A Cake For Lulu

Hi all!

Well, did I mention how EXCITED I am to be a Bella Babe wth Stamping Bella??? I might have said it once or twice already...{blush}.

I was looking at my "modest" binder of images from there, and decided to ink up one I haven't used yet! Isn't it a shame when those beautiful images are just sitting there unloved?

I was in the mood for a birthday card - I pulled out this amazing cake image from the Lulu collection (which I LOVE, BTW), and I think it is so pretty that you could use it for a wedding card...but really any celebration that calls for a cake.

I had this really yummy Heidi Grace paper (flocked and everything), and I coloured my image to match...the paper had lots of yellows, and some greens, pinks, and oranges.  So when I was laying my card out, I realized that the paper looked horrible with the image; just too much goin' on.  So, I rummaged through my stash and found this really lovely paper from SU's Raspberry Tart DSP pack, and it complemented the image perfectly!

The pearls are from Martha Stewart, and the ribbon is a VERY old SU scrap I was trying to use up.  I embossed the middle white strip with my Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder.
The sentiment is also from Da Bella Shop - I have used this several times, and can't stress enough how handy it is to just have small generic sentiments like that...they are really useful! I used my handy dandy Word Window Punch and Modern Label Punch for that, and added some Liquid Pearls to the sides.

I stamped Lulu's Birthday Cake onto Bella's Bestest Paper with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  I coloured it with Copics and added some shading with Prismacolors and OMS.  I cut that out with Classic Square Nesties, and added some Pretty In Pink sponging inside the stencil (although I think I had some orange on my sponge because it looks like a different colour).

Copics:
Tray: W1, W3, W5, W7
Cake: R0000, R00, R32, R24
Flowers: YR61, YR64, YR7, and the leaves are YG63 & YG67

I know what you're saying...that cake looks like it has a disease because of all those spots!  I treid to add some glitter to it - looks nice IRL, but it looks weird in the pic.  How about this one?

Alright, well that's it for today.  Hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

P.S. Don't forget about the monochromatic challenge running over on Bloggabella right now!

Bellarific Friday: Polka Dots

Hey all,

I hope everyone's week is going well - I {heart} Fridays!  I don't know about you, but when Fridays arrive, the bad things that may have happened earlier in the week just faaaaaade away :)  So, it's gonna be a great weekend.

Since it's Friday, there is another FABULOUS challenge posted over at Bloggabella!  I LOOOOVVVVES these challenges.  And this is my first week as a Bella Babe!

So, I actually posted my polka dot card earlier this week before I found out about my "induction" LOL, so here is a shot of it again, but you may have already seen it. Woops.

I used the awesome Circus Seal and Circus Tent stamps for the polka dot creation...soo much fun.

What is the challenge for next week?  To make something monochromatic!  That means your card should be all different shades of the same colour! (I think most of us ignore that rule for skin and hair and grass, but otherwise, keep it one colour family!)\

See you next week - hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

Smell The Flowers

Hi all,

I have a fun card to show you today using one of the March releases from Some Odd Girl!  I am playing along with the following challenges:

- Scrap-Creations: Spring Has Sprung
- Paper Pretties: #146 Spring
- Stamping With The Dragon: Bring On Spring

Can you tell I as on the hunt for spring time challenges?  There are tons out there right now!

Here's mine:

My card base is Kraft CS, and the rest of the papers and the tag are from SU's Friends and Flowers Simply Scrappin' Kit.  I added 3 jumbo brads to the left side, and some turquoise grosgrain ribbon around the middle panel.

I printed Flower Kaylee onto PTI White CS, coloured her with Copics, cut her out with a thin white border, and mounted her on with foam dots.  This chickee happens to be on the SOG blog banner (if you recognized her).

That's it for today, hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

BABE-a-licious News!

Hey everyone!

I don't have a card to share today, but I do have something really exciting to share...

I am a Bella Babe!!!

Emily at Stamping Bella has asked me to be on her design team, and I am totally stoked and honoured! You can see the announcement HERE if you so desire :-)

Bellaland is actually about a 40-minute drive for me, so I consider myself a "local" - and I have adored their images and their design team for ages! I am so happy to be a part of it, and I only hope I can keep up with their high standards!

I have added the whole DT's blogroll to my sidebar, so be sure to check them out!

Be sure to stop in again later this week, cause I will have more creations to come!

Bellarific Friday: Polka Dots

Hi all,

I am playing along with this week's Bellarific Friday challenge on Bloggabella: to use polka dots!  I love challenges that are open like this - you can use any colours and any images that you want!

Here's mine:

All of my paper and cardstock are from the Close To My Heart pack called Perfect Day...I love those colours!  And there were some great polka dotted papers in there.  I punched the polka dot paper and the brown mat with the Ticket Corner Punch.
The sentiment is from an SU set called By Definition, and I chose the "delight" stamp.  I stamped that with black ink onto Gina K Luxury Ivory CS, and punched it out with an SU tag punch, and sponged some VersaMagic Wheat ink around the edges.  For the medallion, I used an SU die called Lots of Tags and layered the brown onto the red.

I stamped Circus Tent onto Gina K Luxury Ivory CS with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and coloured it with Copics.  I added some shading with my Prismacolor pencils and OMS.  I added some more Wheat sponging around that panel.
I stamped Circus Seal onto ivory CS, coloured that with Copics, and cut it out with a thin border around.

That's it for today - hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

SOG Challenge: Pleats!

Hi all,

I can't believe 2 weeks have passed already, but it's time for another challenge over on the Some Odd Girl blog!  For the last challenge, we had some amazing spring entries, and this week, we want you to show us pleats!  You can make them with folds, with adhesive, with stitching, or any other creative way!

Here's mine:

All of my papers are from the Close To My Heart pack called Perfect Day.  I love the brown, red and green - it's one of my absolute favourites!  I sponged the green piece with some SU Soft Suede ink, then matted it with the brown piece, and the ivory piece.
I cut out a strip of ivory CS, and punched it with my Martha Stewart fence edge punch.  I added some pleats to my Soft Suede polka dot ribbon and adhered it below the fence, and sewed across it.
I cut out a square from ivory CS, stamped my CTMH sentiment in black ink, and I added some Soft Suede ink around the edges.

I printed Garden Mae from Some Odd Girl (from a recent release) onto PTI White CS, coloured her with Copics, and cut her out with a thin white border around.  I mounted her onto a brown piece cut out with Label Four Nesties, and I added a couple of small ivory buttons to each side of that with glue dots. 

Make sure you check what all the ODDies have done on the SOG blog - you'll see some lovely pleats!

Hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

Follow Your Heart

Hi all,

I am playing along with a few challenges this time :-) Lots of great ones out there this week.

First up, I'm playing with the ABC Challenge this week: Q is for Quote or sentiment.
Secondly, I am chipping in with the Ai Factory challenge: #72 Things with Wings.
Thirdly, I am throwing in a submission for the Papertake Weekly challenge: Trio Tastic (use 3 of anything).
Lastly, I am playing along with the sketch challenge on Craft Your Passion: #49, sketch by Lauretta, and here's a look:

Here's mine:

My card base is Kraft CS, then I used a piece of SU's Groom DSP, with a PTI White mat (both with rounded corners).  I added some Soft Subtles brads to 2 of the corners to match the sketch, and that also goes with the trio theme.
I stamped the sentment from SU's Whimsical Words set onto the DSP with Versamaerk ink, and heat embossed with Winter White EP.
The butterflies were punched out with PTI White and Marigold Morning CS using the Martha Stewart Butterfly punch, and I adhered them in layers using Tombow Mono Multi Adhesive.
The circles were punched out of Marigold Morning CS, PTI White CS, and Groom DSP using classic and scallop Nesties.

I printed Bee Tia (cutest Bee ever) onto PTI White CS, coloured her with Copics, cut her out, and mounted her on with foam dots.  I also added some Dazzling Diamonds glitter to her wings, and some Sakura glitter pen to the trim on her outfit.
This image is brand new, and was part of the March 1 release over at Some Odd Girl!  So many fun images to play with!

That's it for today - hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

Some Odd Girl Digi Day!

Hey y'all!

It's the second Saturday of the month, so us ODDies are having a Digi Day over on our brand new SNR group !  Make sure you have signed up for the new site, so that we all move over together!
If you don't know how Digi Day goes, make sure you sign up for the new SNR site, and join the Some Odd Girl group above, and then you can check out the run-down HERE as well.

You will see all of the discussions being started there from 5pm - 8pm, EST today! Usually we do it in the day time, so this is a nice change!  There are already a couple of things you should definitely check out before the chatter starts later tonight:

- As with every Digi Day, Kristy always has a sale, so check out THIS discussion for the deets.
- There is an Early Bird challenge from last night being run by Sarah M - check it out HERE
- Kristy is running an art show - all you have to do is show us your creations using Kaylee! Check out the post HERE .  There are some amazing entries already!
- Asa posted another challenge this morning HERE !

Make sure to stop into the group this evening from 5-8pm so we can chat, play a few games, and marvel over all of the crafty submissions!

See you there!

SOG Challenge: Spring Time!

Hi all,

It's time for another really fun challenge over on the Some Odd Girl blog!  This time, we are being challenged to make a project with a spring-time theme!  I don't know about you, but I am ready to ring in spring!  So bring out your spring-y images, or colours, and you're set!

Since this is the first challenge of the month, in order to enter, you have to use a Some Odd Girl image.  I love these challenges - it's great to see what everyone out there can do with these images!

For my card, I am using one of the digis that Kristy released on March 1 - this release was amazing, and there are a lot of images that would be PERFECT for this challenge!  Introducing....Kite Flyin Tobie!  He is completely adorable, and it is definitely a spring image!

My card base is Wild Wasabi CS, and the 2 layers of DSP are from SU's East Coast Prep pack, and they are matted with Basic Black, and I added some stitching to those layers.  I wrapped some striped Wild Wasabi grosgrain ribbon around that base layer.  The sentiment is from Stamping Bella, which was stamped on white CS with black ink, cut out with Circle Nesties, and I added some sponging with More Mustard ink to that.

I printed Tobie onto PTI White CS, coloured him with Copics, and added some shading with my Prismacolor Pencils, and some Tempting Turquoise sponging around the image.  That was matted with Basic Black and mounted on with foam dots. 

Make sure to stop by the SOG blog and submit your spring-time creation to try to win some awesome SOG digis!

Hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

Puddle Jumping in Spring

Hi all,

I am playing along with a challenge this week on the Cute Card Thursday blog.  This is their 154th challenge, and they want us to make a spring-inspired project!  Woo hoo!  I am so ready for spring - I can't take much more of the wind and the slush and the snow...

Here's my card:

I chose to go with a very Clean & Simple (CAS) layout this time.  My card base is PTI White, then I have a piece of Kraft coloured DSP from SU's old Textiles Specialty pack, matted with Basic Black, and the corners were rounded with my punch.
On the Kraft piece, I used my Label 4 Nesties to emboss a frame, and I added some random stitching with my Janome Sew Mini machine. 
I also added an SU rub-on to the left side.

I printed the BRAND SPANKING NEW Puddle Hoppin Tia from Some Odd Girl onto PTI White CS!  Kristy just released a whole whack of adorable images on March 1, and you have GOT to check them out if you haven't already!

I coloured her with Copics, cut her out with a thin white border around, and mounted her on with foam dots.  I added some Crystal Effects to her umbrella and her hair to look like rain drops - some fun texture!

Don't forget - we always have a challenge running over on the SOG blog, and there are a lot of other fun things going on too!

That's it for today - hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

Bellarific Friday: Aquamarine

Hi all,

This week, Emily is challenging us to use the colour aquamarine on our project because it is March's birthstone!  Here is the inspiration piece:

Here's my creation:

I included the blue in my card base, as well as the ribbon, and in the colouring.  The base is Tempting Turquoise, then I added a piece of Certainly Celery Patterns DSP, with Basic Black and Whisper White mats. 
I also added 2 strips of miscellaneous yellow DSP, also with black and white mats.  On the top strip, I added some Tempting Turquoise grosgrain ribbon, and to the bottom strip, I added some vinyl Thickers and 2 rhinestone brads.

I stamped Row of Eggs with Bunny onto Bella's Bestest Paper with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  I coloured the image entirely with Prismacolour Pencils and OMS, and I matted that panel onto Basic Black, and adhered it with foam dots.

Can you feel that spring is in the air?  :-)

Hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

CPS 207: A Cup of Good Wishes

Hi all,

Today, I'm playing along with the Card Positioning Systems sketch #207.  Here is a glimpse:

I had to move the squares a bit to fit my main image, but hopefully you can still see the sketch in my creation!
I am also combining the sketch with the ABC challenge: to use pink!

Here's my card:

My card base is PTI White, followed by a piece of Groom Specialty DSP and a Pretty In Pink mat, which were both punched with my Ticket Corner Punch.  On top of that, I added a Pretty In Pink scallop rectangle, cut out with my Nesties, and a PTI White mat for that. 
I stamped my sentiment from Kimmie's Tea Sentiments onto the Nestie cut-out with black ink, and I added some Martha Stewart pearls under that.
I stamped some accessory stamps from Kraftin Kimmie onto Bella's Bestest Paper, coloured them with Copics, and cut them out with my 1 1/4" square punch.  I also cut some scallop squares from Basic Black CS to mount them on. 

I stamped Giselle onto Bella's Bestest CS with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and coloured her with Copics.  I cut her out with a thin white border around, and mounted her on with foam dots.

That's it for today - hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

New Release Day!

Hi all,

Remember the card I made for the most recent SOG challenge using this image?

Well today is the big day!  It is March 1, and you can find a whole whack of new and incredible images HERE.

There was definitely a spring theme to this release, and it's nothing short of brilliant!

Make sure you head over and check it out - great job Kristy!  Have fun shopping everyone!

KKSC 67: Scallops!

Hi all,

I am playing along with this week's Kraftin' Kimmie challenge: #67, to use scallops!  I love the Annie Rodrigue images, and scallops are always so much fun too!

Here is my card:

My card base is Brushed Gold CS, and then I added a piece of Heidi Grace DSP - this paper is delicious! It is slightly foiled, and they have glittered it too - love it.  That has Basic Black and PTI White mats, and the black and DSP pieces are punched with EK Success jumbo scallop punches.
On top of that, I added a Bermuda Bay strip, matted with black and white again.  I rolled a swirl-patterned wheel over the green piece with Bermuda Bay ink, and I added a piece of dull gold ribbon to that strip with a couple of Martha Stewart pearls to top it off.  The white mat was punched with my SU scallop edge punch. 

I stamped the adorable Rapunzel onto Bella's Bestest Paper with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  I coloured her mostly with Copics, but I added some shading with my Prismacolor Pencils and OMS.  I added some sponging with my Wheat ink around the image too.  I matted that onto a Basic Black piece, then a PTI White piece.

I had a blast with this one, and I think this fairy tale line might be my favourite!

Hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

Cute Card Thursday 153: Sketch

Hi all,

I am playing along with this week's Cute Card Thursday challenge: #153 is a sketch!  And they are being sponsored by Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps, and I {heart} those images!
Here's the sketch:

Now hmmmmmm............what to do with that circle?

OK, here's mine:

My card base is Basic Grey CS, then I added a piece of Rich Razzleberry with a Basic Black and a Whisper White mat.  I embossed the Razzleberry piece with the SU Manhattan Flower folder, and I wrapped a piece of Rich Razzleberry polka dot ribbon around it. 

The 2 strips of white CS in the top right corner were made with my Word Window punch, and I added 2 black brads to the middles.

For the circle, I made it into a clock! I used my scallop and classic circle Nesties with Basic Black and PTI White CS, and I used the double slot and My Way punches to make the notches in the clock and the hand.  I added a jumbo black brad to the centre of the clock.

Instead of flowers, I added some buttons with silver cord to the left of the clock.

I stamped the beautiful Cinderella onto Bella's Bestest CS with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  I coloured her with Copics, and cut her out with a white border around.  I added some Liquid Pearls to her necklace and earrings, and I put some Black Sakura Glaze pen on her shoes.

This took me forever to make, but I love the result.

Hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

CA & F Saturday Sketch 56

Hi all,

I am playing along with another Greeting Farm challenge - this time on the Club Anya & Friends blog!  I chose to work with their Sketch Saturday #56 layout, and I really like it!  Here is the sketch:

I followed it pretty much to the tee...

All of the papers and cardstock I used are from the SU Simply Scrappin Kit called Tickets & Tokens.  I added some Baja Breeze ribbon on top, and I made it look like a belt with a couple of die cut stickers that came in the kit.
I used an SU edge punch for the scallop edge, and the oval was cut with my Nesties.  The "It's A Good Life" sticker also came from the kit.  The sentiment is from that label-maker thing-y again.

I stamped Travel Anya from The Greeting Farm (I think she's retired now) onto Gina K Luxury White CS with Versafine Onyx Black ink, and embossed her with Clear EP.  I coloured her with Copics, cut her out and mounted her on with foam dots.

I think there is a possibility that I might use this sketch again some time - it was great for showcasing some of my DSP!

Hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

Bellarific Friday: New Rubbah!

Hi all,

I'm playing along with this week's Bellarific Friday challenge over on Bloggabella!  Em is challenging us to ink up a Bella stamp that we've never inked before!  I love challenges like this - I get to play with some rubber that I was excited to buy and haven't had a chance to break out yet!

Here it is:

My card base is Sage Shadow CS, then I have 4 blocks of SU To The Nines DSP, which I added some brown sponging to.  They were adhered to a Basic Black piece, and I added some stitching to 2 of the panels.  Next, I added a piece of white CS.

I stamped Bronte and Louis by Mo Manning onto Bella's Bestest Paper with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  I coloured them up with Copic markers, and added some shading with my Prismacolor Pencils and OMS.  I added some Wheat Chalk Box ink sponging around that piece, and mounted it onto a Basic Black mat. 
The sentiment is an SU rub-on, using white CS with black mats.

I am loving this image - I am partial to the Mo Manning images anyway.  The dog's wagging tail is so cute, and he is sneaking a taste of the cookie too.

Hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

SOG Challenge: Handmade Element

Hi all,

It's been 2 whole weeks, so it's time for another challenge over on the Some Odd Girl blog!  This time around, you have to use at least 1 hand/homemade element/embellishment...wait a minute...isn't my entire card "homemade"? LOL
JK.
But the really exciting part I get to showcase an image that Kristy will be releasing on March 1!  I can barely stand it!  Just wait til you see them all - the images are sooooo much fun!

For my card, I am using the upcoming Flower Girl Mae image - isn't she a darling???  You will be able to find her and a whole bunch of other amazing images at the SOG store as of March 1!

My card base is Rose Red CS, followed by a Basic Black piece and a Whisper White mat.  I added 4 blocks of fun Raspberry Tart DSP to that.  My handmade embellies are the rolled flowers made out of felt - cute, huh?

I printed Mae onto PTI White CS, coloured her with Copics, and added some shading with my Prismacolor Pencils and OMS.  That was matted with a Basic Black piece.

Don't forget to stop by the SOG blog to submit your own project with a handmade item.  Since it's the second challenge of the month, you are not required to use an SOG image, but we love to see them if you have them! You'll have a chance to win some cute digis if you play!

Hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

Farm Fresh Friday: Texturize!

Hi all,

Well, it has been AGES since I played along with a challenge on the Splendid Stamping blog!  Their challenge from last Friday looked like a fun one, so I pitched in!  The challenge is to use 2 or 3 different textures on your card - could be embossing, glossy accents, Flower Soft, etc.

Here is mine:
I used an adorable Cheeky Cherry stamp called Cheeky Mate - she is a ball of hotness! LOL

My card base is Very Vanilla - haven't used that in ages either - I am a pure white kind of gal usually.  The next layer is Always Artichoke CS, with a Basic Black mat.  The mat was punched with my Martha Stewart crown edge punch, and I added some gun metal Stickles to the points (but I don't think you can see that very well).
The next layer is a Basic Black piece, embossed with my Cuttlebug Swiss Dots folder, and matted with a vanilla piece.  I added another small strip of vanilla using the same edge punch, wrapped some Twill Tape around that base layer, and added 3 vintage brads to the side with my mat pack and paper piercer.
My sentiment is made from one of those "label thingies" - clearly I don't remember what it's called, but I bought it at Michael's.  It's great for customizing what you want to say.

I stamped the Cheeky girl onto Gina K luxury ivory CS in Versafine Onyx Black ink, and embossed her with Clear EP.  I coloured her in with Copics, and cut her out with a thin border around.  I added some black Sakura Glaze pen to the stripes on her uniform, and I added the Crystal Effects to the bow and the boots for some GLOSS.  I mounted her on with foam dots for some dimension.

Here is another view so you can see the SHINE:

That's it for today - hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!

Surf's Up!

Hi all,

I am playing along this week with a fun layout over on the Sketch Saturday blog - #142!  Great sketch this week, and a great excuse for me to pull out an old freebie from Some Odd Girl!
Here's the sketch:

OK, so here's mine:

My card base is Brilliant Blue CS, followed by a Whisper White piece with a Basic Black mat.  The brads are also Brilliant Blue, and I used my Mat Pack and Paper Piercer to place them.  The horizontal stripes are Pumpkin Pie CS, and the vertical stripes are Bashful Blue.  I used my SU Star Punch to punch a star out of Barely Banana CS, and I added some black dots around the outside.  I punched an oval out of Brilliant Blue CS using my classic oval Nesties, and added some black dots around that too.

I printed Hang 10 Kody onto Neenah Solar White CS, coloured him with Copics, cut him out, and mounted him on with foam dots.
This image was a past freebie, and it's not currently in the store, but there are plenty of other KODYs available!

I kept this one pretty simple - great for a boy, young or old!

Don't forget to check out the current challenge over on the SOG blog before time runs out!

Hope you enjoyed, and thanks for stopping by!