Bundled Sage Distress inks
Accessories: Spellbinders scalloped circle and label dies, R0000 and R000 Copic markers, Clear Spica pen, foam adhesive, Kaiser pearls, sponge daubers, Offray ivory ribbon, trim (unknown), clear embossing powder, May Arts ivory burlap string, Tim Holtz "Ornate" Alterations die, Webster's Pages sparkler
Size: 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" (A2)