Beate's Weekend Sketch #17

This is for Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge. I had trouble deciding which stamps to use for this one. I thought about what I hadn't used in a while and thought the Changito stamps by Stampendous would work! I just love this little monkey playing the guitar. The sentiment is by A Muse and the patterned paper is Basic Grey Phat Chance and Pherris Wheel from the Phresh & Phunky Collection. I was resisting the urge to make this card square. There just seemed to be too much space. . .especially on top. Then I added the faux stitching and the circles with the brads to go with the patterned paper and it evened out the card a bit. Check out the cards that Lori, Jenn and Sharon have created too! They are ALL awesome! So, head on over to Beate's blog and give the sketch challenge a try! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Changito Guitar by Stampendous, sentiment by A Muse Art Stamps; Paper- pink, green by The Paper Company, Whisper White, DCWV chocolate, Basic Grey Phat Chance and Pherris Wheel from the Phresh & Phunky Collection; Ink- Basic Black; Accessories- Prismacolor pencils, gamsol, stump, green grosgrain, paper piercer, Old Olive marker, small oval punch, 1 1/4" circle punch, 1" circle punch, Making Memories brads, Circle Coluzzle.

Colorful Rhino

This is for today's Ways To Use It Challenge on SCS, Better Sharpen Up. The challenge was to use colored pencils. I haven't used my colored pencils in a long time. When I first got them, I used them A LOT, but then got away from them and forgot about them. So, this was a nice excuse for me to bring them back out! I wanted to use some of that wonderful ribbon that Florence sent me, so that's where I started. I used the ribbon for the color scheme. I also haven't used my Zoofari set in a while, so I got that back out. I used Prismacolor pencils, gamsol and a stump to color the rhino. The sentiment is from the Thoughtful Phrases set from Verve Visual. Thanks for stopping by! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Zoofari, Thoughtful Phrases (Verve Visual), See You Around jumbo wheel; Paper- DCWV turquoise, pink, olive, chocolate, Whisper White; Ink- Basic Black, Chocolate Chip, Tempting Turquoise; Accessories- ribbon from Michael's, Word Window punch, Making Memories brads, ticket corner punch, Prismacolor pencils, gamsol, stump, Simply Circles brass template, paper piercer, Chocolate Chip marker

Happy Mail

Yesterday I was SO SURPRISED to get this wonderful package in the mail! It came from Florence of Flossie's Follies. How absolutely sweet of her! She asked me a question about ribbon tying and sent me all this beautiful ribbon as a thank you for helping her. I don't really think I did anything. . .especially to deserve such a sweet, sweet package! Thank you Florence! I really appreciate it and I LOVE all of the ribbon you sent. It's just adorable! I'm hoping to use some of it today! Thank you for the beautiful card as well! Have you all noticed that perfect bow on there? :)

Bouncing Brayer Tutorial

If you've ever wanted to try a card with a background like this, check out my Bouncing Brayer Tutorial on Splitcoast! It's easy and creates such a neat effect! I'd love to see what you come up with!

Crisp, Cool Thanks

This is for today's Sketch Challenge on SCS. I just got some Basic Grey paper. . . Wisteria from the Lilykate Collection and I just LOVE it! I love the crisp, cool colors of it! So that's what a started with for the sketch challenge. I used my Fancy Florals set by Verve Visual. I just love these flowers and how they can look so different depending on how you layer them or which parts you decide to stamp. Instead of using one of the filler stamps for the focal flower, I watercolored it for a different look. For the frame around the sentiment, I used the small and large oval punch and then pierced it. Hope you are all having a great week!

We went to Savannah's preschool orientation last night and it was a BIG relief! The teacher and her assistants all came up to us at one point or another and said "Savannah's the one with the peanut allergy, right?" We didn't even have to mention anything, but everyone knew. I do have to say that I was reassured that she'll be fine and I shouldn't worry as much as I have. Well, thanks for stopping by today! I really appreciate it! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Fancy Florals (Verve Visual); Paper- Certainly Celery, Lovely Lilac, Basic Grey Wisteria, Whisper White; Ink- Certainly Celery, Lovely Lilac, Basic Black; Accessories- paper piercer, Aquapainter, rhinestone brad, purple Stickles, small and large oval punch, celery grosgrain ribbon.

Pretty Pink Pomegranates

This is for today's Color Challenge on SCS, Pretty Pink Pomegranates. . .to use Pretty in Pink, Purely Pomegranate and Old Olive. I thought this made a very festive color combo, so I decided to make a Christmas card. I love my little Merry & Bright set from the SU Holiday Mini catalog. I went with the tree image this time instead of the snowman. Next I'll have to use the reindeer! :) I used the Cuttlebug Snowflakes folder on the card base and added some brads for ornaments on the tree. Other than that, I think this is pretty self-explanatory. The card went very quickly too! That is a very good thing when it comes to Christmas cards! I just might have to use this for my cards this year! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Merry & Bright; Paper- Purely Pomegranate, Whisper White, Pretty in Pink, DCWV Olive; Ink- Basic Black, Purely Pomegranate, Old Olive; Accessories- blender pen, duo satin ribbon by Darice, horizontal slot punch, paper piercer, 1", 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" circle punches, Cuttlebug Snowflake folder, Making Memories brads, Sakura Stardust gel pen.

Totally IrRESISTible

This is for the Try a New Technique Challenge on SCS, Totally IrRESISTible. It called for you to use both the Emboss Resist Technique and Versamark Resist (or Ghosting). I have never used both at the same time before, but I really like the results! I especially love it with this stamp set! It's Fancy Florals by Verve Visual. I love all of the different sizes of the flowers and the fact that I can add so many levels to a single flower! For this card, I stamped the medium flower randomly in Versamark on glossy cardstock and heat embossed it with clear embossing powder. Next I stamped all of the smallest flower pieces randomly and then brayered over the glossy cardstock with Purely Pomegranate. I wiped the clear embossed flowers off with a paper towel, and then added the centers of those flowers with the Stamp-a-ma-jig. I cut down and mounted the glossy white cardstock on black, and then on the Purely Pomegranate card base. Lastly, I added the biggest flower with the sentiment over top and the ribbon as the "stem and leaves". Thanks for visiting! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Fancy Florals (Verve Visual); Paper- Purely Pomegranate, Glossy White, Basic Black, Whisper White; Ink- Purely Pomegranate, Versamark, Basic Black, Palette in Noir; Accessories: Clear embossing powder, Stamp-a-ma-jig, duo satin ribbon by Darice, Stardust Stickles.

FS29

This was for yesterday's Featured Stamper Challenge, to CASE Cammie! There are SO MANY gorgeous cards in Cammie's gallery that it was hard to choose! I finally settled on this card. I changed the colors and the stamps. I didn't have the beads either, so I used linen thread instead. I just LOVE the look of the these kinds of cards. If you haven't checked out Cammie's gallery, you really should! She has SO MANY wonderful creations. SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Garden Whimsy; Ink- Regal Rose, Ruby Red, Pink Passion, Old Olive, Basic Black; Paper- Whisper White, DCWV olive, pink; Accessories- Making Memories eyelets, linen thread, paper piercer, Crop-a-dile.

Julee's Sketch

Julee at Poetic Artistry is having a contest on her blog celebrating 75,000 hits! Congratulations, Julee! I thought it would only be appropriate to use the Fancy Florals set from Verve Visual for Julee's sketch! I just got my set and I absolutely LOVE it! Julee did a WONDERFUL job of designing this set and I really look forward to her future releases! I took my color combination from the patterned paper from Basic Grey, Vintage Paisley. I thought the May Arts duo satin ribbon matched perfectly as well. I purchased the ribbon at Verve Visual as well! If you haven't shopped Verve yet, you should definitely check it out! Thanks for stopping by! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Fancy Florals, Verve Visual; Paper- Basic Grey Vintage Paisley, DCWV Chocolate, Blue Bayou, Sahara Sand; Ink- Blue Bayou, Chocolate Chip; Accessories- scallop circle punch, May Arts ribbon, paper piercer, Stamp-a-ma-jig.

Creepy Crawly

This was for the Ways To Use It Challenge on SCS this week. . .to make a Halloween card! This challenge came at a perfect time for me because I have Halloween stamps that I never use because I don't get cards made in time! This has given me a head start! I brought out the Halloween Night Designer paper from last year! Can you believe I have a lot of it left? It worked perfectly for this card with the spider and the web. I'm just LOVING this ribbon I found for $1 at my local craft store! Doesn't it match perfectly with the Halloween theme? Thanks for visiting! Hope you have a wonderful weekend! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Batty For You, All Around Argyle; Paper- Halloween Night DS, DCWV olive, Whisper White; Ink- Basic Black, Old Olive; Accessories- scallop circle punch, 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" circle punches, Word Window Punch, Making Memories eyelets, Crop-a-dile, duo satin ribbon by Darice.

Oldies But Goodies

This was for today's Limited Supply Challenge on SCS, Oldies But Goodies. The challenge called for using a stamp set that had not seen ink in a while, an old sketch challenge, an old color challenge and a couple of embellishments that you've been hoarding. Well, this stamp set DEFINITELY qualifies for this challenge. I don't think it's seen ink in almost 4 years! It's one of those Stampin' Up sets that I rarely use, but I can't bare to get rid of it. Do you have any of those? After looking through the old sketch and color challenges, I settled on Sketch Challenge 22 and Color Challenge 53 (Chocolate Chip, Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery). I cheated a little on the colors, though. Instead of Bashful Blue, since I didn't have any, I used Soft Sky and I added Blue Bayou. Shhh. . .don't tell! :) The embellishments I've been hoarding are my May Arts duo satin ribbon and my Hodgepodge Hardware. . .I never use the hardware! So, this is what I came up with. Thanks for stopping by! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps-Classic Captions, Linen; Paper- Basic Grey Vintage Paisley, Soft Sky, Blue Bayou, DCWV Chocolate, Whisper White; Ink- Basic Brown, Bashful Blue, Bordering Blue, Chocolate Chip; Accessories- May Arts satin ribbon, Aquapainter, slit punch, Antique Brass Hodgepodge Hardware.

Beate Weekend Sketch #16

This is for Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge. I turned the sketch on its side, though. :) I have had the ABC Alphabet Upper and Lower since I could first order them, and this is the FIRST time I have used them! Can you believe that? When I was thinking about Beate's sketch and deciding which stamp set to go with, I was also thinking about something else that has been on my mind a lot lately. . .Savannah starting preschool. So, I combined the two thoughts and decided to use my ABC Alphabets for the first time! This is how the sketch ended up sideways. . .it wouldn't fit the other way! :)

Savannah, as most of you know, is my oldest so this is the first time I'm experiencing sending a child off to school. I know it's only 2 days a week, but I'm still nervous! She's never really been away from me. I'm not so nervous about how she'll do in school because she's SO excited and I'm sure she'll adjust instantly. I'm nervous about her severe peanut allergy. Those of you who have never had to deal with food allergies probably have no idea the worry that a parent goes through. I have no idea what another child might try to "share" with her when I'm not there to tell her it might contain peanuts. We've always carried an Epi-Pen for her, but have never had to use it and I pray we never will! Anyway, school starts September 6 for her and I thought this card would make a nice piece of the scrapbook pages I intend to make for her first day of school.


So head on over to Beate's blog and give the sketch a try! It's another great one! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- ABC Alphabet Upper and Lower, My ABC's wheel; Paper- Cutie Pie Designer series, Wild Wasabi, Whisper White, Basic Black; Ink- Basic Black, Purely Pomegranate; Accessories- Spiral Binding punch, Jumbo circle punch, 1" circle punch, polka dot organdy ribbon, paper piercer, Basic Black marker, DCWV stickers, Stamp-a-ma-jig.

Business Card

For those of you who haven't seen, Amy at Heartfelt Greetings is having a contest on her blog. It is to create business cards for yourself! First of all, let me say that I have REALLY missed Amy's challenges! She used to do a sketch challenge every Sunday that I LOVED! So, when I saw that she had posted a "challenge", I was so excited to participate! Now, when it was for business cards, I had to think about it a lot. This is definitely something I've never done before. . .what was I going to do in such a small space, and make it functional at the same time? Then there was the issue of "what do I advertise"? I'm not on any design teams, and I wouldn't exactly call myself a Freelance Designer as much as those things would be a dream! :) That's when I thought I could use my blog to advertise what kinds of things I make just in case someone might want a card or gift set. Who knows if I'll ever give one of these out, but it was A LOT of fun to create! Really very simple too! Thanks, Amy, for the challenge! If any of you are up for it, give it a try! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Garden Whimsy, Whimsy Jumbo wheel; Ink- Old Olive; Paper- Papertrey Ink white cardstock, DCWV black; Accessories- slit punch, hole punch, Ruby Red and Basic Black markers.

Birthday Gift

I have had to make a birthday gift for my grandma since June! I just couldn't get my act together and sit down and put something together. I finally finished it, though, and she LOVED it! I saw this particular box on Natasha's blog, Palm Trees and Pogo Sticks. It was perfectly what I needed! I visit Natasha's blog every day, and she ALWAYS has wonderful creations posted. This gift set box was no exception! Thanks for the GREAT idea, Natasha! I saw another ADORABLE box like this on Laurie Schmidlin's blog, Just Give Me Stamps, but it was for the 3x3 cards. I still want (and HAVE TO) make that one, but I needed something in a size my grandma could mail. I did use Laurie's idea of tying the cards up with raffia, though! Thanks, Laurie! (I just LOVE Laurie's blog too!) I kept the cards very simple. I learned from giving my grandma card sets before. She doesn't like anything too complicated, and if the cardstock is anything but white or cream, she won't use them because she "can't see what she's writing!" Too funny! I thought these MissyB Designs bugs would be great for my grandma. Once I decided on the stamp set and the design, the box went VERY quickly. There are 2 of each design for a total of 8 cards. I think this is going to be my new favorite gift for a while. . .until my family gets sick of seeing them, that is! :) Thanks for stopping by! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- MissyB Designs, You're Bugging Me, sentiment by Papertrey Ink, Little Lady; Paper- DCWV red, yellow, purple, black, blue, Whisper White; Ink- Basic Black, Ruby Red, More Mustard, Lovely Lilac, Ballet Blue, Bordering Blue; Accessories- polka dot ribbon from Doodliedoo, slit punch, hole punch, Aquapainter, Stardust gel pen, raffia.

True Friend

This is for today's Sketch Challenge on SCS. This sketch was kind of tough for me because I couldn't figure out what to do with the sentiment. I ended up sticking it there on the left side, but I'm still not crazy about it's placement. For the flower, I stamped it three times. I cut the one out and mounted it with dimensionals in the center. The other two flowers were cut out and then cut in half and tucked under the first flower to give it a little more fullness. I then used Stickles in Waterfall on all the flowers. I thought it gave them a very nice sparkle. You should see it in real life! Thanks for coming to visit! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- True Friend; Paper- DCWV Luxury stack, light blue, chocolate, Whisper White; Ink- Blue Bayou, Wild Wasabi, Chocolate Chip; Accessories- paper piercer, Chocolate Chip marker, organdy ribbon, Stickles in Waterfall, horizontal slot punch.

Groovy Skies

This is for today's Color Challenge on SCS, Groovy Skies. . .to use Soft Sky and Groovy Guava. I really like the softness of this color combo. I thought this sunflower stamp by Inkadinkado would work with the Groovy Guava coloring. I did add some Wild Wasabi for the leaves and Close to Cocoa as a border. The sentiment is from the Stampin' Up! So Many Sayings Hostess set. For the faux stitching, I used my Bashful Blue marker. This card is so different from what I've been doing lately, it's hard to get used to! I do like it though. Hope you do too! Thanks for stopping by!

On a side note, I had a question the other day from Mary Anna. She asked:

Charmaine, Your cards are very nice!I do have a question? I see that you are using Cling for the back of your stamps now. and I see that you are storing them in the regular clam shell boxes.My question is how does this save you space?I thought the whole reason for cling backing was to save space too!!

Mary Anna, to answer your question. . .I don't save any space :), but that wasn't why I used the Cling. I used the cling on that particular stamp set because it comes as 3 stamps (3 large wood blocks) with a list of sentiments on each stamp. Instead of having to color JUST the sentiment I wanted to use or stamp the whole thing and cut out the sentiment I wanted to use, I cut ALL of the sentiments apart. Since I didn't have small blocks for each of the now 34 stamps, I put cling on the back so that I could use them with an acrylic block and not have to worry about finding wooden blocks for each of them. Does that make sense? So far, that's the only set I've done this to. Hope I've answered your question!

SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Gardenia, Inkadinkado, sentiment, SU; Ink- Basic Brown, Soft Sky, Groovy Guava, Wild Wasabi, Chocolate Chip; Paper- Soft Sky, Groovy Guava, Close to Cocoa, Whisper White; Accessories- Making Memories brads, small and large oval punch, grosgrain ribbon, Aquapainter, blender pen, paper piercer, Bashful Blue marker.

True Friend Cami Style

This is for today's Try a New Technique Challenge on SCS, to make a Cami Tri-Fold card. I just LOVE these adorable little cards! I haven't made one in a while, so it was a great challenge for me! This is also the first I've used my True Friend set. I have seen some beautiful cards made with this set. I can't wait to play some more with it! If you haven't yet tried a Cami Tri-Fold, click on the link above and it will take you to the tutorial on Splitcoast. You will become addicted to making them, I promise you! Thanks for stopping by today. Hope you have a wonderful day! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- True Friend; Ink- Chocolate Chip, VersaMagic in Pink Petunia, Perfect Plumeria and Spanish Olive; Paper- Amy Butler Sola Collection, DCWV chocolate, pink; Accessories- paper piercer, slit punch, Word Window punch, large oval punch, jumbo circle punch, Mega scallop circle punch, May Arts ribbon, Chocolate Chip marker, bling from Walmart.

Mwohlers!

This is for today's Featured Stamper Challenge on SCS, Hey There, Sweetie! It was to CASE Melissa, AKA Mwohlers. She has a wonderful gallery that I've never visited before! There were quite a few cards I wanted to CASE, but I settled on this card. I changed the colors, added a couple more ticket corner punches and popped up the elephant's ear. I just thought Melissa's card was the cutest! Hope you have a wonderful Sunday! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Wild About You, Paper Tray (Papertrey Ink); Paper- DCWV olive, pink, purple and Nana's Kids Stack, Certainly Celery, Whisper White; Ink- VersaMagic in Pink Petunia, Pretty Petunia and Basic Black; Accessories- Making Memories brads, stitched ribbon, small and large oval punches, ticket corner punch.

Very Limited Supplies

This was for yesterday's Limited Supplies Challenge on SCS. It was very challenging, because the supplies really were limited! I had to keep putting things down (like punches and embellishments) that I naturally would have added because I was only permitted certain supplies. Here was the list:

A - Choose one stamp for the main image that needs to be colored.
B - Choose ONE of the following:background stamp OR flourish/swirly type stamp or wheel OR patterned paper
C - Choose one sentiment.
D - Any colored ink and solid color paper
E - Choose ONE of the following:ribbon OR brads OR buttons OR eyelets
F - Choose of the following specialty tools:paper piercer OR crimper OR Cuttlebug OR a punch

So, how would you have done? :) I'm glad I did it because it made me realize what my favorite design elements are. I do like how the card came out, but I naturally would have added a little more, maybe with punched corners or a background stamp. The card turned out simple, simple, simple. . .and sometimes that's best! Thanks for stopping by! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Merry & Bright; Ink- Basic Black, Certainly Celery, Groovy Guava, Bashful Blue, Sahara Sand; Paper- Bashful Blue, Palette O'Prints, Whisper White, Groovy Guava; Accessories- paper piercer, Making Memories brads, Aquapainter, blender pen.

Beate Weekend Sketch #15

This is for Beate's latest Weekend Sketch Challenge! How does she do it every week? I NEVER get bored with her sketches and they always inspire me. For this card I finally broke open my pack of Stampin' Up's Apple Cider Designer Paper! I just LOVE it! Every pattern is just gorgeous, not to mention the colors! As always, there is paper piercing and faux stitching on this card. I tried not to do it, but I just couldn't help myself! LOL The sentiment and the hearts framing the right side of the focal image are from the So Many Sayings Hostess set. Can you see in the lower right corner of this picture, mounted on an acrylic block? Well, if you've seen the So Many Sayings set in the catalog, you know that it's a set of 3 stamps. Each stamp has a list of sentiments and images on it. One day when I was blog surfing, I came across a post on Lauren Meader's blog where she cut apart all the sentiments of So Many Sayings and applied EZ Mount on the back to make them cling to acrylic blocks! I thought it was pure genious on her part! Thanks, Lauren, for the awesome idea! So, now I have a ton of sayings and little border stamps that are all separate and so much easier to use than having to color what you want with a marker! Here's front and back pictures of my set:



So now that you have that informative tidbit (grin), head on over to Beate's blog and try her sketch challenge! You'll be glad you did! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Priceless, So Many Sayings; Paper- Sahara Sand, Close to Cocoa, Apple Cider DS, Groovy Guava; Ink- Sahara Sand, Groovy Guava, Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip; Accessories- horizontal slot punch, grosgrain ribbon, Making Memories brads, paper piercer, Chocolate Chip marker, Stardust Stickles, ticket corner punch.

Another Heidi Grace Set

Here is a card using another one of the Heidi Grace clear stamp sets I found at Joann's. This one is called Wild Daisy Rd. I loved the paisley-petal flower! The swirls in the background are also part of the set. Remember how I said I was "flourish-impaired"? Well, I'm getting better. . .and I think it's only because I've been using them more. I was so intimidated by them! Sounds silly, doesn't it? Well, I'm not afraid to use them so much anymore. That's a good thing since they're really "in" right now! :) I stamped the flower on Whisper White and again on Certainly Celery and cut that one out, mounting it on top of the flower on Whisper White. I stamped and cut out the daisy stamp in the set and used it for the flower center along with a rhinestone brad. A pretty simple card! Thanks for stopping by today! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Heidi Grace Wild Daisy Rd stamp set; Paper- Wild Asparagus, Blue Bayou, Soft Sky and Whisper White; Ink- VersaMagic in Ocean Depth, Aloe Vera and Aspen Mist; Accessories- small oval punch, rhinestone brad, paper piercer, large oval punch, Not Quite Navy marker, hole punch, organdy ribbon.

Pick a Polka Dot

This is for today's Sketch Challenge on SCS. I haven't used my Pick a Petal set in a little while, so I thought I'd pull it back out. Sometimes that's the hardest part of creating a card. . .deciding what stamp set to use. When I don't have to make a card for a specific reason (sympathy, birthday, thank you) I find it hard to decide WHAT kind of card I want to make. Do any of you agree? Most often, if I can't decide, I'll just use a specific stamp set so that the images and sentiments are decided for me. . .or at least narrowed down. In this particular instance, there really isn't a sentiment in the Pick a Petal set unless you just ink up the "smile" part of the one petal, and that was smaller than I wanted. I decided the card looked bright and cheery and thought the sentiment from Thoughtful Phrases by Verve Visual was perfect. (By the way, you can now pre-order the newest Verve Visual set, Fancy Florals. Follow the link and check it out!) Something new (to me anyway) that I did on this card was make the dry embossed polka dots with my Crop-a-Dile. I saw this neat idea on Beate's blog. Cool, isn't it? I'd love to know how some of you choose what kind of card you're going to make when you don't need a card for a specific occasion! :) Thanks for stopping by today. . .it really brightens my day when you do! :) SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Pick a Petal, Thoughtful Phrases (Verve Visual); Ink- Purely Pomegranate, Basic Black, So Saffron; Paper- Cutie Pie DP, Wild Wasabi, Whisper White, Basic Black, So Saffron; Accessories- grosgrain ribbon, horizontal slot punch, paper piercer, black marker, rhinestone brad, Crop-a-Dile, Pick a Petal brass template.

Bayou Sand

This is for today's Color Challenge on SCS, Bayou Sand, to use Blue Bayou, Sahara Sand and Chocolate Chip. Isn't this just a delicious color combination? I love it! I used the Swirl Jumbo wheel for the background of the base of the card. Then I combined Priceless and Garden Whimsy. I think they work well together. As always, I HAVE to do the paper piercing. . .I'm just addicted to it. I don't always add the faux stitching, but this time I did. It just adds so much to any card! Thanks for stopping by today! Hope your week is off to a wonderful start! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Garden Whimsy, Priceless, Swirl Jumbo wheel; Ink- Blue Bayou, Sahara Sand, Chocolate Chip; Paper- Blue Bayou, Sahara Sand, DCWV Chocolate; Accessories- paper piercer, Chocolate Chip marker, horizontal slot punch, chocolate grosgrain, Stickles in Waterfall.

Featured Stamper

This was for yesterday's Featured Stamper Challenge on SCS, to CASE Jen 70! Jen has an amazing gallery with so many wonderful cards to choose from! I chose to CASE this card of Jen's. I changed the stamp set and colors, but kept the layout and sentiment. If you haven't checked out Jen's stuff, you can see it in her SCS gallery, or on her blog, Stamping Therapy. Congratulations, Jen! I just LOVE your work! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Priceless, sentiment by A Muse; Paper- Cutie Pie DS, Basic Black, Whisper White; Ink- Bashful Blue, Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi, Basic Black; Accessories- ribbon from Doodliedoo, paper piercer, black marker, Dazzling Diamonds glitter, Making Memories brads.

Jen's Fun and Easy Sketch

Have I mentioned before that sketch challenges are probably my favorite challenge? When I see them, I find it hard to pass them up! This is for Jen del Muro's Fun and Easy Sketch. I just love finding new sketches. . .especially when it's totally different than I would normally layer a card. I try to file new sketches in my brain if they work real well for me. A few have even become "standard" sketches for me. . .those ones that you fall back on when you're creating something from scratch. Jen has had a lot of fun sketches, and they always work well for me. Give one a try yourself! Thanks for visiting! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Priceless, So Many Sayings; Paper- Groovy Guava, DCWV chocolate and olive, Amy Butler Sola Collection; Ink- Chocolate Chip, Groovy Guava, Old Olive; Accessories- paper piercer, grosgrain ribbon, Word Window punch, small oval punch, horizontal slot punch, Chocolate Chip marker, Sakura Stardust gel pen, Making Memories brads.

Coin Inspiration

This is for today's Inspiration Challenge on SCS. It was to choose an L.L. Bean Hook rug as inspiration. I chose the Bright Coin rug. It doesn't look exactly like the rug, but I went with the Pink and Chocolate colors of the rug. Again, this is the Winnifred St. clear stamp set by Heidi Grace Designs. The paper comes from the DCWV Luxury and Metallic stacks. . .great paper in both! I don't usually do the Inspiration Challenge on SCS, but since I had time today, I thought I'd give it a try. I have to say it's much more challenging for me. I know it's meant to "inspire" you, but I always get caught up thinking that the card has to come out looking JUST LIKE the inspirational object. Once I let go of that notion, it's much easier going! Thanks for stopping by! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Winnifred St., Heidi Grace Designs; Paper- DCWV Luxury and Metallic Stacks, Whisper White, Close to Cocoa; Ink- VersaMagic in Malted Mauve and Jumbo Java; Accessories- small oval punch, paper piercer, Making Memories brads, May Arts ribbon, rose organdy ribbon, Stardust Stickles.

Favorite Part of Summer

Yesterday's Limited Supplies Challenge on SCS, Summer Season, was to make a card celebrating what you loved best about summer. That was an easy choice for me. My favorite holiday has always been the 4th of July. Since my birthday is July 5, when I was little I used to think the fireworks were for my birthday! :) So, for this card I used my Winnefred St. clear stamps from Heidi Grace Designs. These stamps are actually flowers, but I thought they would make great fireworks. I was at Joann's the other day and they have a WHOLE line of Heidi Grace products now. It took me a while to decide WHICH of the clear stamp sets I wanted! You'll probably be seeing more of these stamp sets in the next few days! Hope you like them! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Winnefred St., Heidi Grace Designs; Paper- Whisper White, Basic Black; Ink- VersaMagic in Ocean Depth, Red Magic, Black Midnight; Accessories- paper piercer, slit punch, red and blug grosgrain, polka dot organdy ribbon, Stardust Stickles.

Beate Weekend Sketch #14

This is for Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge. I just LOVE her sketch challenges. I was going through my paper, which I have tons of, and came across this Holiday Thyme paper. I forgot I even had it! I tried to make it look non-Holiday. . .hopefully it worked! I didn't know what to do with the circle on the right side of the sketch since I put the sentiment with the tulips, so I decided to put another ladybug. I added an Old Olive "shadow" on the ladybugs to give them a little dimension. I connected the two ladybugs with a trail of paper piercings and I wasn't really crazy about it, so I traced over the trail with Stardust Stickles. I'm still not sure I'm crazy about it, but it's better than just the piercings! Head on over to Beate's blog and get started on the sketch challenge! I promise you'll have fun! Thanks for stopping by! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Garden Whimsy; Ink- Cranberry Crisp, Old Olive, Basic Black; Paper- Holiday Thyme Designer Paper, Old Olive, Whisper White; Accessories- paper piercer, Old Olive marker, 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" circle punches, Stardust Stickles.

RAKs

I received this card yesterday from Juanita Brown. She sent me this card to thank me for a RAK that I sent her when she had eye surgery! Can you believe that? How very sweet. Juanita, you are VERY welcome for the card and I SO appreciate yours! I just LOVE these colors and this stamp set! You really made me smile!

The second card is from Kelley Herrick at Kelley's Craft Corner. Kelley sent me this to thank me for blog questions I answered for her. I can't believe she took the time to send me a card just for answering questions! Kelley, you are too sweet! You can ask me questions anytime! :) Thanks for making my day!

A Different Sketch

This was for yesterday's sketch challenge on SCS. This was definitely a different sketch for me. You had to cut out that half circle piece, kind of like a puzzle. All in all, the card is very simple, but my brain seemed to think the layout was difficult when I was trying to decide WHAT to stamp. I colored the bee image in with various gel pens and added some dry embossed dots with my Shapes Classy Brass template. I found the ribbon at my local craft store for $1 a roll! A roll is 3 yds . . .is that a good deal? It looked like one to me. The ribbon is 5/8" wide, satin and DUO!! The other side is a So Saffron color. I LOVED it all so much, I got some that is Purely Pomegranate/Old Olive and Chocolate Chip/So Saffron (at least these are the Stampin' Up colors I can compare them to). I just really love it. For those of you who "price" ribbon, don't tell me if it's not a good deal! LOL Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful day! SUPPLIES USED: Stamps- Daisy Bee, Stampendous, sentiment, Verve Visual; Paper- Wild Asparagus, DCWV orange, turquoise, Whisper White; Ink- Palette in Noir; Accessories- white gel pen, paper piercer, horizontal slot punch, ticket corner punch, Shapes Classy Brass Template, Mega circle punch, various gel pens, satin duo ribbon.

Scrapbook in a Box Tutorial

Supplies Needed:
-11 1/4" square of double sided cardstock
-9 3/4" square of double sided cardstock

-8 1/4" square of double sided cardstock

-5 7/8" square of double sided cardstock

-paper trimmer with scoring blade

-scissors

-sticky tape

-ribbon and any other embellishments of choice

Step 1

Score the 11 1/4" square piece of cardstock at 3 3/4" on all sides.

Step 2

Score the 9 3/4" square piece of cardstock at 3 1/4" on all sides.

Step 3

Score the 8 1/4" square piece of cardstock at 2 3/4" on all sides.

Step 4

Score the 5 7/8" square piece of cardstock at 1" on all sides.

Step 5

Cut off the four corners on your three biggest pieces of cardstock (11 1/4", 9 3/4", and 8 1/4" squares) so that each piece now looks like a cross or plus sign.

Step 6

Apply sticky tape to the back side of the middle squares of the 9 3/4" and 8 1/4" crosses, peel off backing and adhere them on top of each other (largest to smallest).

Step 7

Now for your lid. Take your 5 7/8" square piece of cardstock and cut slits on two sides at the score line.

Step 8

Apply sticky tape to the "tabs" you've made. (Make sure you apply it to the side of paper that you want to show on the outside of the box).

Step 9

Fold up lid sides and attach tabs to the inside of the sides.

Step 10

Fold up your sides of the "scrapbook" and put the lid on top.

Now you know how to make your scrapbook in a box. Fill it with pictures and/or journaling and embellishments of your choice, tie it up with a ribbon and you've got a wonderful gift for someone special!