My Little Hobby

A Flower for All Seasons

2011-06-02T09:56:00.002-05:00

Here are some cards I designed and created using my stamp set, A Flower for All Seasons.

Thanks, Julie for the cute card below!

Thanks for visiting my blog!

Clearly for You

2011-04-14T01:22:00.003-05:00

How fun this new Clearly for You stamp set is! I really enjoy designing 3x3 cards because they are so simple and compact. I'm elated that my new stash of stamps and supplies arrived from the United States and I can create some cards and share with others.

Stamps: Clearly for You
Ink: Basic Black, Baja Breeze
Cardstock: Real Red, Basic Black, Whisper White
Accessories: crochet thread, black gingham ribbon, mini library clip, brad
Tools/Techniques: Small Heart punch, Word Window punch, 1/16" handheld circle punch, Crop-o-Dile Corner Chomper (1/2 inch), sewing machine stitching, sponging

Crushed curry crush

2011-04-06T10:44:00.006-05:00

Since Crushed Curry cardstock has been on clearance at Stampin' Up!, I have been having a heyday with it. My Chinese New Year cards were crafted using this lovely golden yellow paper, and this week, I've been crushing on curry by cranking out about 50 invitations for an upcoming Relief Society event where we will make three-tiered ruffled skirt aprons. So fun! The fabric swatches are above, the black polka dots, black floral, and crushed curry print are what inspired the design for these invitations. I used the Elizabeth stamp for the image, then hand wrote Relief Society in the centers.

When I ended up with two extra pieces of crushed curry, I whipped up a quick Mother's Day card and an Easter card and can't seem to get enough of the color combination. And since I live in Taiwan, I have to make the majority of the invitations in Mandarin, so here are the foreign texts. Sadly, I am not talented enough to read these Chinese characters, but fortunately for me, I'm surrounded by wonderful, smart Taiwanese friends who can translate for me. Hopefully I will add more posts before Mother's Day and Easter. The Happy Mother's Day and Easter Wishes sentiments are from Stampin' Up's Something to Celebrate set. And in case you are curious, the little heart stamp is from Stampin' Up's Filled with Love set and the darling square medallion image is from Stampin' Up's Cute by the Inch set.

Bingo game cards

2011-02-19T00:48:00.014-06:00

Backtracking a bit, I want to show you these Bingo cards I made when I went home for the holidays. I made sets of cards for various family members and hope that they'll enjoy their Bingo cards every year on Christmas Eve in the future, as it has been a tradition in my husband's family for years.
By adding the sewing machine stitching around each border, it not only permanently adhered all the layers together, it now eliminates worry about anything coming apart the way paper crafts sometimes tend to do, plus this dainty threaded accent also creates a tailored keepsake edge. I really like the colorful cheer of all the pieces together too.
I almost forgot about making the game pieces, but they were easy to whip up. I used Stamin' Up's Bingo Background stamp along with the Jolly Bingo Bits set. White cardstock was the best choice for stamping the Bingo image, as I had less of a clean, bold look when using confetti white or confetti cream. Very vanilla would be my second best preference.

Chinese New Year card

2011-02-18T16:57:00.010-06:00

In case you haven't noticed, this is my first post in months! We moved to Taiwan in August from Texas, for a year. I didn't know how much space I would have, so I didn't pack my stamping supplies and I missed everything desperately!
When I went back to the States over the Christmas break, I loaded up my luggage with rubber stamps, punches, cardstock, inks, pens, scissors, adhesives, you name it. My cousin helped me unload my junk from her trunk when she dropped me off at the airport in San Francisco and I was embarrassed at how heavy all my bags were! I maxed out on the luggage weight limit and carried back as much as I could. I snatched up this darling lantern rubber stamp in Taiwan, which was made in China. I found a fun way to make your own paper lantern card on this blog.
Now I can create once again! Thank you, Eva Airways!
I made these wonderful Chinese New Year cards and hope to post more fun cards over the next several months while I'm living on this tropical Asian island. Enjoy!

My daughter's high school graduation

2010-07-11T00:22:00.014-05:00

Congratulations to Lindsey! This post is a sampling of the graduation party I hosted for my lovely daughter, designed in her school colors of burnt orange,white, and black. I've always wanted to order custom M&Ms and this was just the reason (or excuse) I was looking for.

The little tins were darling in and of themselves, but slightly boring for my preferences, so I had to add a bit of ribbon, a couple of coordinating cardstock colors, cut with two just-right punches.

All those extra details just seem to make something good, even better.

We chose a line from "Wicked," to accent the party favors, "Because I knew you, I have been changed for the better."

I've also always wanted to try making one of these lovely banners and give complete credit to Kelly for her excellent tutorial. I'm a huge fan of her card making style and overall creativity--she is my muse! It was in the middle of the night when I spotted the step by step instructions on her blog, and all I had was Halloween cardstock in my daughter's school colors, and I was bound and determined to make a banner right then and there, so I went with it. Now I have a jazzy new banner to hang up in October as well.

Here's a closer shot of my banner. I seriously need either a new camera or photography lessons, or both, but you get the idea.

I'm extremely proud of my girl and will miss her when she heads out of state to attend college at BYU-Idaho in the fall.

Happy grad and more

2010-05-19T12:08:00.005-05:00

T's the season! I just received this new Happy Grad stamp from Stampin' Up! and quickly put this simply layout together. Here's another quickie design that I came up with recently using a sentiment from Whimsical Words that turned out okay. I did a couple of alternate versions that I'll post later too.

Got these next two from a card swap a long time ago and think they are both lovely.The wires on this butterfly make this card.

Crazy for Cupcakes

2010-05-06T16:31:00.002-05:00

Stamp sets used: Crazy for Cupcakes, A Little Birthday Cheer, and Wonderful Words.
Cardstock used: Confetti White, Regal Rose, Kiwi Kiss, Pacific Point
Ink: Regal Rose, Pacific Point
Accessories: Grosgrain Striped Ribbon-Kiwi Kiss, white brads, all products are from Stampin' Up!

Charming wedding

2010-04-07T11:27:00.002-05:00

Here's a quick wedding card that I whipped up a few days ago. The stamped images are from Wedding Elegance and Charming sets by Stampin' Up! and the cardstock colors I used are Riding Hood Red, Pink Pirouette, and Going Gray, all by Stampin' Up. The eyelet border punch is also by SU.

Madison

2010-03-16T15:07:00.003-06:00

My niece, Madison V, is dedicating eighteen months of her life to be a full-time missionary, so each time I write her a letter, I make a cute card to go with it. This creation is something quick and simple, hoping to put a smile on her face.

Simple Delights

2010-02-22T11:13:00.007-06:00

After making a bajillion cards for a recent women's conference that I helped plan, I had some remaining cardstock and whipped up a few more creations using the same layout. The featured image on this little 3" x 3" note card is from the Simple Delights stamp set from Stampin' Up! and the happy birthday sentiment is from a set called A Little Birthday Cheer. The cardstock colors I used are Chocolate Chip, Regal Rose, and Very Vanilla. In case you're curious, I'm adding photos from my original design of the conference invitations. I had a stamp made at Office Depot for about ten bucks that says, "by small & simple things" and on the inside of the card, completed the scripture, "...are great things brought to pass." I printed the inserts on my color printer.

Here's the actual batch of cards I made, there were ONE THOUSAND of them. Yikes! It took a while.

I took the invitation to Party City to color coordinate with the paper plates that I selected. I adore this floral print, which matches perfectly.

Now that my conference is over, I feel like I have free time to create again! I've made dozens of cards in the last few day and am anxious to come up with some new things soon. What a fun hobby!

Countdown to Christmas

2009-12-04T13:04:00.005-06:00

This was so fun to make, putting little surprises in each carton to create a Twelve Days of Christmas gift. Lisa B, thanks for the fabulous idea! These little pouches remind me of the sour cream packets you get at fast food places.

I can't get enough of this gorgeous striped ribbon from Stampin Up!

I made this card last year at Kathy's house and never posted it. It's going in the mail to my aunt and uncle today, so I'm capturing the memory so I can recreate it some day.

My December is starting off with a lot of paper crafting and I'm loving it. I hope you and your family are enjoying this special season as much as I am.

You make the world special

2009-12-03T09:38:00.004-06:00

After making a couple of these cards, I added a scallop circle punch of chocolate chip cardstock and an image stamped from Wishing you the Best by SU in Cool Caribbean, popped up with Zots 3-D adhesive dots.

Yes, I have been making cards. No, I haven't been taking pictures and posting them. So here's one I just whipped up to prove that I'm still creating. The sentiment, "you make the world special just by being in it" is from the stamp set You Make Me Happy by Stampin' Up! and the polo button brads are by Making Memories. The designer paper is by The Angel Company and the ink is Garden Green by Stampin' Up! in case you're curious.

First day of fall, my favorite season

2009-09-22T15:34:00.008-05:00

I just got this Falling Leaves stamp set and adore it and am pleased with how this card came out. I was inspired by Jackie Bolhuis. Bon Appetit is the inside sentiment. Compliments to the Chef was one of the first sets I ordered from the Stampin' Up! new line. The featured stamp matches my Michelangelo by Oneida flatware.

Got this set last year, but I paired it up with some new designer paper and striped ribbon.

Can't remember where I got this great haunted house stamp, but sure do like the shape of it. I used a rub-on for the sentiment. Spooky! It's fun to create some cards again after some time off.

Happy first day of fall!

Sweetness Unlimited

2009-08-24T16:25:00.006-05:00

Last week I hosted a baby shower and used the remnants from some decor for this card below. Thought I would include a couple of pictures from the event too. I used my Stampin' Up Sweetness Unlimited stamp (welcome baby) for the first time.

Sadly, this is the only picture of the dessert table below. But you can see how I made the little accents to go on top of my plate holders to add to the festivities and pink and brown color scheme.

My kids go back to school tomorrow, so after that, I will be creating and blogging more frequently than I have this summer.

Here's the card again. Nothing too fancy here, just transforming the plate holder decor into a baby card.

Women's Conference in color

2009-05-12T22:42:00.031-05:00

We began with 160 pieces of cardstock, then cut them in half, to create 320 programs in five bold, bright colors.This "Polka Dot Punches" heart image was stamped and punched 320 times on whisper white, then placed on Kraft cardstock, six per page, then run through my printer with a scripture printed on it that references our Relief Society women's conference theme of "one heart, one mind."

Then came another 320 pieces of cardstock to keep an assembly line of four to six women busy...for four to six hours...cutting and folding matchbox gifts, lovingly filled with four assorted flavors of Hershey's Nuggets candies.

They look so festive and party-friendly.

Sorted. Let's try looking at them from this angle.

When you put this much work into them, you want to admire the outcome again and again.

Dreaming of bold, bright matchboxes.

Now in focus, two days before the big event.

Here are the 320 colorful programs, with gorgeous white cardstock printed inserts, not pictured.

Zoom in. You'll see "a little something" from Matchbox Messages stamp set.

Programs, programs.

Matching napkins for the luncheon, bundled with hemp twine.

Then last but not least, plates for our taco salad luncheon. It all looked great, thanks to our inspiration piece!

These Walmart plates, a package of 20 for $1, was what started this whole color scheme! Forty bucks and 400 plates and 400 napkins later, our colors were chosen. Luckily, Stampin' Ups' Bold Brights matched perfectly--Tempting Turquoise, Yoyo Yellow, Real Red, Pixie Pink, and Green Galore.

A card from Julie

2009-03-14T09:45:00.004-06:00

Thanks for this fabulous card with vibrant colors, Julie! I love it! Here's another fabulous card design that I cased from Melissa S. She is a rock star card creator, in my opinion. This lovely version is going to my friend, Barb, for her big 5-0!

Happy hearts Valentines

2009-02-11T11:20:00.010-06:00

Here's what I used to make these valentines yesterday.

Ink: Almost Amethyst, Kiwi Kiss, Riding Hood Red all by Stampin' Up!
Cardstock: Same as inks, plus Whisper White, plus Pink Pirouette cardstock
Stamps: Happy Hearts, En Francais by SU, Stampabilities wood stamps Kids Play lower case and upper case
Accessories: hemp twine, self-adhesive gemstones by Paper Studio
Techniques/tips: each heart was stamped, then cut out; center of pink cardstock is torn out, then a layer of French background image appears through peep window

Christmassy Punches

2008-12-13T12:10:00.001-06:00

There's a lot of punching here, but I think it turned out cute. I'm just trying to break the silence of no posting since October. Yikes!

Watercolor cards

2008-10-28T10:45:00.011-06:00

As mentioned yesterday, I'm taking a beginning watercolor class and I've transformed my practice pieces into cards. I love this charcoal and orange combo, striped image below, and when I did it, others in the class probably wondered why I chose that palette. At the time, I knew it would be used for a Halloween card. I did some sewing machine stitching, added ric-rac, and a Happy Halloween stamped image that my sister stamped for me a few years ago when she was here visiting and we made cards together. Therefore, I don't know the name of the set it's from. My instructor, Donna, was teaching us how to paint a plaid surface, and she really disliked these colors. I told her I love it so she let me take her masterpiece home. I have just added some flowers, brads, and a rub-on sentiment, then placed it on Tangerine Tango and Creamy Caramel cardstock.

This effect was interesting. The idea was to brush the heavy paper with clean water, then put some color on top of it, then using tweezers, add chunks for rock salt until it dries. This was my very first one and it didn't turn out too well, but it's amazing how adding a little (happy birthday) embellishment (Birthday Whimsy) and coordinating cardstock can magically turn any old piece of paper into interesting card art.

This lavender wash was done at my first class. (I've had two now.) I stamped the chandelier image and it was not inked up enough on the right side, so I had to cover it with something. With the machine stitching and other bling, it turned out to be a very luxurious looking card. I like it!

I still have a few more images to play with and see what I can come up with.

Kindness comes in many forms

2008-10-27T13:24:00.005-06:00

Here's my first card to do after taking a beginning watercolor lesson. I just painted these three colored images this morning and they're very fun to do. I used heavy 140 pound paper and watercolor paint. First I brushed the paper surface with clear water, then brushed it with one of the bold three colors on each piece of heavy paper, then dropped little amounts of rubbing alcohol on it. Then let it dry, then trimmed it. Then mounted it on whisper white cardstock, scored it, then embossed the sentiment from Stampin' Up's Heard from the Heart Sentiment. I finished it off with 1/2-inch wide Pumpkin Pie striped grosgrain ribbon by Stampin' Up! I'll be making more cards with my watercolor mini masterpieces.

The second card coordinates with my first, using a similar technique. Wet the surface of the heavy paper with a paint brush, then put dots of color on, then place crinkled plastic wrap on top until it dries.

Miss you

2008-10-20T19:13:00.001-05:00

This was a fun little card to whip up for my sister, using Halloween colors. I just stamped the main image, then used two markers for the flower and pot.

Delight in Life

2008-10-16T11:31:00.004-05:00

This old set is great and I have an extra one, so I'm sending it to my sister for her birthday. (I don't think she looks at this blog!) This card was cased from a design by Sara L. I'm also sending my sister some cards made using this set to give her some tangible ideas for future cards to create. I hope she likes it!

Quick card makeover

2008-10-14T18:17:00.004-05:00

Today I just dressed up this ready-made card by Current, by adding the ribbon and stamped it with an image from Stampin' Up's Timeworn Trim in Tempting Turquoise. The clean look and bright colors are my favorites. Easy breezy, my kind of card.

Good Works by Kelleye

2008-10-05T23:16:00.002-05:00

These are my top two picks from Kelleye H. The layers on this card are so pretty in person, especially the three-dimensional birds. This card is very pretty and so nicely colored.

Thanks, Kelleye, for participating.

A toast to Ilene

2008-10-03T17:17:00.004-05:00

Ilene H's cards from the swap were some of the best I received. Each one was embossed and colored beautifuly, and had amazing texture and personality. This black one was very elegant. This one is bright and cheery.

This one was a good general purpose card.

I'm crazy about this pennant flag and 3-D chips, which really make this card stand out.

"Olive" this card with the embossed pimentos! Nice job, Ilene.

Mona likes to emboss

2008-10-01T15:46:00.003-05:00

My friend Mona L. made these next two lovely cards. She is such a talented card maker and often uses embossing. I love her work and wish I embossed more. These are my two favorites from the swap that she did.Vincent Van Gogh, the famous Dutch artist who cut off his ear, is one of my favorites, so this quote and the card jumped out at me. Nice work, Mona!

Joye's Upsy Daisies

2008-09-30T11:51:00.009-05:00

This set of cards was my favorite from the swap. Joye Q. really has a beautiful sense of style and creativy. I adore these cards! I'm trying to pick my top two from each set, but I couldn't narrow it down to just two. Simply elegant work.

All her cards even came in a little plastic box that was so cute!

Thank you for the inspiration, Joye.

My swap card favorites

2008-09-29T13:03:00.008-05:00

Over the next several days, I'll be posting some of the top two or three cards from each group I received. I'm thrilled with all these fabulous cards and thank the talented artists who designed and created them. This "celebrate you" card was made by Kathy R, her inspiration came from Wendy J. Great colors!Kathy R. made this celebrate hat card. I love the ribbon, the cut out blue and green hats, and tag punch layer. Lily C. made the cutest monkey cards. I loved them all.

This thanks a bunch whimsical card is by Lily C. I love how she made the curvy black strip, then used the spiral punch to create the film strip look.

This was also from Lily's set.

You're on my mind

2008-09-18T07:28:00.007-05:00

Usually when I participate in a card swap, I'm one of the last ones to sign up and it's slim pickin's on what sets are still available. This last time was no exception. I do like the Puns from the Past set, but it wasn't exactly at the top of my list. What I'm trying to say is while I like this cute, whimsical set and had fun with it, I was kind of tired of the small images I had to work with after designing four cards. So for my final submission, I just wanted to make something with a bigger image, and I {sort of} stretched it as deeming the card a feature of Puns from the Past. It did qualify since I used the "fan mail" sentiment, but rather than using the fan image, I chose the larger image is from the same page in the new catalog as the puns set. Does that count? I just love the chandelier in the Grand Soiree set, and since it wasn't part of the sets to choose from in our swap, I decided, what the heck. The new paper (and coordinating ribbon) from Stampin' Up! is called Pacific Point and I like it paired with So Saffron. There are times that I only want one particular sentiment or image from a stamp set, so that's why I decided this was fair game.

Life after the swap

2008-09-17T13:54:00.005-05:00

Here's the final version of this Just My Type card design I created, and mass produced for a card swap that I particated in. Stamping supplies took over my dining room table this weekend as I was supposed to be hunkering down for Hurricane Ike. My heart goes out to all those who were affected by this recent event, but I'm counting my blessings that hardly a gust of wind and a not even a sprinkle of rain made it to us.

I had a great time stamping in the meantime. I made 72 cards total, with five different designs, using one main set, Puns from the Past.

Sew Glad

2008-09-15T14:35:00.004-05:00

Here's another image from Puns from the Past. I'm SEW GLAD I'm almost done with this swap that's due....TODAY! Details may follow. But then again, they may not. It's all from SU.

Grateful for You

2008-09-15T14:25:00.004-05:00

I'm grateful for this hobby. What a fun card this turned out to be. I'm using another image from the Puns from the Past stamp set marathon that I'm on. It's all SU products--I'm too lazy to fill in all the specifics now.

Just My Type

2008-09-13T22:38:00.004-05:00

Just my type, I enjoy Halloween colors in the fall. I am always a sucker for this combination and am soon going to be decorating my house for the season. Here's a rough draft of the second design for my swap that's due on Monday, using images from Stampin' Up's Puns from the Past set. I'll probably tweak it a few times before I come up with my final design.

Paper: Brushed Silver, Pumpkin Pie, Basic Black, Whisper Confetti White cardstock, Ghostly Greetings Designer Series Paper (the skeletons were cut out from one of the sheets of DSP)
Ink: StazOn Jet Black, Pumpkin Pie
Stamps: Puns from the Past, All Holidays
Tools: Photo Corner punch, Boho Blossoms punch, 1/4" circle punch, My Way punch, Cutter Kit
Accessories: black gingham ribbon, 3/8" black organdy ribbon, mini library clips, black brads

Rubber Baby Buggy Bumpers

2008-09-13T15:46:00.004-05:00

There's nothing like participating in a card swap to get you going on creating some new cards. Finally. Okay, here's my first design that I whipped up today since Hurricane Ike didn't seem harmful in my neck of the woods and I can't think of anything better to do. You can expect to see four other designs from this stamp set by Monday, my deadline. I'm sure you can't wait.

Paper: Pink Pirouette, Old Olive, Regal Rose, Chocolate Chip, and Whisper White cardstock

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Stamps: Puns from the Past

Tools: Scallop Punch, Word Window Punch, 1 3/8" Punch, Crop-O-Dile, Instant Eyelet Setter

Accessories: Silver Eyelets, 1" Chocolate Chip grosgrain double stitched ribbon

Baptism cupcake accents

2008-08-19T14:35:00.004-05:00

This summer has been fun and filled with adventures and travel. Our most recent getaway was for my niece's baptism, and I made some lovely cupcakes (I love to bake) and put them on a three-tiered stand and put one of these little festive cards on each cupcake for the party afterwards. Here's more of the decor that I matched it up with. The flowers weren't in the vase yet, but everything turned out nicely and the event was very special for all of us.

Just because you're YOU

2008-07-22T00:12:00.005-05:00

This layout was copied from Gone INKognito. What a fun layout and simple repeat pattern of the pseudo fleur de lis stamp. I'm aiming for simple cards recently--can you tell?

Paper: Lavender Lace, Regal Rose, Barely Banana, Whisper White cardstock by Stampin' Up!
Ink: Lavender Lace
Stamps: Simple Delights
Tools: Scallop Punch, 3/16" corner punch to create scallop border
Accessories: Hobby Lobby gingham ribbon, Polo Button Brads by Making Memories, Stampin' Dimensionals

Sweet Melissa

2008-07-21T16:22:00.005-05:00

Ever heard that song by the Allman Brothers? It's a good one. Anyway, sweet Melissa sent me these cute cards a couple of months ago and I think they are adorable. Thank you so, so much.

Paisley Argyle Pink & Green

2008-07-19T18:38:00.008-05:00

Have you ever decorated a room around a picture? How about a card around an envelope? I have some 6.25" white square envelopes that I wanted to use so I came up with these big square cards with a lot of pretty layered papers and a simple image. I wish I was better at water coloring, but as every other art form requires, I just need to practice more. But since I'm now getting back into my creative mindset after a two month hiatus, I'm taking baby steps. Blogging pals Melissa, Jenn, and others, I miss your blogs and will catch up soon.

Paper: Tinted Dawn 12 x 12 Basic Cardstock, Color Translucent Light Green by The Paper Company; Brooke Argyle, Brooke Paisley by Making Memories; Whisper White, Gable Green, Regal Rose by Stampin' Up!
Ink: Wild Wasabi Classic Stampin' Pad, Watercolor Wonder Crayons Bold Brights, Regal Rose Stampin' Write Marker
Stamps: Blooming with Love
Tools/Accessories: Silver Circle Brads by Making Memories, Stampin' Dimensionals, 1/8 inch handheld punch, paper piercing tool

Snappy birthday!

2008-07-18T18:59:00.002-05:00

This was crazy to cut out! I think this stamp set is really cute and have seen several interesting cards made with the crab figure cut out, so I thought I'd try it out. I don't recommend it for large quantities, that's for sure. But it's just such a great little character and it really pops when you have it cut out.

Paper: Simply Paper A6 Folded Cards - 4.5 x 6.25 from Michael's, Basic Black, Whisper White, Ruby Red Cardstock by Stampin' Up!
Stamps: Crab & Company by Stampin' Up!
Ink: Basic Black, River Rock
Accessories/Tools: wiggly eyes adhered with mini glue dots, distressing tool, black and white ribbon

Sew what?

2008-07-16T01:53:00.004-05:00

I haven't made a card in a couple months! Sew what? It's a hobby, not a job, right? I got this colorful postcard with all the spools of thread and sewing notions and had fun transforming it into a greeting card. By the way, the outlook for my cardmaking in the near future is good. Thanks for not giving up on me.

Paper: Ruby Red, Sahara Sand cardstock, Tommy Hilfiger fall sale postcard
Stamps: Simple Sayings II
Ink: Night of Navy
Accessories: Button, hemp twine, pop-up dot

I feel some cards coming

2008-06-23T10:55:00.001-05:00

I've been in a stamping lull, obviously. But I'm going to be making some cards this week and thought I would alert the masses!

A Mother's Love

2008-04-26T00:33:00.004-05:00

Today I found this designer paper at Hobby Lobby to match the yellow circles that my sister cut out for me. The sentiment "a mother's love is like no other" seemed to be quite fitting for this bird and nest. Thanks for loaning me your stamps too, Julie. You're such a nice sister.

Stamps: A mothers's love from http://www.stampingsensations.com/ , Cavallini Bird & Nests
Paper: So Saffron, Very Vanilla, Rose Red cardstocks by Stampin' Up!, DP by My Mind's Eye
Ink: True Thyme, So Saffron
Embellishments: brads, moss gingham ribbon, ivory 3/8" organdy ribbon, red hemp twine
Tools: 1" and 1 1/4" Circle Punches, 3/4" Punch for ticket corner effect, Double Circle Punch

You cheer me up award

2008-04-23T21:27:00.004-05:00

A big {THANK YOU} to Donna for giving me this cute little Lucy "You Cheer Me Up" award. I thought that was so sweet of her to say that, and the funny thing is she cheers me up every time I see her. Donna is a talented stamper and quite an accomplishe chef too. Now I'm supposed to select five others to nominate for this award and here's who I have picked. They are generous in sharing on their blogs with all of us. When I've been tagged with things like this, I tend to be somewhat slothful at replying because I don't want to leave anyone out, but this was a fairly easy one, because these people do really cheer me up when I go to their blogs.

Simply Pink: Melissa was the first person whom I received a random act of kindness (RAK) card from. This sweet gesture from someone whom I'd never met in person, had the inkling to send me a card because I told her how much I loved it, really touched me. She certainly cheered me up and has ever since with her sweet blog and lovely art.

Kiyomi Krafts: Sweet Miss Jenn is from Hawaii, and is one my my newest blogs I love to visit. She puts together these wonderful Aloha Friday videos with delightful music and gorgeous cards. She also leaves me nice detailed comments which are always fun to get.

Me, My Stamps & I: Chat is a stamping machine! I have enjoyed copying so many of her excellent designs and am amazed at how much she cranks out. She is very talented and her beautiful cards really cheer me up.

Kristina Werner Design: This woman is truly a superstar. Anyone in the stamping and card making world would agree. I love her style, enjoy her creativity, appreciate all the videos and excitement that exudes from her blog. She is remarkable. I've participated in her Color Challenge #6 in this post, by the way.

My Creative Treasury: Kandis has a style like noone else and comes up with the most unique, interesting designs. She's fantastic and I admire her stitching and unique embellishments she adds to her cards.

Thank you to each of these women from the bottom of my heart! You {really} CHEER me UP!

--Kelly

Mom celebrate

2008-04-23T11:37:00.002-05:00

It's my mother's birthday today, so happy birthday, Mom. I hope it's a great day for you.

Stamps: Looks Like Spring, Wonderful Words, Letterpress Alphabet
Ink: Lovely Lilac, Elegant Eggplant
Paper: Lovely Lilac, Elegant Eggplant, Whisper White, embossed
Embellishments: Silver Brads
Tools: Spring Flower Bouquet Punch

Birds in springtime

2008-04-22T00:45:00.005-05:00

My sister, Julie, sent me this adorable card (above), and I copied her layout (turquoise and red card, below) to create a similar birthday card (bird-day Ü) card for my mom. Julie's colors are so pretty! Thanks, Sis. I'm too tired and lazy to fill in the details. Just let me know if you need to know about any of it.

Looks Like Spring, Martha

2008-04-21T16:37:00.007-05:00

Last year I made a card similar to this for my mom for her birthday and it turned out to be one of my most viewed and commented on cards on SCS and was created with the now discontinued Cool Caribbean cardstock. I've been wanting to create it again in some new colors, so here's what I came up with. I am drawn to the Martha Stewart craft section when I go to Michael's, but usually just look. This time, I bought some of the ribbon, and designed the rest of the card around it. The envelopes and prefolded cards match Stampin' Up's Soft Sky perfectly.

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Soft Sky
Paper: Simply Paper 6.5" x 4.5" Envelopes, Simply Paper Cards, Soft Sky, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White
Stamps: Looks Like Spring, Print Pattern, French Script
Embellishments: Martha Stewart Piped Nylon 3/8" Cloud Ribbon, Coke can tab, Pop-Up Dot to adhere tab securely, Crystal Stickers Pearl by http://www.markrichardsusa.com/ from Archiver's
Tools: Spring Floral Bouquet Punch, Scoring Tool

If there was an inexpensive and easy way to buy about 100 of these hardware pieces at a time, not in a kit with other things, I'd be happy to get some. So in the meantime, when I'm mass producing, I'll just use my cheap Diet Coke can pull-tabs.

Ebony Chandelier

2008-04-15T17:35:00.005-05:00

As I was in the checkout line at Michael's yesterday, picking up my framed art order--we had a family photo taken--I spotted these bargain notecards in a bin, ten per pack. I assumed they were just a dollar, but when I got home, realized that they were two packs for a dollar. I'm going back today to get more, just for the envelopes alone! These cards were a nickel apiece, basically. That's practically free. I added the HB sentiment and the black ribbon, which I snipped from my daughter's prom dress, those unpleasant hanger straps that always manage to make their way on the outside of the dress. This card is so minimalistic, but sometimes, that's all we have time for, isn't it?

Thanks so much, friend

2008-04-06T18:37:00.003-05:00

Target has the best $1 items sometimes, like these striped notecards with envelopes that came in a set of 8, for just a buck. I bought these a long time ago, more than a year ago. Keep an eye out for similar bargains in the future, then embellish them to jazz them up!

Paper: Striped notecards from Target, Tempting Turquoise, Chocolate Chip, Gable Green, Whisper White
Stamps: Think Happy Thoughts, Friendly Flowers
Accessories: Misc. ribbons, staples, "Ice" circle rhinestone brad, Stampin' Dimensionals
Tools: Scallop, Key Tag, 1-3/8, 1-1/4 inch circle punches, Crop-o-Dile

Sprinkle your celebration with fun

2008-04-06T17:34:00.003-05:00

Okay, here we go with the last of my prestamped images of the balloons from Tag Time. I coupled it with a new Hero Arts clear design Cupcakes set sentiment.

Paper: Real Red, Pumpkin Pie, Confetti White
Ink: Basic Black
Stamps: Tag Time, Hero Arts cupcake set
Tools: 1/2 inch circle punch
Accessories: Crystal Stickers elements, Green Ribbon from Hobby Lobby

Sarah's Wedding

2008-04-06T17:23:00.002-05:00

My husband's cousin, Sarah, is getting married this month and I made this card for her and her fiance, Nick. I'm crazy about the "print pattern" looking designer paper and used the framed border image from the Sweet Dreams set for the first time today. Today has been all about using scraps as I'm cleaning and sorting, and I had one last piece of Kraft cardstock that I had previously stamped using the Spunky Spots jumbo wheel.

Paper: Kraft, Basic Black, "Print Pattern" DP that I got at Hobby Lobby, Whisper White
Ink: Basic Black, Whisper White, Sharpie Twin Tip Ultra Fine permanent marker
Stamps: Sweet Dreams, sentiment is a Michael's $1 stamp
Tools: Small Oval, Large Oval hole punches, Slit Punch
Accessories: Clear Button, Green Ribbon from WalMart, Black Hemp Twine, Black Ribbon, Black and White Ribbon from Hobby Lobby

Tender Bunny

2008-04-06T13:44:00.005-05:00

As I was cleaning my desk, I had one extra stamped image of this bunny from the Tender Toile set, and one extra stamped Kraft cardstock scored and folded, so I whipped up this card today. I should have enough baby cards to last me for several months now!

Paper: Kraft, Regal Rose, Pretty in Pink, Old Olive, Whisper White
Ink: Basic Black, Whisper White
Stamps: Tender Toile, Spunky Spots and Dotted Lines Jumbo Wheels
Accessories: Ribbon, spiral paper clip from Target, Stampin' Dimensionals

Oh baby!

2008-04-05T14:44:00.002-06:00

This morning I got a call at 2 am to go to my friend's house as she was in labor, so I could stay with her kids while she and her husband could go to the hospital. It was very exciting because they didn't know the gender of their baby yet. I was hoping for a girl, to help balance out the family, but it was a boy. Now they have four boys and a girl! But I had already started on this card, so I'll have to save it for the next baby girl.

Also, thanks Jenn, for urging me to post another card! That's motivating.

Paper: Gable Green, Prints Pack DP, Whisper White, Almost Amethyst, Pretty in Pink, Misc. Green, D.O.T.S. Pink and White Polka Dot DP
Ink: Basis Black, Pretty in Pink
Accessories: Pink Gingham Ribbon, green polka dot ribbon from WalMart, staple, Stampin' Dimensionals
Tools: Crop-o-Dile for dry embossing
Stamp: Michael's $1 stamp (from a year or so ago)

Let the cute begin again

2008-03-31T11:48:00.009-06:00

Today I'm just playing with my Big on Spring cute stamp before putting it away, and made two more versions of the cute little pink baby girl card I made last week. My friends are very prolific and have delivered these newborns.

Seth ~ Beckham ~ Zachary ~ Lincoln ~ London ~ Riley

These are the names of little babies I know who have been born in the last month or so, whom I've been busy making cards for today. Now I need to get them sent off. I love babies.

Ink: Black, Pretty in Pink Stampin' Write Marker
Paper: Going Gray, Basic Black, Pretty in Pink, Prints Pack DP, Whisper White
Accessories: Basic Eyelets, Basic Gray Taffeta Ribbon, Pink Grosgrain, Black Hemp Twine
Tools: Large Star, Scallop, Slit, Photo Corner, 1/2 inch, 1 inch, 1 1/4 inch, 1 3/8 inch circle Punches, Crop-o-dile, Making Memories Instant Setter, Stampin' Dimensionals
Stamps: Big on Spring, Nursery Necessities, In the Stars

The rest of the cards I made two days ago

2008-03-28T15:18:00.005-06:00

Going to shoebox swaps is a fun way to get excited about stamping. I didn't include my own card project, but I posted it here. I thought it was funny that half of us incorporated the scallop punch in our designs. That has to be the number one punch by Stampin' Up! Celebrate today is from the Simple Sayings set.

May all your dreams come true

2008-03-27T20:13:00.003-06:00

Yesterday I participated in a fun little get together to make cards, a shoebox swap, and I botched the intended card, so abandoned the project, brought it home, then recreated this card using some of the elements from the original.

Paper: Confetti Cream, Very Vanilla, River Rock, Chocolate Chip, Cool Caribbean, Whisper White
Ink: River Rock, Cool Caribbean, Chocolate Chip
Stamps: Friendly Flowers, Always, In the Stars
Tools/Accessories: Scallop Circle Punch, Round Tab Punch, 3/4-inch Punch, 1/2-inch Punch, Photo Corner Punch, My Way Punch, Staples, Ice Rhinestone Brads, Cutter Kit

Let the cute begin!

2008-03-26T02:00:00.003-06:00

Here's my creation of the day. It's amazing how much brain power one card design can take sometimes. Maybe because I'm trying to come up with one that uses exclusively Stampin' Up! materials that are current. It's so much easier to use what ever I feel like. Most of the new babies I know who have been born lately are little boys, but I was in the mood to make a girly baby card. The eyelets seem so frilly and cute with the pink papers, and you might recall my recommitment to using eyelets from a previous post, so voila! I used seven for one card.

Paper: Going Gray, Prints Pack DP, Basic Black, Whisper White, Pretty in Pink
Ink: Basic Black, Pretty in Pink Stampin' Write Marker
Stamps: Big on Spring, Nursery Necessities, Sweet Shapes
Accessories: Basic White Eyelets, Pink Satin Ribbon, Stampin' Dimensionals
Tools: Crop-o-Dile, Punches: slit, word window, 1-inch, 1-1/4 inch, Making Memories Instant Setter (okay, so this is my one non-SU item used)

Eggs

2008-03-22T14:36:00.007-06:00

We decorated hard-boiled eggs today and I made egg salad sandwiches for lunch--I baked the bread too, using freshly ground red wheat from my food storage. Fun times! The kids are excited to have an Easter egg hunt. I like using real eggs for it.

Tender Bunny, you make me smile

2008-03-22T11:58:00.003-06:00

Here's another card with my sweet little bunny stamp.

Paper: Stampin' Up! Kraft, Basic Black, Cool Caribbean, Whisper White cardstock
Ink: Basic Black by Stampin' Up!, White by Stampabilities
Accessories: Black Ribbon from Hobby Lobby, Linen Thread
Stamps: Tender Toile, Simple Sayings II, Spunky Spots Jumbo Wheel all by SU

Delicious Bliss

2008-03-21T00:06:00.003-06:00

I bought a cute little Hero Arts cupcakes (clear design) set of acrylic stamps today, and it came in handy when I added the {delicious} sentiment to the top of this card I had made the day before, so it could hide a mistake underneath where I smudged the word lifetime. I was playing with some designer paper scraps, which you never know what you might end up with. Pink and black together make a cute pair.

Congratulations--I can set an eyelet properly!

2008-03-20T20:30:00.008-06:00

Lately, I've had terrible results in setting eyelets, so I have gotten out of the habit. It's as if I've forgotten how to do it. So today I played around with my various tools and was thrilled to pinpoint what works best for me, my Making Memories Instant Setter. After messing around with scraps, I put this card together. I experimented with my Crop-o-dile, plus the old method I used, which was a handheld punch, then using all kinds of variations, made little progress until I found this video on setting eyelets. It made my day when I got my eyelet setting groove back. I prefer for the eyelets to "flower" out on the backside, rather than the smashed round finish that I get with the Crop-o-dile. So I am happy! Look for some cards made with eyelets in the future, now that I can do it consistently. Thanks to Melissa for being my sounding board!

Celebrate Spunky Balloons

2008-03-13T01:29:00.006-06:00

This was my first time to use my Dotted Lines jumbo roller and I know it's going to be a fun one. I used the 3/4 inch circle punch to cut the balloons and like the short-cut three-dimensional effect.

Paper: Close to Cocoa, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White, Old Olive, Real Red, Certainly Celery
Ink: Basic Black, Whisper White
Accessories: Pumpkin Pie and Real Red grosgrain ribbon, Stampin' Dimensionals
Stamps: Tag Time, Spunky Spots and Dotted Lines Stampin' Around Wheels

Tag Time Happy Easter

2008-03-12T21:49:00.004-06:00

Oh, I love the way this springy Easter card turned out, which I CASE'd from Maxene on SCS, and changed a couple of colors and the sentiment. Can you believe Easter is only a week and a half from now?

Paper: So Saffron, Cool Caribbean, Pretty in Pink, Whisper White
Ink: So Saffron, Cool Caribbean, Regal Rose, Certainly Celery, Basic Black, Black Stampin' Write Marker
Stamps: Tag Time, D.O.T.S. Happy Easter
Accessories: Black 3/8-inch Organdy Ribbon

Americana Make a Wish

2008-03-11T00:59:00.009-06:00

It's four months until Independence day, but I'm eager to use these colors together, so I couldn't resist. What a fun new stamp set this is going to be...it's my first time to use it.

Paper: Brocade Blue, Real Red, Night of Navy, Whisper White
Ink: Whisper White, Real Red
Stamps: Birthday Whimsey, Spunky Spots Jumbo Wheel, So Many Sayings (Make a Wish)
Tools/Accessories: White Embossing Powder (for sentiment), Basic Eyelets, Real Red Striped 1/2-inch Grosgrain Ribbon, Crystal Effects, Glitter, Word Window Punch

If anyone who sees this is good at setting eyelets, I would appreciate your tips. I'm frustrated with all the methods I use, including the Crop-o-dile, Marvy Instant Setter, and using 1/16-inch handheld punch. Also, I realize I made a mess with my Crystal Effects...it came out fast and I didn't have any toothpicks handy, so I have way too much.

It's your birthday, Sue!

2008-03-10T08:48:00.004-06:00

"I'm having a big number birthday," says my friend, Sue! Happy birthday to you--I hope it's a wonderful one and wish you the best year ever.

Love in lilac

2008-03-09T19:16:00.005-06:00

Karina got married last week in Arizona and last night we went to an open house at her parents' home to celebrate. Here's the card I made for her and her husband, Ian. The bride looked beautiful and her handsome hubby looked in love, so that was wonderful. I wish them the best together and hope for a lifetime of love and happiness. Congratulations to the newlyweds!

Paper: Gable Green, Lovely Lilac, Whisper White, and Orchid Opulence
Ink: StaZon Jet Black, Lovely Lilac, Green Galore, Orchid Opulence
Ribbon: Random--cannot recall where I got it
Stamps: Much Love, Quirky Alphabet Upper (for the E)

Tender Toile Easter

2008-03-08T10:09:00.002-06:00

Toile patterns are so pretty, especially when there's a cute little bunny in the print. This Easter card I designed reminds me of the dozens of bunny hunts that my kids' Grandpa Dee has taken the little ones on when they're visiting grandma and grandpa's home. It's a tender moment to see their excited faces when they return and say how many bunnies they saw on their walk.

Stamps: Tender Toile and All Holidays by Stampin' Up
Ink: Stazon Jet Black
Paper: Whisper White, Kraft, Cool Caribbean
Accessories: Hobby Lobby ribbon, Linen Thread
Tools: Paper Piercing

Happy Leap Day!

2008-02-29T21:23:00.006-06:00

My only post in February? Are you kidding me? I knew I had been preoccupied with activities not related to card making, but had no idea to what extent until I added this picture for the last day of the month. Oh well! One is better than none, right? This card is a reply to a thank you note I got a few days ago, that I just whipped up for Christine and Chris, who got married over the Christmas holidays (Chris-Christine-Christmas...). I hope they have a happy marriage, a wonderful life together, and an eternity of joy and peace, and a lot of little Chrisses!

You can quote me, I'll try a bit harder in March to create more cards and post them. Happy entire month of February to you! And thanks for the tag, Chat. I almost put together a response, but ran out of oomph! That's the story of my life lately. Take care, everyone.

Always Boho Valentine

2008-01-21T02:13:00.001-06:00

As I was putting together some scraps here, and ended up with something kind of cute. Not a lot of brain power or time were wasted, basically.

Paper: Creamy Caramel, some random unknown pink paper, Green Gable, Pixie Pink, Very Vanilla cardstock
Ink: Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, Stazon Opaque Cotton White
Accessories: Celery grosgrain ribbon, Hobby Lobby gems, staples, Cotton Candy Ranger Stickles, Mini Glue Dots to adhere the pink gems
Stamps: Always, Boho Backgrounds, Toucan of My Love (sentiment)

Bonjour, Le Tour

2008-01-20T17:41:00.002-06:00

With Valentine's Day approaching soon, it's practically impossible to NOT think of all things French as romantic and fitting for the season. For this simple Valentine greeting, I used my never-before-inked En Francais background stamp and paired it with an Eiffel Tower image, which are a dime a dozen, and can be found on most stamp store shelves. C'est magnifique!

Paper: Regal Rose, Whisper White, Basic Black, Wild Wasabi
Ink: Stazon Jet Black
Accessories: Regal Rose grosgrain ribbon from Stampin' Up! and Stampin' Dimensionals
Stamps: En Francais by SU, Stampabilities Bonjour

You are one of a kind

2008-01-18T22:41:00.000-06:00

Tonight I found a new blog to go to for ideas and inspiration, and that's where I found this. I wanted to use my new Bali Designer Series paper and these colors are a favorite combination. This was my first time to use my One of a Kind Stamp set and I know it's going to be a fun one.

Paper: Soft Sky, Wild Wasabi, Whisper White, Bali Breeze, all by Stampin' Up!
Ink: Soft Sky, Wild Wasabi, Pumpking Pie and blender pen for flower
Tools and Accessories: Silver Brad, Sherbet Ribbon Originals, Pumpkin Pie grosgrain ribbon, Crystal Effects, Pop-Up Dots, Stampin' Dimensionals
Stamps: One of a Kind by Stampin' Up!

you mean everything to me

2008-01-18T13:37:00.000-06:00

Here's more of the Always stamp set with two other sentiments:

you mean everything to me.

{EVERYTHING}

I also used Stampin' Up! pink taffeta ribbon and the Stazon Timber Brown ink. I like this version the best.

always on my mind--forever in my heart

2008-01-18T09:31:00.000-06:00

This is such a fun new set ((Always--see the previous post) and I know I'm going to use it often. Here I've added some more depth to my first design, using the following tools or accessories:

Crop-o-dile (to punch holes evenly)
Hodgepode Hardware
Twill Tape
Sponge (for edges of heart and vanilla cardstock)
Slit punch to create scallop edge on Creamy Caramel cardstock
Distressing tool

always on my mind

2008-01-18T02:23:00.000-06:00

Keeping it simple here, I've used my Always stamp set for the first time.

Paper: Stampin' Up! Very Vanilla, Pretty in Pink cardstock

Ink: Pretty in Pink, Creamy Caramel by Stampin' Up!

Embellishments: Silver brads and pink ribbon by Stampin' Up!

Tools: purple handheld punch Fiskars

Stamps: Always by Stampin' Up!

love

2008-01-17T22:35:00.000-06:00

Here's my first card of the year to create and post! Thanks, Lisa, for the inspiration.

Paper: Red gift wrap paper at Hobby Lobby, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Real Red from SU

Ribbon: 15/16" Chocolate Chip Satin Ribbon from SU, white twine from Albertson's grocery
Tools: EK Designs Whale of a Punch Folk Heart Punch, SU Medium Folk Heart Punch

Ink: Craft White from Stampin' Up

Stamp: Wonderful Words

Enjoying my Christmas cards

2008-01-03T17:20:00.000-06:00

Thank you to everyone who sent me wonderful Christmas cards. My sister, Julie, sent this handmade creation and I wanted to post it. I love her handy work and appreciate receiving cards like this made with TLC, AND each and every single card that was manufactured and addressed to me and the family individually. It is a remarkable tradition, the giving and receiving of Christmas cards, to be remembered at least once a year by either brand new or lifelong friends and family. Happy new year!

Merry Christmas from Kathy

2007-12-22T02:53:00.000-06:00

It seems as though I have neglected my little hobby lately! Fortunately, I recently received this lovely card in the mail from Kathy, thankyouverymuch. Maybe her lovely artwork can tie some of you over who keep clicking on my blog hoping for an update. I'll be posting new creations before too long. I'm busy wrapping up the calendar year as well as my cherished 14-year-long career. As Arnold says, "I'll be back!"

Happy birthday to me from my sis

2007-11-15T16:30:00.000-06:00

It was definitely worth hopping on my bicycle and riding down the street to check the mail today because I got this whimsical, colorful, fun card from my sister, Julie, in the mailbox! I love the combination of little mini squares from sets that I wouldn't normally think to put together. She really thinks outside the box when she boxes things together. Thank you, Julie. What a lovely card. Homemade cards beat junk mail any time.

Season of Joy

2007-10-29T19:47:00.001-06:00

With pleasure, I was able to design an invitation for our women's event at church in December and need to mass produce nearly 200 of these. Luckily, there's a committee to help me with them, and we knocked out about half of them yesterday. It's hard to tell, but we embossed the main sentiment with red embossing powder.

Joy & Merry Christmas

2007-10-29T19:38:00.003-06:00

I made this at Kathy's card making soirée last week. Love it. I'm glad I have the Love & Joy stamp set! Yippee!

Becki's birthday cake

2007-10-29T18:09:00.000-06:00

This is the other card I made of Becki's design at our recent shoebox swap. Birthday cards are nice to have on hand and this basic greeting card will be appropriate for any age, any gender. Thanks, Becki!

Alicia's baby shower

2007-10-29T18:03:00.000-06:00

Love this one I got in the mail for Alicia's baby shower. So cute. I have the Print Pattern background stamp, but don't have the other set with the cute little baby palm print and the alphabet. Anyone know what set the "you're invited" stamp is from? So soft and feminine.

Thanks, Making Memories

2007-10-29T13:40:00.000-06:00

I enjoyed making this card designed by Becki, her creation that I made at a recent gathering. It's fun to not have to cut the cardstock, gather the supplies, etc., plus have someone else be the creative one. Becki kindly gave each of us at the shoebox swap the package of Making Memories fabric alphabet that we used for this card. Sweet! These adhesive letters were fun and easy to adhere. I love ric rac too, plain and simple, and would put it on everything if I had it in every color, size and texture. Ric rac rocks! Thanks, Becki!

Snow burst blessings

2007-10-29T07:51:00.000-06:00

Kathy invited me over to make cards last week and I love this design. It would be nice to have, but I'm not quite ready to spend the money, so here's my wish list for what is needed to create this striking yet relatively simple creation.

110386 Snow Burst $19.95 (set of 6 rubber stamps)
110382 Star-Studded Season $33.95-yikes! (set of 8 rubber stamps)
110148 Blizzard $17.95 (designer wrapping paper, 2 rolls)
105120 Bashful Blue $5.50 (8.5" x 11" cardstock)
102128 Chocolate Chip $5.50 (8.5" x 11" cardstock)
107303 Naturals White $6.50 (medium envelopes)
109066 Bashful Blue $6.95 (3/8" taffeta ribbon)

There's also the whisper white cardstock, the coordinating ink, glitter, and adhesives, all of which I have plenty of.

Non-traditional colored Christmas

2007-10-24T14:58:00.002-05:00

Not much of a fan of non-traditional colored Christmas cards, I just wanted to try out my Stampin' Up! Snow Blossom punch for the first time. It seems like snowflakes should be in blue tones for some reason. Anyway, just thought I'd post this quickie card I threw together a few weeks ago since I haven't posted lately. It's a busy season for me and I'll create more cards soon, I hope!

Boatloads by Alicia

2007-10-17T22:41:00.000-05:00

Alicia made these adorable "Boatloads of Love" cards for me and I appreciate the contrast between the two overall looks, each using completely different color palettes. Both finished versions are fantastic, but I slightly prefer the Halloween card. This is a superb CASE of the design from the current SU catalog. Thank you, Alicia!

Lori's designs

2007-10-13T04:14:00.001-05:00

From Monday's shoebox swap I joined in, here are the two cards I made from Lori's design. The flowers, brads, and gorgeous cardstock were a delight to use. This blue and cream floral paper has a Laura Ashley look to it, and really caught my eye with the quality and texture.

Fun to make cards, Lori. Thank you! Or rather "thanks" as the sentiment suggests.

Lynette's card design

2007-10-13T04:03:00.001-05:00

From the shoebox swap at my sister's house on Monday, Lynette won the prize for the most complicated cards, but they fortunately turned out well. This one was fun to do, and was actually not too tough. I liked the patterned papers she provided for us.

When I got home, I just added the bling, lavender gem stones and some natural twine.

Enjoy your tri-fold day

2007-10-13T03:46:00.000-05:00

Here's the other design Julie came up with at the shoebox swap at her house. I loved making this card because I've received tri-fold cards from her, but have never made any. So this was a nice treat to see it go together from start to finish. Thanks, Julie!

Halloween husband

2007-10-13T03:40:00.000-05:00

I made this card at a shoebox swap at my sister's house a few days ago and there's a funny story behind it. The original design says "Halloween hello," but I grabbed the stamp, inked it, then realized I used the wrong side of it, and came up with "Halloween husband" instead. I thought it was so funny, and decided to keep it that way. Now I can give it to my husband, Frank. Just kidding. That's not his name, and he also doesn't give me the creeps like the spider, and isn't spooky either, like the ghost! Cute card idea, Julie. Thanks for the fun stampin' get together!

BOO! the embossed version

2007-10-04T02:35:00.001-05:00

Previously I posted this card here, and said that I wanted to recreate it with the BOO greeting embossed, so here's what I came up with. I was excited to find this Stampabilities stamp (called Spooky Boo) from Hobby Lobby yesterday that says "boo" in big enough letters to not feel like I need to use an alphabet set to spell it out. This short cut will make mass producing this card go much quicker. I have 31 women coming to my house to make 93 of these tonight! Also, I hadn't posted the wonderful sentiment on the inside that says "happy halloween" in a sweet font, accented with a row of dots. I inherited the spider stamp from my neighbor who moved to Taiwan this summer. (Thanks, Julie!)

Mini Happy Halloween

2007-09-13T14:33:00.000-05:00

Just having fun with my punches with this little 3 x 3 card. This little Halloween image is from the All Holidays stamp set, everything is from Stampin' Up!

Punches: Scallop Circle, 3/16" Corner Rounder, 1 3/8" Circle, 5-Petal Flower
Accessories: Circle Metal Tag, Black Gingham Ribbon, Button, Black Twine
Paper: Only Orange, Lovely Lavender, Basic Black, Whisper White cardstock
Ink: Green Galore

Season of Joy

2007-09-12T00:15:00.000-05:00

This is the only set I've ordered (so far) from the Stampin' Up! Holiday Mini Collection 2007. It's called Season of Joy most of the stamps I used are from this set. The Merry Christmas stamp is from All Holidays.

Paper: Pretty in Pink, Real Red, Basic Black, Wild Wasabi, Whisper White cardstock
Ink: Real Red, Soft Sky, Basic Black, Versamark and Red Embossing Powder
Punches: Scallop Circle, 3/16" Corner Rounder, 1" Circle, 1 1/4" Circle, 1 3/8" Circle
Ribbon: 1/4" grosgrain, Soft Sky, Wild Wasabi, all by SU
Tools, etc.: Crimper, Pop Up Dots

Jumbo Eyelet Flower

2007-09-11T08:29:00.000-05:00

Love the big, bold new jumbo eyelets by Stampin' Up! I set the eyelet with the Cropodile with ease. No noise and no pounding.

Stamps: In the Spotlight, All Holidays
Ink: Timber Brown Stazon Ink, Bashful Blue
Punches: Word Window, 5-Petal Flower, 1 3/4" Circle
Tools/accessories: Paper piercing, vintage brads, Cropodile
Paper: Bashful Blue, Chocolate Chip, Sage Shadow, Very Vanilla cardstock, Blue Bayou and Creative License designer papers, all by SU

Grateful for new punches

2007-09-10T11:09:00.000-05:00

Here I have used three of Stampin' Up's eight new punches, and the new Cropodile--which ROCKS! I used the Photo Corners punch, the 3/16" Corner Rounder Punch, and the Scallop Circle Punch, my favorite. I used the Cropodile to do the dry embossing (on Chocolate Chip Cardstock). The new Cardstock is Sky Blue, paired up with Sage Shadow and Apricot Appeal. I used the a SU clear button and Linen Thread as accents. The stamp sets used are Dotten Autumn and In the Spotlight.

BOO! Friends

2007-08-29T03:37:00.001-05:00

Here's my second attempt at getting the white more bright, using embossing this time rather than just white craft ink. I prefer the look with the "BOO" in embossed white, but I'll stick with the black ink for the ghost and mummy figures for my final idea.

I love this cute little card, adapted from an idea from Kathy R. I just threw it together, as I was trying to come up with a Halloween card for next month, so it's not perfected yet. The three little ghouls are from the Stampin' Up retired Hey, Ghoul Friend set. Cardstock used was Lovely Lilac, Pumpkin Pie, and Kraft. Inks are Pumpkin Pie, Almost Amethyst, Mellow Moss Stampin' Write markers, and Whisper White craft ink pad. The alphabet stamps are from the Well Worn set.

Appreciating Elegant Eggplant

2007-08-17T18:56:00.001-05:00

For some reason, purples, plums, lavenders, and eggplant, aren't typically the colors I reach for when card making. I like it, so I don't know why this is. So for my Friday entertainment, I've spent some time playing with these colors together and had fun. I hope to use more purples in my future card creating.

Congratulations to my niece, Aubrey, on her engagement to Ryan! They just got engaged and I've made this card for them to celebrate. I'm so excited for the two of them.

Stamps: Pixie Expressions, "Romance," and Touch of Nature, Background Sampler, Memory of the Heart, All Holidays by SU

This thank you card is for my wonderful in-laws for inviting my children to visit them for two and a half weeks out of state, and for being awesome grandparents to them. My kids had a ball and I grately appreciate all they did to help create some delightful summertime memories.

Stamps: Memory of the Heart

Paper: Always Artichoke, Elegant Eggplant, Kraft

Ink: Elegant Eggplant, Always Artichoke, Regal Rose

Accessories: Moss gingham, Rose, Eggplant Ribbon

Joyful Fleur de Lis Swirls

2007-08-14T13:05:00.000-05:00

Happy birthday, Julie! My friend turned 31 in June, and only recently posted it on her blog, so I'm sending her this belated card. It's similar to the Father's Day card I made for my husband. We made this particular design at my monthly card-making soiree which I host. I liked using the red prefolded note cards from Michael's, sold in packages of 20, in a variety of colors. It matched Stampin' Up's Real Red close enough, since I just had a little bit of red. It's a bit larger than my standard cards, measuring 4.5" x 6.25." Here are a few other details.

Paper: Confetti Cream, Basic Black, Real Red by SU, The Paper Studio Black & Cream Ornate Leaf from Hobby Lobby, cream and black striped gift wrap, and Simply Paper by Gartner Studios folded cards, size A6, red
Stamps: Timeworn Trim, Small Sayings, Linen background by SU
Tools/accessories: Sewing machine stitching, red brads

It's your day, Marlene

2007-08-09T12:24:00.000-05:00

Happy birthday, Marlene! I hope you have a happy birthday tomorrow!

Stamps: Delight in Life, Simply Said, Stampabilities-It's Your Day
Ink: Ruby Red, Cool Caribbean, Chocolate Chip
Paper: Kraft, Very Vanilla, Ruby Red
Accessories/tools: ric rac (looks more like turquoise and wished I'd used turquoise ink), blender pen, staples, pop-up dots

Olive you!

2007-08-02T13:44:00.001-05:00

Here's a little "just because" card I made for my husband who is traveling this week and I am missing him. I used the Stampin' Up! pastels with a cotton swab to color the olive image from the Olive You set. The background stamp, Soft Swirls, is with white ink on Real Red SU cardstock. And to further match the image, I used Old Olive cardstock, with Basic Black.