For Foxy

I love dogs. Pretty much nothing about 'em I don't like (well, ok ... picking up dog poop and the remnants of once-loved shoes is NOT fun!). Something about having a dog as part of the family makes our home feel complete.

I made this card for my next-door neighbors, who lost their fur-baby, Foxy, a couple of weeks ago. She lived a long, full and happy life. She was loved. And she will be missed ...

Stamps: Come All Ye Faithful (Papertrey), D is for Dog (retired SU)
Paper: Early Espresso, Very Vanilla, Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Season of Style DSP
Ink: Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Cherry Cobbler
Accessories: Arrows Embossing Folder, Banner Punch, Come All Ye Faithful Die Collection, Small Heart Punch, Paw Print Punch (unknown), Large Oval Punch, On Film Framelit, Linen Thread, Naturals Trim Ribbon, Hodgepodge Hardware (retired)

It will be nice to get back to a more "normal" schedule in a few days once we get through the New Years' celebrations. I plan to spend New Year's Day curled up with a good book in front of a toasty fire (hoping that we have "green" burn conditions so that a fire will be allowed!). I'm gonna read a book, anyway!!!

Dude Trio

It's that time again ... time for me to make a few "dude" cards. Struggle-struggle-struggle ... don't know WHY I always struggle with "dude" cards. As simple as these look, they took me a bit to put together!

I was happy that I was able to use up these big ol' buttons, though!! Just HAD to have 'em when they were on sale last fall. Up until I made these cards, I had only used ONE of them. It's always nice when you can use something you bought and make your purchase feel justified!!

Stamps: Mat Stack 3 (Papertrey), Crazy for Cupcakes (sentiment)
Paper: Soft Suede, Whisper White, Pool Party, Pear Pizzazz, Nursery Nest DSP, Domestic Goddess DSP, Spice Cake DSP
Ink: Soft Suede
Accessories: Stripes Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Spice Cake Buttons, Linen Thread, Mat Stack 3 Die (Paper Trey), Small Oval Punch, Ticket Corner Punch, Soft Suede Taffeta Ribbon




And you KNOW that since we are coming up on the 20th of the month ... which means it is nearly time for the Control Freaks Blog Tour!! Come back and check it out!!

Expressions of Love

Happy Valentine's Day!! It seems that the holidays roll around faster and faster as the years just zip on by ... holy smokes!!

I figured it was about time for me to crank out an honest-to-goodness Valentine ... gonna give it to my amazingly-wonderful husband ... he is my rock and my best friend! Don't know WHAT I'd do without him!!

Stamps: Filled With Love
Paper: Cherry Cobbler, Crumb Cake, Riding Hood Red, Real Red, Chocolate Chip, Early Espresso, Whisper White, Red Glimmer Paper
Ink: Early Espresso
Accessories: Sizzix Hearts Textured Impressions Folder (from Valentine Set #2), Riding Hood Red Pleated Satin Ribbon, Very Vanilla Taffeta Ribbon, Whisper White Baker's Twine, Small Oval Punch, Corner Rounder Punch, Heart to Heart Punch, Pearl Basics, Papertrey Alpha Blocks Die, Pearl Basics

And I could NOT let this special day go by without a very sincere and heartfelt thanks to so many of you who have left comments and sent emails and messages giving love, support, and prayers for my two wonderful mothers ... a bit of an update on each ... my mother-in-law will be moving to an extended care facility today. Her spirits are good, and her body, although broken, is on its way to recovery. My own dear mother is also making progress, albeit slowly. She will be having an angiogram either today or tomorrow to make sure that there isn't any blockage ... then they will schedule her for a pacemaker replacement as soon as her kidneys are strong enough. Prayers are answered ... thanks so much for your amazing outpouring of support. It is appreciated more than you will EVER know!

Criss-Cross Revisited

I have always loved criss-cross cards. One of the challenges during VSN this past weekend was to make one. After looking at a few of them I realized it had never even OCCURRED to me to make a vertical one. I have always made them horizontally ... wow!! How fun is this???

I have recently pulled out some of my Papertrey stamps, too. I have a whole BOX full of 'em ... which has been gathering dust as of late. I really like this Honeybees set ...

It is supposed to be sunny with a high of 72 degrees today ... YAY!!! It has been rainingrainingraining for what seems like ETERNITY!!! Sooooo glad that sun is paying us a visit!

Stamps: Honeybees (Papertrey)
Paper: Daffodil Delight, Melon Mambo, Pacific Point, Whisper White
Ink: Old Olive, Melon Mambo, Daffodil Delight, Pacific Point, Basic Black
Accessories: Large and Small Oval Punches, Assorted SU Brads (retired), Pink Gingham Ribbon, Pop-Up Glue Dots

For My Darling Daughter ...

It is amazingly difficult for me to believe that my baby ... my youngest ... my only girl ... is turning 17 today!! Where on EARTH did all those years go??? I am happy to watch her grow up and am excited for the adventures awaiting her in the years ahead. On the other hand, I am sad that my little baby ... my snuggler ... my climber ... my explorer ... is not so much a baby any more!!

I made this card for her birthday. I was inspired to make it as part of VSN over on SCS this past weekend. Didn't get to play NEARLY as much this time as I did last time ... but the color combo laid out in this challenge was just too-too tempting. Just had to take a stab at it!!

So .... happy birthday, my dear-darling daughter. Looking forward to many adventures ahead with you ... love you much!!

Stamps: Beautiful Blooms (Papertrey)
Paper: Crumb Cake, Cool Caribbean, Pear Pizzazz, Whisper White, Sweet Slumber DSP
Ink: Cool Caribbean, Pear Pizzazz
Accessories: 1/2" Circle Punch, 1/4" Circle Punch, Large Oval Punch, Scallop Border Punch, Whisper White Satin/Organza Ribbon, Dimensionals

Thanksgiving Wishes

For all of my American friends ... Happy Thanksgiving!! To everyone elsewhere ... I am also grateful for you and for the time you take to visit my blog, make comments and be my super crafty friends!

This card was not only for Thanksgiving (and I will be giving it to my aunt today for hostessing the family once again!), but it was also for the Ways to Use It challenge on SCS today ... WT298 - That's the Ticket! I hadn't used either my Papertrey Just the Ticket border die OR my Cricut Thanksgiving cartridge, so I initiated a couple of new things today! Hooray!

Stamps: Grateful Greetings
Paper: Pumpkin Pie, Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla
Ink: Early Espresso
Accessories: Papertrey Just the Ticket die, Large Oval Punch, Cricut Thanksgiving Cartridge, Elegant Lines Textured Impressions Folder, Deep Chocolate Ribbon (Papertrey), Pearl Stickers

Hug your family, give a prayer of thanks for your health and happiness, and be ready for some SUPERDUPER shopping for Black Friday tomorrow.

Of Airplanes and Birthdays ...

Many of you may remember that I posted a little while back that my husband had FINALLY finished building his own airplane after 10 looonnnnggg years ... and I mean a REAL honest-to-goodness-fly-people-in-it airplane. SUPER cool.

Before a home-built airplane can be flown with passengers in it, it needs to have 40 test hours flown off (I guess to be sure it isn't gonna blow up or crash or anything, right??). A good friend of ours who has been a pilot forEVER was excited enough and kind enough to do this for us (since my husband hasn't flown for so long, he needed to pass a flight review before he could actually fly it, too!). Anywho, I diegress ... long story short, the test hours have finally been flown off and my hubby has finally finished doing his own flight review.

For his birthday this past Thursday, he and his brother flew in the plane to Oregon to help move my niece and nephew-in-law into their new apartment there (my nephew is starting law school in a couple of weeks). This was actually just an excuse for my hubby to fly his plane somewhere ... and was an excellent way for him to spend his birthday!!

I made him this little airplane card for his birthday (and YES, his plane IS actually red!!). Cute, eh?

And this is ME in the cockpit as I was getting ready to go on my very FIRST ride in our new plane. I can't WAIT to get my license so I can fly it by myself!!!

Stamps: Fly Away by PTI
Paper: Basic Black, Bashful Blue, Poppy Parade, Whisper White, Play Date dsp
Ink: Basic Black, Poppy Parade
Accessories: Top Note die, Argyle Embossing Folder, Offray Polka-Dot Grosgrain Ribbon, Scallop Oval Punch, Glassy Glaze Embossing Powder, Black Buttons, Pop-Up Glue Dots

Today is a Palindrome!!

Check it out, friends ... today's date - 01/22/10 - is a palindrome!! It is the same forward and backward!! So, as today's Limited Supply Challenge over on SCS (for which I am the hostess!), I chose to ask everyone to create a card full of palindromes. Use a sentiment that was a stand-alone palindrome (like "MOM"), or at least one that had a palindrome IN it!! Plus, background paper, Cuttlebugging, etc., had to be symmetrical - a mirror image of itself - in order to be a palindrome, too!! Stripes, polka dots ... you name it!! There really are more options out there than ya think!!

So, this is what I came up with!! It was super quick and easy! LOVE it!!

Stamps: Women of Life by PTI
Paper: Basic Black, Pink Pirouette, Whisper White
Ink: Melon Mambo
Accessories: Small oval punch, Cuttlebug Emily's Bouquet embossing folder, whisper white organza/satin ribbon, rhinestones

And a little PSA (Public Service Announcement) - this is a two-parter - first of all, I did NOT forget about sharing photos of other things I do for organization in my craft room. I am workin' on it!! I hope to have some photos to take with me to CHA this weekend that I can share with ya (if I can finding some working internet!). AND, since SO many have asked, I am creating templates for the little boxes I made for the Control Freak Blog Tour in the last post I put up (on Tuesday). So, stay tuned ...

Happy Friday, everyone!! I'm off to CHA later today with my darling daughter ... can't wait!! :)

Lovely New Spellbinders Pendant/Border Dies

My socks are completely blown OFF!! These new pendant dies that Spellbinders has just released are simply GAWgeous!!! I love it when something that looks so amazingly terrific is so easy to create something with. I see these pendant dies becoming a fast favorite at my house, that's for SURE!!

I made this for TLC228 - Stand Up Card. Y'all know me and my funky-fold obsession! This is just PERFECT in that category! And it's EASY, too!! Here's a link to a photo of the template you will need (which is sooo easy you won't even need to print it out!):

Penny Wessenauer's Stand Up Card Template

Have fun, friends!

Stamps: Beautiful Blooms by Papertrey
Paper: Basic Black, Summer Sun, Barely Banana, Whisper White
Ink: Basic Black, Summer Sun
Accessories: Spellbinders Fleur de Lis Pendant die (S4-204), Fleur de Lis Borderabiltiies die (S4-213) and Small Classic Inverted Scallop Square (S4-197), large and small oval punches, white organza polka dot ribbon, Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder, dimensionals

Grad Thanks

Well . . . I finally got around to making some "thank you" cards for my son to send out to all the generous friends and family who gave him gifts (mostly $$!!) for graduation. I finished these LAST weekend . . . now, if only I could actually get my son to WRITE in them!!

I used the "card" feature with the "Locker Talk" Cricut cartridge. I then cut it down (the black piece) and just used it as a card front. I wanted the extra layer on the back (the white one) to give this some more dimension. I then ran the black piece with the grad hat cutout through my Big Shot with the "Thanks" Cuttlebug embossing folder (how's that for using as many tools as possible on one card???)??

Stamps: Simple Alphabet by Papertrey
Ink: Basic Black
Paper: Whisper White, Basic Black, Real Red, Summer Sun
Accessories: Cricut "Locker Talk" Cartridge, Cuttlebug "Thanks" Embossing Folder, Large Oval Punch, small white brad, black/white gingham ribbon, pop-up glue dots

Have a wonderful 4th of July . . . or Canada Day . . . or just a happy, relaxing weekend!!

Yet Another Hinged Card . . .

This card is going to be a very QUICK "fly-by" . . .

I did this card for TLC222, where Lynn linked my tutorial for how to make these fun little gems! I knew I had to play! Since it was Memorial Day, I was feeling patriotic . . . hence the theme of the card . . .











And here it is opened up . . .

I am not sure exactly when I will post again, as I am in the hospital on a vigil with my family on behalf of my dad. His heart stopped yesterday (he has had heart troubles for many years), and they weren't able to get it started until they arrived at the hospital. We are currently awaiting neurological testing (which won't start until late tonight/early tomorrow) to see if there is significant brain damage, as we are not quite sure how long his brain went without oxygen. Sorry for the personal nature of this post . . . it is just that I appreciate all of you who follow/comment on my blog and I wanted to let you know WHY there may be a lag for a few days. There is an internet connection at the hospital, but for some reason my Mac is not playing nicely with it. I have a few more things I COULD share with you, just not sure I will be able to (I will be doing a lot of sitting/waiting/praying over the next several days, so I am sure if I can get the 'net to cooperate, I will have time to share something with you all).

Thanks to all of you for all of your encouragement and support in everything I do. You are terrific!!

Stamps: Everyday Classics by Papertrey and Patriotic Background by Rubbernecker
Paper: Night of Navy, Real Red, Whisper White
Ink: Night of Navy, Real Red, Whisper White Craft
Accessories: tylized Silver hodegepodge hardware (star brad), 1/2" circle punch, zigzag border punch by EK Success, large and small star punches, red striped ribbon by SU, pop-up glue dots

Snowflake-y Challenge

Well, it was my turn as LSC hostess this last Friday, so I thought I would share the cards I made as samples with all of you!! My darling daughter, Amelia, helped me out once again by making a sample card as well (the red snowflake card is hers!)

Here were the official "rules" that I posted:

1. The only image stamps/embossing you may use are snowflakes. Yup! Only snowflakes (or something that looks like falling snow). No snowmen, snowwomen or anything, just snowflakes! The same goes for patterned paper . . . it must be snowflakes!! (Get the idea?)

2. Your creation must be monochromatic.

3. You need to add some sort of “bling” or sparkle to your card. Stickles, rhinestones, shimmery paper or ribbon . . . make it sparkly!!

4. Last, but certainly not least . . . sentiments may be ONE WORD only!

There were a LOT of fun ideas! Everyone is just sooo creative! Here is a link to the gallery if you want to see what my friends on SCS came up with:

LSC197 - "Let It Snow" Gallery

"Golden Winter" Supply List
Stamps: The Snowflake Spot, Snowfall (Papertrey for sentiment)
Paper: Shimmery brown, Shimmery gold, Very Vanilla
Ink: Gold Encore, Creamy Caramel
Accessories: Gold glitter embossing powder by ClearSnap, pearl sticker, 1 1/4" and 1" circle punches, gold ribbon (Papertrey), Snowflakes embossing folder

"Winter Blues" Supply List
Stamps: Snowflakes, Snowfall Additions (Papertrey)
Paper: Blue Bayou, Soft Sky, Shimmery White
Ink: Blue Bayou, Soft Sky
Accessories: Martha Stewart Arctic Snowflake punch, small oval punch, Spellbinders Labels One dies (S4161), silver ribbon, lt. blue organza ribbon, rhinestone sticker

"Snowing Red" Supply List (Amelia's Card!)
Stamps: Snowfall, Small Script
Paper: Riding Hood Red, Ruby Red, Shimmery White
Ink: Ruby Red, Whisper White
Accessories: Large and small oval punches, Martha Stewart Arctic and Collectible snowflake punches, Emaginations snowflake punch, square rhinestone brad, rhinestone glitter embossing powder, Cuttlebug Snow Dots embossing folder

2008 Christmas Card

I FINALLY figured out what to do for a Christmas card this year! Hooray!!

The most shocking thing of all, though, is that I actually bought a Thomas Kinkade stamp. (I hate to admit it to all the Kinkade lovers out there, but I do NOT care for his art). I knew I was sunk as soon as I saw this AMAZING card by Dawn over on SCS (aka TreasureOiler). It's jaw-droppingly beautiful!!

Dawn's Cracked Cottage

I almost immediately headed on over to Cornish Heritage Farms and bought this image. I think doing these images monochromatically does them much more justice (at least in my mind)! I also got to use my Labels One dies from Spellbinders. LOVE the shape of these!!

Now I just have to make about 60 more of 'em . . . sigh . . .

Stamps: Stonehearth Hutch by Thomas Kinkade, Believe by PTI
Paper: Night of Navy, Shimmery White, Brushed Silver
Ink: Night of Navy
Accessories: Spellbinders Labels One dies (S4161), Cuttlebug Snow Dots embossing folder, navy and shimmery white organza ribbon, large oval punch, Martha Stewart branch punch, pop up glue dots

Featured Stamper?? ME???!!!

Imagine my total amazement and giddiness when my good friend Kathy (hi-ya, girl!!) left a comment on here last night congratulating me for being picked as this week's Featured Stamper on SCS (#92 to be exact!)!! WOW-OH-WOW-OH-WOW!! Somebody PINCH ME!!! I am sooo tickled (man, I DO sound like my mom!! That's a word SHE would use!!)!! Seriously, I feel so totally honored and excited! How much fun it is going to be for me to check out all the lovely creations in the Featured Stamper gallery! Totally stoked doesn't even BEGIN to describe me!!

Here is a card I did for the Limited Supplies challenge (LSC193) on Friday. I totally loved the Snowfall and Snowfall Additions sets when I saw them last month on PTI for their new stamp release. I simply HAD to have them AND all four punches needed that coordinate with the images!! So this is REALLY an expensive card!! I got loved masking off the punched snowflakes and sponging around them. It reflects how I feel, too!!! BRRRRR is right!! It started snowing here already this week, so winter is definitely upon us!!!

I am having a hard time sleeping, as I am super happy about the FS thing! Better go and see if I can grab a few more minutes of shut-eye before I have to get up for real!!

Happy Sunday!!

Stamps: Snowfall, Snowfall Additions by Papertrey
Paper: Perfect Plum, Pale Plum, Elegant Eggplant, Shimmery White
Ink: Pale Plum, Perfect Plum, Elegant Eggplant
Accessories: scallop circle, 1 3/8" and 1 1/4" circle punches, jumbo, extra jumbo and mega snowflake punches by Marvy, silver tinsel ribbon by Papertrey, pop-up glue dots, sponge

Out of the 'Net!

I have been out of town for the last couple of days, and the internet here is more than sketchy. If I sit in the exact right place at the exact right angle and don't breathe or don't move, I can kinda get a connection . . . sometimes . . . if I'm patient . . .

So, I've been trying to put this card up for ya for quite some time! With any luck it'll actually get posted today (which is Saturday, October 18). Sigh . . .

This is officially card #60 in my "Follow the Butteflies" challenge. I can hardly believe that I have made it this far and haven't done the same butterfly twice! My goal is to make it all the way to the end (104!) and not do any repeats. Thanks to the help of friends, I'm gettin' there!

The Ways to Use it Challenge - WT188 - was to incorporate plaid into your card. I was digging and searching all over the place for some plaid paper. Stripes, checkerboard, houndstooth, argyle, polka dots, flowers . . . you name it, I have it . . . 'cept I couldn't find any plaid! I then remembered the old Rubbermaid-type container that I started collecting paper in. Back in the days when scrapbooking was brand new to me (we are talkin' at least 10-11 years, here!). I went and started digging, and hit the mother lode!! Lots of plaid in there, so here is what I came up with. I combined it with this week's sketch challenge - SC198. It's kinda funky, but I think I likey!!

Stamps: Best Yet, Flannel Plaid bg, Butterfly Kisses (Papertrey)
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Bordering Blue, Close to Cocoa, Kraft, Very Vanilla
Ink: Chocolate Chip (Classic & Craft)
Accessories: CM circle cutter, Cuttlebug Just My Type embossing border, pop-up glue dots

Simple, Elegant, Easy & Check It Out!!

I was thrilled last week when I went to my local scrapbook store (aka Roberts) to do a little me-birthday shopping and found that they had nearly ALL of the new Cuttlebug folders IN STOCK@ Hooray!!! (I won't tell you how many I bought!!)

One of the things I knew I HAD to have was this combo diecut/embossing set. The diecuts don't do a lot for me (just a bunch of words), but this embossing folder is lovely! For LSC183 the challenge was to use "something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue." It didn't necessary have to be a wedding card, just had to have something from each of the four "something" elements. This whipped up in a hurry and came out so great.

I have been working like a busy bee since last week trying to prep for a neighborhood street fair that is this Saturday. My friend and I are doing a booth with a LOT of fun things for sale. Please wish me luck! I really hope I don't come home with a lot of extra Christmas presents for friends!! Haven't had much time to create anything else for here, but I WILL be showing you pix of what we made and how our booth looks, so stay tuned . . .

With everything else I have been doing this week, I forgot to remind y'all that THERE SHE GOES is officially open for business!! The stamp sets are so much fun, you are going to LOVE 'em!! Check it out:

There She Goes Stamps

Stamps: Wedding Day (Papertrey)
Paper: Baja Breeze, Not Quite Navy, Whisper White
Ink: Not Quite Navy
Accessories: Cuttlebug Friends Forever ef, stylized silver hodgepodge hardware, clear rhinestone brad, shimmery silver organza ribbon, dimensionals, 1 1/4" circle, 1" circle and designer label punches

Where Did It Go??

I honestly can't believe that summer is nearly OVER!! The kids start school two weeks from today. YIKES!! This has been, without a doubt, the fastest, most crazy, and most travelled summer I have EVER experienced!! What an absolute tornado!!! But, I digress . . .

I tried something totally new yesterday. For TLC181, the challenge was to do a "stained glass" front on your creation. Truth be told I didn't have all the proper "tools" for the job. What???? Can that be right???? Actually, the technique calls for you to stamp an image in StazOn ink (which I do have) onto a piece of acetate (also had that!). Then, using a few drops of Crystal Effects mixed with a little reinker (colors of your choice!), you "paint" the back of the acetate with your new concoction, filling in the lines and creating a beautiful stained glass window. Although I DO have some Crystal Effects, the substance in the bottle was kinda yellow and super thick, so it wasn't going to work for me!! I ended up cheating a bit and using my Copics to color the image in.

I placed a HUGE order with Stampin' Up yesterday, as it was the first day we were allowed to order from the new Fall/Winter catalog (can anyone say $$$???)!! I actually DID remember to order myself some new CE, so I need to try this technique again!!

I love using my Nestabilities to create a "frame." I do it quite often, but not usually with one this big. Makes a great window, don't you think? I placed the pink mat behind the acetate, so you can actually see more of the image that way. And, I borrowed a cute little idea from Nichole Heady of Papertrey . . . I stamped a row of polka dots and bordered it, top and bottom, with a couple of little score lines using my ever-trusty Scor-Pal. Cute, eh? For those who are counting, this makes "Follow the Butterflies" challenge card #51 (see link at right for more info).

I'm off to Girl's Camp a little later today, and won't be back 'til Friday afternoon. I'll post something new then!

Stamps: Doodlewings by Stampendous, Polka Dot Basics by Papertrey
Paper: Brocade Blue, Whisper White, Bordering Blue, So Saffron, Pixie Pink, Acetate
Ink: Black Stazon, Whisper White, various Copic markers
Accessories: Nestabiliites scallop rectangle, Three for You punch, white brads, pink gingham ribbon by Offray, Scor-Pal

Honorable Mention . . . Not Bad!!!!

I was soooo excited when I discovered this morning that a project I submitted to Papertrey for their Guest Star Stamper contest for July had received an honorable mention! Wahoo!!!! I had almost decided NOT to enter this month, as I have been out of town so much and I literally had less than 5 minutes left before the deadline to upload my project onto their website after I had finished it!! Soooo glad I did!

I have been meaning to do a gift like this project for my niece, Gwen, who just got married on May 27. When I saw the Boards and Beams stamp set, I knew that I had found what I needed to complete it (just had to find the TIME to do so!!).

I used my large scallop rectangle Nestabilies to create a mat. Basically, I just took one of the rectangles, started on one end of the Brocade Blue cardstock I had chosen to mat the project, and just kept sliding the die over after each cut with the Wizard, until I had created a large rectangle "hole" for the mat. I then stamped it with the Polka Dot Basics stamp set (also by Papertrey). Nothing else really tricky about this little housewarming gift. The only sad thing was that I lost the little "8" stamp from my Simple Alphabet set (another shout out to PTI!!) after I had stamped everything. It was only when I was cleaning up my "creative" mess that I discovered it missing!! (Insert frowny face here!!)

I'm headed out of town, yet again, to pick up my 17 year old son in Nauvoo, Illinois. He has been playing the bagpipes for a church pageant there for nearly three weeks. I am really excited to go and see him perform and to have a nice, long, cross-country drive (just like the ones my family used to take when I was a little girl). I have some fun books to listen to, a portable DVD player, and of course, my favorite pillow, so I should be all SET!!

I do have a project I am going to try and post while I am on the road at some point. I'll cross my fingers and hope it works!!

Stamps: Boards and Beams, Polka Dot Basics, Simple Alphabet - all by Papertrey; Rough Texture jumbo wheel by SU
Paper: Brocade Blue, Red Riding Hood, Night of Navy, Whisper White
Ink: Pitch Black Adirondak by Ranger, assorted Copic Markers, Brocade Blue, Night of Navy, Ruby Red, Bordering Blue
Accessories: Large Scallop Rectangle Nestablities, red stitched ribbon by Offray, large oval punch by SU, Stamped Cricut Cartridge

Limited Supply Challenges and a Secret!!

Okay, I have some fun news!! I am one of the new Limited Supply Challenge (LSC) hostesses on SCS. I am going to be sharing the honors with Jeanne S. and Dawn Mercedes. We will be on a rotating schedule, with the fourth week being done by a "guest" hostess. I am so excited!!

I hosted my first challenge today (Friday). The LSC's are on Fridays. I actually posted mine Thursday night to give people a little bit of a chance to think about it!!

I made two samples and had my daughter, who is 14 (hi Amelia!), make one!! I was a little nervous about getting the whole thing posted and rolling, but it actually went rather smoothly! I posted a challenge called "Brads are NOT the Pits!" where the challenge was to use brads as your ONLY embellishment (no ribbon, hardware or anything else), and to use the brads as part of the image, not an accent to it. LOTS of fun cards were submitted (and continue to be). Super FUN!!

Here is what I did:

The first card was done with Papertrey's "Honey Bees" set. It is soooo darn cute!! I was trying to think of keeping it simple, yet keeping my interest enough to like the finished product.

Stamps: Honey Bees (Papertrey)
Paper: So Saffron, Basic Black
Ink: So Saffron, Basic Black, Cameo Coral, Soft Sky, Certainly Celery, Wild Wasabi
Accessories: Large and small oval punches, Pebble Brads (Polo) by MM, paper piercing tool

Example #2 was made with "Fabulous Flowers" by SU. That big ol' polka dot brad just makes me smile!! Kind of a funky color combo, but I like it!! i really wanted to add some ribbon to this card, but I just decided to keep trying to change the layout around to a point where I felt it looked good enough to help us forget the lack of ribbon!

Stamps: Fabulous Flowers, Polka Dots, Print Pattern, Small Script
Paper: Tempting Turquoise, Basic Black, Pixie Pink, Summer Sun
Ink: Tempting Turquoise, Pixie Pink, Basic Black
Accessories: Big Pink Polka Dot brad (not sure where it came from!), dimensionals

And HERE is Amelia's card! I am so proud of her!! I thought that this turned out really cute!! She was kind of worried that it looked "Halloween-y" because of the black and orange, but I think it looks great!!

Stamps: It's a Celebration (Papertrey), Groovy Lines
Paper: Basic Black, Only Orange, Green Galore, YoYo Yellow
Ink: Basic Black, Green Galore, YoYo Yellow, Only Orange, Taken with Teal
Accessories: 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" circle punches, small red brads

Now, for some really EXCITING NEWS!! OH WAIT!! I can't tell you!!! I have something REALLY COOL to share with you, but I have to wait 'til some time on SATURDAY, JUNE 28 (which would be TOMORROW) to tell you!!! You'd better come back if you want to know what it is!

Warning . . . Genius at Work!

Well, well, well . . . I have been chatting over the last several days on a thread on PTI's website about "creative spaces." I just HAD to post a link to my blog where I showed off my own lovely space. Here's a link to that entry for those of ya who missed it:

My Little Slice of Heaven

You can see the how BAD it gets when I am using my creative "genius" from this photo, though!! To be fair, I took this after I had spent HOURS creating projects for submission when I was trying to get on Spellbinders' Design Team last fall (thank the lucky stars that I made it!!)! Sad to say, it looks nearly this bad when I have created just ONE card . . .

Having said that, here is the card I made yesterday for SC182. I LOVE creating cards with a sort of "quilt block" background. This officially completes card #44 on my "Follow the Butterflies" challenge (there is a link and a slideshow on the sidebar for more details). I am seriously wondering how my son feels about getting all these "pretty" butterflies? I warned him back at the beginning of this little project that most of the cards were going to be pretty "girlie" since it has hard to make a "buff" butterfly card! Actually, he has told me more than once how much he enjoys getting them, so I don't worry too much about the "loveliness" of the cards any more!!

Stamps: Fluttering By, Petals & Stems (both by Verve Visual), Out on a Limb Sentiments (Papertrey)
Paper: Basic Black, Whisper White, Groovy Guava, Purely Pomegranate
Ink: Purely Pomegranate, Groovy Guava, Soft Sky, Basic Black
Accessories: 1 3/8" square punch, paper piercing tool, photo corners punch, purely pomegrante double stitch ribbon, dimensionals