A new group and new challenges!

I just joined a new group on Paper Craft Planet called Scrap Crafts. The lady who is in charge, Jan Rogers, invited a bunch of people to join her group. Before I committed, I looked at what the interests were and the type of things that she would be doing, and I signed right up! This is exactly what I have been looking for! I'm so tired of the cutesy, cookie cutter looks on Splitcoast. This is completely different! Take these first two challenges for instance. The first one was to make something with cardboard. You would NEVER see that on Splitcoast! And if anyone put anything on there that wasn't a superstar, no one would comment on it either. But here, we can be encouraged to try new things, and I for one am all ready for it!!! The second challenge was to make a Christmas card without using Christmas colors. That was easy! I just went to pink!

So, anyway, on to my creations! The first picture is the cardboard challenge. I chose to cover a coaster that I got at Chili's, and make it into a magnet.

And here's the second challenge. A Christmas card without using Christmas colors!

So, my first two challenges are done! I did both within an hour! No big deal!

Can't wait to see what the next challenge is!

Happy Stamping!!!

One last thing to add, and the whole kit and caboodle!

I couldn't stop! I had to keep going! When I was a Party Lite Consultant, every time I had a show, I would make a little bag topper and place 4 tealights in a bag, and that would be my little gift to the hostess for having the party. So, I love making those, and they take seriously 5 minutes! Depending upon how detailed you want to get!

So, to tie everything together, well, excluding the planner because it's just not Christmassy, I threw this in there, and now the gift is complete! Grand total? Well, who knows! I didn't have to go shopping for any of this, so that's a very cool thing! It's amazing what we have collected over time that's just waiting for us to find it again and make it into something cool!

So, this next picture is all of it together.

Enough, right?!

I'm off to go to bed! I'm creatively exhausted!

Happy Stamping!!!

Another thing to add to the overall gift

So, when you look at this, does it remind you of a clipboard? It is! Haha! Did I trick you?! I worked and worked to get that top hinge off, and after using my wire cutters as a wrench and my eyelet hammer, I succeeded! Woohoo! Never underestimate what a girl can do with tools! Even the wrong ones! LOL!

I asked my sister and my friend what else I could add to this gift, and my sister, who I'm sorry to say, isn't into crafts like I am, and came up with nothing. But, my friend said to look around my room and there's got to be SOMETHING that I can use! She was right! I have a whole bunch of clipboards waiting to be used! I found some cool paper in my Luxury Stack by DCWV, and added some lace and ribbon, and a whole lot of buttons! The stamps are from Inkadinkadoo purchased at JoAnn's. I had some coasters that I wasn't using, again, waiting to be used, and I thought I could just stick it on here. I embossed the outside of it to add some detail. I had never done this sort of thing before, but hey, it worked! And what was really funny, was that yesterday, when I was trying to come up with a good idea for the cards I made, I stamped the JOY, and then set them aside hoping I could use it in another project. And I think it's the perfect addition to the bottom of this board! I had to hide the top metal part of the board so I just started adhering buttons and ribbon. I ran my vellum background and bird through my xyron and then adhered right onto the paper. No glue to see through the vellum. It works perfectly! I'll never use regular glue again! All of the buttons have been adhered by glue dots. Crystal Effects just couldn't hold them on there.

So.....what do you think????? Classy enough?

I hope I achieved the look I was striving for!

Happy Stamping!!!

Christmas cards and gift

I am making a gift for a Christmas party this weekend. I want this gift to be classy, so perhaps the receiver might ask for more cards at a later time! One can only hope!!!!

So, I created this card and planner. I know they don't go together, but I couldn't put Christmas on a planner when it would be used throughout the year. Thus the Kitchen Sink roses. Here's the kicker. What do I make to go with this stuff? I feel like I need more to go with it! Maybe it's just me, but I always like to give in abundance! And of course, this is no exception! Maybe just an ornament? Give me your opinion!!!!! I wanted to make a little bookmark to mark your place in your planner so you don't have to flip to the right month. I just received my Pretties Kit, and thought that the rhinestone would be perfect in a paperclip! Functional yet classy!

Thanks for stopping by!

Have a great day!

Happy Stamping!!!

Simply Scrappin' Kit

Just recently I purchased an old Simply Scrappin' Kit from my demonstrator who was trying to get rid of some stuff. I loved this paper when it first came out. Now I know why it was retired! I'm having a hard time making some decent cards. Please tell me what you think of these!!!!

Have a great day!

Happy Stamping!!!

Thank you cards in 10 minutes!

Hi all! I'm sorry I haven't been on in a while. I had surgery on my finger, so stamping was a little difficult for a few days! And then Thanksgiving came along and there goes all my free stamping time!

So, I'm finally getting back into the swing of things!

I was asked to make some sample thank you cards. I need to make quite a few of these, so I wanted to keep them simple so execution didn't take months and months to complete!

For this card, I used All Holidays for the sentiment, and Garden Silhouettes for the flowers in the background. I used my Scor-Pal for the grid lines. And then organdy ribbon to complete the look.

For this card, I wanted to make this super simple, so I pulled out Toile Blossoms, and Many Thanks from one of the All Year Cheers. At the top, I screwed the holes up for the brads. I put them too close together, so I had to improvise!

And for this last card, I used Sahara Sand and Ruby Red. The swirl which is from Priceless is stamped in Always Artichoke. I did some faux sweing along the bottom, with my paper piercer and new gel pen from MFT! The flower is from Best Blooms, I think! I'll have to doublecheck that....

Thanks for stopping by!

Have a wonderful day!

Happy Stamping!!!

So Sorry!

I had to make two sorry cards today. I screwed up at work, a miscommunication on my part, coming in at the wrong time, so I felt like I needed to get back into the good graces of the managers. So, I made two sorry cards. The first one I made uses Garden Silhouettes. I LOVE this set! I use it ALL THE TIME! It has a permanent place on my desk! The second card uses Kitchen Sink Stamps Hearts and Roses. Maria of Kitchen Sink Stamps made a beautiful sympathy card and posted it on her blog. She stamped roses as if it was her background paper! What a genius idea! I always want to highlight them, or make them stand out. By using them as a background, she made them stand out a different way! Go over and check it out!!!

Have a wonderful day!

Happy Stamping!!!

VSN submissions!

Well, I can finally unveil my VSN creations! I hate keeping secrets! And not that my stuff is FABULOUS, but I still like to show it off as much as the next person! And you can view all the details on my Splitcoast Gallery.

So, in order of appearance, here they are!

A Chorus Line! - 3 images in a row

I Wanna Be A Rockstar! - create an album cover

Can't Stop the Beat! - Thumping technique

Striptease! - Create a card where something can be removed!

Busby Girls - Create a card with dimensions

Standing In the Spotlight - make a spotlight card

See Your Name In Lights! - make a name plate

La Vie En Rose - create a card with pink flowers

Cinch It Up! - create a card with lacing

Lights, Colors....Moulin Rouge! - create a card using specific colors of the Moulin Rouge still pictures.

Belly Dancing! - Create a shaker card

Ring of Fire! - create a card with animals

La Cage Aux Follies - Create a masculine card with feminine items

Cameo Appearance - create a card with a cameo type image

White Christmas - create a Christmas card for the troops

Flowers For Me?! - create a card using the Dahlia Fold

And the only one that's not on there is my challenge card! Haha! I don't have it with the rest of my uploads. I'll get it on there tomorrow. It's too late! I have to be at work in a few hours!

See you tomorrow night!

Happy Stamping!!!

Virtual Stamp Night!!!! It's FINALLY here!!!!

Come to the Cabaret over on Splitcoast tonight and tomorrow!

It starts tonight at 6pm EST and continues until 11pm which will be the last challenge of the evening. Then it starts again tomorrow at 12pm EST and goes until 11pm for the last challenge.

MY CHALLENGE is at 1pm tomorrow!

So come on over and have some fun with us!

If you've never been to VSN, what are you waiting for?! The purpose of VSN: To gather together virtually and stamp the night away! Or, in this case, the weekend! This way you can gab and stamp and have all your supplies at your fingertips!

Each challenge is 45 minutes long. So, at the beginning of each hour, a new challenge will be posted. You then have 45 minutes to complete it. Then in the time remaining, you can post it to the gallery for that particular challenge, post a link in the challenge thread and maybe even have time to comment on other challenge submissions!

Make sure that when you upload your challenge submissions, that you use the correct keyword which is located in the challenge description. This way your card will be placed in the proper gallery!

Come on over and visit us at the Cabaret! Come and make new friends! Come and expand your creative horizons!

Happy Stamping!!!

Blog Candy! Not here, though! Sorry!

My new friend, Heather Schlatter, is having a HUGE Blog candy extravaganza on her blog here
http://heathersheavinlystampations.blogspot.com/. She has hit 5,000 hits since she started her blog just 7 short weeks ago! I think it took me several months to hit that milestone. So, congrats to Heather! Go on over and see how you could win some really cool stuff!!!!!

As for my blog, as soon as VSN starts, I can start posting my creations. Then, next week, I'll start back to posting a card pretty much every day. I've been all consumed with VSN, and making stuff like a mad woman! You really need to be a part of VSN (Virtual Stamp Night) on Splitcoast! It's SO much fun, and all the ladies there are so awesome and wonderful and helpful! You'll love it and be hooked! Like me! :)

So head on over there and get your shopping list and we're gonna have a blast on Friday and Saturday! Woo hoo!

Happy Stamping!!!!

An early Christmas gift!

Can you recognize this bottle? It's something yummy to drink! A Starbucks Frappuccino!!!! Yum-a-licious!

I saved this bottle, thinking that I would use it for something at some point! And that time has come! I will be putting mints in here to complete the gift.

I used Christmas paper from either last year or the year before! I sponged Blue Bayou all around the edges. I used an oval nestibility to make a window. The snowflakes are from the Snowflake collection that My Favorite Things had sold earlier this fall.

Thanks for stopping by!

Have a great day!

Spooooky Treats!

Just wanted to share my spooooky treat that I made for my son's school Halloween party this afternoon. A dirt cemetery! I dipped marshmallows in gray icing. Then once they were dry a little bit, I "wrote" on them. Then, I stuck peep ghosts in there and the topping is done! The inside is just choc. pudding, whip cream, dirt, and then choc. pudding, whip cream and dirt on top. I put green sprinkles on to signify grass.

Hope you all have a wonderful Halloween!
This blog will be different tomorrow!
Different music, different layout!

Enjoy a day of sweets!

VSN MINI!

Last night was VSN MINI on Splitcoast, and what fun we had! If you haven't had a chance to participate, you still have until Nov. 9th to get stampin'! So get to it!!!!

One of the challenges was Moulin Rouge! There are several dresses that Nicole Kidman wore in the movie, that you could fashion your card after. I chose to make a purse, instead! If you know me, you would know that I am a rebel and can't do the same thing that everyone else is doing. And apparently that goes into all of my creations as well!

To make this purse, I ran a piece of choc. chip cardstock through my cuttlebug with the largest scallop circle nestibility, and then ran it through again w/ a paisley folder. I glued rhinestones on all the scallops, and attached some choc. ribbon to make the strap. Then, I took a very thin paintbrush and applied bleach in all the valleys of the paisley pattern. Here's the dress I was going after when designing this purse. The scallops and rhinestones are supposed to be the headdress she wore.

This card was made for my friend Karolyn's (SCS - Garkarlon) challenge: Emerging Color. Well, I technically did it right, but it doesn't look right, so I'm going to try this again! I stamped my sentiment onto acetate and adhered it behind the old olive oval.

This fabulous Christmas decoration was made for the scraps challenge. I made this one last, and I almost didn't make it! Gasp! Me, not do a challenge! So, I just used the fabric from a card below, as well as fluffy trim that I used for Christmas bags from last year (I bought too much! So glad I did! I knew I would find a use for it!) I punched leaves from Martha's leaf punch, added some berriers, and some lace, and wha la! The hat pin doesn't really match, but I don't have the Pretties Kit yet, so this has to suffice until I get it! The idea for the layout is from the accordian card from another challenge below!

This card was made as a two-fer! 1. For my cousin. 2. Another challenge! This one is like an onion. Or like Shrek! It has lots of layers! 5 to be exact! The last layer is acetate (I know, I cheated!) ;)

And this frame is another two-fer! 1. My friend who, after years and years of trying, is pregnant with a little boy! Woo hoo! So, I wanted to make her something personalized, and what better way than a frame! I LOVE to decorate frames! I wish I could make more! and 2. The challenge was to decorate your "star". Well, the star that will go in this picture is still developing his good looks! ;)

This card was made for a challenge where we made accordian cards! Very cool technique! Once I saw the tutorial, I was no longer intimidated! Piece of cake!!!! This paper is from The Rockstar stack, and the top layer actually is the star paper below it, just turned over. Then I colored in the paper w/ pencil so that the embossed stars came out. I just wrote the sentiment, thinking along the lines with the High School stack with handwritten doodling. I guess it works?!

And last, but certainly not least! My 20's flapper dress! The challenge was to make a card using fringe, feathers, or a boa. I had to be different, and decided to make an actual dress! I used fluffy trim for fringe on the bottom. I strung some pearls for a long necklace with wire. I also added metallic pearls as a detail for the fluffy trim!

Thanks for stamping by!

And get over to Splitcoast and do those challenges!!!!

They will inspire you to create something beautiful!

Happy Stamping!!!

Vintage Birthday

My friend just celebrated her birthday this weekend, and so I made her a birthday card. We have both decided to try our hand at vintage. Whether it's making cards and/or projects or for home decor, we are expanding our creative horizons and branching out! What fun!!!! The other night, I went shopping and bought 5 yards of different types of lace! I was so excited!!! I couldn't wait to come home and get crafting!

This is the first card I made w/ lace. This type of card may seem totally out of my realm of creativity, but I was extremely pleased with the result! We'll see what else I can come up with!

The Eiffel Tower and postage are from Crafty Secrets and SU!. The sentiment is from SU!. Paper is Bella Rose and Pink Pirouette.

Thanks for stamping by!

Have a great day!

GPS gone wrong!

This card was made for this week's My Favorite Things Who's That Girl? challenge, using Going Places. I decided, since I'm still in the Halloween mood (just look at this blog!) and my mind is still on the Wicked theme, so I might as well run with it!

The other part of the challenge was to use eyelets. Well, I thought it said brads, so I added bat brads to the sky, and then after submitting my card did I find out that it said eyelets! DUH! So, I had to think about what I could incorporate eyelets on. I figured I would just make flowers. And I put the eyelets in backwards on purpose so that when the eyelets split, it looks like the middle of the flower that kind of blossoms out! Cool, huh?!

I titled this GPS gone wrong, because I think that her broom's internal GPS is broken, and that's why she had to land in Oz on the yellow brick road! Hey, creative thought process, what can I say!

Have a stamptastic day!

Eeeeeeek! A furry spider!!!!

I made this card for a few reasons. 1. I needed to make a few cards for my Stamp Club swap. 2. Jen del Muro is hosting this week's The Cat's Pajamas Tuesday challenge. And it was black and white. So, I had to do that too! It just was too cool! I don't usually do things in just black and white and gray. So, I decided to test out my new Spiderweb cuttlebug folder and see what I could come up w/. Now, when coming up w/ swap ideas, I have to think of the best thing that I could make that would top anyone else's cards. I know that sounds SO selfish and vain, but I am SUPER competitive! I have to have the best, and I have to be the best. Usually, it doesn't happen, but I have to aim high. I would though, like to take a moment, to thank Splitcoaststampers.com because I don't think I would be making the kinds of things I'm making now, without their challenges and information. I really blossomed and grew as a stamper because of those challenges. And not just the daily challenges, but the VSN challenges too. In fact, I should just have my own VSN every day! It's pretty crazy when you only have 45 minutes to come up with something that's worth uploading! So, thank you Splitcoaststampers! And thank you Cathy Rose for telling me about this wonderful site!

Ok, enough sentimentality. Back to the card! I put black fun flock on the spider to make it furry. I thought that would add to the spookiness a little. And of course that spiderweb cb folder is just awesome! I'm so glad I bought it!

Thanks for stamping by!

Have a spooooooky day!

Wicked Lunch at The Rotten Gourd!

I made this wall hanging last night. I decided to participate in this week's Who's That Girl? challenge on Splitcoast in the MFT forum. The featured stamp set is Meet Me At The Cafe, which was one of the first sets I bought! I love it, and use it a lot!

The "catch" that you had to include in your creation was paper piecing. So, I stamped their clothes on my Frightful 8x8 stack. I stamped their arms and legs on Green Galore to give it that "youthful glow"! ;) Then, it all just came together, and I decided to make them sit on cauldrons and the legs of the table are bones. The cauldrons are from Totally Witchin' and I drew the bones. I drew the pumpkin and stem and leaf. I cut two very very slim pieces of green c/s and rolled it around my pencil to get them to curl. I put a little bit of a cotton ball on the top of the stem to make it look like a chimney.

This is not how I thought it would turn out, but I'm pretty happy w/ the result! It's definitely interesting!

Thanks for stopping by!

Have a Totally Witchin' day!

Happy Stamping!

Happy Holidays!

I made this card yesterday, thinking about my swap cards and what I was going to do for them. And then, as soon as I was finished with it, I remembered that one of the requirements I set was no red and/or green as the main focal point! I can't even follow my own rules!!!!

Oh well! Somone will get this as a Christmas card this year! It was fun to make though! I love the layout I used! (If I do say so myself!)

The paper is from Wild Asparagus, and I was SO excited to see it at my local scrapbooking store! I thought you could only purchase it online and I had actually forgotten about it! Someone had used some paper from Wild Asparagus a few years ago when I was blog surfing ALL THE TIME, and I just kept that cool name in the back of my mind.

Thanks for stopping by!

Have a great day!

Happy Stamping!!!

Pizza Box! What?!

Today for the Try a New Technique Challenge, we were to make a pizza box! Cool!!!! So, I made this one. I'm not that happy w/ it. There are some really awesome boxes in the gallery. Mine is just average. But, it's the first one I've ever made, so hopefully I'll get more creative and make my other ones super cool!

I didn't use any stamping on this. So, that was an added bonus! And I was a rebel and added a window! Hey, wouldn't you want to peek inside your pizza box and see that cheesy goodness? Well, mine has chocolate goodness, but hey, food's food!

Have a great day!

Go out for pizza tonight!

Happy Stamping!!!