Water in-colored Rose

Quick post to show you a card made with the beautiful Fifth Avenue Stamp set and watercolored with 3 of the new in-color inks: Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry and Crushed Curry. I have to thank my good friend, Nancy Littrell, who shared this technique with me the last time we got together. I'm a real novice at watercoloring, so if I can do this....anyone can! We stamped the rose with white pigement ink onto watercolor paper, hit it with the heat gun, sprayed the image with a water spritzer (you want the image to be wet), then took a watercolor brush and used re-inkers for our paint. I started with Curry, added some Melon then added touches of the Razzleberry last.

After the image dried, I cut it out and mounted it on the card. The new Razzleberry Lemonaide DP and along with textured card stock in Razzleberry and Melon provided great layers and pulled all the colors from the rose together.

This card highlights one of the things I love most about Stampin Up... perfect color coordination of the products! Plus, those re-inkers make beautiful "paint" ... I felt like a real artist while adding the color and watching the rose come to life! A simple sentiment from the All Holidays set was the finishing touch (punched out with the Large and Small Oval Punches). I used lots of Dimensionals which gives the card plenty of dimension.

If you want to see some REALLY beautiful cards, including several using watercoloring techniques, be sure to check out Nancy Littrell's SCS gallery .... I guarantee you'll be inspired! You can find her gallery right HERE.

Thanks for stopping by...have a great week :) !!!

Wishing you a bee-autiful day

Quick post to show you a card I made this week :) and to wish YOU a bee-autiful day! I used the OCL set, Bees Knees. I had so much fun with this set!! I'm in the process of making a bunch of cards to be sold at a local Relay For Life event, so I need to keep the post short and get back to stamping. This set works really well for mass producing projects, including cards and bookmarks :)

I used my SU mat pack to create some fun paper piercing along the bottom edge.

I'm also anxiously awaiting the new SU catalogs which should be arriving on my doorstep sometime today. For those of you who pre-ordered your catalog, it won't be long now!!

Have an awesome day :)

Supplies for the card (size 4 1/4 x 5 1/2) ~ Stamps: Bees Knees Paper: Chocolate Chip, So Saffron, Neenah White Ink: Ranger Distressed Walnut Copic Markers: E31, E34, Y32, Y35, YG82, YG11, C1 Accessories: Nesties petite circles, Big Shot, SU Mat pack & Paper piercing tool, Sakura glaze pen, Spica clear glitter pen, brown gingham ribbon

Beauty and the Beach

Today's card is my case of this week's features stamper at SCS (FS123) ... Roseanne! I love this image of Granny (Beauty and the Beach from OCL) and the way Roseanne used her nesties to create a small frame effect, so I tried both with my case. You can find her card that I cased HERE. I colored Granny with Copics (V06, E00, E02, YR04, Y08, Y11, E31, E34, R81, RV17, BG000, C3) and added some sparkly fluff to the beach (brown sugar) and her gray hair (platinum). If you double click on the photo you can get a great look at the sparkly fluff!!! I also added some Crystal Effects to add shine and dimension to her glass lenses, flowers, and her awesome jewelery.

Don't you LOVE how Granny is fully accessorized, even at the beach?? Speaking of love ... I have another sweet picture of Chloe to share. This shot really shows off her chubby little chins :) ! You can see a little more detail in this next photo of how I outlined Granny, cut her and the beach scene out, popped her and the sand pail up on dimensional, and used a background of white cardstock. The DP is from the new SU Razzleberry Lemonaide collection that will be available on July 1st in the new catalog along with the Rich Razzleberry cardstock that I used.
Thanks for stopping by ... have a great day :) !

Supplies for the card (size 4 1/4 x 5 1/2) ~ Stamps: Beauty and the Beach (OCL) Paper: Razzleberry Lemonaide DP, Rich Razzleberry, Neenah white cardstock Ink: Ranger Distressed Black Soot Accessories: Copic Markers, Spica Glitter pens, Crystal Effects, Sparkly Fluff, Lg Oval punch, Scalloped Oval punch, Kaiser orange self-adhesive rhinestones

Razzleberry Mambo Cupcake

Quick post to show you another birthday card I made last week with my SU Crazy for Cupcakes set, along with two of the new 09/10 in-colors, Melon Mambo and Rich Razzleberry and the new DP, Razzleberry Lemonaide.I added some touches of Crystal Effects to the cupcake to give it some dimension and shine (you can double click on the photo to see some of those details).

I had a fun day with Chloe yesterday and took a few photos. Here are a couple of my favs ... She'll be 6 months old next week and is healthy, happy and cute as a bug :) ! Hard to believe this little girl spent most of her first 6 weeks of life in the hospital, undergoing 2 major surgeries. You'd never know it by looking at her today.... such a miracle!

Thanks for stopping by :) .... have a great day!

Supplies for my card (size 4 1/4 x 5 1/2") : Stamps: Crazy for Cupcakes (SU) Paper: Razzleberry Lemonaide DP, Rich Razzleberry & Melon Mambo, Neenah White Ink: Ranger Distressed Black Soot Accessories: Copic Markers, Flower brad, rhinestone, Crystal Effects, Photo Corner Punch, Oval Nesties, Big Shot, Dimensionals

Born to be Wild

Today is my brother-in-law's birthday and this is the card I made for him ~ Happy Birthday Bob !!!

I used one of my favorite new OCL sets, The Tribe. If you double click on the photo you can get a better look at this cute little native. This set has so many fun and unique images...perfect for man cards, which are always challenging for me. Plus, I love the native lady and accessory pieces that comes with this set too :) !! On the inside of the card, I stamped "Happy Birthday" along with a Cupcake image ... sorry, in my haste to leave for Corvallis I forgot to take a photo of the inside, but you can see the entire set including all those super fun pieces right HERE.

I tried out some of my brand new 09/10 SU in-color cardstock on this card ~ Soft Suede & Dusty Durango. Copic E08 is a good match for Dusty Durango (you can see that on his shield). I've heard E44 is a good match for the Soft Suede, but I don't have that color yet, so I don't know for sure. The DP is by My Mind's Eye and you can find it at eP along with a great selection of Copics ! The layout for the card is from this week's sketch challenge over at SCS ~ SC232. For the stitching, I just used my paper piercing tool and mat pack to create the squares then threaded some linen thread into a needle and stitched in some Xs. Which reminds me, I received a few inquiries about how I did the ribbon treatment on my Divine Design project a few days ago so when I get home next week, I'll take a quick photo and show you how I did that. Super easy once you see how it's done.

That's about it. I'll have some new photos to show you of my sweet grandbaby, Chloe, soon ... I'm going to spend the entire day with her tomorrow!!! She's almost 6 months old and the most adorable little girl in the entire world. Nope, I'm not a bit biased, LOL !

Supplies for the card (size 4 1/4 x 5 1/2) ~ Stamps: The Tribe (OCL) My Mind's Eye DP, Dusty Durango, Soft Suede, Neenah White Paper: Ink: Ranger Distressed Black Soot & Chocolate Chip Accessories: Paper piercing tool/mat pack, linen thread, Copic Markers, Crystal Effects, Nesties Rectangle, Big Shot

Mambo Melon Cupcakes!

I had the most wonderful morning just coloring,
relaxing and putting a few cards together!
I haven't done that in so long....what a treat! And to make it even sweeter, I had a few brand new goodies from the upcoming SU catalog to play with: Mambo Melon cardstock, and Mambo Melon 1/2" polka dot gg ribbon, Razzleberry Lemonaide DP. This Mambo Melon color is going to be a favorite of mine. I did a little color matching with my copics and ended up using RV17 along with R83 for the frosting. RV17 is a pretty close match for Mambo Melon, but I've also seen RV29 used and that looked good too. I used R29 & R22 for the cherries and and N3, N1, C1, E31, E34 & E13 for cupcake bases and tray.I topped the cherries and tray off with a little crystal effects to give 'em shine and dimension...I love that stuff!

I'm pre-making as many cards as I can during my break because once my classes start again, my stamping time will be very limited and I want to have plenty of cards on hand to give when I need them. I learned that lesson the hard way when I was trying to make graduation cards during finals week....not a good idea. Much, much more enjoyable to make them now when I have time to relax and create!

I'm off to Corvallis to visit my girls and my grandbaby :) ... yay!! Thanks for stopping by, I have a few other cards uploaded and will be sharing those over the next few days. Enjoy your day!!!

Supplies for the card (size 4 1/4" square) ~ Stamps: Crazy for Cupcakes (SU) Paper: Razzleberry Lemonaide DP, Mambo Melon, PT white Ink: Ranger Distressed Black Soot Accessories: Copic Markers, Crystal Effects, Horizontal slot punch, 1/2" Mambo Melon polka dot gg ribbon, round Nestabilities, Big Shot

Divine Design BVC

It's June 9th ~ time to post our Divine Design Bible verse challenge projects! This month has flown by .... my brain is full of the principles of writing, social problems, nutritional statistics and algebraic formulas, but my last 2 finals were yesterday (woo-hooo!) so I'm enjoying a short break until summer classes begin. I sat down last night to make my bookmark & selected one of my all time favorite scriptures ~ Psalm 119:105 - Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. I love my classes and the opportunity to be in such a great learning environment at college, but the the Bible is my favorite and most valuable source of wisdom and guidance : ) !!

Here are links to the other scripture chicks so you can check out their June projects ~

Angel Wilde: Angelosity
Lori Craig: Make a Difference
Taylor VanBruggen: Taylored Expressions
Jami Bova: Stamp Happy

You can join us with the Divine Design challenge anytime, the rules are simple and you can find all the details right HERE. I make a bookmark each month, but you can make any type of project that works for you. And remember to use the keywords BVC09 when you upload to the SCS gallery. If you're ever needing a little creative or spiritual inspiration, just pop over to that gallery and check out all the amazing projects.

Thanks for stopping by. I am hoping to have some time to play with my stamps over the next 2 weeks and have a few things to share with you :) !! Enjoy your week!

Supplies for my bookmark (size 3 1/4 x 5 1/2) - Stamps: Light of the World (Our Daily Bread Designs) Paper: Walk in the Park & Good Morning Sunshine DP, Kiwi Kiss, Chocolate Chip, Neenah White Ink: Chocolate Chip Accessories: Nestabilities scalloped and standard rectangle. Big Shot, 1/4" circle punch, Pewter brads, 1/4" Choc Chip & Old Olive grosgrain ribbon, Paper piercing tool, mat pack, dimensionals

Happy Birthday Joy !

Super fast post to wish my friend Joy Kennedy a VERY, VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY and introduce you to a brand new set, Hangin' loose with Kona, that was designed exclusively for eP and it's available beginning today, in honor of Joy's birthday! You can check it out right here! And be sure to hop over to Joy's blog and wish her a very happy birthday :) !!!

That's all I have time for. I'm on my way out the door, headed to class. Finals are next week, and that's it for this term...whew!!! Ginormous birthday hugs to you Joy :) !

Swingin By with some awards!

Happy Wednesday : ) ! I have a couple of cards and some blog awards to share with you today . The cards were both made with the new OCL set, Swingin' By. This set includes a variety of SUPER fun images and sentiments. You seriously have to see the entire set.... check it out right HERE.

Over the past 2 weeks, I've received a few blog awards...

KellyJean, Dancing with Stamps, sent me this "Exalting Christ" blog award! I'd like to nominate Angel and Lori, Jami & Taylor for this award. These girls inspire me with their amazing creativity, but more importantly, in their relationship with Christ. Thanks girls, for all the inspiration you provide :) !!!
And...Beth, Big Sky Paper and Design, gave me this "Makes my heart smile" blog award! And Deb at Bee Bug Creations did too :) !! I'd like to nominate Kyla, Lorri, Silke, Debbie (this week's SCS feature stamper plus she designed the stamp set that I used today...she's pretty much a super star!), Judy & Lorelie (btw... she has some awesome blog candy up for grabs!) for this award. These girls all have fun and amazing blogs that I KNOW you'll love to visit!!! And a HUGE thanks to KellyJean, Beth & Deb for these awards...you girls have been a real blessing to me...these past 2 weeks have been extra busy weeks and these awards encouraged my heart in a special way.

Back to some cards :) ... You gotta love this clever sentiment, "You'll Owl-ways be my friend". This card was also made with the Swingin By set...I had colored the owl and planned on using him on the first card, but he didn't fit, so I punched him and a sentiment out and whaa-laaa....another card!

I used these Copic colors for my cards today: BG72, BG78, YG03, YG95, YG11, YG13, E25, E27, E31, E34, BG000 and, of course, a blender pen.These fun DPs are by My Mind's Eye...Eclectic Paperie has a great selection of MMI DPs as well as Copics - you can find 'em all right HERE.

Whew, that was a long post! There are links to a ton of fun blogs and shops & I'm sure hope you'll have a fun time visiting each and every one :) !!! Thanks for stopping by, enjoy your day !

Supplies for the first card~ Stamps: OCL Swingin By Paper: MMI DP, Baja Breeze, Old Olive, Neenah White Ink: Ranger Distressed Black Soot Accessories: Copic Markers, SU Eyelet edge punch, SU horizontal slot punch, SU white taffeta ribbon, Paper piercing tool/mat pack Supplies for the second card ~ Stamps: OCL Swingin By Paper: MMI Dp, Certainly Celery, Choc Chip, Neenah White Ink: Ranger Distressed Black Soot Accessories: 1 1/4 & 1 3/8" Circle punches, 1/4" choc chip gg ribbon

Divine Design May

It's the 9th, time to share my May Divine Design Bible Verse Challenge bookmark with you ! I've had a super busy week at school, so it was really nice to take a little break and make my bookmark. I used one of the ODBD stamps from the Design Team Scripture Collection 1. This wonderful scripture was selected by the very talented Amy Sheffer, to be part of the collection (great choice Amy!).

Romans 8:28 ~ "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose"

I will enjoy focusing on and memorizing this scripture during the month of May. How reassuring to know that God is working for my good...and thank goodness it's with His plan and not mine, LOL! His perspective is far broader and infinitely wiser than mine. Are you playing along with the monthly Divine Design Bible Verse Challenge? You can find the detais HERE. And if you're looking for a little inspiration, both artistic and spiritual, be sure to check out the Divine Design gallery at SCS. When you upload your project to SCS, be sure to use the keywords BVC09, so we can check out YOUR creation! Speaking of inspiration, here are links to the scripture chicks so you can see what they've created this month:

Angel Wilde: Angelosity
Lori Craig: Make a Difference
Jami Bova: Stamp Happy

Taylor's on vactaion, spending a little time with the hubby, so she won't be posting this month. But you can still check out her super fun blog right HERE.Thank you so much for stopping by. Hope you have a good weekend and Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there! My daughters, granddaughter and I will be spending tomorrow with my mom....4 generations of us together. What a blessing! Here's the card I made for my mom. She loves butterflies, so I think she'll love this. I used the Big Shot & SU Beautiful Butterflies die :) ~
Supplies used for the bookmark (size 3 1/2 x 6") ~ Stamps: ODBD Scripture Collection 1 Paper: Penny Lane DP by My Mind's Eye, Baja Breeze, Certainly Celery Ink: Chocolate Chip Accessories: 1/4, 1/2, 3/4, 1, 1 1/4, 1 3/8 & Scallop Circle SU punches, SU Pink Flower brad
Supplies for the card (size 4 1/4 x 5 1/2) ~ Stamps: SU All Holidays Paper: Penny Lane by My Mind's Eye, Baja Breeze, Pink Pirouette, Neenah White Ink: Baja Breeze Accessories: SU Big Shot & SU Beautiful Butterflies Die, Kaiser self adhesive pink & white pearls, Scallop Edge Punch *you can find the Penny Lane, My Mind's eye DP at Eclectic Paperie...they have a wonderful selection of MMI papers :) right HERE

And the winner is ....

Thank you :) to everyone who played along with the Our Craft Lounge Blog Hop. It was a lot of fun, wasn't it? I could tell by your comments that you love the Bubbles set as much as I do!

Random.org picked a winner for me......(drum roll please)....and the winner is Amanda , who said...

I love this set. I think it's my favorite new release. Your cards are wonderful and I love the little treat bag. Thanks for the chance to win!

Thank YOU Amanda & congratulations! Please email me your address (youcanstamp@hotmail.com) so Joy can get that super fun Bubbles set on it's way to you!!!!

And if you weren't the winner today, no worries, you can hop on over the OCL and check out all the fun new sets, fluff, sparkles, blocks and other cool stuff! You can find it all right HERE!

My cards today were made with the OCL newly released sets, Tribe & Sunkissed! I have a class in 15 minutes, so I'm going to need to dash. I apologize for not listing all the supplies today...thanks for understanding :) and thanks for stopping by!!! Have a great day.

OCL Blog Hop & Blog Candy!

Happy Friday and welcome to the ginormous Our Craft Lounge Summer Release Blog Hop! There's a list below of all the girls who are each showing AND giving away one of the new OCL summer release sets. I have the pleasure of giving away my this adorable set called "Bubbles" ... check it out ~ I used a some OCL Brown Sugar Sparkly Fluff for sand on my first card...that stuff is super fun and it makes awesome sand! The OCL girls are welcoming another talented illustrator, Debbie, to their already impressive lineup and she has a little surprise for anyone who wants to hop on over to her blog and say hi ... Debbie's Doodles & Designs! She's awesome and it's a blog you'll want to visit again and again!

Are you ready to do a little hopping? Before you go, be sure to leave me a comment so your name will go in the drawing for the Bubbles set. One comment per person please. I'll draw a winner at 3pm Monday :) !

Hop on over to these blogs and get yourself signed up for all the new sets . And, of course, you can always pop on over the OCL shop and check out all the great stuff (including the super-cool new acrylic blocks!)...it's right HERE! Alrighty then ... just click on the turquoise names listed after each set to visit their blogs and get yourself signed up to win, win, win !!!

Granny's Secrets - Diana Gibbs
Beauty and the Beach- Jeanne Streiff Summer Sweets - Heather McNally
Bubbles - Nancy Morgan
Oceans of Fun -Valerie Stangle
Sandy Sunsets- Vicki Garrett
Coastal Wishes- Denise Marzec
Garden Thoughts - Lila Holgate
Mice Friends- Holly McMillen
The Tribe - Pam Hooten
Flyin' Birthday - Jacqui Lines
Let Freedom Ring- Marianne Walker
Bees Knees- Carol Halvorson
Nailed It -Debbie Corbari
Sunkissed - Deb Felts
Life's a Beach - Joy Kennedy
Bring on the BBQ- Cindy Lawerence
School's Out- Sherry Cheever
Bookworm - Kendra Wietstock
Swingin By - Bethie Silaika
All About the USA - Roseanne Knowles
Dino-mite - Kisa Peters
Game On- Cambria Turnbow
Back 2 School- Amber Hillman

Supplies for "you're a star" card ~ Stamps: Bubbles Paper: My Mind's Eye DP, Taken With Teal, Kiwi Kiss, Neenah White Ink: Ranger Distressed Black Soot Accessories: Copic Markers,brown sugar & rockin pink Sparkly Fluff, Quickie Glue Pen, Crystal Effects, Large & Scalloped Oval Punches, Pink brads

Supplies for the fishy bag ~ Stamps: Bubbles Paper: My Mind's Eye DP , Real Red, Tempting Turquoise & Neenah White Ink: Ranger Distressed Black Soot Accessories: Medium cello bag, Scallop Edge punch, Designer Label punch, Red Spica pen, 1/4" real red, turquoise & old olive ribbons, Swedish fish (yum!)

Supplies for "love you more" card ~ Stamps: Bubbles Paper: My Mind's Eye DP, Tempting Tuquoise, Choc Chip, Neenah White Ink: Ranger Distressed Black Soot Accessories: Copic Markers, Crystal Effects, 3/4", 1", 1 3/8" 1 3/4"Circle punches, making memories silver heart brads, Amuse turquoise striped ribbon.

Thanks for stopping by ... have a great weekend :) !!!

OCL Sneak peek week!

This is sneak peek week for Our Craft Lounge, plus there's gonna be a HUGE blog hop on Friday! You'll be able to check out all the new sets PLUS have a chance to win each of the new releases! I'm giving away a SUPER cute set...you won't want to miss it!Today's cards were made with the soon to be released Bookworm set :) And what perfect timing, with the school year coming to an end soon, this is a wonderful set to make teacher appreciation cards.

I'm dedicating both of these cards to my daughter, Megan, who is in her 3rd year of college, training to be the BEST teacher ever! You go girl :) !! I'm SO proud of you.

The new sets won't be available till Friday, but you can find more sneak peeks right here ~
Cami
Joy
Heather
HB
Pam
Kisa
Kendra
Holly
Val
Debbie
Charmaine

I received some thoughtful blog awards this past week :) ... thanks girls!!! I'm so sorry I haven't been able to share those yet. I'll sure try to show you those and pass them along a little later this week. Lots of fun stuff happening in the stamping world! Thanks for stopping by. Be sure to check back later in the week for that BLOG HOP!!

Supplies for the first card ~ Stamps: Bookworm (OCL) Paper: My Mind's Eye DP, Choc Chip, Riding Hood Red, Neenah White Ink: Ranger Distressed Black Soot Accessories: Copic Markers, Crystal Effects, SU Large Oval Punch & Scalloped Oval Punch, SU Scallop Edge Punch, American Crafts stitched red ribbon, Paper piercing tool, NEW OCL acrylic blocks

Supplies for the second card ~ Stamps: Bookworm (OCL) Paper: My Mind's Eye DP, Choc Chip, Riding Hood Red, Neenah White Ink: Ranger Distressed Black Soot Accessories: Copic Markers, Crystal Effects, SU Scallop Edge Punch, Paper percing tool, Photo Corner Punch, Silver Brads, Circle/Scallop nesties, NEW OCL acrylic blocks

Hooray for Administrative Assistants!

Today is Administrative Assistant's Day ... and if that's you, well I hope your day is extra special and you are recognized for your hard work and contribution to making your office run smoothly! I know a couple of very special girls who are being honored today and they received these SU gift certificates from their grateful office-mates. Have a great day Sheri & Carly ... you guys are the BEST :) !!

Gift certificates make great gifts and I'm always trying to think of fun new ways to present them. These were super easy. I used Parisian Breeze Specialty Paper for the for the sleeve, so it has a little texture and it's pretty inside and out :) ! I cut that at 6 1/2 x 3 1/2 and scored at 3" & 6". Then you just adhere it together (I used sticky strip). I used my 1 3/8" circle punch to create a little notch at the top.

This is what it looks like before you add the sticky strip to the inside of the flap and bottom edge ~
I printed the GCs on the computer (whisper white card stock) then layered 'em up with some chocolate chip card stock. Then I pulled out my Owl Together Now stamp set and stamped a little hoot-hoot hooray and a flower with chocolate chip ink. My large oval punch layered up beautifully with the new Scallop oval punch from the Occasions Mini catalog. A little 5/8" striped baja breeze gg ribbon tied with some 1/4" chocolate chip gg ribbon and the little gift certificates were ready to go!

The finished size of the sleeve is 3 x 3 1/2" and the certificates are about 3 1/8 x 2 3/4".

Several of you have asked how Miss Chloe is doing. Thanks for asking...you guys are so sweet. I know many of you prayed along with us during those first difficult weeks of her life and I just can't thank you enough for those prayers. Other than a few digestion issues (somewhat expected following major abdominal surgery), she's doing amazingly well. She just turned 4 months old last week and weighs about 10 1/2 pounds. You'd never know that this little girl has undergone 2 major surgeries. I'd like to say that she's just a normal little baby, but ummm....she's our miracle baby, so that word normal just doesn't seem to fit :) ! Spring has sprung in Oregon and we've had bright, sunny weather this week. Katie sent me this photo of Chloe trying out her new sunglasses ~ Pretty stylin', don't you think? From the looks of this photo, most of that 10 1/2 pounds is being stored in her chubby little cheeks and chin :) !!!

Thanks for stopping by! Thought for today ~ smile every chance you get & see how many smiles you get back :) ... I bet you get a ton !!