Cards for my cousin!

Kitchen Sink Stamps - Multi-Step Berries

Kitchen Sink Stamps - Multi-Step Berries

Kitchen Sink Stamps: Hey Chick!

Kitchen Sink Stamps - Other Important People

Crafty Secrets - Sweet Kids


Hello all! I thought I would share some cards that I made for my cousin. She has asked me to make a set of cards for her. I think this is her 3rd set! Guess she's a fan! LOL! Every card that I have ever made, whether it's for her, or for anyone, or any challenge that I particpate in, is different. Unless I'm making an assembly line set, or I need to make the same card for a swap, I always come up w/ new card ideas. And I never know what the finished product will look like! That's the fun part for me!

Anyway, I was asked to make several regular cards for her, and then some teenager birthday cards. So, that's next on my list!

********ENABLER ALERT**********

ABC TOYS AND CRAFTS is having a special for the month of September! When you purchase from ABC Toys and Crafts from now until October 10th, and use the code: ABC15E you will get 15% off of your total!!!! And this code is available for the entire time! It's not a one time thing!

The design team is having a "friendly" competition! Each member of the design team has a different code, so whoever has the most purchases using their code will get a store shopping spree!!! I would LOVE to win that spree!!!!

So, go shopping!!!! There are TONS of things that are right up your alley! Nestabilities, Clear Stamps, wood stamps, Punches GALORE!, and many other things! It's like one stop shopping, but please visit the site more than once!!!!

If I win, I will post some really cool blog candy on here! Maybe I'll do it even if I don't win! Would that be incentive enough? Who can use some free stuff???!!!

Here's where you need to go: http://www.abctoysandcrafts.net/

Happy Shopping!!! :)

Have a wonderful day!
Happy Stamping!!!

Ice Cream Wishes and Caviar Dreams

This card is another two-fer! I love it when I can kill two birds w/ one stone! This is for the ABC Toys and Crafts Design Team Blog and it's for my friend's birthday. Which was in July! Yeah, I'm a month behind! I am SO bad!!!! Oh well! Better late than never, I always say! And that was one of my New Years Resolutions too! To get birthday cards out on time! Well, that was before I had Elizabeth. So, I'll just blame her on my lack of craft time! Poor girl! Getting all the blame! Hahaha!

Ok, back to the card! This ice cream cone is from My Cute Stamps, from the Sweet Chocolate set. SUPER CUTE!!!! You should seriously check it out! The sentiment is from Sincere Salutations from SU!. The swirl on the inside is from Inkadinkado clear stamps. I'm not sure what the name of the set is. It has birthday stuff in it. I was originally going to use the sentiment from that set on the card, but I remembered the one I ended up using.

I put the top layer through the cuttlebug w/ the D'vine Swirl folder. Then when I put all the panels on, and thought that the rest of the card looked boring. So, I took the card base and scored it w/ a diagonal grid to mimic the ice cream cone cross hatches. I did reverse embossing so that the layers would lay flat on the card base.

To decorate the front of the card, I added Pink Pirouette ribbon and pinched the ribbon on the end so that the rhinestone brad would fit around it and through the paper (hole punched). I thought this would be a neat way to add a little detail! I also added Crystal Effects and Dazzling Diamonds to the ice cream to make them a little more realistic. I colored the cones w/Copics to try and get some dimensional shading. Did it work?

Now til the end of August...which is coming up!!!!!, you can purchase ANYTHING in the store and it's all 10% off!!!! Yes, you heard me right, EVERYTHING IS 10% off! So, get over there and check out what cool stuff Julie has!!!! http://www.abctoysandcrafts.net/servlet/StoreFront

All right, well, off to clean up my desk!

Happy Stamping!

Splitcoaststampers Sweet and Sassy Swap!

Hello all! Today I am sharing my swap cards that I made for a swap that I signed up for way back in May. Of course, it took me all summer to get to them! But, they are done, and I am very happy with how they turned out!

The first set of cards is for the Sweet swap! I just recently purchased Multi-Step Berries from Kitchen Sink Stamps and wanted to try them out! Oh my gosh, can I tell you how much I LOVE this stamp set?! You will be seeing a lot of berry cards on here in the coming weeks! And let me tell you, doing the multi step stamping is really easy! Maria Colosimo, the owner of Kitchen Sink Stamps, provides color recipes both on her blog and on the website. The design team members also provide their own color recipes which are SO nice to be able to use! Like in this case, I used Maria's color recipe for the strawberries! Perfect!!! I was so doing it wrong, until I read her recipe again.

Oh, and I copied the idea for the card shape from Linda Beeson's blog! She has this awesome card that she came up with using the Labels One nesties for the shape of the entire card! I just had to try it for myself! Thanks Linda for the awesome inspiration!!!!

The second set of cards is for the Sassy swap! I used my MFT set Maid for You. The sentiment is from Twisted Swo. You can find this in the Tongue in Cheek section in the MFT store!

Happy Stamping!!!

Java Queen and a chance to win!!!

Hello all! Today I am showcasing the Crafty Secrets Scraps. I used the scraps on the recipe box I made a few weeks ago. But, this time I'm really focusing on the scrap instead of what it's adhered to! My Olivia helped pick this image out and we went with it! She hung over my shoulder the entire time that I made this card. Yeah, my back is hurting now! LOL!

The paper is from the Radiance Paper Pad also by Crafty Secrets. The ribbon is from the Offray Outlet that my friends and I went to last month on a scrappy field trip! Elizabeth came along! That was fun! NOT! She was good though. I can't really complain! Anyway, back to the topic! Jeez! Anyway, the scallop punch is from my friend Mandy. She had to downsize, and I asked her if she was getting rid of that one, and she said that she hadn't posted it on eBay yet. So, I snapped it up! For the coffee beans going up the one side w/ the scallops, I colored them in w/ Copics, and then put Crystal Effects over them to give them that shiny-ness that beans sometimes have. Most often I have found that to be the case of regular coffee beans. Decaf beans are flat almost. Not in shape, just shine. Well, espresso beans actually! When I would fill the hoppers in the morning at Starbucks, I could always tell the difference by looking at the beans in the bag.

Ok, before I go off on ANOTHER tangent, go over to the ABC Design Blog and leave a comment for a chance to win some BLOG CANDY!!!!! If you scroll down to: Just Because Giveaway!!!!!, go to the end of that post to leave a comment! You can take a look at the pictures showing everything that you could win, and then you leave a comment on what product you like the best in the pictures!

May the best person win! Or should I say luckiest! ;)

I can't forget Jack and Olivia!

Aha! I caught a picture of Jack! Finally! After several pictures of the back of his head, I finally got a good shot!

Don't you just love how Olivia accessorizes?! The cinderella pumps just complete the look!

Thera, she is really your niece! No one else would have that much hair stuff in her hair! Today she had 5 headbands on her head, and a bunch of elastics as bracelets going up her arms. She was such a beauty today! I, unfortunately, was folding clothes, and didn't have my camera....

"Um, yeah, 'Ms. THANG'!" Don't you walk away from me with THAT attitude! ;)

Jack playing in Mimi's pool!

Olivia must have needed some time to herself at Mimi's pool. She was pushing that stroller around all day. She must have been tired! Gotta love those Dora sunglasses though!


Jackson is 5 and going into 5 day preschool. Olivia is 3 and thinks she's going to Princess School. She's really going to 2 day preschool. When we had their checkups, she told the dr. that she was going to Princess School and Cinderella is going to be her teacher. Boy will she be upset when she goes on the first day of school!!!!! I'm gently letting her down about the Princess School. So, now she doesn't want to go to school at all. Great! I have my work cut out for me!

Enjoy!

AIFactory challenge!

I found a new company! AI Factory! They even have their own community! How about that! Anyway, I was invited to join their group, and their challenges! The first challenge was a themed challenge: Baby! Well, still in baby mode here, I decided to go for it! I recently purchased ALL of the Friendly Forest paper and accessories from Michael's when it was on sale, and it has just sat in my craft room waiting to be used! I pulled out two pieces of paper and went to town! It's totally not my best work, but for a card done in like an hour, it's not too shabby! At least in my opinion! LOL!

This AI Factory does digital stamps, which is something new to my little corner of the world. I'm not really into digital stuff since I have so many stamps and embellishments already. But, hey, why not try something new?!

Here's their website: http://aivault.com/store/

Here's their community website: http://vectorvault.ning.com/

Happy Stamping!!!

Elizabeth Update!

Hello there! Some of my friends have been wanting updated pictures of Elizabeth, so here they are! Enjoy!!!

I'm off, as the star of this blog post is crying in my arms! Typing and soothing a baby just isn't working out right now! LOL!

In all of these pictures she is 2 and a half mo. old. They were all taken yesterday and this morning!

See ya!

Hitting the books!

Hello there! It took me 3 days, but I finally finished this card! I had a heck of a time getting my layout right. I just could not decide what to do! If only I had the new MFT set I {heart} Books, but it's on its way, and I just had to make do w/ Reading Flopsey! Not that that's bad or anything! I need to ink up my Flopsey's more often! Funny that, since I don't like animals, but started collecting these Flopsey sets when I was participating in the MFT Idol contest! It's amazing how little will power I have when I see all the cute things you can do w/ Flopsey!

Anyway, so, I made this card for this week's challenge over on the MFT Forum Thread. The theme, presumably, Back to School! Like EVERYBODY else's! It's just that time of year! Soon we'll all be making Christmas cards! God, I have so much to do, I can't even think of Halloween, let alone Christmas! Anyway, I digress. Back to the point! So, anyway, I looked through all of my MFT sets, and Reading Flopsey was the best alternative for Back to School. I pulled out my Gradeschool stack by DCWV and went to town! Only, once I colored in Flopsey and cut him out, I didn't know where to put him! And what to do about those books?! So, I added a few MORE books and kind of just went w/ it.

Another funny thing is that when I was getting ready to take a picture of the front, I realized how flimsy the back was, because ssshhhh.....I don't use SU! cardstock! My white cardstock is from Walmart! I use so much white paper, it's a sin to buy 24 sheets for $5.95 or however much it costs these days when I can find 3 times that for a lesser price at Wally World. I SO hate that store, but their prices are really good. Darn it! Anyway, so, I decided to dress up the inside!

I finished the card today and I took it in to show my husband, which is what I do w/ everything I make. He's a high school teacher, so he will be heading back to his classroom in a few weeks! He saw this card and said, "Thanks for making me a card! That's so nice of you! It's beautiful!" What a dork! I really didn't make it for him, but since he brought it up, I'm going to give it to him! LOL!

Well, anyway, there's the longwinded story! Sorry it took me forever to tell that story! Jeez!

Here's the recipe:

Paper: white, Ruby Red, Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery, Barely Banana, Gradeschool stack DCWV

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Black Creative Memories Journaler

Extras: Certainly Celery ribbon, red button, white fun flock for Flopsey's tail, Crystal Effects for Flopsey's eyeglasses, Labels 1 nesties, pop up dots, glue dots.

Have a wonderful day!

Happy Stamping!!!

My Cute Stamps!

Hello there! I'm back from vacation and ready to get rollin' again! This is the first thing that I made since returning, and I am just so in love with it! I'm sorry, that's so vain to say! But, I LOVE PRIMAS!!!!! And that Martha Stewart punch! Whoever created that punch is AWESOME!!!!!

Anyway, so last week the ABC Toys and Crafts Design Team had a week long blog extravaganza for My Cute Stamps! Since I was on vacation, I couldn't participate. :( So, Julie, the owner of ABC Toys and Crafts stepped in for me. Thank you Julie!!!! And now that I'm back, I wanted to create something w/ the set that I was given. This set is called Tea Party Girl, and you can find it HERE, along w/ all the other awesome sets that Julie is selling. What's nice about My Cute Stamps is that they are deeply etched and clear acrylic, so they are super easy to use! Plus, the images are just so darn cute, you HAVE to HAVE them!!!!! Seriously!

So head on over there and see what Julie has in stock and get some to add to your growing stamp collection! Run on over now because I can already see the line getting long!

http://www.abctoysandcrafts.net/

Recipe: Head on over to our design team blog! I posted it there!

Happy Stamping!!!

Congrats!!!!

CONGRATULATIONS to the following ladies for winning the daily drawings of MY CUTE STAMPS!!!!

Monday's "Go Green" stamp set - # 42 Chris
Tuesday "Chandelier" - # 20 Chris
Wednesday "Ooga Booga" - # 18 Jenn
Thursday "Tea Party" - # 5 Cheri Howard
Friday " Fishy Fun" - # 30 Gwen
Also the WINNER of the $25 Shopping Spree isCheryl Walker

Woo hoo!!! How exciting!!!! Thanks to all who made their way over to ABC Toys and Crafts Design Team Blog and left comments!

A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes

Hello! Today I am showcasing Sweet Kids from Crafty Secrets. This stamp set is new to me, but I already love it!!! The images are so sweet, and the sentiments are perfect! If you don't have this set, you need to get it! Go on over to http://www.abctoysandcrafts.net/ and under Clear Stamps, go to Crafty Secrets! The whole collection of stamps is there! One stop shopping! Julie, the owner, has lots of other Crafty Secrets goodies as well! And she has tons of other stuff too! Her store totally rocks!!!! Go on over and check it out!

Have a great day!

Recipe:
Stamps: Sweet Kids - Crafty Secrets - FOUND AT ABC STORE!!!
Ink: Choc. Chip (SU!), Copics
Paper: Very Vanilla, Choc. Chip
Embellishments: Offray wire ribbon, mauve brads, swiss dots embossing folder, oval nestabilities

ENABLER ALERT!!!!

WANT TO WIN SOME FREE STAMPS???

Each day a member of the ABC Design team will be featuring a different "STAMP SET OF THE DAY" over on the ABC DESIGN BLOG.

All you have to do to be entered to win the stamp  set of the day is to leave a comment on that day's post.  Really like these stamps and want to up your chances of winning?? Sign up to follow the Design Blog then leave a second comment letting me know that you did so and that will give you a second chance.  The store owner, Julie, will also be throwing in a $25 Shopping Spree to the STORE somewhere during the week.  So that you don't miss a thing, click on the link below to go right to the Design Blog!

Go right now!!!!  These stamp sets ROCK!!!!