Truly Amazing

Hi! This is a test for my email followers. I have been having trouble sending out multiple posts in a single email (for example if I have 2 posts in a day) so my blog pal Taheerah did some tinkering and I am testing to see if it works. I hope that you get 2 POSTS with this email. So I am reverting this back to draft and republishing! 

Crossing my fingers!




The other night my neighbor, Heather,  came over for a card night. Lots of fun chatting about work and getting to know each other better. We made 4 cards, but this one was her favorite. So I decided to post it!

I am entering this in the Case Study Challenge this week and Wplus 9 mood board! I am a big fan of  Keisha Campbell, look at this AMAZING card:

I was inspired by the stripes, the banner and the flowers. 

and this Wplus9 mood board:

love the twine, the greens, and the gold in the scissors. 

Supplies by i {heart} papers:
Stamp: Wplus9 Write on Ribbon
Paper: Crate Paper
Ribbon: Divine Twine
Dies: Write on Ribbon Die, Classic Scallop Border Die

Card for Dysfunctional People and a Black Friday Sale!

So my sister in law Carla and I have always wanted to design cards for the folks out there who can't find the right words at their local Hallmark. Mainly because they are or have experienced some kind of dysfunction in their families. So when Milo's ABC's came out, I thought it was the perfect time to make something!

I wanted the outside to be so normal and sweet...I was inspired by THIS Pinterest pin.

I was able to stamp this entire sentiment in a single swoop since the alphabet contains multiples of the same letter. These flowers were stamped lovingly by my pal Laurie Willison when she came to Colorado for a blogging friends get together and happened to not bring a single crafty supply! She saved all her car space for IKEA! (I would too and I benefited from the decision, so I can't complain).



Then the punchline is inside and reads a little something like THIS:

I wanted it to be a little crooked and wonky to play up the dysfunction. 

Supplies all from i {heart} papers:
Stamps: Lawn Fawn Milo's ABC's and WPlus9 Fresh Cut Florals and dies
Ink: Hero Arts Cubes, Navy


Speaking of i {heart} papers...

IHP is celebrating Black Friday and Cyber Monday with a 20% off store-wide coupon (in stock items only and not valid on gift certificates) on all orders $50 or more, valid through 12/2, Cyber Monday. Use coupon code Black20DT13 at checkout. All orders will ship on Tuesday December 3. Enjoy!


I am going to enter my card in the latest Colourq challenge which I haven't played in quite some time!

Sweet Stamp Shop Guest Designer Featuring 3 Cards! (yeah that's right, 3!)

Today I am guesting a the Sweet Stamp Shop, featuring a new set by Alyssa Bennett called Yummy Love. I have made 3 cards today, so I hope this makes up for the fact that I didn't really hold up to my part of the deal to post daily for the month of November. Um, that's a lot harder than I thought. I couldn't do it!! Sorry! 

My first card uses the little apple for a school themed card. This card was inspired by my pal Claudia Shadler who makes awesome rosettes! I just added paint splatter on the right side and used October Afternoon paper to bring home the school theme.  You can find a great tutorial on rosettes HERE.

For the second card, I simply punched 1 inch squares from some Crate Paper and colored the pear images with copics. The ribbon was a gift from my pal Alyssa Scritchfield.

Lastly I made a family themed card using the little peas. The papers are from Crate paper. I used the heart from the set to create a background. The stars are die cut from cork. It would make a great card for a sibling.

Useful Links:

• Sweet Stamp Shop blog: http://sweetstampshop.blogspot.com/
• Alyssa Lea Designs blog: http://alyssaleadesigns.com/
• Sweet Stamp Shop SHOP: http://www.sweetstampshop.com/fall-gratitude/
• Yummy Love stamp set: http://www.sweetstampshop.com/yummy-love/
• Yummy Love Lemon Lime Digi: http://alyssaleadesigns.com/product/yummy-love-lemon-lime-digi-and-svg-set

Thanks for checking out my projects!

I Liked It When I Made It

Well I liked this card when I made it, and I still kinda do. To get the speech bubbles to all go the same way, I just turned the stamp over!

Here is what the stamp looks like:

I used copics to color the frog. Practice really does help with improving on copics that's for sure.

The inspiration photo for this weeks Paper Smooches Sparks Challenge:

You have one week to play!



the team:

Jenny

Jocelyn

Alice

Savannah

And I am bidding adeu to another great team. Fabulous organized and great products to create with. Can't ask for much better. Love the talent on the design team too. I was so honored to be with these ladies including the gals on the opposite week: Pamela Ho, Larissa Heskett, Jamie Green, and Heather Hoffman.

Supplies:
Stamps: A Little Lovin' and Shadows, Word Up and Simply Said by Paper Smooches
Copics

I Can't Believe You Let Me Get Away With That!

I can't believe you all let me get away with that post yesterday! It was unfinished!!!!!!!!!!! Did anyone notice? You all are so forgiving. No one called me on it :) I don't know what happened, but I had this whole discussion on decorating my daughters room on there and poof! Vanished! So this is a do over. Just pretend you are seeing this card for the first time! And I will put the new stuff in bold.

I have been busy redecorating my daughters bedroom. It has taken a lot longer than I thought, but so far, I am pleased with how it has turned out! I tried to use a lot of paper for the projects because I have a bunch just laying around not getting used. Want a sneak peek?

I painted the walls Sweet Illusion by Behr. It took 3 coats! I bought this frame from IKEA and die cut the butterfly using my silhouette, Design ID #12033. Here is the inspiration room. 

And speaking of the Silhouette, using Silhouette file Design ID #33926 I made this very graphic Christmas card with a sentiment and ornament from Penny Black called Hanging Ornaments. It happened that the image didn't cut well, so I just left it in and stamped directly on top. You could probably recreate it if you turned down the depth of the blade when you cut the image.

I have to say that the Silhouette really saves me in a pinch. They have such a great selection of images that compliments stamps wonderfully. 

Ok now I feel at peace with this post. Thank you for your cooperation :)

The Silhouette Saves Me Again!

Using Silhouette file I made this very graphic Christmas card with a sentiment and ornament from Penny Black. It happened that the image didn't cut well, so I just left it in and stamped directly on top.

I have to say that the Silhouette really saves me in a pinch. They have such a great selection of images that compliments stamps wonderfully. 

Absolutely...Struggling to be a Working Mom

Thankful and Hanukkah both have 8 letters, and Hanukkah has 8 nights too.

Since both holidays start during this challenge, we'll honor 8.

use 8 letters or 8 sequins or 8 colors, etc 8 of anything on your CAS project.

2 week challenge, use your stash

Bet you are wondering what part of this card has 8??! THERE ARE 8 STAMPED BLUE FLOWERS!! Yup. The stamp was given to me by the dear Nina Yang! Thanks Nina, you got great taste! Won't you join Casual Fridays Challenge this week? You could get a prize from:

Lately, I have been thinking how hard it is to be a working mom. You always feel like you are a a mediocre employee and a mediocre mom. Nothing gets all your attention because nothing really can. Some of us need to work for financial reasons or because it is important to who we are as people, before we were moms or wives. I am so passionate about my career and yet, because I am not the bread winner and have 4 kids, I can't give it what it needs to be recognized at work as worthy of merit and promotion. But as I pushed them in the cart at Costco today and shared a pizza for lunch, just talking about silly things, I know that this is what they will remember of me.

Not my cards.

Not that I felt I was a mediocre employee.

But that I loved them and made them feel special.

I am trying to give myself grace. Trying to remember that this time is precious. But it is hard.

RIC #48 and a Goodbye :(

Oh this post is a sad one...It's my last as a design team member with Runway Inspired Challenge. I came on board about a year ago and loved every challenge with the most amazing design team AND players around. Thank you Jen for taking a chance on me. RIC allowed me to be edgy and artsy and cool without caring what a "normal" card is supposed to look like. It was very liberating.

To color the flowers, I used color pencils and then blended with stamp cleaner. A tip I borrowed from the talented Jennifer McGuire HERE.


Our sponsor is Ellen Hutson! And you MUST check out the design team:

Nina

Virginia

Tasnim

Pamela

Aga 

Jennifer 

Joni

All Supplies by Penny Black. The stamp is called FLOWER POETRY I also used a sentiment from Wishes and creative dies. 

I went back and colored the flowers with some Wink of Stella. It gave it a pretty result. 

Edited to add: Ok I just noticed that I only have 2 sprigs on the left and 3 sprigs on the right. Since I was trying to recreate one of those Greek fern looks where the leaves come up on both sides symmetrically, I had to fix it. It's a gloomy day so the pic isn't as good, but here it is!

A SUCKER for a CUTE Face!

Today I am helping my blog pal Alyssa who happens to be a fabulous illustrator, release a new stamp set called YUMMY LOVE with the Sweet Stamp Shop! When she showed me the stamp set, I really really couldn't say no. LOOK:

 Cute right? I know! I am a sucker for a stamp with a cute face on it.

Here is what I made using the set...

The ampersand is a Silhouette file, found HERE. Papers are Maggie Holmes for Crate Paper. 



I really couldn't put the set down! I made a gift set too.




I used my Sihouette to create the basket. The paper is Maggie Holmes for Crate Paper. I cut strips of one of the sheets out and taped them to the top part of the card only. 




The cards are small. I was able to get 3 cards using a standard 8.5x11 piece of paper. Each card measures 3.5x4.25.



Each one is stamped and colored with copics.


I tied some twine on top and voila! A fun gift for Valentine's Day, a birthday, anniversary, or for your kids lunch bags.







Here they all are together. Aren't the images darling?

What's Releasing:

• Yummy Love stamp set (along with Nicole's releases: Monogram It, Monogram Alpha, Super Panda Face)
• Yummy Love Flair (two sets)
• Yummy Love SVGs
• Yummy Love Lemon Lime Digi and SVGs

So check out everything at Sweet Stamp Shop... I think you will be so happy you did! Want to get your hands on these stamps for a song?

• 20% off the new release using coupon code NRN20

I HAVE ONE MORE CARD ON THE BLOG, SO GO CHECK IT OUT!!! Well, you know, if you want to ;)

Influenced by My Environment

Just like best friends who end up talking and acting the same, I am influenced by my environment. I don't know how other bloggers create, but I will tell you that my cards change based on where I am at, who is on my mind, and what I feel inspired by. I also make my cards WAY in advance. So a card you see today, I probably made 3 weeks ago or more. 

This card was made with my friends who don't blog and don't care about keeping it cutting edge. They want a pretty card. SO that's what I made (well hope so anyway)! I have been obsessed with this May Arts ribbon since I saw Vivian Masket use it on a baby card. 

Giving a shout out to my besties: Angela, Caryn and Marcy!!! hehe..

The team in case you wanted to see some awesome work:

Jenny

Jocelyn

Alice

Savannah

Supplies: 

Stamps Paper Smooches A Little Lovin' and Spring Fling

Paper: American Crafts Dear Lizzy

Ribbon May Arts

Moxi Fab Thanks Cath!

I hope you came from Tammy Hobbs' blog!

This is a wonderful blog hop for Cath Edvalson, trends editor for Paper Crafts Magazine. She is also the person behind Moxi Fab World, the blog for the magazine, which is a fabulous source of inspiration for me and so many other bloggers. There are 285 bloggers in this surprise hop, all to help Cath know she will be missed and was greatly appreciated during her many years as editor of Paper Crafts.

I made this card using lots of products and inspiration from SO many places. One of them being MFW which is a place I go to to be inspired a lot. My favorite feature was Tuesday Trigger as I love a good photo to launch a card design.  Been trying a new style lately and I feel so excited by this new found direction. I am not sure if I can maintain it, but for right now, everything in my craft room looks new again as I see them with different perspective. Does that make sense???

First, my card was inspired by THIS scrapbook page. The papers are mostly Crate Paper. Flair by BossyJoscie. Confetti was made with THIS. The background is tissue paper.

off you go to Barb Murphy's blog!

Santa's and Fonts.

I like to mix up my posts because I figure you might not like my card but you probably find the topic worth a read or vice versa. Lord knows, I always have something to say!

My friend Angela gave me a few strips of this patterned paper with these santas. (I will find out where they are from and edit this post). I punched them out and created a garland from them. He is super cute! I am going to enter this in the Lawnscaping challenge this week...letting the sentiment stand out. I like the way my sentiment is in bold black and with a great font!

I find fonts so important. They make or break a stamp set, card, store, or sign for me and I am EXTREMELY picky. I wanted to share a pin with you that I thought had a pretty font. You can go on their website to explore more if you like.

***Angela's gift was Echo Park Reflections 12x12 Paper Pack*******

Rock Chalk Baby Blog Hop

I think it's pretty well known that the Paper Crafts Magazine Gallery Idol Top 20 of 2012 is a pretty tight group. One member of our group, Erin Lee Schreiner, is going to have a baby boy soon and we wanted to celebrate! I wanted my card to look like one of those you would find in a boutique shop, so here is what I came up with:

The stamp set is from Penny Black called Mother Goose. The Sentiment is from Ali Edwards called Baby Flair. Papers are October Afternoon. Banner die is from Simon Says Stamp.  The stars are the center of the snowflake die from Papertrey Ink. I stamped them in various background stamps. 

Aga Malyszek http://justmadefrompaper.blogspot.com Amy Kolling: http://www.stamp-n-paradise.blogspot.com Anita Recksiedler http://craftygrldesigns.blogspot.com Cheiron Brandon http://cheironbrandon.typepad.com/ Dana Warren: http://www.kraftpaperstamps.blogspot.com/ Debbie Marcinkiewicz: http://www.papersweeties.com/category/blog/ Elena Roussakis www.justmeprints.blogspot.com Heather Campbell http://parkermolly.blogspot.com/ Jennifer Rzasa http://ourchangeofart.blogspot.com/ Jennifer Ingle: http://justjingle.blogspot.com JJ Bolton: http://rgcards.blogspot.com/ Jocelyn Olson http://redballooncards.blogspot.com Joscelyne Cutchens www.cutchens.com Laurie Willison http://soapboxcreations.blogspot.com/ Miriam Prantner: www.mprantner.blogspot.com Nina Yang: http://waffleflower.com Taheerah Atchia: http://littlemisst-papercraft.blogspot.com/ Tessa Wise: http://www.craftygrl.blogspot.com Wida Yusufi-Miller: http://beachorado.blogspot.com/ <---YOU ARE HERE!

Congratulations to Erin and her family! 

I am leaving you all with a book that my mother-in-law bought me which I love to this day. It is called Someday. You can hear a lady read the book if you click on the title. 

Scheduled Laundry and a Card to Compete with Hallmark!

This Penny Black Tree is lovely! So detailed and whimsical. I added lots of embellishments including a banner from Christmas Banners.


The tree is embossed in gold...

See all the pretty layers? Let's see Hallmark compete with THAT! and speaking of pretty. Here is the cleanest my laundry room has ever been. With 6 of us in the family, letting the laundry go can be a dangerous choice. It's a working laundry room. I dream of having those fancy washer and dryers, but this set which we bought when we got married won't die, hard as I try to kill it! ha!

I wish I was one of those organized people that did bathrooms on Monday and Laundry on Saturday. I just don't work that way. I am more of a "oh you mean you are going to run out of pants tomorrow, better do the laundry" kind of gal! I recently pinned a laundry room that doesn't seem real...let me show you...WOWZA! The pin can be found HERE.

Pretty Darn Happy With Myself! And Organizing My Craft Space

Oh I was so happy with this card!!!

It turned out just like I wanted it to...SCORE! To get the look of the leaves, I did some generation stamping. You can find a great tutorial on this technique HERE.

Runway Inspired Challenge

Our sponsor is Simon Says Stamp!  You MUST check out the design team:

Nina

Virginia

Tasnim

Pamela

Aga 

Jennifer 

Joni

Speaking of stamps, I have been busy organizing a bit in my craft room. I want to remake the room and in trying to decide if I am open display "boutique" style crafter, or a keep it behind cabinets and make it look sleek crafter. I think I am the former. I have been looking at craft rooms like crazy on Pinterest. I think this one is my favorite pins:

I like that it looks like a little store. Been looking at pieces of furniture I would like to see in the space. So far my favorites are these found on the internet:

And in the meantime, I have been rearranging my stuff with what I have:

Having all my embellishments out, helps me see what I have and USE them! This is a shoe rack. It holds small stamps up on top and then embellishments on the bottom 2 racks.

I put my wood mounted stamps in a corner so I can see them and fall in love all over again ;)