Subway Art

Hi stampers!  I don't have a card to share today.....I have a 3-D item!  A gift for my awesome friend Rita and her baby Leila...who is due to arrive TODAY!  Yay!  I can't wait to "meet" her.  I know she'll be a sweetie just like her mommy!

Leila's nursery is gray and yellow and I couldn't wait to make her something since those are some of my favorite colors!  While surfing the interwebz (ie....wasting too much time on pintrest) I came across a lot of subway art.  It's VERY popular right now and I thought, "hey, I can do that!"  So, I booted up my My Digital Studio and started to play!

I used a LOT of different downloads....so I won't have the supplies listed as I honestly can't remember what I used, ha!  Sorry!  Basically I just added a whole bunch of stamps and moved them around and re-sized them and colored them until they were the way I liked.  The one mistake I made was to size my project to 8.5 x 11.  Once I got it from the printers I realized I should have left a margin for the edges of the frame.  I'll do that next time but it still turned out cute I think!  I put a little flower on the foxy-fox because Rita always does that:-)  And the bow is simply hot glued!  It was super easy and super cute!  I love MDS!!!

I can't wait for the news that little Laila is here!  Please take a moment to send some positive thoughts her way:-)

Happy stamping!  And happy birthday Laila! ;-)

HSS 124

Hi stampers!  Happy Tuesday! Sadly, I'm back from my Vegas vacation.....but now I'm off to a work conference until Friday....no rest for the weary!  Ha!  But I did manage to make it through my one day of work this week, lol!  Anyway, there wasn't much stamping last week and not shaping up to be any this week either....sad!!!!!  I'm going to try to make up for lost time this weekend though!

Anyway we have a fun theme challenge over at Hand Stamped Sentiments this week!  Quilts!  This challenge kind of makes me think of my granny!  She made us lots of quilts!

And here's my card:

Stampin' Supplies:
Stamps:  Little additions, sweet essentials
Paper:  Whisper white, crumb cake, early espresso, neutrals & in colors 2012-2014 DSP stacks
Ink: Early espresso, primrose petals, Summer starfruit

It's going to be a breif blog post....my brain was still on vacation and I totally forgot what day it was so here I sit VERY very late and I didn't sleep good last night (I blame vacation for this too, lol) so I'm pooped!  And I need to rest up for my next trip...and to spend four days with my momma, hehe!  Make sure to check out what the rest of the design team came up with and them play along!

Happy stamping and good night, hehe!

SHUTTHEFRONTDOOR!

Hi stampers!  Sorry about the shouty title but I have super exciting news!  Probably the most exciting stampy news ev-ah!  I found out this week that I've made the list of 20 finalists for the Artisan Award Design Team for Stampin' Up!!!!  Gah!!!!  I am shut-the-front-door and over-the moon excited!  And I apologize for not announcing it sooner but we have been in Vegas:-) So, it was super exciting to get the call in Vegas!  I'm still in SHOCK that they picked me as I feel very unworthy seeing the other finalists!  What a group!  I'm so excited but a little sad that some of my friends who are AWESOME-SAUCE aren't on the list with me!  But my good friend Wendy is...you can read how it went down over on her blog here.  It was kinda funny:-)  I really don't remember much of the call or what the VERY sweet lady said as I was freaking out!  I'm just glad we happened to be in our room instead of out on the strip or in the casino where I probably wouldn't have heard the phone:-)  I thought I'd try my luck at the slots after I got the call....seems my luck had run out, lol!

Anyway I've already gotten a lot of comments and congratulations and I want to thank everyone for their kind words:-)  Of course I really want to win but it's really just an honor to make the finals and again, I'm very in awe of all the talent on that short list!  It's going to be a long wait to find out the winners at convention!  I can't wait to share my projects with you but I can't just yet....so you'll have to suffer along with me and the rest of the finalists, hehe!

I can show you this card though!  I figured I'd show you a simple one after all the shouty up there...and I'm tired...I need a vacation from my vacation, lol!

Stampin' Supplies:
Stamps:  Made for you
Paper:  Whisper white, baja breeze, midnight muse, patio party DSP
Ink:  Midnight muse
Accessories:  Circle punch, subtles brads, baker's twine

I've been meaning to make one of these circle banner cards for a while and since I just can't seem to get enough of the patio party DSP......well I had no choice did I?  It was quite simple to just fold the circles over.  I used mini glue dots to keep them in place and before I adhered them I made sure to crease them really good with my bone folder.

Well, I need to rest up!  I'm home for two days and then off for a work conference!  Not very good timing on my part!  I'll try to post again soon!

Happy stamping!

HSS 123

Hi stampers!  Happy Tuesday!  Sorry I have been kind of quiet lately!  I've got a couple of very busy weeks ahead so I've been stamping but not really for fun....I've been trying to get all my design team cards done ahead of time since I won't have much time for stamping.  But that means I can't share very many of them right away though...sorry!!!!!

Anyway, I can share one of them since it's a new challenge over at Hand Stamped Sentiments!  This week is all about paper pleating!  I used a really simple tutorial over on Splitcoast Stampers.  They have a great resources section that has ALL KINDS of neat techniques!

I'm really obsessed with make a cake and the patio party DSP...I've used it yet again....sorry if you're getting sick of it but the set is cute and I LOVE the colors and patterns in the paper!  The butterfly print is probably my fave!!!!

Stampin' Supplies:
Stamps:  Make a cake, sweet essentials
Paper:  Whisper white, baja breeze, midnight muse, patio party DSP
Ink:  Summer starfruit, primrose petals, midnight muse
Accessories: Border punch, primrose petals satin stitched ribbon
The pleating is hard to see in the picture but it's really cute...actually surprised myself how cute it turned out, ha!  The tutorial over on SCS was super easy and kind of genius....I had done pleating before and really struggled.  I did manage to mess this one up a bit but you really couldn't tell unless you were looking for it!

Now head on over and see what everyone else at HSS did and play along!

I'll try to post again soon but it may be a bit....but I'll be back....I promise:-)

Happy stamping!

Everything Eleanor

Hi stampers! What's better than stamping?  Stamping with FREE stamps of course:-)  Today I have a card for you that I got for FREE!  How?  Well being a demo has it's perks and based on our sales during SAB we can earn free stamp sets!  What are you waiting for?  Sign up with the new $99 starter kit, pick your whole kit...it's totally customizable and start earning money and free stamps and stuff!!! :-) Ok, enough of that!

But really, stamping is sweeter with free stamps!  I got this new set with my SAB rewards and hadn't inked it up yet.  Well, I ran across the color challenge this week at Dynamic Duos and knew it was perfect! 

And I love this combo...I love pink and I love gray sooooo.....

Stampin' Supplies:
Stamps:  Everything Eleanor, fabulous phrases
Paper:  Whisper white, basic gray, regal rose
Ink:  Basic gray, regal rose
Accessories:  Basic pearls, illuminate accent ink, dazzling details, stripes embossing folder

Sorry the picture is a bit crooked...not sure what happened, lol!  Now, this card took a while because I was multi-tasking and watching TV and totally stamped the background accent in regal rose and cut them out!  Gah!  And that is why I should not watch stupid shows like the Bachelorette, ha!  I stamped one flower full strength and then the other one is stamped off once.  It's hard to see in the photo but the brighter flower has dazzling detail accents and the lighter one has accents with the smooch illuminate ink.  Lots of fussy cutting too...now I remember why I try not to do that too much! 

Happy stamping!

HSS 122

Hi stampers!  Happy Tuesday!  It's time for a fun new challenge at Hand Stamped Sentiments again this week!

I have to say that I was kind of scared of this challenge when I saw it....

I had a card already started with a bird....just a regular old bird because I didn't have a peacock...and I was sad:(  BUT then I remembered that I ordered fine feathers on June 1 and it had a peacock feather in it!  I LOVED the sample in the catalog for this set and there is just something about it that I had to have it! I was so excited that I came up with this!

Stampin' Supplies:
Stamps:  Fine feathers, lovely little labels, loving thoughts, parlor prints
Paper:  Very vanilla, soft suede, midnight muse
Ink:  Soft suede, old olive, tempting turquoise, midnight muse
Accessories:  Chantilly crochet trim (retired), little labels punch pack, oval accent bigz die, labels collection framelits, basic rhinestones

Peacock feather colors are so yummy!  I had to google them though to find out which colors went where:-)  I do wish I'd added some more green throughout the brown or at least on the edges...oh well...next time!  I also added a little accent with the new punch pack and cute little stamp set.  Those are so fun and tiny!!!

Now, head on over to HSS and see what everyone else came up with and then play along!  Remember, you can use any old bird if you don't have a peacock!!!  :-)

Happy stamping!

Fresh piece of cake!

Hi stampers!  Happy Monday!  I don't have a mailable card today...just didn't get one made over the weekend....sorry:-)  But I have a fun card none the less!  I played over at Freshly Made Sketches this week!
 

I actually started out the card I showed you yesterday using this sketch but as often happens...the card took on a mind of it's own and I didn't follow the sketch exactly as I had wanted to.  So....try, try again:-)  You're probably getting tired of make a cake already but I can't stop using it!  It's so cute....and I just love the patio party DSP and the colors!  Since pool party debuted I haven't used baja breeze much but this DSP has brought back my love for it!

Stampin' Supplies:
Stamps:  Make a cake, sweet essentials
Paper:  Whisper white, crumb cake, primrose petals, midnight muse, patio party DSP
Ink:  Baja breeze, primrose petals, midnight muse
Accessories:  Primrose petals stitched satin ribbon, dotted scallop border punch, argyle embossing folder.

I also used a cute new sentiment from sweet essentials!  I love the font and cute little sayings!    I also used  the new argyle embossing folder!  There's just so much fun stuff right now I don't know where to begin most days when I sit down to stamp, ha!

Happy stamping!

Blooming with kindess

Hi stampers!  Darn this stamp set!   Darn blooming with kindness!!!!  I TRIED....tried SO HARD to resist this stamp set but alas I just couldn't!!!!!  I told myself I didn't need another flower stamp.....but I did!  I did need this set!  There was just something about it:-)  It kept finding it's way onto my wish list and ack....made it in the box for my first order;-)

I am glad I got it because I came up with this card!

Stampin' Supplies:
Stamps:  Blooming with kindness
Paper:  Very vanilla, soft suede, midnight muse, summer starfruit
Ink:  Midnight muse, summer starfruit
Accessories:  Finishing touches edgelits, midnight muse stitched satin ribbon, vintage faceted designer buttons, linen thread

OMG!  So many things on this card I just LOVE!!!  First off the stamp set of course but I finally broke into my comfort cafe DSP, it's soooo pretty!  I love the patterns and colors!  I also used the new edgelits that are totally cute too!  And I love the satin ribbon....especially in the midnight color.  I never use much navy/dark blue but that's changing!  This color is so rich and pretty!  My favorite thing on the whole card is that little button!  I was so excited to get the faceted vintage buttons.  They are SO pretty!  I want to put them on everything!  They kind of look like old fashioned door handles....love, love, love!

Happy stamping!

Happy hour!

Hi stampers!  More new stuff for you today!  I used the happy hour set again last night for this simple but fun card!  It's the only thing I got stamped last night because I decided to FINALLY organize the closet in my new studio....when I moved into my new room I got it pretty much functional and quit moving and organizing, lol!  And every time I had time to clean I chose to stamp instead...can you really blame me?  But the closet was spilling out well into the room so I had to do something about it!  I really was waiting because we need to take another trip to Ikea for more storage stuff....so now I'll have to organize all over again after we go but at least I can see the floor, lol!  Now, let's see if I can get motivated after that to move the rest of my stuff in that's in *cough* two rooms.....

I also culled through my stamp sets and pulled a BUNCH out to get rid of...which is a big deal for a hoarder....I mean collector like myself!  I hope to get organized soon and have a sale both in real life and post here. So, be on the lookout!

Now on to the card!  I used three of my most favorite things:  summer starfruit, happy hour, and the chevron embossing folder!  I have been on a very clean and simple kick so this falls right in line.....

Stampin' Supplies:
Stamps: Happy hour
Paper:  Whisper white
Ink:  Summer starfruit, rich razzleberry
Accessories:  Apothecary accents framelits, chevron embossing folder, brights brads

I just love that folder, it's so yummy!!!!  I DO really wish we had a trellis folder and/or background stamp kind of like the pattern in the wine glass!!!  THAT would be ah-mah-zing!!!!  It's so trendy right now I and I just love trellis pattens...and chevrons and polka dots...and....:-)

Hopefully I can get lots of things stamped this weekend!

Happy stamping!

No Peeking!

Hi stampers!  Oh....ok, you can peek!  I have a card for you today using one of my favorite new sets in the new catalog!  I told myself I wouldn't buy any Christmas stamps until I'd seen the Holiday Seasonal Catalog (which I get to do Tuesday....ah the perks of being a demo....if YOU would like to get your own early sneak peeks check out the NEW LOWER PRICE and totally customizable starter kit!!!!) since I tend to order everything in the mini's, lol!  BUT, then I ran into the No Peeking set and I HAD to have it!  It is so stinking cute and I love the fonts as well!  I love it so much that it's going to be one of the very FEW swaps I do for convention!

And a good friend of mine over on SCS was wondering if I'd stamped with it yet...and I hadn't...oh the shock, the horror!!!  :-)  I was short on mojo this week and pretty much everything I made looked the same (and I wasn't thrilled with many if any of the cards I made) so I sat down last night determined to one, use the No Peeking set and two, use colors other than baja, starfruit, and primrose, ha!  And I finally came up with something I really liked!  Yay!

Stamps:  No Peeking, petite pairs
Paper:  Whisper white, soft suede, riding hood red, lucky limeade, 2011-2013 in colors DSP stack
Ink:  Soft suede
Accessories:  Chevron embossing folder, modern label punch, basic pearls

The layout is based loosely on an older sketch from Try Stamping On Tuedays and I just LOVE the new chevron embossing folder!  It's SO trendy and fun!  Also, I have the new ink pads in the neutrals (regals and subtles are on backorder but should be on the way soon) and can you see how amazing that little deer is stamped in soft suede!  The new pads are soooooo yummy and fabulous! 

Happy stamping!

Raspberry Cheers!

Hi stampers!  I've got more new catalog stuff to show today!  You'll have to excuse the colors...they are very similar to yesterday's post...I'm kind of stuck in a color rut!  I can't seem to use any other colors!  I've actually really struggled in general to create the past few days or even the past week or so!  You'd think that will all these new goodies I'd have mojo out the wa-zoo but not so much.  My work schedule changes in the summer and I think I'm still adjusting to that and add to the fact that I'm in a totally different office this week doing a totally different job than I usually do and maybe that's part of it!  I'm hoping to get in the swing of things soon and hopefully I can get the creativity flowing!

Anywho....I couldn't wait to get my hands on the new happy hour set!  It's so cute!  Now, I'm not a big drinker or anything:-)  I like a tasty drink now and then (especially the fun colored ones that come in funky glasses like this set) but I'm getting too old to have too many..not fun the next day!!! :-)  I don't know how people in Vegas drink those big yard long drinks (can you tell I'm excited about vacation, lol)! They are so big...so not only would I not be able to stand let alone walk after one (or part of one) but I don't think I could consume that much liquid!  And then I'd have to make a pit stop every 10 minutes, lol!  But, like I said, this set is super cute!  I love how each glass has a fun and modern pattern in it! 

I kept this card simple and used my new DSP stack for the new in colors in keeping with the polka dots:

Stampin' Supplies:
Stamps:  Happy hour
Paper:  Whisper white, summer starfruit
Ink:  Summer starfruit, raspberry ripple
Accessories:  Modern label punch, summer starfruit stitched satin ribbon

I also love all the little accents in the set like the little citrus slice.  They make the little drinks so fun!  The fonts are fun too!

Ok, now I want a fruity drink, hehe!

Happy stamping!

Stampin' Celebration

Hi stampers!  Boy was it a happy day around here yesterday!  My order from the new 2012-2013 came!  I got to drool over everything at lunch and then play with it after dinner and my workout!  I even got some of my stamps ready to go over lunch!  I also planned ahead and put dinner in the crock pot;-)  I always try to do that on order days, haha! My hubby asked me if I got my order and I said yeah to which he replied, "see you in the morning then"!  LOL!  I guess he knows me pretty well, haha!

I love getting new stuff but usually have a hard time figuring out what to use first!  I decided to break into make a cake first since I was anxious to get my hands on that one and was sad it wasn't in the pre-order....it was in a SAB special that I didn't earn so it was hard to wait, lol!  So,  I inked it up and broke into the patio party DSP and came up with this!

Stampin' Supplies:
Stamps:  Make a cake, made for you
Paper:  Whisper white, midnight muse, primrose petals, summer starfruit
Ink:  Midnight muse, primrose petals, summer starfruit
Accessories:  Perfect pennants die

OHMYGOODNESS!  That cake set is just so cute and I love the colors and prints in the DSP!  Obviously I love this pattern because I love polka dots and starfruit is my fave color right now!  And surprisingly I'm really liking midnight muse as well!

I didn't get a whole lot else stamped because it looked like a tornado had torn apart my stamp room so I had to clean up!  My DSP area was especially out of control!!!  Now that it's neater hopefully I'll be more creative tonight!  I'll try to be back soon with more new stuff!

Happy stamping!

Creating with Connie & Mary....again!

Hi stampers!  This is post number two for today so if you're looking for the Hand Stamped Sentiments challenge keep scrolling!

But I have a special announcement!  I'm a guest designer for Create with Connie & Mary again for their New Catalog 2012 Edition!  I had so much fun with them last go round and I'm excited to be part of it again!  If you click that link up there you can get your ticket....and early bird pricing!  Only $24.95 for five weeks of fabulous projects!!!  I'll be featured during the week of July 15th and I have a SUPER cute project for you.  So go ahead and sign up so you don't miss it AND all the other fabulous tutorials!  Hurry before the special pricing runs out and use the five bucks you saved to by more stamps from the new catalog;-) 

I have a little sneak peek of sorts for you today....this card features something that you'll see in my project but I'm not telling what it is!  You'll have to sign up and see exactly what I mean;-)

Stampin' Supplies:
Stamps:  Betsy's blossoms, fabulous phrases
Paper:  Whisper white, tangerine tango
Ink:  Tangerine tango, rich razzleberry, daffodil delight
Accessories:  2.5" circle punch, lucky limeade ruffled ribbon, in color polka dot printed brads, prefect pennant die, bitty banners framelits

I left a lot of white space since I used such bright colors!  I also used the rock and roll technique on the flower! I inked up in daffodil first then rolled the edges in tangerine.  I sponged the edges as well just to make it pop a bit more!

Now head on over to Create with Connie & Mary and sign up for the New Catalog Edition 2012!!!  You know you want to;-)

Happy stamping!

HSS 121

Hi stampers!  Happy Tuesday!  It's challenge time over at Hand Stamped Sentiments!  This week is a color challenge...my FAVE!  And it uses a favorite color combo of mine too!  Yellow and gray!!!!

Yellow and gray are all the rage right now and I've always loved gray...my mom used to get mad at me when shopping because she said I needed color, lol!  But gray is a color, right? :-)

Stampin' Supplies:

Stamps:  Keep calm

Paper:  Whisper white, basic gray daffodil delight, brights DSP stack

Ink:  Basic gray classic and craft

Accessories:  apothecary accents framelits, bitty banner framelits, striped daffodil ribbon (retired), clear embossing powder, basic rhinestones, polka dot embossing folder

It's hard to see but the main image is stamped on one of the cut outs from the new framelits.  I just cut the bottom tab off to fit the sentiment.  I love the way it turned out!  You can't see well in the picture but I embossed the crown so it's really shiny!  I just love this set!!!!

Make sure you check out what the rest of the design team made and play along with us!

Happy stamping!

PS..there are two posts today so make sure you check out the second one!

Mailable Mondy - Gumball Green

Hi stampers!  Where did another weekend go?  Since it's Monday, it's time for another mailable card!  This card uses a color combo that I got from the color coach!  The creative combination for gumball green uses so saffron and mambo melon.

I used an old sketch from inkspirations (I sure do miss that challenge site) and came up with this fun card:

Stampin' Supplies:
Stamps:  Best of everything, friendly phrases, distressed dots
Paper:  Whisper white, so saffron, melon mambo, gumball green
Ink:  So saffron, melon mambo, gumball green
Accessories:  Circle punch, perfect pennant die, gumball green stitched satin ribbon, dazzling details

I stamped the bird twice and then cut out of of the wings and popped it up on dimensionals and then used some dazzling details on the wing for some sparkle.  It was pretty simple!

I should hopefully have some things to share made with new catalog stuff in a few days!

Happy stamping!

Colorful comfort

Hi stampers!  I had a busy day today doing a lot of nothing (working out, shopping, a pedicure, dinner) so I didn't sit down to stamp until late!  And I'm coming in just under the wire again for the Colour Q Challenge!  I thought it was really pretty this week!

I didn't have an idea when I sat down but after looking at some of my stamp sets I settled on Lean on me.  I haven't watercolored in a while and it was fun!  I was wishing I had some of the new sets from the new catalog to work with....but they will be here soon enough, right? :-)  Anyway, I kept it simple and used some retired stuff...because...well....because it's here:-)

Stampin' Supplies:
Stamps:  Lean on me
Paper:  Watercolor, crumb cake, night of navy
Ink:  Staz-on, crumb cake, bashful blue, rich razzleberry, night of navy
Accessories:  Labels collection framlits, polka dots embossing folder, rich razzleberry striped ribbon, blashful blue taffeta ribbon

And I'm getting sleepy so I think it's time to sign off:-)

Happy stamping!

Happy New Catty Day!!!!

Hi stampers!  I'm running a bit late today but........happy new catalog day!!!  Yay!!!!  You can now get your hands on all the goodness of the new in colors and all the other new stuff!  There's always some fabulous new promos!  You can find them on my website HERE!  Make sure to scroll and see BOTH promos, ok?  And click HERE for the catalog!

I haven't submitted my order yet....I will...and it's a big one...eek!!!

So, I know you're probably tired of some of the pre-order sets so I have something old and something new for you today:-)  I used an older stamp set but some new colors and the new framelit!  Well, one new color....midnight muse...it's so pretty!  And very manly....so I went for a manly look with this one!  Excuse the crooked picture...not sure what happened!

Stampin' Supplies:
Stamps:  Daring adventure, distressed dots, netting
Paper:  Whisper white, island indigo, lucky limeade, midnight muse
Ink:  Lucky limeade, island indigo, midnight muse (markers & pads)
Accessories:  In-color designer printed brads, labels collection framelits

It's a pretty simple card and I love the bold colors!  Don't look too hard because I think I didn't quite get my sentiment straight when I ran it through the big shot.  Lucky for me, the man in my life really isn't all the into the details;-)

Don't forget to go look at those promos and the new catalog!  Let me know if I can help in any way, ok???!!!

Happy stamping (and maybe shopping, hehe)!