CASology Challenge #172

It's Tuesday and time for a brand new cue word over at CASology!  It's an appropriate one for this month, I think!

I thought about this one a bit and decided to go with a thank you card.  After all, one of those is usually sent following someone's generosity, right?!

Stamps:  STAMPlorations (Trendy Butterflies, Mini Mixed Media Backgrounds, Grateful Beyond Words)

I stamped the background image in Soft Suede ink (StampinUp!) & then added the sentiment in black.  The butterfly was stamped in black on Soft Suede cardstock and fussy cut.  It was then spritzed with gold Heidi Swapp Color Shine spray before being popped up with a foam dot for dimension.

Be sure and go say a quick hello to the design team members & this week's guest designer!  They work so hard each week to create inspiration!

Ardyth Percy-Robb

Hannelie Bester

Hazel Hodgkins
 Jen Wills

Joyce Mehrberg

Judy Marino

Kimberly Wiener

Kymona Tracey

Melissa Chipperfield - You are here.
 Ren Loh
 Tracey McNeely

 Guest Designer: Jenelle

Then, don't forget to link up your own creation on the challenge blog by Monday at NOON (CST) for your chance to win a prize from this week's sponsor, STAMPlorations!

Have a terrific Tuesday! 

CASology Zombies!

It's Tuesday and time for a new cue word over at CASology! Are you easily frightened or do you like a good scare? You might find the CASology gallery interesting this week...

I went with something not so scary.  Zombies tend to make me think of splatter and the color red.  You too?!

Stamps:  Concord & 9th (Lots of Blots)

Concord & 9th has a fantastic set called Lots of Blots and it just seemed to grab my attention for this challenge!  I stamped the sentiment circle and two splatter images.  I then stamped the small heart from the set & fussy cut it before adding sparkle with a clear Wink of Stella brush marker.  I popped up the heart with a foam dot for a little dimension.  I love black, white & red on CAS card designs.  There's just something so clean about that color scheme!

Be sure and go say a quick hello to the design team members & this week's guest designer!  They work so hard each week to create inspiration!

Ardyth Percy-Robb

Hannelie Bester

Hazel Hodgkins 

Jen Wills

Joyce Mehrberg

Judy Marino

Kimberly Wiener

Kymona Tracey

Melissa Chipperfield - You are here.

Tracey McNeely

Guest Designer:  Valerie

Then, don't forget to link up your own creation on the challenge blog by Monday at NOON (CDT) for your chance to win a prize from this week's sponsor, Concord & 9th!

Have a terrific Tuesday!

Precious Remembrance Tuesday Ideas

It's time again for an installment of Tuesday Ideas over on the Precious Remembrance Shop blog! Today, I'm sharing a super simple thank you card design. Be sure and check it out!

Birthday Bestie

Yesterday was my birthday. Today is my best friend's birthday! August birthdays (a day apart) are just one thing we have in common. This friend of mine is one-of-a-kind and so talented at so many things! If you aren't familiar with her blog, you really should go check it out! She's the reason I'm stamping today!  While you're there, go ahead and wish her a very happy birthday!  She'll be so surprised!  Aren't we all so grateful for our friends who walk through life with us?  I know I don't tell them enough how much I appreciate them!

Stamps:  STAMPlorations (Trendy Butterflies, Grateful Beyond Words)

I sponged the chevron design using a stencil.  The butterfly was stamped, fussy cut and spritzed with my favorite sprays (Heidi Swapp - Color Shine).  The sentiment was stamped in black ink and then three gemstones were added to finish off the design.

I'm linking this up to the STAMPlorations Anything Goes Challenge!

In other exciting news, I'm a Featured Designer over at Paper Crafter's Library today, so you'll want to go see what I'm sharing over there!  Coffee and cameras, anyone?!

Have a great Thursday!

A Prickley Pear Merci

Happy Monday! For those of you who observe Daylight Savings Time, did you remember to set your clocks ahead or did you forget and show up late somewhere?

Today is Prickley Pear inspiration day and I have a thank you card to share.

I have had this glittery chevron paper stashed away for quite some time.  I thought it might go well with a black and white color scheme sometime and today was the day!  The Eiffel Tower image is actaully part of a larger, more detailed image in the Flourished Oval Sentiments clear set.  I simple colored the tower with a black marker and stamped it by itself.  I then die cut the flourish and adhered it to the main panel.  I stamped the simple sentiment (also from the Flourished Oval Sentiments set) last.  Three black gemstones were added as embellishments and the entire main panel was layered on a piece of black cardstock before being popped up over the decorative paper with foam dots.  The tower has some sparkle to it as I used a Wink of Stella brush marker on it.

I love trying to figure out ways to stretch my stamps beyond their obvious use.  By singling out the tower, I was able to create a completely different look than if I'd used the image as it is in the set.

I hope you had a good weekend!  DH finished the basement bathroom, so I no longer have to run upstairs while crafting!  It's the little things in life, you know!

Have a marvelous Monday!

A Prickley Pear Thank You

Today, I'm guest designing again over on the Prickley Pear blog and wanted to showcase one of their sentiment stamps because they really are some of my favorites!

Stamps:  Prickley Pear (Thank You Would Suffice)

Using a stencil, I sprayed the pattern on a panel of white cardstock using Heidi Swapp navy and green shimmer inks. I then stamped the sentiment and rounded two of the panel's corners before popping it up on the card base with foam dots.  A very easily mass produced thank you card with a simple, yet beautifully elegant sentiment.  You can find more of Prickley Pear's wonderful sentiments both in red rubber and as part of their clear stamp sets.

Another fun weekend is fast approaching and then DD's birthday photo shoot is on my to do list for the new week ahead!  DH may have to help me out with this one because she is quite the wiggle worm these days!  Wish us luck!  It still amazes me how helpless a little one arrives into this world and how quickly they become independent!  Thankfully, she will actually stop a moment to snuggle a bit now and then!

Have a wonderful Thursday!

A Big Huge Thanks

Today is DS1's first double digit birthday.  I'm not exactly sure how I feel about it!  Something about the double digit thing seems to be bothering me.  "Only eight more years..." is what my subconscious is whispering.  Eight short years, I'm afraid.

Today, I'm guest designing again over at i{heart}papers, so for my card today, I reached for this cute hippo to create some simple thank you cards for DS1:

Stamps:  Avery Elle (Hipster-Potamus)
Ink:  Memento (Tuxedo Black), Hero Arts (neon ink)
Dies:  Avery Elle (Chevron Bits)

DS1 has been making a birthday list and while some of the listed items he'll only be seeing in his dreams, we usually pick one or two gifts for him that we think he'll use for a while.  What would be on a 10-year-old boy's wish list?  (It's always good to know, isn't it?!)

• Peanut Butter Cap'n Crunch
• a Fitbit
• a camera to replace his broken one
• an Ipad
• a Butterfinger candy bar (maybe more than one...)

I seriously considered the camera since used ones can be found fairly inexpensively on Ebay.  However, he forgot that he's talked about a scooter a few times over the last year and his mother has a way of keeping track of things people casually mention in conversation.

Have a marvelous Monday!

A Sweet Monday

It's Monday and today I'm sharing a bit about cameras over on the Sweet Stamp Shop blog! Ever wondered what the difference between a point-and-shoot camera and a DSLR camera is? I'm sharing a little about the two, so head on over to the Sweet Blog!

Yesterday was my mother's birthday, so I had birthdays on my mind and created a fun, text only birthday card!

Stamps:  Sweet Stamp Shop (Feeling Today, You Had Me At)

I combined two stamp sets to create the birthday message:  Feeling Today and You Had Me At.  I stamped the checklist, mounted the entire main panel on a piece of My Mind's Eye decorative paper and then popped the entire thing up with foam dots.  I added a trio of festive sequins to add to the party atmosphere!

I created a second card using paper piecing.

Stamps:  Sweet Stamp Shop (Elegant Flowers, Baking Love, Cookie Sprinkles, Stinky Skunk)

Mother's Day was actually what was on my mind when I was working on this, but I decided to turn it into a thank you card instead.  I combined a flower bud from Elegant Flowers, the bowl from Baking Love , the "thanks" from the Cookie Sprinkles and the shadow (under the bowl) from the Stinky Stunk set.  I masked the bowl and flowers and then paper pieced the flowers with some polka dot paper in my stash.  The bowl was colored with Copic markers.  Three small clear sequins were added for a little extra interest.

I hope if you've been following the Picture Perfect blog series over the last few months, you have learned something that has helped with photographing your cards.  I love playing with a camera and product photography is one area that I have an interest in.  If you ever have a question, please ask!  I've found the best way to figure something out sometimes is to just ask!  Don't be shy!

There will be one more new release this month from the Sweet Stamp Shop, so if you want the inside scoop on it, be sure and follow along over on Facebook!

On the home front, DH is putting in exhausting hours in the basement!  Poor guy.  That's what happens when you create a deadline for yourself!  In some ways, it's a good thing because it forces you to focus.  In other ways, you begin to realize all that you have left to do and things quickly begin to feel urgent.  Very, very urgent!  I think I'm going to try to convince him to take a break this afternoon!  Coffee only helps for so long!  Tomorrow is the big day when the drywall guys begin hanging drywall in the basement, so today is the final prep day for us!  Off I go!

Have a marvelous Monday!

CASology #87: BLUSH

 

It's time to get your pink on this week over at CASology!  That is, if you take the cue word along that path with your interpretation!  I did.  BLUSH made me think of cosmetics.

 Using this photo as my inspiration, I created a simple thank you card...

Stamps:  Stamps of Life (crayons2stamp - sentiment)

I wanted to use the Rule of Three on my card as well as preserve lots of that heavenly white space that defines CAS cards!  Using three different shades of pink cardstock, I punched out three 3/4-inch circles.  I then applied SU's Dazzling Diamonds glitter to each one using Heat & Stick Powder.  One little word of advice:  do NOT aim your heat gun at your piles of glitter!!!  (My craft table and the surrounding area are glistening quite prettily right now...)  All I could do was stomp my foot and laugh at myself!  But, I digress.  The little circles now possess some pretty sparkle to go with the cosmetic idea and I framed them with a piece of black cardstock and popped the entire main panel up with foam dots.

I hope you'll take some time to visit the rest of the design team members' blogs as well as this week's guest designer's blog! They've come up with some great interpretations of the cue word and explain their Clean & Simple designs in more detail.

 

Ardyth Percy-Robb
Gillian Ross 
Jen Wills
Joyce Mehrberg
Judy Marino
Kimberly Wiener
 Maureen Merritt
May Park
Meghan McMillan
Melissa Chipperfield (you are here)
Tracey McNeely

Guest Designer:  Jeanne 

Don't forget to link up your own BLUSH creation on the challenge blog by Monday at NOON (CDT)!

Spring break is in full swing here and muddy footprints are walking in and out of our back door!  Thank goodness for mud boots and a washing machine!  Little boys find the smallest of puddles to play in!

Have a terrific Tuesday!

Too Much Excitement!

Another first for me today!  I can finally share with you my first published card!  Where?  The December issue of CARDS magazine!  Feeling a bit crazy with the excitement of such a thing!  I had created this quite a while ago and figured I'd submit it just for fun.  I guess someone liked it.

In other news, DD has turned another month older and probably wonders what all the fuss is about each month to get her photo taken in goofy outfits!  She'll thank me someday...I think.

The sun is shining here in our neck of the woods despite the frigid temperatures and I need to finish up some photo editing for my brother and family from Thanksgiving.  They'd probably appreciate having their photos before Christmas!  I need to set aside the perfectionist in me and just finish them up!  Wish me luck!

Have a fabulous Friday!

Thank You in French

I've said it before and I'll say it again.  I love Mondays!

Last week, I happened to be lucky enough to have both creative time and mojo come together in one place!  I ended up making three cards in one session!  That almost never happens, but the creative winds have been blowing here lately and I'm letting them push me to my craft room whenever time and energy allows!

I started sorting through my stash, once again realizing I probably have enough in there to hold daily classes in the community without using the same stamp set for several years.  (I think I know what I'll be working on in 2014!)  One of the sets that caught my attention was from Paper Trey.  I created a quick and simple thank you card, embellishing with three black rhinestones and staggering the sentiment.

Stamps:  Paper Trey

There is something rather intriguing about the French language to me, but I've never put forth the effort to learn any of it!  Back in high school, I figured there was a higher chance that I would actually use Spanish, so Spanish it was!

The day is off to a calm, but flying start.  The kitchen is cleaned up from last night's dinner guests and the soothing hum of the dishwasher is filling the air!  The sun is shining.  My to do list for the day doesn't look too intimidating and I really think I might just get some creative time in!  DD took a decent nap this morning and seems to be full of snuggles and smiles today!  I want to just eat her up, I tell you!  Thanksgiving is fast approaching and I'm starting to plan for family arriving for the big day!  It's our turn to host this year and we're looking forward to it!

Now I'm off to enjoy the sunshine with my littlest ones and then check a couple smaller things off the day's to do list!  I'm finding that accomplishing a couple small things each day is much more satisfying than trying to tackle something big and failing miserably.  Baby steps these days!

Have a marvelous Monday!

The Flavor Brown

 

I just can't help myself.  Brown brings one thing and one thing alone to this poor mind of mine. C-h-o-c-o-l-a-t-e. Sigh.

Stamp:  Stamps of Life

I simply stamped the sentiment in white and used my scalloped circle punch to create a little bite out of the upper corner of the card.

Be sure and visit the rest of the design team members' blogs as well as our guest designer's blog this week!  You'll find plenty of ideas to inspire your own BROWN creation!  I wonder what this word makes you think of?!  Just be sure and link up your creation on the challenge blog by Sunday at 4:00 p.m. (CST) for a chance to win a free Gina K. stamp set, courtesy of Cindy Coutts, our sponsor this week!

Ardyth
Gillian 

 Jen

Judy 

Kimberly 

Maureen 

Meghan 

Melissa 

(you're here!)

Rosemary 

Tracey

Guest Designer:  Bev

Have a terrific Tuesday!

30 Days of Thankfulness: Day 1

Source:  Pinterest

Halloween is done.  The candy is not.  Hello, treadmill!  And so the holiday season begins!

I love the thought of November and sweet memories of Thanksgivings past have begun their yearly appearance in my mind.  Memories that still portray special grandparents alive and well, carefree cousins at play and laughter from all of them blending together into one beautiful picture of happiness.  How I cherish those memories!  I love going through my photo albums from years past and hope I remember to capture a few new memories with my camera again this year!

This month, I want to focus on being content.  Content with life as it is now.  Thankful.  Not dwelling on what I'd like it to be next week, next month, next year.  Not wishing to change the past.  Content with today...this very moment.  I've wondered before if we realize that in our modern day and age, we struggle with contentment despite the fact that we have it so good here in this country.  Third world countries struggle with having enough of the very basics.  We struggle with having so much within our reach, so many options for so many things, that it seems like there is always something to wish for.  Something more, something bigger, something greater.  But, really, what greater thing could one possess than contentment itself?  It's the little things in life that make life worth living!

I want to thank all of you for your kind words here on the blog.  Encouraging words.  We all need them and I apologize to those who have left comments so faithfully over the last few months without receiving a reply from me!  It means a lot.  I hope I can return even a small portion of that kindness in days ahead!

I also hope you'll join me this month as I pay attention to the little things that make life worthwhile because you, my friends, are one of them!

Hugs to all of you!

Harvest Time

It's time for a new cue word challenge over at CASology!  This week's word just seems to go along with the start of October, don't you think?!

Soon, the farmers will be busy harvesting crops in the fields around here and the deer will be running around a little more than usual trying to avoid the tractors and combines that go rumbling through their surroundings!  Watch out drivers!

I created a one layer card for this week's challenge.  I had a wheat image that I wanted to use and this is what I came up with by varying the height of the image across the card:

One simple image.  One simple sentiment.  One simple card.  Gotta love clean and simple design!  Be sure and visit the rest of the design team members' blogs as well as our guest designer's blog for even more CAS inspiration!  Then, don't forget to link up your own creation on the CASology challenge blog by Sunday at 4:00 p.m. (CDT)!

Ardyth
Gillian 

 Jen

Judy 

Kimberly 

Maureen 

Meghan 

Melissa 

(you're here!)

Rosemary 

Tracey

Guest Designer:  Gay

DS2 came home from school with a low grade fever yesterday afternoon.  Hoping whatever bug he caught leaves quickly and that no one else in the family gets bit!  We're heading on into the cold/flu season, so need to stock up on chicken noodle soup, elderberry syrup and zinc/elderberry lozenges!  I really prefer not to have to run to the store while feeling sick, so preparations are underway to be fully stocked for possible sick days!

Have a terrific Tuesday!