Saturday, November 29, 2008

Winter Wonderland



This week's challenge at Our Creative Corner is to use snowflakes and/or snowmen on your card. Easy, right? So no excuses for not playing along ;) Be sure to hop on over to the Our Creative Corner blog for challenge details, plus a beautiful sample from special guest Janice Melton (catcrazy on SCS), as well as samples from the regular OCC designers. For more chitchat on the samples, visit the designers' blogs:

Cindy Haffner
Dawn Easton
Denise Marzec
Jennifer Meyer
Julee Tilman
Lynda Benden

The layout is from Jen del Muro's awesome Sketch for You to Try this week. You can find the sketch, guest designer Becca Feeken's sample, and Jen's sample at i{heart}2stamp. I can't wait to see what the rest of the team put together with this sketch:

Amy R
Carole
Shannan
Susan

I was so excited to ink up this charming little snowman from Verve's new Snow Wonderful set. Isn't he adorable with that sweet, innocent face looking up? I stamped in Memento Tuxedo Black ink, colored with Prismacolor pencils, Gamsol, and a blending stump, then layered the three snowman parts using the Paper Tole method. I adhered the snowman to a Soft Sky panel that had been glittered with Icicle Stickles.

Hope you had a great Thanksgiving!



Stamps: Snow Wonderful (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Baja Breeze, Baja Breeze textured, Whisper White, Soft Sky textured, Ski Slope dp (all SU!)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: liquid applique, Prismacolors, Gamsol, blending stumps, dimensionals, Icicle Stickles, classic and scalloped circle Nestabilities, Soft Sky double-stitched ribbon, Baja Breeze double-striped ribbon, white satin ribbon, Styled Silver Hodgepodge Hardware, half-back pearl from the SU Pretties kit, paper piercer
Size: 5 1/2" square

Friday, November 28, 2008

Season of Joy



I recently got a sheet of something called Cotton Scraps from Crafty Secrets. In case you haven't seen these, what you get is an 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of cotton twill that's been printed with all sorts of wonderful, vintage images. I cut one of the images from the "Winter" sheet, frayed the edges a little and used it as the focal point of my card. So quick and easy! I was comparing my stash of Christmas cards with my list and realizing I still have a LOT of cards to make. I'm feeling a little more encouraged after this quickie.

So it's Black Friday in the US - are you shopping today or staying put? Me personally - I don't do mornings or crowds willingly. You're not likely to catch me anywhere near a store today! No thanks :)

Unless it's an online store, of course. And speaking of shopping and sales and online stores, here's a little something ...



Thursday, November 27, 2008

Happy Thanksgiving!

I'd like to wish all of my American readers a Happy Thanksgiving. And I hope everyone, American or not, has a wonderful, blessed day! I have so many things to be thankful this year, and I'm looking forward to spending the day enjoying my friends and family and reflecting on all of God's blessings this past year. One thing I'm thankful for is this awesome hobby we all share, which has given me a chance to get to know so many other stampers and papercrafters. You all are the best!

Sorry no card or project :( Sick kids, traveling, etc. I have some winter and Christmas stuff ready to go for tomorrow and Saturday, though. See you again then!

Big hugs,
Amy

Monday, November 24, 2008

Christmas Church


I have a peek today of one of the two new sets coming on December 1 from Our Daily Bread Designs. This beautiful Christmas church scene is from the set Worship the Lord, which also has two sentiments and a Scripture stamp. I adore the tranquility of the scene and plan on making a few extras to use as Christmas cards this year. Don't worry - these will go to other artistic types!

I stamped on watercolor paper and colored with a combination of an aqua painter with re-inkers and markers. I sponged some extra ink on the sky using Bordering Blue ink. The snow is a combination of liquid applique, Frosted Lace Stickles, and a Sakura stardust gel pen. I cut the image panel using Stampin' Up's Top Note Sizzix die, then hand-cut a Chocolate Chip mat. The designer papers are from the Frost Collection by Memory Box. I used the Stampin' Up curvy label punch to create the white scalloped trim around the background panel.

Here's a detail shot of some of that sparkle:



Thanks for stopping by!



Stamps: Worship the Lord (Our Daily Bread Designs)
Paper: Stampin' Up's Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, and Baja Breeze; Memory Box Frost collection dp
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black; Chocolate Chip, Bordering Blue, Going Gray, Sahara Sand, So Saffron, Always Artichoke, Baroque Burdundy
Accessories: liquid applique, Frosted Lace Stickles, Sakura Stardust pen, Martha Stewart star border punch, Chocolate wide satin ribbon, Top Note die, scalloped border punch, curvy label punch, aqua painter, sewing machine, K&Co snowflake brad, K&Co lacy snowflake stickers
Size: 5 3/4" square

Saturday, November 22, 2008

New Rubbah!



What an awesome mail week - lots of new images to play with! This sweet little giraffe is from a NEW stamp company: Our Craft Lounge. Have you heard yet? SCS old-timers Cambria Turnbow and Joy Kennedy have teamed up to bring us Marianne Walker's (of Copic marker fame) drawings to use in stamp form. The first collection of images is fantastic, and I'm super excited to see what comes next! You can read more about how the company started here.

I used Jen del Muro's Sketch for You to Try for my layout. Be sure to visit Jen at i{heart}2stamp, so you can see the sketch, Jen's sample, and guest designer Becca Feeken's sample. Check out what the rest of the SFYTT posse has cooked up - I love these girls!!

Amy
Carole
Shannan
Susan

All are welcome to play along. Remember to use keyword: SFYTT if you upload to SCS.

I stamped the giraffe on some of Gina K Designs' new Pure Luxury card stock. Holy smokes, as soon as I took a piece out of the package, I knew I was holding something special. The surface is silky smooth, the weight is nice (it's available in 80 pound and 120 pound - I tried the 8o-pound here), and it works beautifully with Copic markers, which I used for my coloring today. All the pretty papers are from a K&Co/Brenda Walton pad that I found at my local Jo-Ann's. One thing you can't see well, if at all, in the photo, is the subtle shimmer I added with a clear Spica pen. The giraffe is completely coated, but I also edged all the dp panels and the white image panel with a thin line. The touch of sparkle looks really nice IRL.


This next card is my sample for the challenge at Our Creative Corner this week:



Denise Marzec, our November host, has created an awesome sketch! You'll find the sketch, a sample from our guest designer Jami Bova (so glad to have you, girl!), as well as samples from the OCC team on the OCC blog. To play along, link up your sketch creation as a comment on the blog. If you upload to SCS, remember to add keyword: OCCC.

The lighthouse image is from a to-die-for set from Cornish Heritage Farms called "Beacon of Hope." I adore lighthouses and ocean-theme images, and this set is full of them. Not to mention some really touching sentiments. I'm expecting to get lots of use out of this one. I stamped on watercolor paper, colored with an aqua painter and Stampin' Up reinkers, then embellished with some navy grosgrain, rope twine, distressing, piercing (of course), and Antique Brass brads.

Have a great weekend!



Giraffe:
Stamps
: Tree-mendous Love (Our Craft Lounge)
Paper: SU Certainly Celery, Prismatics Island Mist Medium, Brenda Walton Small Wonders Boy dp by K&Co
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: Copic markers; Spica glitter pen; various ribbons from my stash (sources unknown); SU rhinestone brads, silver brads, filigree brads, paper piercer, and dimensionals; sewing machine; flowers by Daisy D's and Prima

Lighthouse:
Stamps: Beacon of Hope (Cornish Heritage Farms)
Paper: SU Night of Navy; Prismatics Medium T
awny card stock; Granola dp by Basic Grey; Canson watercolor paper
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black, SU Night of Navy and Creamy Caramel, reinkers for coloring
Accessories: aqua painter, edge distressing tool, antique brass brads, dimensionals, sponge daubers, paper piercer, rope twine, 1/2-inch navy grosgrain

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Thankful Hearts - A Dirty Challenge



On the 20th of each month, past and current Dirty Dozen designers get together for a fun challenge. Sharon Harnist has hosted this month's awesome challenge:

Challenge Focus: Create a thankful card or gift, Thanksgiving table placecard or treat holder, or Thanksgiving home decor item.

Required Element: At least one heart on your project.

Restricted Element: Nothing

Be sure to have a look at all the projects HERE.

All day yesterday I was a day behind, so by the time I figured out today is the 20th and not tomorrow, I had no brainpower left to create anything more than a card. I used the same overall layout of Tuesday's card, too, except that I turned the Top Note die panel into a raised frame for the main image. The image is from Give Thanks by Our Daily Bread Designs, and is watercolored with an aqua painter, Stampin' Up markers and Stampin' Up reinkers. My heart element is a metal button in the upper left of the frame. I tied some burlap string through it and put a brown twill ribbon tab behind it. The bottom Mellow Moss edge is done with a Martha Stewart border punch. The bottom large panel is raised up on 1/16" dimensionals, and the Top Note frame is raised up on 1/8" foam squares. I'll be giving this one to my mom on Thanksgiving Day to show my thanks that she's hosting the family dinner this year. Hope she likes it! Actually, she has to like it, right? It's a "mom requirement" :)

I was going to save this next project for tomorrow, but I'm terrible at sitting on things. I made this for yesterday's SCS sketch challenge.



The Mary, Joseph and Baby Jesus image, also from Our Daily Bread Designs, is from a new set called Joy to the World. The star is from We Three Kings. I did my coloring with an aqua painter, reinkers, and markers. See that gorgeous piercing around the perimeter? Oh my gosh, I've had my eye on the Ornare piercing templates forever! Kelley now carries them at ODBD, so now I have a couple to try! There are lots of different styles - check 'em out HERE.

Thanks for stopping by, and I'll see you again on Saturday for Jen's Sketch for You to Try and a new Our Creative Corner challenge!




Thanksgiving Blessings:
Stamps: Give Thanks (Our Daily Bread Designs)
Paper: SU Chocolate Chip, Canson watercolor paper, Memory Box "Twiggy" designer paper
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black; lots of Stampin' Up re-inkers and markers
Accessories: K&Co metal heart, burlap string from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts, Offray brown twill, Martha Stewart border punch, SU Top Note Sizzix die, aqua painter, paper piercer, Chocolate Chip marker

Mary, Joseph, Baby Jesus:
Stamps: Joy to the World and We Three Kings (Our Daily Bread Designs)
Paper: CTMH Cocoa, CTMH Simple Pleasures designer paper, Canson watercolor paper
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black, lots of Stampin' Up and CTMH reinkers and markers
Accessories: Spellbinders square Nestabilities, Offray brown twill, K&Co metal buttons, Ornare piercing templates, dimensionals, paper piercer, sponge daubers

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Triangle Fold Medallion



I played along with yesterday's Technique Lover's Challenge on SCS, which was to create a triangle fold medallion. The medallion is made with four of the patterns from Stampin' Up's Haiku designer series paper, then layered onto a combination of three scalloped circles and a top-note die-cut. The flower center is an Old Olive felt flower with a silver circle brad to hold it in place. I stamped "Birthday Celebrations" from Upsy Daisy, then cut it out with a Spellbinders label die. The bottom lacy edge is done with a Martha Stewart border punch.

Before I go, I'd love to share some recent goodies I've received. A few weeks ago, I posted about using the retired Cranberry Crisp card stock so much, and wondered what I'll do when I run out. Would you believe a pack of Cranberry Crisp card stock and a spool of stitched ribbon showed up in my mailbox a few days later from the amazingly sweet, talented, fellow dirty girl Jessie Rone? It was such a thoughtful and unexpected surprise it brought tears to my eyes! And now I don't have to worry about running out for that much longer. As if that weren't enough, she included this most darling card EVER:



Then, last week, another beautiful surprise from Heather Rolin of H&M Stamps:



Arent those angels the sweetest? Heather is such an amazing artist. Check out the adorable images she has at H&M Stamps!

I have one more beautiful RAK from last week, plus some overdue birthday RAKS from September, but I'll post those on another day!
Thanks for visiting,



Stamps: Upsy Daisy (Stampin' Up!)
Paper: So Saffron, Very Vanilla, Old Olive, Tangerine Tango, More Mustard card stock; Haiku designer paper (all SU!)
Ink: Old Olive, Tangerine Tango, So Saffron
Accessories: circle brad, felt flower, silver brads, paper piercer, dimensionals, sponge daubers, Top Note Sizzix die (SU!); scalloped Nestabilities and label die (Spellbinders); Martha Stewart lace border punch; Saffron grosgrain (Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts); Swiss Dots Cuttlebug folder
Size: 5 1/4" square

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Lotsa Fun Stuff



Lots to share today! First up is my sample for this week's challenge at Our Creative Corner. Denise, our November host, has a fun one for us this week - use a silhouette stamp. We also welcome Silke Ledlow (aka sparklegirl on SCS) as our guest designer this week, so you're also invited to add some sparkle to your card if you want. The OCC designers' samples are all posted on the Our Creative Corner blog, and also on their individual blogs. Be sure to check them out:

Cindy Haffner
Dawn Easton
Denise Marzec
Jennifer Meyer
Julee Tilman
Lynda Benden

For my card, I combined Stampin' Up's Upsy Daisy set with some Urban Garden designer paper (also SU!) and used this week's SCS color challenge colors: Basic Gray, Pacific Point, and Certainly Celery. I inked the image in Pacific Point, stamped off once, then sponged Pacific Point onto the flower tips. I liked how this gave me a slight color gradation. I then painted on some Angel Wings Shimmerz. The scallop border is one of the Martha Stewart punches. I got the idea to add piercing to the scallops from OCC teammate Dawn Easton. We'd love to have you play along. Remember to use keyword OCCC if you upload to SCS.

Next up is my sample for Jen's Sketch for You To Try. As always, visit Jen at i{heart}2stamp to see the sketch, Jen's sample, and guest designer Becca Feeken's sample. Then visit Amy, Carole, Shannan, and Susan for more ways to use the sketch. Again, we'd love to have you play along. The keyword on SCS is SFYTT. Here's my take:



The inspiration for this one was the Frosty Day designer paper from Stampin' Up (I think that's the name of it?). I finally got around to ordering some of the Stampin' Up holiday stuff. The sentiment was created with a Harmony Rectangular Stamper Set and the Brayton Font, both from JustRite Stampers. The snowflake I used to stamp on the sentiment panel is from the Christmas Joy set by Clear Art Stamps from Crafty Secrets, and the chocolate brads are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts.

I had hoped to have some kind of "teaser" project to post today as a reminder that the November Dirty Dozen gallery has been unveiled, but I just plain ran out of time. This month's theme was soooo much fun: Chick Lit. Even more fun are the two newest dirty girls, but you'll have to head to SCS for the full scoop ;) Check it all out right HERE. Or, for info on how to join the Fan Club, click here.

If you're here for stamping and stamping only, that's it for today. If you like the non-stamping stuff occasionally, keep reading ...

I mentioned on Thursday that it was my husband's and my fifteenth wedding anniversary - remember? Well, lookie what showed up in my driveway that afternoon:



The limo took us in to Washington, DC for a wonderful dinner in Georgetown, followed by a show at the Kennedy Center. It was kinda rainy and yucky, so I can't tell you how nice it was to have door-to-door service all evening long. That said, are you thinking what I'm thinking? Say it with me: "That's a lot of stamps!" LOL!

Please know that we are NOT extravagant people at all -- he even less than I! I'm 40 and had never been in a limo before. I have to confess that I gave my husband a little bit of grief for let's just say "insufficient hoopla" when I turned 40 two months ago. But now that I think about it, what's worth celebrating more? After all, staying married for fifteen years takes a LOT more work than merely aging a few decades, kwim?

And here we are, me with my bad-hair day and everything:



(By the way, I can't wait to get these braces off and smile like a normal person again. I don't know what DH's excuse is! Maybe that's what you look like after you've been married to ME for fifteen years - ROFL!)

Thanks so much for visiting, and have a great weekend!



You're On My Mind:
Stamps: Upsy Daisy (Stampin Up)
Paper: Certainly Celery, pacific Point, Whisper White, Basic Gray, Urban Garden dp (SU)
Ink: Pacific Point, Certainly Celery
Accessories: pewter jumbo eyelets, ice rhinestone brads, pewter hodgepodge hardware, Pacific Point double-striped ribbon, paper piercer (SU!); Swiss Dots Cuttlebug folder; Martha Stewart border punch; Angel Wings Shimmerz

Let It Snow:
Stamps: Brayton Font (JustRite Stampers); Christmas Joy (Clear Art Stamps by Crafty Secrets)
Paper: Tangerine Tango, Chocolate Chip, Bashful Blue, Whisper White, Frosty Day dp (SU!)
Ink: Tangerine Tango, Bashful Blue
Accessories: felt ribbon, sponge daubers, scallop border punch (SU!); chocolate brads (Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts); foam squares; sewing machine/white thread

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Grateful



I have another relatively simple card for today. Gotta love these when you're short on time and/or you need a bunch. The designer paper is from the Offbeat collection by Basic Grey. The pumpkin stamp is from Verve's Tall Oaks set, and the "grateful" sentiment is from Stampin' Up's retired Cute Converse. Coloring is with Prismacolors, Gamsol, and a blending stump.

Not much else to say about the card, but before I go, I'll share what I'm most grateful for at this particular moment: fifteen years of marriage! On this day in 1993, at 6 o'clock in the evening, my husband and I said our "I do's." Happy Anniversary to us!! (This isn't my anniversary card to him, by the way. If you're a Splitcoast Fan Club member, you can see that HERE. It's a fun one!)

Thanks for visiting!



Stamps: Tall Oaks (Verve Stamps), Cute Converse (Stampin' Up!)
Paper: dark brown textured card stock (Bazzill); Ivory card stock (Papertrey); Offbeat dp (Basic Grey); bronze ore metallic card stock (ODBD)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: Prismacolors, Gamsol, blending stumps, Offray brown twill, rust brads and burlap string (Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts), die-cut swirl (Sizzix die), dimensionals

Monday, November 10, 2008

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas



The Verve holiday sets are in the store and officially available for purchase! There are a whopping SIX new sets and three beautiful new Scripture plain janes. I was playing around this weekend with the Ornamental Christmas set, and came up with today's card. The layout is from one of the sketches that Julee put together for last week's Verve Holiday Release Sketch Blitz. It's such a cool one!

Before I talk too much about the card, I'll just say up-front - my card is one of those that's a little off the beaten path in terms of the stamp set. Ornamental Christmas is primarily a Christmas ornament set. The evergreen branch image on my card is really more of an accessory to the ornaments, but I was so drawn to its clean and simple, graphic lines that I decided to give it center stage. Both patterns of dp are from Basic Grey's Wassail pack. When I first saw the pretty red pattern, it looked so elegant. But when I started laying it beside some of the other patterns, it began to look more rustic, even "country." It kind of reminds me of a calico fabric pattern. I bet I've never mentioned before that I grew up in an area with a pretty sizeable population of "old-order" Mennonites who drove around (and still do) in horse-drawn black buggies. Just like the Amish. As you might imagine, they do a lot of quilting and they sew their own dresses, so the fabric stores back home are always stocked with oodles of different calico fabrics. Sorry to get off-topic ... just a little tidbit for today.

Back to the card: I continued the rustic, country look with some distressed edges, sponging, and machine stitching, along with some burlap string and the Martha Stewart branch punch. Let me briefly mention how much I LOVE this burlap string! I've been getting mine from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. And seriously, friends, count the layers on this baby. I'm so proud of myself, LOL!

Be sure to visit the Verve Gallery to see all kinds of projects from the Verve Divas and Guest Divas. I think this month's release has been one of the best ever! Should any or all of it strike your fancy, the Verve store is open 24/7.

Thanks for stopping by!



Stamps: Ornamental Christmas (Verve Stamps)
Paper: SU True Thyme, Basic Grey Wassail
Ink: Always Artichoke, True Thyme, Sahara Sand
Accessories: classic square Nestabilities and label die (Spellbinders); sponge daubers, distressing tool, dimensionals (Stampin' Up!); green ribbon (unknown); burlap string (Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts); Martha Stewart branch punch; sewing machine
Size: 5 1/4" square

Saturday, November 8, 2008

Hey Sweetie



Happy Saturday! Before I get to today's card, I want to thank everyone who has been praying for the Schmidlins. Here's the SCS thread again if you want to keep up with the updates. On a lighter note, thanks also to those who left 40th birthday wishes on my friend Marcy's blog. She DID see them and says thanks!

Okay, so today's card ... it's my sample for both Jen's Sketch for You To Try and the Saturday challenge over at Our Creative Corner.

Head over to i{heart}2stamp to see this week's sketch, Jen's sample, and guest designer Becca Feeken's sample. For even more inspiration, visit Amy, Carole, Shannan, and Susan.

The challenge this week at Our Creative Corner is an inspiration challenge based on this completely delicious looking photo from the Martha Stewart website:



Be sure to visit Our Creative Corner to see what the rest of the OCC designers put together. While you're there, you can give a super warm welcome to our special guest this week, Taylor VanBruggen. So glad you could join us, Taylor!!

As usual for me, I went with a fairly literal interpretation of the inspiration piece, pulling in the colors, the cupcake theme, and the red and white polka dots. Most everything is pretty straightforward, but I'll point out a few details. The pink frosting on the cupcakes is coated with Crytal Effects and the red cherries are dotted with Christmas Red Stickles. The gorgeous ribbon is from May Arts. Instead of knotting it or tying it into a bow, I just wrapped it around so that the ends overlapped slightly, then cinched it in the middle with some silver cord. The tag, cut with Stampin' Up's word window punch, hangs from the cord by a jump ring.

To stay true to the sketch, I had to get a little creative with the Cuttlebug and piercing. Let me show you what I mean. Here's the sketch:



I tried a bunch of different things for that top band, but they all overpowered this light and delicate image. So instead of adding a band, I dry embossed the Celery background, leaving about an inch unembossed (is that even a word?). I used a Scor-Pal to create a line at each edge of the dry embossing, then scored two additional lines in the center. I then accented with some paper piercing.

Back to the challenges for a minute ... you are warmly invited to participate in either or both. The SCS keywords are SFYTT for Jen's Sketch For You To Try and OCCC for Our Creative Corner. If you've never played before, just jump right in. You'll be addicted soon enough!

Hope you have a fantastic weekend!



Stamps: What's Up Cupcake (My Favorite Things)
Paper: Basic Black, Certainly Celery, Real Red (SU!); Papertrey White
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: Christmas Red Stickles, Crystal Effects, Certainly Celery Marker, paper piercer, dimensionals, May Arts ribbon, silver cord, word window punch, Martha Stewart border punch, D'Vine Swirls Cuttlebug folder, Scor-Pal, jump ring

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Verve Preview - Tall Oaks



Sneak previews of the new holiday sets from Verve began today over on the Verve blog. Head over there to see what Bethany and guest designers Jen Tapler and Jennifer Meyer have put together with two new sets called Tall Oaks and Hello Pumpkin.

My project is posted over there today, too, but I wanted to show it here also. I chose to work with one of the images from Tall Oaks. As soon as I saw this pumpkin trio, I thought it would be perfect for some Thanksgiving placecards. I stamped the pumpkin trio on Papertrey Ivory in Adirondack Espresso ink, then did my coloring with Prismacolor pencils, Gamsol, and a blending stump. The middle pumpkin is stamped a second time and popped up on a dimensional. I layered everything onto some Twiggy designer paper by Memory Box and embellished with some dark brown twill, burlap string, and machine stitching. Each person's name is handwritten on an ivory strip and held in place with a mini binder clip.

My family likes to give me a hard time when I go and get all fancy on them, but I love to do little things like this to make them feel special. And don't you know, yesterday, after I had staged this photo, my 5yo and 8yo asked if we could leave the table that way for lunch. They were so cute drinking their water from the stemmed goblets and eating their chips and sandwiches from the "real" plates (as opposed to their usual plastic). They really did feel special!

After making a handful of placecards, I had one leftover pumpkin trio stamped and colored. Lucky for me, today's sketch for the Verve Holiday Release Sketch Blitz was perfect for it! So here's how it looks on a card:



Thanks for stopping by!



Stamps: Tall Oaks (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Really Rust (SU), Papertrey Ivory, Twiggy dp (Memory Box)
Ink: Adirondack Espresso (Ranger)
Accessories: mini binder clip (SU!); brown twill (Offray); burlap string (Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts); edge distressing tool, paper piercer, Prismacolor pencils, Gamsol, blending stumps, sewing machine

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Verve Holiday Release

It's almost time again for a new Verve release! This Sunday, six new sets and three new Plain Janes will be available. But the fun starts now!! Today is Day 1 of Verve's 5-day Holiday Release Sketch Blitz. Julee has put together some really great sketches, along with a boatload of prizes. You can find the sketches and all the details over in the Verve Forum at SCS! Hope you get a chance to play along!

Along with the Sketch Blitz, we'll be doing our usual sneak peeks on the Verve blog beginning tomorrow. The release party is on Sunday, beginning at 8 pm Eastern. And the grand finale ... the sets go on sale around 10 pm ET on Sunday!

I'll be back tomorrow with a Verve peek. See you then!

Monday, November 3, 2008

Vintage Autumn



This week's Featured Stamper Challenge at SCS is all about the amazing Becca Feeken, aka Becca Stamps at SCS. You'll also find her work on her blog, Amazing Paper Grace! If you haven't seen her work, grab a bib and be prepared to stay a while! I chose to CASE Becca's card, To Find the Beautiful. I kept the layout, including the large ribbon and the tab-style accent, and changed papers, colors, and the image. I also left off the two buttons in the upper right and added some machine stitching.

The main image -- the tree scene with the word Autumn spelled out in postage stamps -- came from the Seasonal Heartwarming Vintage Booklet from Crafty Secrets. Have you seen all the stuff at Crafty Secrets, by the way? Oh. My. Gosh! I recently got a "few" things, including two of these vintage booklets, and I am seriously in love! They are like swatchbooks full of paper images. I just trimmed out the one I wanted, distressed the edges a bit, and adhered it to the card with foam squares. So unbelievably quick and easy! There is a tiny bit of stamping on this card. At the top and bottom points of the brown square, I stamped a small corner image from Frame It, also available at Crafty Secrets. It's a bit gratuitous, but I *had* to stamp something! The two squares of dp came from a pack of Twiggy paper by Memory Box that I picked up at Stamper's Dream.

My daughter turns 5 today, and my friend Marcy turns 40. Happy Birthday wishes to both! (Marcy blogs, too ... I think it would be soooo fun for her to get birthday wishes on her blog from a bunch of "strangers"! So if you're inclined, head over to Please Don't Make Me Cook [I just hope it's public] and leave her a little love. Tell her I sent you!)

Thanks for stopping by!



Stamps: Frame It (Clear Art Stamps by Crafty Secrets)
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa (Stampin' Up!); Twiggy dp (Memory Box)
Ink: Chocolate Chip (SU)
Accessories: Seasonal Heartwarming Vintage Booklet (Craft Secrets); distressing tool, curvy label punch, and wide brown satin ribbon (SU!); chocolate brads (Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts); sewing machine and thread

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Our Daily Bread Designs New Release!

Just a quick post to let you know that today is release day at Our Daily Bread Designs. Kelley has done it again with three awesome new sets (well, 2 sets and a single). This month's release includes Joy to the World, a nativity scene plus a mixture of sentiment and Scripture stamps, Lord is My Shepherd, a mother sheep with lamb plus five Scripture stamps, and last, Psalm 23 in stamp form. The ODBD Design Team has been busy making the most gorgeous samples! You can see them here, here, and here. You may or may not remember, but I'm taking a short break from most of my DT work. I tell ya, I will not be fit to rejoin these ODBD ladies -- they are GOOD!!!

Chicken Trio



[Update: I mentioned Laurie Schmidlin's daughter when I posted earlier. There is a prayer request thread on SCS with more information. You can find it -->HERE.<-- My heart is so heavy for the Schmidlin family. Please keep praying.]

Today's card is one I made yesterday for both Jen's Sketch for You To Try and this week's Our Creative Corner challenge. First the sketch ... you'll find it posted at i{heart}2stamp, along with Jen's sample and November guest designer Becca Feeken's sample. Welcome, Becca! So glad you're joining us this month! For more inspiration, head on over to see what Amy, Carole, Shannan, and Susan have put together. We'd love to have you play along. If you upload to SCS, remember to use keyword: SFYTT.

This week's challenge at Our Creative Corner, issued by our November host, Denise Marzec, is All About the Coloring. We're focusing on all the many different ways to color (Copic markers, Gamsol Magic, watercoloring, etc.) I love, love, love to color, no matter what the medium, but I have to say, watercoloring is still my favorite method by far! Be sure to visit Our Creative Corner to see all the different ways the OCC girls like to color. Or, for more chit-chat, visit their blogs: Cindy Haffner, Dawn Easton, Denise Marzec, Jennifer Meyer, Julee Tilman, and Lynda Benden. We're also super excited to have Lori McAree (LMcAree on SCS) as our guest designer for the week. Welcome, Lori! So what's your favorite way to color? Link up your creation to the OCC blog so we can take a look! If you upload to SCS, remember to use keyword: OCCC. [Note: Laurie Schmidlin is not playing this time. You may have seen this elsewhere already, but if not, her 12-year-old daughter, Ali, is very sick. Please, please, please keep this family in your prayers!]

I thought the large panel on Jen's sketch would be perfect for this adorable Anna Wight Chicken Trio stamp from Whipper Snapper Designs. I stamped in Versafine Onyx Black and watercolored with my Stampin' Up inks and an Aqua Painter. The red and black chickens are stamped and colored a second time, their bodies trimmed out, and popped up on top of the main image. The whole image panel is adhered to the card with foam boosters that I got from one of Jody Morrow's sticky sales. The sentiment comes from Let's Go For A Walk by My Favorite Things. The black criss-crosses are faux stitching done with a black marker.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend planned! Stay out of the kids' Halloween candy!



Stamps: Chicken Trio (Whipper Snapper Designs), Let's Go For A Walk (My Favorite Things)
Paper: Basic Black, Whisper White, Haiku dp (SU!); yellow dp (Pink Paislee); watercolor paper (Canson)
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black; So Saffron, More Mustard, Pumpkin Pie, Cranberry Crisp, Baroque Burgundy, Basic Black, Basic Grey, Sahara Sand, Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa, and Soft Sky reinkers (SU!)
Accessories: sewing machine, paper piercer, black marker, air art tool, foam boosters, sponge daubers, flower (Prima and Daisy D's), black buttons, scallop border punch, narrow grosgrain ribbon (Offray)
Size: 5 1/4" square