Hello From the Heart

 Remember this card set? I promised a colored version of Stampendous's Jumbo Peony image, and today I finally deliver. I stamped this beauty onto 140-pound cold press watercolor paper, heat embossed, and then watercolored with Tombow Markers. Sigh ... why don't I watercolor more? Love it so much! Such a bold, dramatic image, isn't it? I didn't want to busy it up with too much else, so I stuck to an all-white background and just added some minimal, understated embellishing ... buttons, a punched border, dry embossing, a bit of ribbon peeking out, and some clear glitter. The sentiment is from a new JustRite set called A Warm Hello -- such sweet sentiments in this one!

Hope you have a fantastic weekend planned!




Stamps: Jumbo Peony (Stampendous), A Warm Hello (JustRite Stamps)
Paper: 140-lb cold-press watercolor paper, Neenah Classic Crest Solar White
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black
Accessories: clear embossing powder, Tombow Markers, water brush, Martha Stewart punch, May Arts ribbon and burlap string, Papertrey black buttons, Spellbinders Lacey Circle Nestabilities, paper piercer, needle, thread, Pizzazz Aplenty 3mm clear rhinestones, Sakura Quickie glue pen, Art Institute crystal ultrafine glitter
Size: 4 1/4" x 5 1/2"

Diva Dare -- Hope Perches

 
Hey there, I've posted this number over on the Verve blog today as part of the current Color MeSpring  Diva Dare. Hope you'll check it out!

Do you know about Verve's monthly Diva Dare? Here's how it works: Following each release, we post a theme we dare you with, and you'll have two weeks to complete the challenge. During those two weeks, the Verve Divas will post their creations (to the Verve blog) and tell you how they answered the dare!

You still have time to play along for a chance at winning some Verve goodies! Deadline is this Sunday, March 10, midnight Mountain Time. And even if you don't play along, you can still score some Verve! One random commenter on the Diva Dare posts (on the Verve blog -- many of us are also posting to our personal blogs) wins a prize, too! All the details are posted on the Verve blog.

My card uses the Hope Perches Plain Jane stamp and the new Viva La Verve April {Week 2} sketch by Andrea:

Two detail shots:

Happy Friday!



Stamps: Hope Perches Plain Jane (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Prism card stock, Papertrey card stock, Pink Paislee Butterfly Garden designer paper
Ink: Ranger Walnut Stain and Antique Linen Distress Inks
Accessories: Prima paper bird, Scor-Pal, Spellbinders Fancy Tags Two and Small Oval Nestabilities, corner rounder, Pizzazz Aplenty 2mm, 3mm, and 4mm clear rhinestones, May Arts crochet trim, seam binding, Prima mini rose, Dew Drops, sewing machine
Size: 4 1/4" x 5 1/2"

My Time Made Easy: A Year in Review

Today I'm joining the My Time Made Easy girls for their monthly Year in Review feature, where they take a look back at favorite stamp sets and templates from previous releases. I was thrilled at the chance to play with the Singing Silhouette set from last month. The sweet birds and birdcage images are both trendy and timeless. Color me smitten! I used papers from Prima's new collections, Madeline and Reflections. The sentiment tab is actually part of the MTME Occasional Label cut file. In the extra white space above the sentiment, I added two small metallic brads to balance out that big, honkin' (and totally gorgeous) button at the bottom right, which is a Tim Holtz Alterations product. You can't see very well in the above photo, but the birdcage is adorned with numerous 2mm pearls. Here's another look:

Sadly, this is my last official post as guest designer for MTME. I've had a blast working with the templates and stamps and want to thank Lauren, Kristin, and the whole gang for the opportunity! And speaking of the whole gang, I can't wait to see what they've put together for today. Aren't they just amazingly creative??

Lauren Meader
Kristin Eberline
Debbie Marcinkiewicz
Katie Cotton
Lisa Kind
Monique Hansen
Tangii Crane

Thanks so much for visiting!

My Time Made Easy: Occasional Labels

The My Time Made Easy designers and guest (that's me) are continuing to showcase all the newly released goodies. In case you missed anything, here's a quick re-cap from the weekend:


Saturday: Lauren, Katie, Kristin, and Lisa

Sunday: Lauren, Debbie, and Tangii

Also posting today are: Lauren, Monique, and Kristin

With teacher appreciation week coming up in early May, I decided to put together a card set using the new Occasional Labels, Sentimental Occasions, and the Occasional Label Pretty Pieces cut file. I can see this trio becoming a definite go-to item for creating beautiful card sets, especially since {squeal} one of the frames is gingham!!! Be still my heart! Seriously, I love the look of a splash of gingham with just about anything else. It's so perfect and so sweet! And the build-it-style sentiments provide so much versatility!

Here's a look at my card set, one by one. The only things I changed were the sentiments and the floral silhouettes (there are four flowers in the Occasional Labels stamp set):

Of course I needed some cute packaging to hold them all. The Slip Cover Pretty Packaging template was perfect:

Can't wait to make a couple more of these!

Thanks for stopping by!




Stamps: Occasional Labels, Sentimental Occasions (My Time Made Easy)
Paper: Stampin' Up Old Olive and Baja Breeze, Papertrey Rustic White, Prima designer paper
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black, Stampin' Up Baja Breeze, Ranger Peeled Paint, Antique Linen, and Walnut Stain Distress Inks
Accessories: MTME Occasional Label Pretty Pieces cut file, MTME Slip Cover Pretty Packaging template, Cricut, SCAL software, Stampin' Up striped green ribbon, Papertrey button and satin ribbon, Prima trim, doilies, May Arts burlap string, Martha Stewart buttons, Pizzazz Aplenty bling, sewing machine
Card Size: 4 1/4" x 5 1/2"

Break A Leg

My daughter's dance recital is coming up next weekend, so I thought I'd make her a card -- maybe a break a leg card to give her before the recital or a well done card for afterward. Either way, Marci Ballerina by La-La Land Crafts is the perfect stamp! I colored Marci with Prismacolor pencils, added some crystal clear ultrafine glitter using a Quickie Glue Pen, and gave Marci a home amidst some sweet Once Upon A Springtime papers by Graphic45. Have you seen Jen Shults's Prismacolor skin/hair guide book? What an awesome resource! I used one of her skin combos today, which looks great in real life -- not sure why my pictures are so washed out and gray - ick. I've tried a million different angles, camera settings, and Photoshop adjustments. Weird. I also started with one of Jen's hair combos, but then switched to a darker one, so I kind of mixed and matched there.

A second skirt has been popped up on the first for some dimension. The pink flowers are Maya Road stick pins. I tucked one down in behind the seam binding and thought it looked like Marci was dancing next to a flower, so I decided to give her a whole garden to dance in!

On the inside is a sentiment from JustRite's You Inspire Me cling set, framed by one of the new Charmed images, and die-cut with Spellbinders Charms Custom Dies from JustRite.

My daughter does inspire me! The way she focuses on her steps, the enthusiasm she brings to each class, her bravery when it's her turn to dance solo in front of her classmates, her {relative} confidence when performing. Hope she enjoys her Marci card as much as I enjoyed making it! I only wish my daughter's costume looked like Marci's. Adrienne will be wearing Zebra stripes and hot pink fire-engine red (oops, it helps to pay attention!) ...  sigh ... I like it better when little girls look like little girls.

Happy Sunday, my friends!




Stamps: Ballerina Marci (La-La Land Crafts)
Paper: Papertrey Black card stock, Neenah Classic Crest Natural White, Graphic45 Once Upon A Springtime designer papers
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Ranger Antique Linen Distress Ink
Accessories: Prismacolor pencils, Gamsol, blending stumps, Spellbinders classic circle and lacey circle Nestabilities, May Arts crochet trim, Papertrey ribbon, Prima rose trim, Maya Road stick pins, Kaisercraft pearls, Papertrey buttons, foam adhesive
Size: 5 1/2" square

It's A Good Day - April SFYTT

Ready or not, it's April already, which brings a brand-new Sketch For You To Try!

 We have some goodbyes and hellos this month ... farewell to Leigh and Amy, who are stepping down from the team, and a very warm welcome to Terri Moore, newest team member! We also welcome the April guest designer, Jen Shults!!

This month, we're being sponsored by Unity (yay! big fan!!). Be sure to check out Jen's post for details on the sponsorship (prizes, deadlines, "rules," etc.) To enter, just link up your sketch creation to the linking tool at the end of Jen's post. Remember, those who complete every sketch in 2011 will be eligible for a grand prize at the end of the year.

I chose to work with the sweet It's A Good Day set from Unity's Itty Bitty Collection. What a great image! The papers are from Crate Paper's School Spirit collection. I think everything is pretty straightforward, so I'll skip the details this time and just share a closer look at the texture from all the distressing and sanding...

Here's the April sketch:

And here are your links to lots more sketch inspiration:

Jen del Muro with guest designer Jen Shults
Amber Hight
Carole Burrage
Jodi Collins
Kelly Lunceford
Kerry Johnson
Megan Lock
Sony Christoph
Susan Liles (sitting out)
Terri Moore

Wishing you a fantastic weekend doing what you love with those you love!



Stamps: It's A Good Day (Unity Stamp Co.)
Paper: Stampin' Up Early Espresso, Papertrey Aqua Mist, Crate Paper School Spirit designer paper
Ink: Ranger Walnut Stain Distress Ink
Accessories: distressing tool, sanding block, May Arts burlap string, My Favorite Things notebook page Die-namics, Stampin' Up paperclip, Papertrey button, sewing machine, Fiskars corner rounder, foam adhesive
Size: 4 1/4" x 5 1/2"

My Time Made Easy: Keep It Organized

Today, the My Time Made Easy designers and guest (that's me) are featuring another Pretty Packaging Template -- Keep It. If you're organizationally challenged, or even just an office supply junkie (I am!), this template is for you! It's comprised of three parts, a back pocket sized to fit A2 cards, a smaller middle pocket (think Rolodex, business cards ...), and a pull-out drawer below. Additional Pretty Pieces cut files, Keeping Tabs File Divider Large and Keeping Tabs File Divider Mini, are available, too. And then a companion stamp set, Keep It Organized, is available to help you label your organizer and divider cards just the way you want to. Between the cut files and the stamps, you'll have everything you need to make desk organization not just a reality, but cute, stylish, and fun to boot.

The first thing I wanted to make was a birthday card organizer. I cut the various template components out of Wild Wasabi card stock and assembled. Then I cut some decorative panels (included in the Keep It template) out of new digi papers from MTME, Occasional Blooms and Love Defined - Wasabi.

To dress up the box, I added a big chipboard "S" monogram, framed by a large chipboard ring, and accented with some yellow ribbon and chunky purple buttons.

Inside the larger box, I've added twelve Keeping Tabs Large File Dividers, labeled January through December (done with the Keep It Organized stamps). I will use each tab as a perpetual birthday calendar for that month and possibly store cards behind the current month.

Inside the smaller box, I've added some Keeping Tabs Mini File Divider cards, labeled for alphabetic organization. Here's where I'll keep addresses.

For the drawer pull (the drawer does close all the way, by the way), I took a glass jewelry bead, bent the hooks on either end a little bit and secured them to the drawer front with silver brads.

I even covered the back with decorative panels.

Last is a side view to show some of the monogram dimension.

Hop on around the MTME designers' blogs for more Keep It Organized inspiration:

Lauren Meader
Kristin Eberline
Debbie Marcinkiewicz
Katie Cotton
Lisa Kind
Monique Hansen
Tangii Crane

Thanks so much for visiting!