My Stamping Addiction

Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week - Happy Puppy

2012-01-30T05:00:00.019-06:00

Time for a new Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week. This week's SOTW, available at 50% off, is Happy Puppy, found on this page. You can find all the details on this offer at the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built. You'll also find the other Rock Stars' creations. Or you can follow these links:

Cheri ~ Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Vicki

I stamped my image on ivory cardstock with Memento black and colored with Copics. I matted with black, cut with a Nestability. The sentiment is from Repeat Impressions, also. I stamped the background with Dog Paw Print, found on the same page as the Happy Puppy. I used Versamark ink and embossed with clear embossing powder. The cardstock is Soft Suede from Stampin' Up! I matted that with black, too. The card base is ivory.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

"Christmas Sunday"

2012-01-29T05:00:00.002-06:00

I wasn't sure I'd have any new Christmas cards to share with you today, but I managed to make a couple last night. This first one uses Inkadinkado stamps. I stamped the circular image with Versamark on white and embossed with gold embossing powder, then I cut out the center. I matted with red then stamped and embossed the sentiment in the center. I used a border Cuttlebug folder for the sides and matted that panel with shimmery gold paper. I added tiny red gems to the ends of the "spokes."

I used this week's Fall-To Layout for this card. (You can find it here.) The blue cardstock is Baja Breeze from Stampin' Up! I embossed it with a Swiss Dots folder. I matted with silver shimmery paper. The snowflakes are from Stampin' Up! from a few years ago. The sentiment is from Repeat Impressions and is embossed with silver.

EDITED TO ADD: I just this morning found a new blog with a weekly challenge to make Christmas cards. How appropriate! Here is a link to it: Weekly Christmas Card Challenges.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Fairy Birthday

2012-01-27T05:00:00.001-06:00

Quick card - quick post! I've had this image in my card parts box for a long time, and it finally made it on to a card:) I pretty sure I got the embossed image (embossed with white embossing powder with silver sparkles) from my friend, Annie, a member of our stamping group. I matted it with a Nestability-cut circle and mounted it on Dimensionals. The patterned cardstock on the left was done quite a while ago with my Letterpress. The sentiment is from Gina K and is stamped with Memento London Fog.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

One-Layer Wednesday Challenge - White, Gray and a Touch of Color

2012-01-26T05:00:00.000-06:00

I made this card for Susan's One-Layer Wednesday challenge. The challenge this week is to use mostly white with some gray, or mostly gray with some white, and just a teeny bit of color. You can find her challenge here.

The main image on my card is again from a set from Crafty Secrets. I stamped it (and the other two stamps) with Memento London Fog ink. The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink and the little flower under the sentiment is from the same Crafty Secrets set as the main image. My teeny, tiny bit of color is the addition of two little purple gems - one in the main image center and one in the center of the little flower under the sentiment. The card base is Papertrey Ink's Stamper's Select.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday Sketch

2012-01-25T05:00:00.033-06:00

This is my second post for today. Please scroll down for my Flutter By Wednesday card, or click here.

Today is time for a new WHAT IF? Wednesday sketch challenge from Repeat Impressions. You can find the sketch and all the information you need on the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built. You will also find the cards made by the RI Rock Stars. Or you can follow these links:
Cheri ~ Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Vicki

I used the Wedding Bells Ribbon stamp, found on this page. I colored it with Copic markers. I also added a little subtle shimmer by using a Spica pen. (These are available in the Repeat Impressions, store, also.) The sentiment is on the same page as the bells. I scored a border with my Martha Stewart Scoring Board. I embossed the background piece with a Cuttlebug folder and cut it into two pieces. I mounted the image panel on Dimensionals.

This is also for the Sweet Stampin' Challenge, which is WOW - White on White. You can find that challenge here.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Flutter By Wednesday #187 - Embossing

2012-01-25T02:00:00.014-06:00

Time for another Flutter By Wednesday challenge! Please visit the Flutter By Wednesday blog for the details and to link up your card. This week's challenge is to use embossing. Could by dry embossing. Could be heat embossing. Could be both! Just be sure to include a butterfly, angel or fairy in your creation.

For my card, I embossed three squares across a strip of white cardstock using a small Cuttlebug folder, and then added scored lines with my Scor-Pal. I matted with blue cardstock. I added the stickers - from a pack from Michael's from Studio 18. I think they came from the dollar section. The sentiment is from Stampendous. (I did my embossing using my "no-lines" technique. If you're interested, you can find the tutorial here.)

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Time For More Card Parts

2012-01-24T05:00:00.000-06:00

I had a few "card parts" laying on my table after looking through them a couple months ago. Last night I had a chance to work with a couple of them. Here they are, without much explanation. If anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask! I could guess on the stamps, but I might be wrong, so I won't. The sentiment on this first one is from Gina K and the olive cardstock was embossed with a Cuttlebug Textile folder. I used my Scor-Pal on the image panel. The image panel is mounted on Dimensionals.

I'm pretty sure the flowers were stamped with a Papertrey set. I used a Sizzix folder on the matting, along with my Scor-Pal. I used a Martha Stewart punch for the ladybugs.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

"Christmas Sunday"

2012-01-22T05:00:00.002-06:00

Well, I only have one Christmas card to share with you today, but it's one more than I had last week:)

I stamped and cut out the image with a set of stamps and dies from Hero Arts. I colored him lightly with Stampin' Up! markers and mounted him on Dimensionals. I cut the black scalloped mat with a Nestability. I also added some Liquid Applique for the "snow." The sentiment is from Repeat Impressions. The patterned paper is from Die Cuts With a View. Hopefully I'll have more Christmas cards next Sunday.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Two More Black and White Cards

2012-01-21T10:16:00.001-06:00

When I was doing my black and white card yesterday (for the CAS-ual Friday challenge) I started with this stamp before deciding to combine it with the FTL challenge. So, this morning (instead of treadmill!) I worked on finishing it up. (I will do treadmill after I get this post finished. :) )

The main image is a stamp from a Crafty Secrets set I recently purchased. I stamped it four times and cut them out with a square Nestability. I mounted them on Dimensionals and matted with a large black square. The sentiment is from My Sentiments Exactly. This card is a case of a card by Annie in my stamping group. Thanks, Annie! This is Annie's card.

The first time I stamped the image, it was a little bit too light. But, of course I couldn't throw it away! This morning I made it into a card. I matted it with a little bit lighter black cardstock which I cut with a scalloped Nestability and mounted on Dimensionals. I embossed the frame directly in the card front. I added a thin strip of black and stamped the image (from Papertrey Ink) below.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Double Challenge Card

2012-01-20T14:55:00.000-06:00

Ah, I made a card! We've had a lot going on again. More about that later in the post. At any rate, I spent a little time in my stamping area - after I got it all cleaned up again! - and made this card for two challenges. It's for Natasha's Clean and Simple Stamping Fall-To Layout challenge, found here, and also for the CASual Fridays challenge to make a card using only black and white. You can find that challenge here.

I used a Cuttlebug folder for the sentiment panel, embossing white cardstock and then brayering over it with black ink. The patterned paper on the bottom is from a matstack from Die Cuts With a View. I matted both with black cardstock. I added the black shimmery flower with a white brad. The embossed panel is mounted on Dimensionals.

Our daughter-in-law was having severe back pain and went in to have it checked out. She ended up getting a steroid injection in her spine for a herniated disk. She is doing better, but it will be a slow process, I'm thinking. We had Owen (our one-year-old grandson) here overnight a couple nights and had him extra time over the weekend. It kind of wore me out! Her parents are in town for a few days, so I've had a couple days off to rest up and get a little bit caught up. This was the first card-making I've done, though, as I had other things that needed to be done, including among other things, getting my stamping area cleaned up. It was a MESS! If anyone would be so kind - we would love prayers for a rather quick and complete recovery. Thanks so much!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Designer's Choice Challenge - Scenic Winter Card

2012-01-18T05:00:00.024-06:00

This is my second post of the day. For my Flutter By Wednesday card, please scroll down, or click here.

The Designer's Choice Challenge from Repeat Impressions was chosen by Darsie and is to create a scenic winter card. Please visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for the details. One random winner for the month will receive a full sheet of unmounted rubber. You will find the wonderful creations by the other Rock Stars on the blog, too, or you can follow these links:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Vicki

For my card, I used four Repeat Impressions stamps: Winter Tree, Mountain Vista, Deer Family Silhouette and Thinking of You. I stamped them all with Versafine Vintage Sepia ink on shimmery off-white paper. I matted with brown and used a vanilla card base.

I hope you decide to enter this fun challenge. You also have another week to upload your card for the WHAT IF? Wednesday sketch from last week. The details are here.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Flutter By Wednesday #186

2012-01-18T02:00:00.002-06:00

This week's Flutter By Wednesday challenge is an "open" week - anything you want to make, but of course, include butterflies, fairies or angels. Link your card up to Danni's FBW blog page, here. We'd love to have you join us!

I used a stamp I got from a friend (who had two of them) a couple years ago. It's from Sweet Pea Stamps. I colored her with Copics. I added Stickles to the stars, her wings, and the flame on the candle. I also added "pearls" with a pearl pen. The sentiment is from Papertrey. I hand-cut it to fit into the oval of the tag die from Spellbinders. I added a few black gems and mounted the tag on Dimensionals. I matted the image with black. The background is from a matstack from Die Cuts With a View.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

SplitCoastStampers Clean and Simple Challenge - A Sketch

2012-01-17T05:00:00.001-06:00

I made this card for yesterday's SplitCoastStampers Clean and Simple challenge #153, which was a sketch. I also made it for a color challenge in my stamping group, which is to use rose pink and gray. It was really fun to get to join in a couple challenges - it's been a long time!

The shadow stamps I used are by Hero Arts. The flowers and sentiment are from a set by Gina K called Various Verses. I used Memento inks in London Fog and Angel Pink.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week - Moose Snow Globe

2012-01-16T05:00:00.033-06:00

Another Monday, another Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week, available for 50% off through Sunday only. This week's stamp is called Moose Snow Globe and can be found here. A very cool stamp:) Please visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for all the details and to see what the other Rock Stars have created. Or follow these links to their blogs:

Cheri ~ Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Vicki

I stamped my image with black Memento ink and colored with Copic markers. I stamped the base of the snowglobe on patterned paper and cut it out. I ran the snowglobe through my Xyron and sprinkled it with ultrafine glitter. I used a punch for the snowflake and added a light blue brad. The background was embossed with an embossing folder and the sentiment is from Repeat Impressions. While you're at the RI blog, be sure to check out the challenges, too. You have an opportunity to win some great prizes!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Fall-To Layout #173

2012-01-15T05:00:00.002-06:00

Wow, it's nice to be back. It's only been three days since I posted something, but it seems even longer than that.

I made this card last night for the Clean and Simple Fall-To Layout #173. You can find it here. Both stamps I used were from a set from Stampendous. I used my Aquabrush and Stampin' Up! inks to watercolor the image. The bottom trim piece was punched with a Martha Stewart punch.

Well, so much for my "Christmas Sunday!" I have only made about two cards all week and neither of them were Christmas. I hope to have more time this coming week for card-making.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday Sketch

2012-01-11T05:00:00.059-06:00

This is my second post for the day. To view my Flutter By Wednesday post, please scroll down, or click here.

Today starts a new Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday sketch challenge. Wendy gives us a sketch to work with and we do our creating. If you'd like to have the chance to win a $25 gift certificate to Repeat Impressions, all you have to do is create a card using this sketch, upload to your blog or an on-line gallery, and link it up to the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built. To see what the other Rock Stars have created, check out the RI blog. Or, here are links to their blogs. We have a new member starting this week, too. We're happy to welcome Cheri Weston to the team.

Cheri ~ Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Vicki

My card ended up being a First Birthday card for a little girl. I used the Birthday Cupcake image, found on this page. I colored with Copics and added Stickles. My matting was cut with a Nestability. I added some flowers and colored white brads with Copics for the flower centers. The patterned paper is from Die Cuts With a View. The tag is cut with a Spellbinders die, also. The ribbon and matting cardstock are from Papertrey. I used a Fiskars punch for the bottom border and I also used my Scor-Pal on it.

We'd love to have you join us. The current Designer's Choice Challenge is to use blue and brown, and it goes through next Tuesday. You have a chance to win a full sheet of unmounted rubber in that challenge. You can find the details here.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Flutter By Wednesday #185

2012-01-11T02:00:00.004-06:00

Time for a new Flutter By Wednesday challenge. The challenge for this week is to use bright colors. Want to join us? Just upload your card to your blog or online gallery and link it up to the FBW blog.

I made this one first and thought it might not be bright enough, so I made another:) The flower and butterfly stamps are from a Stampin' Up! set called Hello Again. I used colors from the the old Bold Brights family. The butterfly, leaf, and flower center are mounted on Dimensionals. The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink. I doodled a border and matted with black. The patterned paper is from Die Cuts With a View and I matted that with black, also.

Here is my second, brighter one. I'm pretty sure the stamp is from Stampin' Up!, but I can't say for sure. I stamped it at our Group Gathering in Des Moines a couple years ago. I colored with my brightest Copic markers - no shading, just straight coloring. I matted with black and mounted it on Dimensionals. The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Shepherd Christmas - Two Versions

2012-01-10T05:00:00.013-06:00

Well, here are the two Christmas cards I promised you. I'm thinking, though, that probably not many of you are as excited about Christmas cards as I am, so maybe I should limit them to once a week. Maybe have a "Christmas Sunday" or something. I'll think about it.

At any rate, I have these two to share today. They both use Repeat Impressions stamps. I love this little Shepherd Boy. You can find him on this page. The sentiment is on the same page, right below it. For this first one, I simply stamped, colored with Copics, and matted with black cut with a Fleur-de-lis Nestability. The star is a part of the stamp, but I stamped it separately and mounted it on a Dimensional. I also added Stickles to it.

This second one is much the same, with a different layout. The patterned paper is from a Die Cuts With a View matstack.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week - Winter Tree

2012-01-09T05:00:00.019-06:00

This week's Stamp of the Week from Repeat Impressions is Winter Tree, found on this page. It's available for 50% off through Sunday. Please visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for all the details. You will also find some ideas of what to do with this stamp there. Or, you can visit these Rock Stars' blogs:

Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Vicki

I stamped my image with Versafine Vintage Sepia ink on blue cardstock, then used bleach to "paint" the snow. The sentiment (from Repeat Impressions) is also stamped with Sepia ink. I added brown pearls to the corners. I embossed the brown matting with a Cuttlebug folder and then added another layer of blue. The card base is ivory.

We'd love to have your join our challenges. There are two open at any time - the WHAT IF? Wednesday challenge and the Designer's Choice Challenge. Both have great monthly prizes! You can find the details for both on the Repeat Impressions blog, also.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Diamonds and Lupine Birthday

2012-01-08T05:00:00.003-06:00

I took a little break from Christmas cards, but I'll be back with two more on Tuesday:)

I stamped the background of this card with a stamp called Diamond Deco Silhouette (large) from Repeat Impressions. You can find it on this page. I used Always Artichoke and Elegant Eggplant from Stampin' Up! The lighter ones are a second stamping - stamped without reinking. The flowers are a Lupine stamp, also from Repeat Impressions, available here. The ovals are cut with Nestabilities. The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink. Edited to add: I forgot to say how I colored the lupine. I didn't have the right color green Copic, so first I watercolored the leaves with Always Artichoke and then I used a Copic over that. The flowers are colored with Copics.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Fall-To Layout #172

2012-01-07T05:00:00.012-06:00

I made this card for Natasha's new Fall-To Layout (#172.) You can find her sketch here. I'm sure most of you are pretty sick of Christmas cards, but I am thoroughly enjoying making more of them! I think I could make them all year long. (And this year I plan on doing just that! I have thirteen done for this year so far.)

The ornament on this card is a sticker I bought at Michael's after Christmas at half off. It's attached to a scalloped circle - both cut with Nestabilities. The patterned paper is from a Winter matstack from Die Cuts With a View. I love the font on this sentiment, which is from Repeat Impressions.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Letterpressed Anniversary

2012-01-05T05:00:00.008-06:00

Quick card, quick post. I got this Sizzix Letterpress plate on Oh My Crafts for really cheap. I used Versamagic ink on it, both for the design and the stamped sentiment. I also scored the lines on both sides of the pressed design. That's it!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Designer's Choice Challenge - A Color Challenge

2012-01-04T05:00:00.036-06:00

This is my second post of the day. Please scroll down to see my Flutter By Wednesday card, and a little announcement.

Today is the beginning of a new Repeat Impressions Designer's Choice Challenge. This time it's Dawn's turn to choose, and she has chosen a color challenge - blue and brown. Won't you join in the fun?? You just need to make a card using blue and brown, upload to your blog or online gallery, and link to the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built. One random winner for the month will receive a full sheet of unmounted rubber of their choice. Please check out the blog for all the details and to see the other Rock Stars' creations. You can also visit their blogs using these links:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Vicki

My card uses the stamp called Baby, found on this page. I paper-pieced the sleeper with paper from Deja Views and colored with Copics and a Soft Suede Stampin' Up! marker. I used the same patterned paper for the bottom layer and matted both with Soft Suede cardstock from Stampin' Up! The sentiment is stamped in Soft Suede also, and is, of course, from Repeat Impressions.

You still have almost a week to participate in the WHAT IF? Wednesday challenge, too. The random winner of that will receive a $25 gift card. You can find the details for that challenge in this post.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Flutter By Wednesday - and a Little Announcement

2012-01-04T02:00:00.005-06:00

I am thrilled to say that I have the honor of being on Danni’s Flutter By Wednesday Design Team – how fun! Today is my first day of posting with the team. :) There are three other new team members, also. They are Karen, Leanne and Suzanne.

First off, thanks to everyone who participated in the month-long December challenge. What a great variety of wonderful creations! Today’s challenge, the first of 2012, is sponsored by Bugaboo Digi Stamps. Be sure to visit the Flutter By Wednesday blog to see how you can play along for a chance to win. This is a blog hop – very fun! You may have arrived here from Suzanne’s blog, but if not, you may want to visit the FBW blog and start hoppin’! Next up on the hop is Amanda. Here is the complete blog hop list, in case you get lost!

FBW Blog

Michelle VP
Karen
Suzanne
Lynette
Amanda
Leanne
Kristie
Mary
Nancy
Michelle
Danni
Harriet
Anna

This week's challenge is open - just be sure to use a butterfly, angel or fairy. Link your creation up to the FBW blog for a chance to win seven free digis from Bugaboo!

I have two cards to share with you today. I printed the image (Ava Fairy, from Bugaboo) twice in different sizes so I could practice coloring her, but I ended up using both of them! I used Copics on them both, and Stickles, too. This first one is matted with purple and a Heart Circle Nestability and is mounted on Dimensionals. I used Deja Views patterned paper, scored with my Scor-Pal, and then sanded down. The sentiment is from a Stampin' Up! set and I added a few black gems.

This second one is so cheery in yellow. I again used a Nestability for the image and matting. The sentiment is from Technique Tuesday. The daisy is from K & Co and the yellow patterned paper is from Die Cuts With a View.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Glitter, Glitter Everywhere!

2012-01-03T05:00:00.015-06:00

I received a beautiful gift tag (and hand-made gift!) from our son-in-law's mother last year and always meant to try making a card like it. I didn't get it done in 2011. This year, I received the same gift tag (and another wonderful hand-made gift!) and decided I would try making one like it right away. Here is my attempt.

First, I stamped the image (from Gina K) on acetate with Staz-On black and colored the back of it with Copic markers. I cut it out with a Nestability. I cut the scalloped mat out of black and cut a hole in it. I cut a hole in the front of the card, too, then glued the mat on the card front and used my ATG gun to adhere the acetate to the inside of the card. For the glitter, I cut a rectangle from thin paper and ran it through my Xyron machine. I taped it to the inside back of the card and removed the backing. I sprinkled ultra-fine glitter over the entire piece. The sentiment is from Verve.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week - Snowcat and Friends

2012-01-02T05:00:00.022-06:00

There is a new Stamp of the Week from Repeat Impressions, and it's Snowcat and Friends, found on this page. It is available for this week only, through Sunday, for 50% off. Just visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for all the details you will need. You will also find the creations by the other Rock Stars there. Or, you can follow these links to their blogs:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Vicki

Although this image doesn't have to be for Christmas, I am determined to make my Christmas cards throughout the year, so I figured I would add to my stack using this stamp. I stamped it on white and colored it with Copics. I used a Martha Stewart snowflake punch on the bottom border. Then I added Liquid Applique on the hat and Stickles on the snow. I matted with red. The sentiment is from Repeat Impressions. I embossed the snowflake border on the bottom with a Cuttlebug folder.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Happy New Year! and January Calendar Page

2012-01-01T05:00:00.001-06:00

Happy New Year to all my internet and "real-world" friends! I hope everyone has a fabulous 2012.

Here is my January calendar page. I used a stamp from Inkadinkado and colored it with Copic markers. I added Stickles to the snowflakes. It's mounted on shimmery purple paper. The sentiment is from Repeat Impressions.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Simple Thanks

2011-12-31T05:00:00.011-06:00

I took a little time yesterday afternoon to make a couple necessary thank you cards. I made them all the same.

The patterned paper is from My Mind's Eye - Simply Delightful. The sentiment is from a Fiskars thank you set by Heidi Grace. I colored the rectangle around it with a Copic marker, and it's mounted on Dimensionals. I punched the bottom matting layer with a Martha Stewart punch. That's all there is to it.

I got my January - April 2013 calendars printed yesterday! (I would have printed all the months, but I'm out of cardstock, and my "source" was closed yesterday when I stopped by.) I have my images all stamped for January, and one of them is colored. I'm so happy about that!)

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Happy Birthday ...

2011-12-29T05:00:00.001-06:00

... to me! :) It was yesterday, but I had my WIW post for then, so I'm sharing my cards with you today. I guess it's another tradition of mine to take a picture of them for posting here. I had a wonderful day with phone calls and cards from LOTS of people. This first picture shows all the cards I received.

And this second one shows the handmade ones. They are all VERY special, but I thought since this is a stamping blog, I would let you see these a little bit closer up. I received them over the course of a couple weeks, but saved them all to open until the evening of my birthday. Thanks to everyone!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday Sketch

2011-12-28T05:00:00.026-06:00

The weeks fly by, don't they! It's time for another WHAT IF? Wednesday challenge from Repeat Impressions. Wendy comes up with our sketch and we challenge you to play along. Here is the sketch for this time:

Please check out the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for all the details on how you can enter to win a $25 gift card and to view all the wonderful creations by the RI Rock Stars. You can also follow these links to their blogs:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Robin ~ Vicki

For my card, I used the RI stamp called Shade of the Elm, available on this page. I stamped it with an old Memories pad of Soft Wheat and matted with burgundy cardstock. The sentiment is called Life is Not ... and can be found on this page. I stamped it with burgundy ink, cut it with a Nestability and sponged with Soft Wheat before removing from the die. I matted with a matching scalloped oval. I embossed the background with an Argyle Cuttlebug folder and brayered with Soft Wheat. I added butterflies punched with Martha Stewart punches and then used pearls for their bodies.

You have almost another week to participate in the RI Designer's Choice challenge, too. The challenge that's currently open is to make a shaped card and be entered for a chance to win a full sheet of unmounted rubber. That's a lot of stamps! You can find the details for that challenge here.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Calendar Files for 2013

2011-12-27T04:32:00.002-06:00

How's this for getting an early start on next year's Christmas? I just made my 2013 calendar file and uploaded it. You can find the links here. (They are available at any time by following the link in the title bar of my blog.) I vow that next year I will be ready so much earlier and be able to relax and ENJOY the holiday season rather than being stressed. I have decided to do my calendars at least a year in advance - making the January 2013 ones in January 2012, etc. I will be making my Christmas cards throughout the year, also, as I prefer to make them all different rather than mass-producing them. I was SO happy that I made 55 of one kind this year, though. I NEVER would have gotten ready otherwise!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! We did. Our daughter and family will be here through tomorrow morning and we'll celebrate my birthday a day early. Then they will return to Chicago. How wonderful it's been to have our whole family together again for several days.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T05:00:00.001-06:00

Merry, merry Christmas to all!

I figured I would continue my tradition of posting a picture of our Christmas tree. It really looks the same every year since it's artificial and we use the same ornaments, but here it is anyway! (If you look closely, you can see some of my former interests - crochet, counted cross stitch, macrame, tatting, hardangar, smocking, bargello, etc. I used to make a different type of ornament each year.)

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Fall-To Layout - Part Three!

2011-12-23T05:00:00.001-06:00

I needed a very quick thank you note yesterday, so I used the Fall-To Layout again. After all, that's what it's for, right? I thought I'd share it with you, even though it's very similar to the others I've shared lately.

The papers are again from Recollections. I matted with a textured ivory cardstock that had a raggedy edge. I mounted on Dimensionals. The sentiment is from a Verve Thank You set.

We had a productive day yesterday of getting ready for Christmas. We bought the rest of the presents and got them all wrapped. Whew! Even did a little bit of tidying up:) I think we might make it! I probably won't be posting for a while. We still have quite a bit to do, and will be having company for a few days. It will be very fun, but I have no more cards to share. Hope to be back next week some time - Wednesday for sure, with the WHAT IF? Wednesday challenge.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Happy Hanukkah

2011-12-22T05:00:00.010-06:00

Here is the one Hanukkah card I made this year.

I downloaded the patterned paper from the Microsoft site. The menorah and sentiment are from a clear dollar set from Michael's (or JoAnn's.) I stamped them with Versamark and embossed them with silver embossing powder and colored the flames. The matting is a light blue.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Designer's Choice Challenge - Shaped Card

2011-12-21T05:00:00.025-06:00

It's another Repeat Impressions Designer's Choice Challenge - where one member of the Design Team comes up with a challenge for the other Rock Stars and for YOU! Today it's Maki's challenge, and it's to make a shaped card. You are invited to participate and be entered for a chance to win a full sheet of unmounted rubber of your choice. See the RI blog, The House That Stamps Built, for all the details. You'll also find the creations by the design team. Or, you can follow these links to their blogs:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Robin ~ Vicki

I chose to make a round card. I stamped the Bird and Blossoms on white cardstock and colored with Copic markers. I cut it, and the rest of the layers, with Nestabilities and added the sentiment. Not much more to it! We'd love to have you join us in this challenge.

You also have almost another week to join the WHAT IF? Wednesday challenge, found here.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Three More Christmas Cards

2011-12-20T04:48:00.001-06:00

Even though my cards were all mailed out last week, I'm still making more! I made all of these roughly based on Natasha's sketch on her Clean & Simple Stamping blog - the one I used on my Saturday post. The papers for all three cards are from a matstack by Recollections. I added a strip down the left side on these first two. The matting is shimmery gold, and the sentiment (from Repeat Impressions) is embossed in gold.

This one is the same as the first one - just different designs in the cardstock.

And here is the last one. I matted with a burgundy cardstock and added the ribbon. The sentiment is stamped with Stampin' Up! ink. Easy, pretty, and I have three more cards done for next year!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week - Boy With Sled

2011-12-19T05:00:00.020-06:00

There is a new Stamp of the Week from Repeat Impressions. This week it's Boy With Sled. You can find him on this page. For this week only (through this Sunday, Christmas Day) you can purchase him for 50% off. Please visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for all the necessary details and to see what the other Rock Stars have created. Or, you can follow these links to their blogs:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Vicki

For my card, I stamped him with Memento black ink and colored him with Copics. I added a little Stickles to the snow. I cut him and the matting with Nestabilities and mounted on Dimensionals. The sentiment is also from Repeat Impressions. I added a pearl to the snowflake. The patterned paper is from Die Cuts With a View and the solid blue is from Stampin' Up!

You still have time to participate in the Repeat Impressions challenges, too. There is always a great prize up for grabs! Please see the details on the Wednesday posts on the blog.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Blog Candy - Calendar Winner

2011-12-17T08:01:00.000-06:00

Thank you all so much for your wonderful comments. I ALWAYS appreciate them!

I went to Random.org and selected the winner. Drum roll, please! ...

Random.org chose:

Comment number 9 was from Judi.
"JUDI said...

Congats on finishing your calenders. mine are still in my minds eye...I love your projects, and the sharing you do for your followers. I would be honored to have one of your calenders. With Love Judi

December 10, 2011 10:36 AM "

Congratulation, Judi! I would be honored to send you one of my calendars. Please send me your snail mail address and I will get it out to you.

This is my second post for today. Scroll down for today's post - a card I made for the Fall-To Layout.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Fall-To Layout 171 - Christmas

2011-12-17T05:00:00.005-06:00

I took a few minutes today and made this card for the Clean & Simple Stamping blog - Fall-To Layout #171. You can find it here. I changed up the sketch just to make it a "regular" card, and not square.

My papers are from a Christmas matstack from Recollections. I matted with a textured ivory cardstock and added an ivory strip across the middle. The card base is ivory, also. I added the Christmas sticker and sentiment, which is from Repeat Impressions. (EDITED TO ADD: Sorry, that was confusing! The NOEL is a sticker I got from Micheal's a couple years ago. It's by Pooch and Sweetheart. The Merry Christmas sentiment is from Repeat Impressions. I shouldn't write my posts when I'm so tired and in a hurry!)

I will be back later this morning with the winner of the calendar.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Anniversary in Gold

2011-12-16T05:00:00.001-06:00

I have an anniversary card to share with you today.

I used ivory for the card base and the matted layer. I stamped the background on the ivory piece and embossed with gold embossing powder. I stamped and embossed the sentiment on the same piece. The butterfly and leaves were stamped on a separate piece, cut out, and mounted on Dimensionals. The matting is shimmery gold, scored with my Martha Stewart scoring board. I'm adding this to Danni's "Flutter-By Wednesday" challenge which for this week - and the whole month of December - is to simply use a butterfly, angel or fairy. I almost forgot to say - all the stamps used on this card are from last year's Papertrey's anniversary set called Round and Round, which was a gift to me from my great friend, Harriet.

You still have until tonight to leave me a comment on this post to be the drawing to win one of my calendars.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Airplane Birthday

2011-12-15T06:28:00.001-06:00

Instead of working on Christmas stuff - which REALLY needs to get done! - I took some time to clean up my stamping area and make a couple cards. This one is just an extra one that I did for fun. And it sure WAS fun to do something that didn't HAVE to get done:)

I got this Cuttlebug airplane die a while ago for ten cents from Oh My Crafts. I cut it from white, red and acetate, so it has "windows." I used Nestabilities for the circles and hand-doodled. The panel is mounted on Dimensionals. The background was embossed with a Fiskars texture plate. I thought it kind of looked like clouds. The sentiment is a rubon.

Don't forget - you have until tomorrow night to leave me a comment on this post for a chance to win a calendar. I'd love to hear from you!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday Sketch

2011-12-14T05:00:00.013-06:00

Time for another Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday challenge - where Wendy gives you a sketch, you make your card based on it, upload it, and are entered for a chance to win a $25 gift certificate. Easy enough, right? You can find the details on the RI blog, The House That Stamps Built. You will also find the creations by the Rock Stars. Or you can follow these links to their blogs:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Robin ~ Vicki

For my card, I used Tulip Bouquet. I stamped it on watercolor paper and used Stampin' Up! inks and an AquaPainter. The matting is all Deja Views paper. The sentiment is also from Repeat Impressions.

We'd love to have you join us!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Regarding My Calendar Giveaway

2011-12-11T05:00:00.004-06:00

Thanks for all the comments so far. It's nice to hear from you!

I was asked about a "sneak peek." OK - here's a piece of the upcoming January page. Also, if you choose the link on the right column of my blog called "Calendar" (under "Labels") you will find all the pages from the last three years. You have until Friday night to leave a comment on this post for a chance to win one of my calendars.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Blog Candy

2011-12-10T05:00:00.000-06:00

In celebration of finishing up my 2012 calendars, I would like to give one away to a blog reader. It feels so good to have them done - now I can get on with getting ready for Christmas!

If you would like to be entered into a random drawing to win one of my calendars, please just leave me a comment on this post. I will announce the winner on my blog on Saturday. I appreciate all your visits and your comments!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Birthday Cupcake

2011-12-09T05:00:00.007-06:00

Quick post for today. This is for our daughter-in-law, whose birthday is today.

The card base and main image panel are vanilla. The stamp is by Inkadinkado. I colored with Copics and added some Stickles. I pierced around the edge and matted with green The patterned paper is from Die Cuts With a View Nana's Nursery. I embossed with my Swiss Dots folder. The main image panel is mounted on Dimensionals.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Rich Razzleberry Birthday Flowers

2011-12-08T05:00:00.003-06:00

A birthday card for my niece. It was fun to have some time to make her a card.

I used two stamps from the Gina K set, Various Verses. I used Stampin' Up! markers on both of them and stamped them on watercolor paper. I matted with Rich Razzleberry cardstock from SU!, punched a butterfly with a Martha Stewart punch, and added a "pearl" with my Viva Pearl Pen. That's it!

I hope everyone is managing to feel "under control" this holiday season. There have been times when I haven't, but I'm doing better now:) We still don't have our tree up, though, which rather bothers me. It used to go up the day after Thanksgiving, but since we often go to Chicago, we're not home then. We also better start shopping soon!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Designer's Choice Challenge - Bookmark

2011-12-07T05:00:00.022-06:00

Another Wednesday - another Repeat Impressions challenge. Today's challenge is a Designer's Choice Challenge. It's Vicki's turn, and her challenge is "ABC" - Anything But a Card - to make a bookmark. Fun! Please visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for the specifics on how you can enter for a chance to win a full sheet of unmounted rubber of your choice. You'll also find the projects by the other Rock Stars. Or you can follow these links:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Robin ~ Vicki

I thought this sentiment and the chair would be perfect for a book mark. I paper pieced the chair with some paper from Deja Views and colored the trim and legs. I stamped the sentiment on some textured, very shimmery cardstock. I scored a couple lines and added a bit of flowered paper from the same tablet of paper. I matted with the same flowery paper and then used a plain brown for the bottom layer. A fun and easy challenge - I hope you'll join us!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Fall-To Layout #169

2011-12-06T05:00:00.018-06:00

I thought I'd do a card for Natasha's (Clean & Simple blog) new Fall-to Layout. This one is number 169. You can find it here.

I cut my image panel, used a circle Nestability and cut a circle out of scratch paper, then used that circle as a mask to sponge Stampin' Up!'s Rich Razzleberry ink on to the main panel. Then I stamped the sentiment and the image onto the panel. I matted with shimmery black. The card was a little unbalanced, so I added the black strip across the bottom. Much better! I added some Stickles to the flower centers.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week - Snowflake - Prism

2011-12-05T05:00:00.014-06:00

As you know, each Monday Wendy at Repeat Impressions offers you a new Stamp of the Week, available for 50% off. This week's stamp is called Snowflake - Prism. You can find it here. Visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for all the details and to see what the other Rock Stars have created. (Please note that orders placed will not be processed until December 19, as Wendy and Bill are on a much-welcomed vacation!) You can also visit the other Design Team members' blogs by following these links:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Vicki

I stamped my Prism Snowflake with Staz-On black ink on "holographic" paper from Crayola and cut it out. You can get some idea of what it looks like in real life by checking out the smaller picture. I added red gems to the innermost little dots. I cut it out with a circle Nestability and matted with a red scalloped circle. I mounted on Dimensionals. The background paper has some sparkle to it. It may be from Stampin' Up!, but I can't say for sure as I won it as blog candy a while back. I matted that with black and added the sentiment - from Repeat Impressions, of course!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Happy First Birthday, Owen!

2011-12-04T05:00:00.002-06:00

It's not quite Owen's birthday, but his party was yesterday. I hadn't had time to make him a special card, but I found him one in my stash. However, when I saw the paper my husband had wrapped his presents in, I knew I had to make him a new one. The wrapping paper had jungle animals on it, and I had a set of stamps from Recollections with the same cute animals. Then when I found the set and saw there was also the word "ROAR," that's what I had to use. Owen is very good at saying that a lion says "roar." :)

I stamped the lion on yellow slightly patterned cardstock from Sizzix and cut it out. I colored the mane, ears, mouth and nose with Copics. I mounted him on Dimensionals. I colored the ROAR, too. I placed them both on textured brown paper and added that to Kraft base. I added googly eyes for some fun. The color is a little off in the picture - it actually all matches better than it looks here.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Christmas Cheer Snowman

2011-12-03T05:00:00.001-06:00

I've been working on my calendars for next year - finally - and had stamped a couple extra of this image. (It's for January, so you'll be seeing it soon.) Anyway, I colored this one with Copics for Christmas instead of just winter. The stamps are all from Inkadinkado, including the one I used for the background. I matted with red and mounted on Dimensionals. I also added a little bit of Stickles on the snowflakes.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Clean and Simple Fall-To Layout

2011-12-02T05:00:00.026-06:00

I made this card for the Clean & Simple Stamping blog's Fall-to Layout #168. I always love Natasha's sketches.

The doily came from my friend, Annie. Thanks so much, Annie, for including it with the cards you sent me. I stamped the sentiment from an Inkadinkado set on it, coloring the stars with a pale yellow and adding Stickles to them. I added a circle of Baja Breeze for a little bit of color to show through the innermost part. I hand-cut the bottom arc and embossed it with a Cuttlebug folder, then rubbed ink over it. The top half was embossed with a Swiss Dots folder. The doily panel was mounted on Dimensionals. EDITED TO ADD: I forgot to say that this card is five inches square.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

December Calendar Page

2011-12-01T05:00:00.010-06:00

The last calendar page for 2011 - unbelievable! I always like to do embossing for my December page, and this one is no exception. (I have my 2012 page done, too, and it's also embossed:) You'll get to see it in a year!) I used a Lasting Impressions brass stencil for the ornament - with my BIGkick. I matted with shimmery gold paper and embossed the background with my Swiss Dots folder. The sentiment is from Inkadinkado.

If you are interested in making your own calendars, you can find my files at the top of my blog page, under the title. Just follow the link. If you use them, I'd love to hear from you!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday Sketch

2011-11-30T05:00:00.005-06:00

It's time for a new Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday sketch challenge. You can find the sketch and all the details on the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built. Create your card based on the sketch, upload to your blog or on-line gallery, and link to the RI blog. You will be entered for a chance to win a $25 gift certificate. Very cool! Visit the other Rock Stars' blogs by following these links:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Robin ~ Vicki

For my card, I used Candy Cane Santa, found on this page. This is also the Stamp of the Week, so, through Sunday, you can purchase this stamp for 50% off. (See the details here.) I stamped him with Memento ink, colored him with Copics, and added Stickles to the white parts of his hat, mittens and pants. I cut him out with Nestabilities. I embossed the red pieces with a Cuttlebug folder. The sentiment is from Repeat Impressions, also. The Santa panel is mounted on Dimensionals.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Blue and White Christmas

2011-11-25T05:00:00.008-06:00

This is sort of Part Two of my post from Wednesday. I used the same image and sentiment. I stamped them on a shimmery white paper and didn't think they matched my stamped snowflake background well enough, so I used them on this card, instead. I cut and embossed them using Nestabilites and mounted them on Dimensionals. The background was embossed with a Cuttlebug folder and I used the ink pad to ink up the edges of the embossed layer.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-24T05:00:00.005-06:00

Wishing all of my American readers a very Happy Thanksgiving. I hope you all have someone special to share it with. We are so lucky to be with our children and grandchildren - very special!

Even if you are not celebrating Thanksgiving, I still hope you have a wonderful day!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions - Designer's Choice Challenge - Snowflake

2011-11-23T05:00:00.014-06:00

Today is Repeat Impressions Designer's Choice Challenge. Today's challenge is brought to you courtesy of Kendra. The challenge is to make a Christmas card and be sure to use at least one snowflake. Use this challenge to knock another card off your list! :) Visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for the details and the Rock Stars' cards. Or follow these links to the Design Team members' blogs:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Robin ~ Vicki

My card, of course, uses Repeat Impressions stamps. I stamped the images and sentiment with a JoAnn's metallic ink pad. I embossed the tree and sentiment with clear embossing powder. The sentiment and image were cut with Nestabilities dies. The image and sentiment are mounted on Dimensionals. I rubbed the ink pad around the edge of the stamped background piece.

We'd sure love to have you join us!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Simple, Sparkly Christmas

2011-11-22T05:00:00.004-06:00

Another quick card. I think in January I should have some time to create:)

This is another card made with pieces from my "Card Parts" box. The embossing was done already - by using a brass stencil and my BIGkick. I matted with shimmery green cardstock and added Stickles to the embossed part. I also added two scored lines and the sentiment, which was stamped with Versamark and embossed with detail white embossing powder.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week - Earth Ornament

2011-11-21T05:00:00.017-06:00

By now, I'm sure you know that Monday brings a new Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week. This week's stamp, available for 50% off through next Sunday, is Earth Ornament, found here. Please visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for the details and to see the other Rock Stars' creations. Or, you can follow these links to their blogs:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Vicki

Simplicity is my thing:) I stamped the image on Kraft with Versamark and embossed with Detail Gold embossing powder. I chose light blue, light green and light brown Copic markers to lightly color the globe. The sentiment was embossed with gold, also. I matted with shimmery gold paper. The base is ivory.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Happy Anniversary, Annie and Ray!

2011-11-20T05:00:00.008-06:00

I needed a quick anniversary card last week for a stamping friend, and this is what I made for her.

I had gone through my brass stencils a little bit last week, looking for calendar ideas, and found this one that I don't think I had ever used. I embossed it with my BIGkick. (That was originally why I wanted the BIGkick - to emboss with brass stencils without having to do it by hand.) I added sparkly/holographic circles for the eyes, the "i" and by the words. I matted with black. That's it!

I hope you have already received this, Annie, but if not - this is what is headed your way:)

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Life ...

2011-11-19T08:41:00.000-06:00

Life is great. But, Life is very busy these days!!! It's a good busy, I guess, but busy nonetheless.

My crafting time has been almost non-existent. I have been meeting my "obligations" and that's about it. I've even been "shopping" in my card stash for cards to send out to family and friends! I'm glad I have those cards available, though, for sure.

Last weekend I spent the entire weekend at a women's retreat with our church. I had never done that before, and I enjoyed it.

I finally got my calendars printed and cut last week. Yippee!! I have to make 15 this year, and haven't even thought about what to put on them. At least I think my Christmas cards should be about done, with the ones that I mass-produced and the ones I've been doing for the Repeat Impressions Design Team, so that is a good thing. I can't believe that Thanksgiving is in five days, though.

Anyway, enough. Just wanted to let you know that all is well here, and to thank you again for stopping by. I have a few posts scheduled for the next week, and I'll sure try to get something else done, too. I hope you are all doing well, also!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday Sketch

2011-11-16T05:00:00.004-06:00

Wednesday means challenge day at Repeat Impressions and today is another WHAT IF? Wednesday challenge. Wendy shares the sketches with us and the Rock Stars get to creating. Then we ask you to join us! Make your card, upload to your blog or an on-line gallery, and link it up to the Repeat Impressions blog. Here is the sketch for this week:

Please visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for all the details and to see the other Rock Stars' creations. You can also visit the blogs by using the following links:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Robin ~ Vicki

I started with the stamp called Peaceful Observation. You can find it on this page. I stamped it with Versamark on a slightly textured dark blue cardstock and embossed with Detail White embossing powder. I matted with a layer of white and then a layer of the same blue. I scored lines with my Scor-Pal according to the sketch. The sentiment is also from Repeat Impressions.

We'd love to have you join us. Each entry earns you a chance to win a $25 gift certificate. You still have nearly a week to participate in the Designer's Choice Challenge, too. Those details are here.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week - Cats Will Be Cats

2011-11-14T05:00:00.020-06:00

As always, Monday brings a new Stamp of the Week from Repeat Impressions. This week's stamp, available at 50% off through Sunday, is Cats Will Be Cats. You can find it here. Please visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for all the details. You will find the cool cards made by the RI Rock Stars there, too. Or, you can follow these links to their blog:

Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Robin ~ Vicki

For my card, I stamped the image with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and colored with Copic markers. I cut it out with a Nestability and sponged with some red ink before removing it from the die. I matted with red cardstock, also cut with a Nestability. I mounted it with Dimensionals. I embossed the top part of the white matting with a Cuttlebug folder, then scored below it with my Scor-Pal, then matted that with red, also. The sentiment is from Repeat Impressions, and can be found on the same page as the kitty.

While you're at the Repeat Impressions blog, check out the WHAT IF? Wednesday and Designer's Choice challenges for a chance to win awesome prizes.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Happy Birthday, Lucy!

2011-11-13T05:00:00.011-06:00

OK, here is the last of my "card parts" cards for a while. It's for my forever friend, Lucy.

The "part" for this card was the vellum with the image stamped on it. The stamp is from Inkadinkado. I used small Versamagic pads for it. The stamping is actually on the back side of the vellum. I cut the window in the front of the card and I also cut the vellum to be just larger than the window. I adhered the vellum on the inside, and added a thin frame to cover up the edges. As it turned out, I could have adhered the image to the front of the card, since I ended up added the green scalloped frame, which would have covered it up, too. The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink. The fancy tag die is from Spellbinders. I carefully stamped the sentiment inside the card so that it would show through the vellum but not be covered up by the image. Hope you had a great birthday, Lucy!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Quick Christmas Card

2011-11-11T06:03:00.001-06:00

I woke up early this morning and decided to make a card. I was looking through my embossing folders last night and realized how neglected they were, so I used one:)

This is a border folder. It's seven inches long, so I cut it down. I brayered Stampin' Up!'s Soft Sky ink on to the folder before embossing with it. I matted it with Soft Sky, also. The sentiment is from Repeat Impressions. I matted it with the same Soft Sky. I added a couple brads and mounted it on Dimensionals.

A couple updates/answers to questions:
Thanks everyone for the comments about my beautiful wedding dress. I agree! It belonged to my sister-in-law, who graciously let me borrow it.

My "Card Parts" box consists of pieces that I have experimented on, or extra pieces I have made, or for any other reason I have partially put-together items laying around that I can't bear to throw away. I stick them in a box, and pretty much forget about them. Then I happen across the box one day, rummage through it, and pick out some things I feel like working with. I'll have one more on Sunday's post. It should be received by then.

Our son, daughter-in-law and grandson moved out last weekend, into their beautiful new home. We miss having them around, but yes - it is nice to have the house to ourselves again. And of course, I still have Owen every day while they are working.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Thirty-Seven Years Ago!

2011-11-10T05:00:00.000-06:00

No card again, so I'll just share a picture. This is me and Jim 37 years and one day ago.

And here we are today. (Well, actually, just over a year ago. :) )

Thanks to everyone for all the wonderful cards and anniversary greetings we received.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions - Designers Choice Challenge: Fall Waterfall Card

2011-11-09T05:00:00.002-06:00

It's Wednesday, so that means it's challenge day at Repeat Impressions. This week it's a Designer's Choice Challenge, and it's by Miriam. Her choice is to make a Fall Waterfall card. You can find the directions on SplitCoastStampers, here. Wendy also sells precut kits for waterfall/FLIP cards, available on this page. Check out the details and learn how you can enter for a chance to win a full sheet of unmounted rubber on the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built. Also check out the very cool creations by the rest of the Rock Stars! Or follow these links to their blogs.

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Robin ~ Vicki

For my card, I used the Hugs FLIP set, found on this page. I colored the images with Copic markers. The "fall" portion of it is in the patterned paper:) It's from an old tablet by Fiskars. I used an ivory base and Kraft for the trim pieces. The mattings are a dark olive green. I used buttons and twine for accent and for pulling open the card.

We'd sure love to have you join us! You have another week to participate in the latest WHAT IF? Wednesday sketch challenge, too. The details can be found here.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Totally Non-Stamping:)

2011-11-08T05:00:00.002-06:00

Since I have done almost no stamping recently, I will share a photo of our grandson, Owen, on Halloween. He is trick-or-treating at our door:) Can you believe - he will be eleven months old on Sunday! (He is a golfer, but his "clubs" are not with him.)

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week - Christmouse Decorations

2011-11-07T05:00:00.002-06:00

Time for another Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week, available at 50% off. This week's stamp is called Christmouse Decorations. Please visit the RI blog, The House That Stamps Built, for all the details you need and also to see the creations by the other Rock Stars. Or, follow these links to their blogs:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Vicki

I stamped my image on white with Memento black and colored with Copic markers. I also stamped it on a tannish piece of paper and cut out the mushrooms and added a little bit of shading. My matting is from a Recollections Christmas matstack. The image is mounted on Dimensionals and the sentiment is part of a stamp from Repeat Impressions.

I'd love to have you participate in the Designer's Choice Challenge, which was my "recipe" challenge. You have through tomorrow to enter. You can find those details here. You also have another week to enter the WHAT IF? Wednesday challenge found here.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Card Parts - Again!

2011-11-06T05:00:00.001-06:00

Whew - this is the last of the Card Parts cards for a while. I have one more that I will share on about the 13th. What fun I had making all of them!

For this first one, I had the embossed portion in my box. It's done on a lightly speckled cardstock. I matted with black. The strip down the middle is kraft, and the card base is ivory.

Kind of an odd time of year to share a Mother's Day card, but I was just using what I had:) I had the stamped, colored and matted image in my box. I added the black dots and the doodling around the edge and the flower centers. The patterned paper was embossed with my Swiss Dots folder and sanded down a bit. The image panel is mounted on foam squares. The base is ivory, also.

I spent a couple days (Friday and Saturday) helping our son and his family move out. It took a while to get things back to "normal" at our house, but I think we're almost there. As I write this (Saturday night) I sure am exhausted. Everything is moved into their house, but not unpacked. It was awesome having them here for eight weeks, and now it will be nice to have our house back to ourselves:) I haven't done ANY stamping for about two weeks, so it will be good to have some time to do that. I have a Stamp of the Week card to make yet. It should have been done already.:( Oh well, better late than never!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Stenciled Butterfly Thinking of You

2011-11-04T05:00:00.009-05:00

I'm running out of Card Parts cards, but I have this one and one for tomorrow, as well as one for next week. And I haven't done anything new in at least a week!

The part for this one was the butterfly - embossed, inked and matted. I'm not sure because I don't have the packaging, but I THINK the stencil is from Anna Griffin. I embossed it (probably with my BIGkick) and rubbed it with an ink pad. The patterned paper strip is from Die Cuts With a View and matted with Stampin' Up!'s Old Olive. The sentiment is from SU! and is stamped in Old Olive, also. The butterfly panel is mounted on Dimensionals.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Two Card Parts Cards - Christmas

2011-11-03T05:00:00.004-05:00

Two more cards from my "Card Parts" spree. Not much to them, but here they are, nonetheless. I still have a few more. One will have to wait until it has been received. (It will be coming your way, Lucy!)

Both of these images were in my card parts box. I matted them and put them in the middle of the card. For this first one, I had colored the images with markers before stamping. The matting may look black, but it's actually a pine green, as is the sentiment and the lines on the image.

For this second one, the image was stamped all the same color and matted with the same color cardstock. I added little, sparkly, puffy holly stickers to each corner.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday Sketch

2011-11-02T05:00:00.006-05:00

Today starts a new Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday sketch challenge. Here is the sketch for this time:

Wendy gives all of us Rock Stars the sketch and we create our cards. Then we share them with you and ask you all to play along. Won't you join us?? Just create your card or project based on this sketch, upload to your blog or on-line gallery, and link it up to the RI blog. Easy peasy! One random winner for the month will win a $25 gift certificate to Repeat Impressions. Please visit the RI blog, The House That Stamps Built, for all of the details and to see what the other Rock Stars have come up with. You can also follow these links to their blogs:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Robin ~ Vicki

For my card, I started with the Christmas Teddy, found on this page. I colored him with Prismacolor pencils, but didn't use Gamsol. I cut him with a Circle Nestability and drew the doodles around the edge. I cut the square with a Nestability, too. I added a couple more layers - the white, embossed with the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots folder and then the red matting for that. The ribbon is from Martha Stewart. I colored the pearls with a red Copic marker. (I don't think the pearls are large enough. I should change them.) I added Star Dust Stickles to the hat's "fur" and gold Stickles for the bell at the end of the hat.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

November Calendar Page

2011-11-01T05:00:00.015-05:00

I know I say this every month, but gosh, I can't believe we're done with another month already! Here is my calendar page for our new month of November.

I stamped the Scarecrow and Friend image from Repeat Impressions and colored it with Prismacolor pencils. I used a blending pencil on it, also. I trimmed it fairly close and matted it on brown. The sentiment is from Repeat Impressions, too, and is found on this page. I stamped it on scratch paper first, and then on the calendar to make it lighter. One of these days I have to print my 2012 calendars and get started on them! I need to make a couple more this year - I think 14.

If you are interested in making your own calendars, you can find my files at the top of my blog page, under the title. Just follow the link.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

House Mouse Halloween

2011-10-31T05:00:00.001-05:00

Happy Halloween to all! Today I'm sharing the cards I made for two of my grandchildren. The third one received (hopefully today!) this one - except I added Stickles to the faces.

For this first one - and the second one, too, actually - I used House Mouse stamps for both the image and the "BOO." I colored the cute little image with Copic markers. The image and matting were cut with Spellbinders dies. The image panel is mounted on Dimensionals.

For the black panel on this second one, I applied white ink to a Fiskars texture plate, just by tapping the ink pad on the plate. Then I embossed the black cardstock and matted with Tangerine Tango from Stampin' Up! Once again, the image and matting were cut with Spellbinders dies. Both the image panel and sentiment panel are mounted on Dimensionals.

There is a new Stamp of the Week from Repeat Impressions, too. This week it's the Tombstone, found on this page. It's available for 50% off by visiting the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, and following the instructions found there. You will also find the creations by some of the Rock Stars. We'd also love to have your join our challenges - both the WHAT IF? Wednesday sketch and the Designer's Choice Challenge (my "recipe!") See the blog for details and join in the fun for a chance to win a great prize.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Rose Birthday

2011-10-30T05:00:00.000-05:00

Another quick post with a Card Parts card.

The parts for this card were the stamped and cut rose and the scored panel. The rose, from Inkadinkado, was colored with markers and stamped on watercolor paper. It was cut with a long oval Nestability. I added the matting, cut with a scalloped long oval Nestability. I mounted it on Dimensionals. The white panel was scored with my Scor-Pal and matted with the same cardstock as the rose. The sentiment is from a set from The Paper Company. I kind of liked the look of the white with the ivory - something different.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Happy Fifth Anniversary, Eric and Brooke!

2011-10-29T05:00:00.002-05:00

This is the card we gave our son and daughter-in-law for their fifth anniversary. I can't believe it's been five years already!!!

It's also a card made from my "card parts." The pre-made parts were the embossed glasses already matted on silver, and the embossed background strip. The strip was made by brayering white ink on the Fiskars texture plate before embossing. I matted that strip with silver, also. The embossed panel was mounted on foam squares. The sentiment is part of a stamp from The Paper Company.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

"You're So Tweet"

2011-10-28T05:00:00.001-05:00

I have so many cards to make for November, a few more Christmas cards, and about 13 calendars. However, I've been having a great time digging through my "Cards Parts" box! I have several cards to share with you - I've made 12 in the past few days! Some will have their own day and others will be doubled up:)

For this one, my card parts were the embossed background and the Nestability matting. I added the image and sentiment - from Fiskars. I colored the image with Bic markers. The background was done with a Fiskars texture plate. First I inked it up with white ink and then did the embossing. The image panel is mounted on Dimensionals.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Congrats, Andrea!

2011-10-27T05:00:00.004-05:00

I made this card for Andrea - another proud grandma in my Yahoo! stamping group. Her daughter just had her newest baby boy, born last Thursday.

My stamps are both from Repeat Impressions. I paper-pieced the baby's sleeper and used the same paper for the background. I cut out the oval for the baby with a Spellbinder's die and the matting with my new Labels Ten set. I colored with Copic markers. I added white pearls on the matting layer and brown pearls for the baby's eyes. I mounted the image layer on Dimensionals.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Designer's Choice Challenge - A Recipe

2011-10-26T05:00:00.043-05:00

It's time for a new Designer's Choice Challenge from Repeat Impressions - where one of the Design Team members comes up with the theme and the other Rock Stars - and YOU - create your cards accordingly. Today it's my turn:) I have chosen a "recipe" for you to follow. My challenge is to use one image, one sentiment, two die cuts or punches, and three embellishments. We'd love to have you join in! One random participant for the month will win a full sheet of unmounted rubber of their choice. Please visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for all the details and to see the wonderful creations. Or follow these links to the other Rock Stars' blogs:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Robin ~ Vicki

For my card, I used: image - 3805-J Winter's Eve, sentiment - 1141-F Christmas, die cuts - Lacey Squares and Fancy Tags, embellishments - Stickles, pearls, star (flower?) brad. I stamped my image with Stampin' Up!'s Brocade Blue, and the matting is also Brocade Blue. I used Stickles on the white area of the image. I embossed a piece of white for the right side of the card with a Snowflakes Cuttlebug folder, and then added a thin strip of the same blue. I colored the pearls with a Copic marker to match the blue matting.

We'd love to have you join us! You also have nearly a week to participate in the latest WHAT IF? Wednesday challenge for a chance to win a $25 gift certificate. See the details for that challenge here.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

SplitCoastStampers Clean and Simple Challenge

2011-10-25T05:00:00.017-05:00

This card is for yesterday's SplitCoastStampers Clean and Simple Challenge, which was a sketch. The sketch is this card.

I inked up my tag, from the Stampin' Up! set Tags So Much, with markers, stamped, and punched with the SU small tag punch. Then I punched the matting with the SU tag punch and Real Red. I cut a rectangle of white and added the red stripes to it. I mounted that panel on Dimensionals and glued the tag to it. I don't know what set the sentiment is from, but I do know it's Stampin' Up!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week - Tall Pumpkin

2011-10-24T05:00:00.039-05:00

Time for a new Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week. This week's stamp, available for 50% off through next Sunday, October 30, is 2310-G, Tall Pumpkin and can be found on this page. Please visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for all the details and to view the other Rock Stars' creations. Or, you can follow these links to their blogs:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Vicki

For my card, I stamped the Tall Pumpkin twice on orange cardstock and the Round Pumpkin once. I cut them out. I stamped them again on green cardstock and cut out the stems. I used the Goofy and Bad Intentions stamps for the face pieces. I stamped them on yellow-orange cardstock, cut them out and glued them on the pumpkins. For the border piece, I used the Candy Corn and stamped it multiple times. I colored them with Copics and matted with orange. Then I stamped the sentiment. All of the stamps I used can be found on the same page, here.

Also, you still have until tomorrow evening to participate in the Designer's Choice Challenge challenge, found here, and another eight days to participate in the WHAT IF? Wednesday Sketch Challenge, found here. There are great prizes to be won!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Birthday Elephant

2011-10-23T05:00:00.001-05:00

I was done working on my Repeat Impressions cards for the week (which you'll see on Monday and Wednesday) and I really felt like making more. So, I dug out my card parts boxes and picked out several items.

The orange panel was already cut. It's from a Die Cuts With a View stack called Cafe Mediterranean. I matted it, and the other layer, with Chocolate Chip from Stampin' Up! The bottom panel was already scored with my Scor-Pal and in my box. The elephant was actually left over from our daughter-in-law. It was cut with a Cuttlebug die. I never would have thought to simply cut it from one color and leave the eyes and ears open. I would have tried dealing with the tiny pieces cut from another color. It's so fun to have other people use your things and get new ideas! I'll miss them when they don't live with us any more. I mounted the elephant on Dimensionals. The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink and is stamped with Chocolate Chip ink. EDITED TO ADD: The card base, bottom layer and the elephant are all ivory/cream.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Fall-To Layout #163

2011-10-22T05:00:00.006-05:00

I made this quick and easy card using the Fall-To Layout #163. (You can find the layout here, on Natasha's Clean and Simple Stamping blog.)

Not much to say about it: three Prima flowers, white brad centers, and a sentiment from The Paper Company:)

I have had almost no time for creating lately, but at least things have been good. My sister was in town from Atlanta and I went down to my mom and dad's for a couple days to spend some time with her. (Our parents were in Branson, so we had the house to ourselves.) I hope to have a little time to create today. I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday Sketch

2011-10-19T05:00:00.003-05:00

It's Wednesday, so that means it's time for another Repeat Impressions challenge. This week, it's a WHAT IF? Wednesday Sketch Challenge. Here is this week's sketch, designed by Wendy - the owner and stamp designer of Repeat Impressions.

We'd love to have you join us in using this sketch. Make your card using the sketch, upload to your blog or on-line gallery, and link to the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built. You will be entered for a chance to win a $25 gift certificate from Repeat Impressions. Visit the blog for all the details and also to see the wonderful creations by the other Rock Stars. Or, you can follow these links to their blogs.

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Robin ~ Vicki

For my card, I used the sunflower image, found on this page. (Scroll down a little ways.) I stamped it on textured ivory paper with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and colored it with Bic markers. I matted with a reddish-brown cardstock, after rounding the corners. I added the ribbon and bow, brown pearls, and the sentiment - also from Repeat Impressions. The card base is Very Vanilla, from Stampin' Up!

You also still have nearly a week to participate in the Designer's Choice Challenge - to make a Fall or Halloween card. This is for a chance to win a full sheet of your choice of unmounted rubber. The details can be found here.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Birds and Flowers - Last Two for Church

2011-10-17T05:00:00.024-05:00

Here are the last two cards I made for our church's Lutefisk dinner craft sale. (The other two new ones are remakes of ones that have already been on my blog.) The main image stamp for these cards is one I got in the dollar bin at Michael's a while back. I used my Stamp-a-ma-jig to stamp an entire row of them. Then I colored them with Bic markers and cut the strip in half for the two cards. I added the scoring with my Scor-Pal. The matting is from Stampin' Up! The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink.

The sentiment on this one is from the dollar bin, too.

Today is also the first day of the new Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week. This week's stamp, available for 50% off through next Sunday, is Frankenstein Face. You can find it on this page. To check out what the other Rock Stars have done with this stamp, visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Silhouette Flowers and Sponging

2011-10-16T05:00:00.015-05:00

Two more cards for our church. These are my favorites, I think. I cased them from my friend Joanne, who made a card like it at a Stampin' Up! card-making event. I punched the circle in thin paper and used it for a mask to sponge ink inside the punched out circle. After sponging with two different colors, I stamped the flowers - from Technique Tuesday. The sentiments are both from Papertrey Ink. The matting for both is from Stampin' Up!

It's often hard to tell by the pictures, but both card bases are Very Vanilla and the image panel is lightly textured off-white.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Two Simple Birthday Cards

2011-10-15T05:00:00.001-05:00

Here are two more cards to donate to my church. These are remakes of a previous card. Both cards have ivory cardbases, Stampin' Up papers, a Spellbinders Floral Motif die and Papertrey Ink sentiments. This first one also uses a stamp from Stampin' Up! for the main image. Both cards are also scored one inch in on the left and have the left edge glued shut. Hope that makes sense:)

I colored the image on this one (by Hero Arts) with markers before stamping.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Two Simple Sympathy Cards

2011-10-14T05:00:00.002-05:00

Once again, I have been asked to donate cards to our church for the Craft Sale at our Lutefisk Dinner. They sell the cards for $1.50, so I really don't want to spend a lot of time making them! I went through my "stash" and picked out 28 to give up, and have made 12 more. Good enough:)

I made a few sets of doubles, including these for today's post. Same stamps, different colors. The swirly background stamp is from Tattered Angels. (Edited to add: Sorry! I listed the wrong company in my original post. I meant to double check BEFORE the post went "live" and then I forgot!) The sentiment is from Papertrey. I'll have more in the next few days. Not too exciting, but at least I've had some stamping time and will have something to share. :)

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Two Sketch Challenge Cards

2011-10-13T07:56:00.000-05:00

I made both of these cards for this week's SplitCoastStampers Sketch Challenge. For this first one, I started with a dollar stamp from Michael's. I colored it with Copics and added the "pearls" in the centers with a Pearl Pen. The embossing on the green layer was done with a Sizzix folder and the purple layer was embossed with a Swiss Dots folder. The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink. The edge of the purple piece was done with a Martha Stewart punch. I also added a bow.

For this one, I used a Technique Tuesday stamp for my main image. I used the Swiss Dots folder for all the white layers. The sentiment is again from PTI and the decorative edge was again done with a Martha Stewart punch. The butterfly is also a Martha Stewart punch, and I added pearls for the body.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Designer's Choice Challenge - Fall/Halloween

2011-10-12T05:00:00.035-05:00

Another fun challenge from Repeat Impressions. The Designer's Choice Challenge this time is from Joy and is to make a Fall-themed or Halloween card. It's super-easy, too - just make your card or project, upload to your blog or an on-line gallery, and link your photo up to the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built. You'll find everything thing you need to know there, as well as pictures of the Rock Stars' creations. One random winner for the month will win their choice of a full sheet of unmounted rubber! You can also follow these links to the Rock Stars' blogs:

Darsie ~ Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Robin ~ Vicki

For my card, I went with a Fall theme. I used the Apple Basket stamp, found on this page. I stamped it with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and colored using my new Bic markers. (More about them later.) The sentiment is also from Repeat Impressions and I stamped it with Chocolate Chip ink from Stampin' Up! My matting is Chocolate Chip. I cut the squares with Nestabilities - a plain square and a Lacey Square. The patterned paper is quite old and I believe it's from Fiskars. The card base, image panel and sentiment are all ivory.

We'd love to have you join us in this challenge. You also have another week to participate in the WHAT IF? Wednesday sketch challenge. Details for that are in this post.

Thanks to a "tip" from a member of my stamping group, I watched a video on Gina K about the Bic markers. I figured I had to check them out, and ended up getting a 36-pack from Staples for $15. They are alcohol-based, like Copics. I figured I can use them, but I can also let my grandchildren use them, once they start crafting with me:)

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Super Simple Thank You

2011-10-11T05:00:00.003-05:00

A very simple Thank You card for a friend.

I embossed the design with a Sizzix embossing folder on textured yellow cardstock with a white core. After embossing, I sanded down the embossed parts so the white showed through. I added the daisy - from K & Co. That's it.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week - Foliage Positive

2011-10-10T05:00:00.037-05:00

This week's Repeat Impressions stamp of the week is Foliage Positive. It's available through Sunday at 50% off. You can find it on this page. Be sure to check out the monthly special, too! You can find it here. This month the special is select Halloween stamps. Wow, I got distracted - back to the stamp of the week! LOL! Be sure to check out the details on the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built. Check out what the other Rock Stars have created, shown on that page, also. Or follow these links to their blogs:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Vicki

The card that I made went to another friend from my stamping group who recently lost her sister-in-law. I inked up the stamp with Close to Cocoa ink from Stampin' Up! Before stamping with it, I "thumped " on the leaves with three colors of SU! markers - Old Olive, More Mustard and Really Rust. I colored the small, open leaves and the pine cone with markers. The sentiment is also stamped with Close to Cocoa. The matting is Chocolate Chip. I used ivory cardstocks. For the background, I used a Fiskars texture plate. Before embossing, I brayered it with Close to Cocoa ink.

You have until tomorrow evening to submit your card for the Designer's Choice Challenge to use an animal on your card or project. This would earn you a chance to win a full sheet of unmounted rubber. You can find those details here. You also have just over a week to participate in the WHAT IF? Wednesday challenge for a chance to win a $25 gift certificate. Details for that challenge are here.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

With Sympathy

2011-10-09T05:00:00.014-05:00

The husband of a friend in my stamping group lost his battle with ALS on Tuesday. What an awful disease. I made this card for Joyce and her family.

I stamped the sentiment (from Papertrey Ink) in black on lightly textured ivory cardstock. I used Versamagic Sea Breeze ink for the images, which are from a Hampton Art set. I scored the lines on the left side with my Martha Stewart scoring tool and added a thin strip of cardstock. The matting is Aqua Mist from PTI. I added a pearl for the bird's eye and more pearls under the sentiment.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

My "Mass-Produced" Christmas Card

2011-10-07T05:00:00.000-05:00

Most years my Christmas cards are almost all different. (If I really like one, I might make it two or three times.) However, this is the second year I have really mass-produced a bunch. And here it is for this year.

The image and sentiment were both free (with a purchase, of course!) from Gina K. I stamped the image on white, colored it very simply with Copics, added Star Dust Stickles, and matted with Real Red cardstock. After gluing it on the card front, I used my Stamp-a-ma-jig to stamp the sentiment. I think I'll end up with 55 of these cards, and will make 25 - 30 others. The sad thing is that this may end up being my favorite and it will go to those who appreciate it the least!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

SplitCoastStampers Sketch Challenge

2011-10-06T04:51:00.001-05:00

I made this card for SplitCoastStampers Sketch Challenge #353. I saw it when I was up during the night Tuesday night and designed it in my head before I went back to sleep. It was fun to actually make it and have it turn out the way I thought it would. I don't usually work that way!

The main image is from Repeat Impressions and is called Winter's Eve. (You can find it on this page.) I stamped it using Memories Soft Silver ink. The sentiment is from Rubber Stampede and is stamped in Night of Navy. It's matted with silver and Night of Navy cardstock and mounted on Dimensionals. The strip down the middle is embossed with a Cuttlebug snowflake border folder and is matted with Night of Navy.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday Sketch

2011-10-05T05:00:00.047-05:00

Time for another Repeat Impressions WHAT IF? Wednesday challenge. Here is this week's sketch:

We'd love to have you join in the fun! Make your card based on this sketch from Wendy, upload to your blog or on-line gallery, and link up to the RI blog, The House That Stamps Built. You will be entered for a chance to be the random winner of a $25 gift certificate to Repeat Impressions! Check out the blog for all the details and to see what the other Rock Stars have created. Or, you can follow these links to their blogs:

Darsie ~ Dawn ~Joy ~ Karen ~ Kendra ~ Maki ~ Miriam ~ Robin ~ Vicki

Gosh - I almost forgot to tell you! Check out those links above. We have two new RI Rock Stars! We have said good-bye to Harriet and Michele, and hello to Kendra and Vicki. Welcome, Kendra and Vicki!!

For my card, I started by stamping the cute little penguins from last year's series on shimmery white paper. You can find them on this page. I pieced the stars with red and green paper and matted with red scallops. The side circles are patterned paper and also matted with red scallops. The corner holly stamp is from Repeat Impressions also, and can be found on this page. I colored the holly sprigs with markers.

You still have another week to participate in the Designer's Choice challenge to use an animal. You can find the details here.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Happy Birthday, Mom!

2011-10-03T05:00:00.001-05:00

Yesterday was my mom's birthday. Since we couldn't go to Chicago and spend it with our grandson, I was able to take the hour and a half drive to visit my mom and dad for my mom's birthday. Here is the card I made for her.

The front of the card is just a standard card. I think it would actually make a nice "normal" card. But, my dad tends to like non-standard cards, and since he would be seeing the one for my mom, I made hers different. This is called a "Tunnel Card." I got the directions a long time ago on SplitCoastStampers. You can find the instructions here.

Here are a couple pictures of the inside. The rose and vase are from Gina K. I paper-pieced the vase and then colored the rose with Copics. The butterflies were punched with a Martha Stewart punch. I added pearls for the bodies. The embossing was done with a Cuttlebug border folder.

Also, today there is a new Repeat Impressions Stamp of the Week. This week's stamp, available for 50% off, is called Scarecrow and Friend. You can find it on this page. I may use it again before then, but you will see this stamp on my November calendar page. Visit the Repeat Impressions blog, The House That Stamps Built, for the details you need to know to purchase it for this special price.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

Happy Third Birthday, Andrew!

2011-10-02T05:00:00.000-05:00

Today is our grandson Andrew's third birthday. We were supposed to go to Chicago and help him celebrate, but my husband's back has been giving him problems and he was not able to make the drive. So, we'll have to settle for Skype.

I put some Flower Soft on our daughter's birthday card last month, and I guess Andrew was quite fascinated by the texture. So, I wanted to put texture on his card, too. The dragonfly is from a Recollections set. I added Flower Soft to the wings, black flocking to the body, and sparkle to his face. The circle had been cut with a punch and I sponged ink around the edges. The letters are from a set by Scrappy Cat. I stamped with Versamagic pads and embossed with Iridescent Sparkle embossing powder and added some scored lines. The background is embossed with a Cuttlebug folder. The number 3 is cut using a Cuttlebug set.

Today is my mom's birthday, too. I'll be sharing her card tomorrow, probably.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!

October Calendar Page

2011-10-01T05:00:00.013-05:00

Okay - now it's October already! Here is my page for this month.

All the stamps are from Repeat Impressions - the Pumpkin, Happy (the face), Grass and sentiment. I stamped the pumpkin and face on thin orange paper and cut it out. I colored with Stampin' Up! markers - Crushed Curry, Old Olive and Soft Suede. That's about all there is to it!

If you are interested in making your own calendars, you can find my files at the top of my blog page, under the title. Just follow the link. I'm so sorry - I made a mistake on my 2011 and 2012 calendars. The months that started on Thursday are wrong - instead of the 19 I put 10. I have changed them in my files. Thanks so much, Joan, for pointing that out.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you'll come back and visit again soon!