Sneak Peek: Rockin!

Saturday, February 28, 2009

We built this city on ROCK n ROLL!

I LOVE everything about the 80's! I love the movies and music from that decade, but the clothes I think can do without. Ok, almost everything then! Although, I did follow a few trends back then; like the ra-ra and bubble skirts, big hair, smiley shirts and I even owned a pair of white robot glasses! Seriously I did! And I was the coolest thing at camp that year!! LMBO!

I had a great time finding those webpages - almost as much fun as I had making this card for today's sneak peek! Introducing Rockstar Hanna!

She's wild isn't she?! I {heart} the cartoon Hanna's with their bright eyes! This set has some of the coolest individual stamps. I wanted to try show you a range of them, so I have two cards today that showcase 6 out of the 13 stamps in the set.

This first card uses the main image in the set. Hanna and the amp are really one stamp; I snipped off the 'cord' that links the guitar to the amp because I figured I'd accidently cut it off anyway! I cut around the edges of my 5.5" x 5.5" card with some scalloped decorative scissors. The patterned paper is by KI Memories and I used both sides of it. Since there were stars on the pp, I punched stars out with my Fiskars star punch from glitter and black cardstock for some added sparkle. This would make a great card for a teenager, don't you think??

Here's a much simpler card using 5 stamps from the new set. Can you spot them all? (The sentiment is by Hampton Art and I found it at Michaels.) Even though this is a completely different look to the first card, I like it just the same. The old Basic Grey paper makes it more edgier and even a bit manly don't you think?

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope you have a great Saturday! I'll have another sneak peek for you tomorrow! Stay tuned.

Supplies
Card1
Stamps: Hanna Stamps 'Rockstar Hanna', sentiment by Studio G mini alphabet set
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Creamy Caramel, Pink Passion, Ruby Red, Cool Caribbean, Distress Inks 'Black Soot'
Papers: Canson Watercolor, Bazzil cs, glitter paper, PP - KI Memories 'Love Elsie - Roxie Collection'
Access: Ribbon, decorative scissors, Fiskars star punch, dimensionals, sponges

Card2
Stamps: Hanna Stamps 'Rockstar Hanna', sentiment by Hampton Arts
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Distress Inks 'Black Soot, Weathered Wood, Vintage Photo & Walnut Stain'
Papers: Bazzil cs, PP - Basic Grey ' Aged & Confused and
Access: Ribbon, dimensionals, sponges

Sneak Peek: Aaah!

Friday, February 27, 2009

A happy Friday to you all! As promised, starting today and all through the weekend, I will be showing you sneak peeks from the new sets Hanna Stamps will be releasing this coming Monday night, March 2nd after the release party.

I'm soooo loving this Sophie Stamp!! I squealed just a little bit when Kristi posted for the DT girls to see! I could SO use a bit of pampering like this right about now, but I'm sure we all could, right?

You may have caught a sneak peek of Spa Riley earlier in the week if you frequent Anna Wight's blog like I do. Loved that purple hair wrap!

What's that you say? I thought you said you didn't own any nesties? Did I breakdown and get some? No. Then how in the heck did ya do that scalloped edge circle girlfriend?!? With a Fiskars circle cutter and a pair of decorative scissors, that's how! Probably would have been a thousand times easier with a cuttlebug and nesties though, but alas....you all know the rest of the story. (I'm working on DH to buy me one so that I don't get blamed for the purchasing frenzy of nesties that will follow!)

I got out my sewing machine again and tried the zigzag stitching this time....I bombed bigtime! I won't point out the flaws, but if you click to get a larger image, you'll see them! Sophie was colored using the Riley Copic set from Hanna Stamps, and I sponged the edges of the cardstock with Antique Linen. Added some ribbon and Kaiser pearls for a feminine look.

Speaking of feminine, today's Hanna Stamps challenge (HSC58) is to make a feminine card using ribbon and it's being hosted this week by the uber talented and hilariously funny Diana Gibbs.

I hope you all had a great week and thank you for stopping by today. If you wanna see another sneak peek - stop by tomorrow!

Supplies

Stamps: Hanna Stamps 'Spa Riley', sentiment by Karen Foster's snap stamps

Inks: Distress Inks 'Black Soot & Antique Linen', Riley Copics set, Certain Celery, Cool Caribbean

Papers: Georgia Pacific cs, Bazzil cs, PP - Cosmo Cricket 'Honey Pie Collection - Ella'

Access: Ribbon, Kaiser Scrapbooks self adhesive Pearls, decorative scissors, Fiskars circle cutter, paper piercer, sewing machine, dimensionals

Bad Hair Day??

Thursday, February 26, 2009

I'm not kidding - this pretty much looks like me when I wake up! Seriously. My hair is curly but thin, so it gets smushed, and crimped and flattened every which way while I sleep. I'm sure this is why my husband never gets up before me - probably too scared to roll over and look in my direction! LOL

I had colored this little guy up months ago and he just sat on my desk quietly waiting for me to put him on a card. Everytime I'd look at him I'd smile because...well, look at him: how can you NOT smile at a little guy with clown hair?! There's a sentiment on the inside that I forgot to take a picture of that says "I am only as strong as the coffee I drink and the hairspray I use." Hilarious isn't it?! I bought that sentiment from Whipper Snapper. The sentiment and image on the front are from Starving Artistamps. Just so you know, this is the big stamp version of the set. Doodle Factory offers a smaller scale set too.

I tried something a little different with this card; worked outside my comfort zone a bit, which is good every now and then, but I think it's definitely missing something. Brads? Ribbon? I couldn't think of it when making the card, so I just left it off. Still looks a bit empty, doesn't it?

Oh well. Thanks for stopping by and don't forget that tomorrow I start showing you sneak peeks of the new Hanna Stamps sets!


Supplies
Stamps: Starving Artistamps 'Doodle Factory Creatures' & 'Quirky Sentiments'
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Cool Caribbean, Vintage Violet, Buckaroo Blue, Certain Celery, Morning Marigold, Pumpkin Pie, Real Red
Papers: Canson Watercolor, Georgia Pacific cs, Bazzil cs, PP - Scenic Route 'Asheville Collection - Scrap Strip 2'
Access: Dimensionals, paper piercer

Eggstra Special

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

It's already Wednesday?!! Where on earth did the first half of the week go? Wow. Well, I'd better show you one of the Whipper Snapper stamps I bought a few weeks ago before the rest of the week escapes me!

Don't you just love this little guy?! I didn't hesitate putting him into my cart! I used some of that yummy chocolate polka dot paper again (and channeled some of Anna Wight's talents) but I could see this guy on some easter paper, couldn't you?? I might have to try that before next month.

Mr Egg was watercolored again and I framed him with a scalloped border using my Marvy scalloped square punch (I punched a few squares out and pieced it together). Nothing hard about this card; just wanted to show you the fun image!

I hope everyone has a wonderful Wednesday whatever it is that you're doing. :D Toodles!

Supplies
Stamps: Whipper Snapper 'Eggstra Special' and Eggstra Special Words'

Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Creamy Caramel, Really Rust, Chocolate Chip, Cool Caribbean, Morning Marigold, Real Red, Sahara Sand

Paper: Canson Watercolor, Bazzil cs, Kraft, Creamy Caramel, PP - EK Success 'Overton House Designs - Mint Expresso/Dotty Flowers/Mini Dots'

Access: Ribbon, Marvy square scalloped punch, paper piercer, button

Born To Shop

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

It's Twinkling Tuesday again and Madelynn has surprised all of us with not a sketch, but an inspiration challenge today!

I will admit that I was a little bit freaked out at this challenge. I understand sketch challenges, and color combo challenges, but inspiration challenges are so scary to me. I mean, do I take the inspiration literally (that's more my style) or do I go off on a tangent with one aspect of the inspiration?? So many options; so loosey goosey! Help!! I'm a girl who likes a bit of structure in her life! LOL

That being said though, I will not shy away from a challenge! Madelynn's inspiration this week is her mum's mug that she's been eyeing for her own use! LOL I don't blame you Madelynn - it's a beauty!!

Before I tell you how WAY off tangent I got with this card, can I just say that I had the most fun coloring this Miss Anya in??! I LOVE her plaid knee-high socks and those curls....well, I just wish my curls were that well behaved!! I colored up all three Anyas, but I'll save the other two for another day. ;) Got your Anyas yet?!

Ok, so the inspiration was a peppermint stick mug of hot chocolate and I got a little fixated on the chocolate part of that whole thing! The patterned paper was even called 'Chocolate Tapestry' for pete's sake!? It's double sided so I was able to use both sides for this layout. I was planning a collage type of layout but then the paper cutter and I got a little out of control and we added some structure to this challenge!! LMAO!

I love this layout so much that I think I may have to recreate it with the other two Miss Anyas and make a nice little set! Stay tuned next week for the other two. :D

This week's featuered Twinkie is the uber talented Jennifer Greco! You can see what she created on Madelynn's blog and also Jenn's own fabulous blog. If you'd like to play along in this weeks challenge, just upload your card on SCS or PCP using this week's keyword MTTSC11, and leave a comment on Madelynn's blog post so that the team can find your card and leave some love. :D

Thanks so much for stopping by today. Tomorrow I have a Whipper Snapper stamp to show you!


Supplies
Stamps: The Greeting Farm's 'Miss Anyas', sentiment by Karen Foster's snap stamps
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Creamy Caramel, Pretty In Pink, Pink Passion, Cool Caribbean, Close To Cocoa, Sahara Sand
Papers: Canson Watercolor, Bazzil cs, PP - Chatterbox 'Decorative Cardstock - Chocolate Tapestry'
Access: Ribbon, Heidi Swapp 'Small Flower Bling', bling from Michaels, dimensionals

Strike!!

Monday, February 23, 2009

A happy Monday morning to everyone!

This weekend I worked on some Hanna Stamps sneak peeks that I'll be showing you starting this Friday. But for today, since I was on a HS kick, I thought I'd start back up where I left off last week with another Hanna Stamps card. I wanted to showcase all the stamps in the newly released Bowling set and this sketch layout was perfect for it.

It's SCS's sketch challenge SK182 from back in June 2008. I was able to use 9 out of the 11 stamps from the set on this card. Not bad hey?

Lots of cutting out with my precision scissors on this card, but worth it I think. And you don't want to know how many pop dots (or dimensionals) are on this card! haha

IMPORTANT DETAILS

Hanna Stamps is changing the day of the release parties from the first Thursday's of every month to the first Monday of every month.....which means that March's release party is next Monday!! From now on, myself and the design team girls will start showing you our sneak peeks the Friday before the party....which means this Friday I'll have a new Hanna or Riley stamp to show you as well as all weekend! Stay tuned!

Tomorrow is Twinkling Tuesday and I have a fabulous stamp to show you! ;)

Supplies
Stamps: Hanna Stamps! 'Bowling'
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Cool Caribbean, Morning Marigold, Pretty in Pink, Creamy Caramel, Close to Cocoa, Certain Celery, Buckaroo Blue
Papers: Georgia Pacific cs, Bazzil cs, PP - Moxxie 'Bowl-O-Rama Collection - Perfect Game'
Access: Lots of dimensionals!

Thank you!

Friday, February 20, 2009

A happy Friday to you all!

The vivacious Vicki Garrett is hosting today's Hanna Stamps Challenge (HSC57) in the SCS forum and her embellishment of choice is....METAL!! A perfect companion for GI Jon Riley and Motorbike Riley.

I hate to say this again for the second time this week, but I really like how this card turned out! No, really, I do! I love the colors and the punches of white cardstock. I think the patterned paper helped me out a bit though. ;)

I stamped Riley with Distress Ink in Black Soot because it doesn't bleed with the Copics. I got out my special Riley Copic set and colored his body, boots and extremities in. Then, very carefully, with my aquapainter brush and more ink than water, I colored Riley's clothing in with reinkers. I say 'very carefully' because the Black Soot ink will bleed with water and reinkers. Since it was a small area, I took a risk.

Can you see my goof up? I used the reinkers to create a shadow on the ground and it looked more like a puddle of mud! So I pulled my sponges and Vintage Photo ink out and went to town all over the mistake! I used the Zig pen to add the grains of sand. I had originally left the area around Riley white, but it seemed too stark, so I lightly sponged around him too. Mistakes can be fixed! :D

I had some metal alphabet embellishments that had that coil thing on the back of it to slide onto the edge of paper, so I ripped it off and added some camo twill ribbon to it. Then I added the brushed metal eyelets to balance the whole card out.

Here's another quick one I did using Motorbike Riley.

We'd love for you to play along with us, so if you decide to, please use the keyword HSC57 and leave a link in the thread so we can leave some love for you.

Have a great weekend and I hope you squeeze in some stamping. Toodles!

Supplies

Card 1

Stamps: Hanna Stamps 'GI Jon Riley', sentiment by Studio G mini alphabet set

Inks: Distress Inks 'Black Soot', Riley Copic set, Old Olive, Morning Marigold Distress Inks 'Vintage Photo'

Paper: Georgia Pacific cs, Bazzil cs, PP - 'Creative Imaginations 'Army Emblem' and Reminisce 'Go Army'

Access: Twill ribbon, metal hardware, eyelets, dimensionals, sponges, zig pen

Card 2
Stamps: Hanna Stamps 'Motorbike Riley', sentiment by Inkadinkado Clear Stamps 'Road Trip'
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Versamark, Riley Copic set, Basic Grey, Ballet Blue, Cool Caribbean, Distress Inks 'Black Soot'
Paper: Georgia Pacific cs, Bazzil cs, PP - Crate Paper 'Static Collection - Gravity & Reaction'

Access: Marvy scalloped circle punches, eyelets, dimensionals, sponges

Got What?!

Thursday, February 19, 2009

There are many stark differences between Perth, Australia and Keene, New Hamphire. The most obvious difference; Perth is a sprawling city of a little over 2 million people and Keene is a quaint New England town of almost 23,000. You can imagine my surprise the first time I saw tractors driving downtown or when I found out that my neighbor's favorite pasttime was playing with his chainsaw! No Sandra, you're not in Kansas anymore! LOL

After a few years these differences dulled a little and I wouldn't react quite so shocked when neighbors would talk about their hunting trips. That said though, I was downright quesy when I first saw the 'Gut Fish?' or 'Gut Deer?' bumper stickers!! Blah!! Which explains the sentiment on my card today...

A very manly card don't you think? Not for my Man though....he doesn't fish or hunt. So why did I get this stamp?? Because I knew he'd be great to color! LOL And I loved his face. I watercolored him in Old Olive, True Thyme and Black Soot and added some shading to the area behind him in Sahara Sand (my new favorite color!). Then because of all the greens, I picked this great burnished red patterned paper by Basic Grey to make him pop. Can you guess the name of that paper?? Long Underwear! Perfect for our early morning fisherman. :D

The layout was a challenge put out by Jana Mays from the design team on the Doggone Stamps Paper Craft Planet forum. You can find all the details HERE. I followed everything except the flowers in the corner because, well....there are no flowers in fishing! *grin*

Wanna win some blog candy including stamps from Doggone Stamps?? You know you do! Well, I have not one, not two but FIVE places you can find some! Head over to the fun blogs of design team members' Dana, Lauri, Mitzi, Jean and Cathy for some CANDY, CANDY, CANDY!!

Thanks so much for stopping by today.

Supplies
Stamps: Doggone Stamps 'Fisher Man', sentiment by Karen Foster snap stamps
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Old Olive, True Thyme, Creamy Caramel, Distress Inks 'Black Soot'
Papers: Kraft cs, Canson Watercolor, Bazzil cs, PP - Basic Grey 'Boxer Collection - Long Underwear'
Access: Circle punches, dimensionals

You Wanna?

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Happy Hump day to you all!

I did warn you yesterday that today's card was not for the weak hearted!! Can you say Va Va Vooom?! Or rather Ooh La La!

That's the name of this digital stamp by Victoria Case and I gave this to my Man for Valentine's Day. I figured I should make a card for him since it was V-Day and if I didn't....well, my days might have been numbered in this new hobby of mine! LOL

I printed Mrs Ooh La La out on Georgia Pacific cardstock and watercolored her while listening to Trace Atkins 'Hot Mama' song. (That's the first time I've seen the video clip of this song and honestly - the song is WAY better without the visual! haha)

I didn't over embellish this card since it was for a man and once he got a load of the image, he wouldn't remember what the rest of the card looked like! But I did intentionally use the Martha Stewart edge punch to make the ribbon detail resemble a garter....a detail lost on my Man.

I left off the sentiment on the front and put it inside instead...

The verdict: The Man loved the card and had a great Valentines Day ;).....and told me I could continue to buy stamps if they all looked like this one! :) Thanks for stopping by today.

Supplies
Stamps: Victoria Case Art Designs 'Ooh La La' digital stamp, sentiment by Karen Foster's snap stamps
Inks: Creamy Caramel, Cool Caribbean, Pumpkin Pie, Real Red, Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip, Distress Inks 'Black Soot and Vintage Photo'
Paper: Georgia Pacific cs, Bazzil cs, PP - K & Company ' Brenda Walton Mira Designer Mat Pad'
Access: Ribbon, Micron pen, dimensionals, sponges

You Are Loved

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

It's another Twinkling Tuesday sketch challenge and Madelynn has an easy one for us this week! Phew! Pop on over to Madelynn's blog, Twinkling Tuesday, to check out the sketch and also check out this week's featured Twinkie - Janna Hull! She IS the queen of sketches!

I'm really excited to show you this card today because I really, really liked how it turned out! I knew I wanted to ink up The Greeting Farm's 'For Someone' set and Madelynn's sketch was a perfect match for it. Now, the sketch shows two rectangles side by side, but Madelynn did give everyone permission to add a front panel to the layout, so I added the circle for a more softer look.

I used my reinkers to color this time and can I just say that there is a BIG difference when using reinkers vs. the back of the ink pad! Whoa! Talk about color intensity! When I use the ink from the back of the ink pad, I usually swish my aquapainter all over it to grab lots of color, but with the reinkers, it's the complete opposite! I just have to take the smallest amount of ink to get a ton of color on the paper. But I will say that I LOVE how vibrant the images look with the punch of color they get now.

Do you see that patterned paper? Isn't it yummy!? It's from K & Company and I found it at Michaels last Friday. I had looked at it a few times before then and decided it was too bright and busy for my liking, but I had just been looking at Kim Teasdale's gorgeous cards that morning and that lightbulb went off again - I can recreate the texture in Kim's cards with this paper! Brilliant! LOL Since I don't have embossing folders to create texture, busy patterned paper will have to do.

I should also mention that I sponged the rectangular panels and then stitched around the edges for added texture. I used a paper piercer for the circle panel because I didn't trust my machine stitching to do a good job of it! :D

Please check out the amazing cards created by the rest of the Twinkling team. Links to their blogs can be found on the left hand side. If you decide to play along, use the keyword MTTSC10 when you upload to SCS or PCP and provide a link to your card on Madelynn's blog so we can all find it later. :D

Tomorrow I have 'almost needs to be sensored' card for you! ;)

Supplies
Stamps: The Greeting Farm 'For Someone'
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Old Olive, More Mustard, Really Rust, Ballet Blue, Cool Caribbean, Sahara Sand
Papers: Canson Watercolor, River Rock, Bazzil cs 'Rain', PP - K & Company 'Que Sera Sera'
Access: Ribbons, paper piercer, bling (from Michaels), sewing machine, dimensionals

Best Wishes to you

Monday, February 16, 2009

Good Morning sweet friends!!

I hope you all had a great weekend. I got alot accomplished this weekend; a handful of cards, some Whipper Snapper and Doggone Stamp images got colored up and I got to play with my new reinkers in the process. I can't wait to show you them!

Remember when I told you I had some horseshoe ribbon I needed to get out and use for another Good Luck Riley card? Well, I found it!


It works great doesn't it? I picked out two patterned papers that matched the ribbon and sketched out the layout in my sketch book. Riley was colored with my Copic markers in the Riley colors (see the Hanna Stamps! store for the set) on Georgia Pacific cs and cut out. Then I stamped Riley onto the kraft cardstock and then sponged around the edges of the image with Distress Inks 'Vintage Photo' to ground him. Popped the cutout Riley on dimensionals and then stuck him to the kraft cardstock. A simple layout but I think it showcases Riley really well. Actually, it would showcase any Riley really well. :D

Guess what?? Apparently you guys really did cross your fingers last Friday because....I won the Club Anya competition!! Seriously! Who'd have thunk it?! I certainly didn't! I even stayed up until 1am to place my order! Hehehe I couldn't believe it when I when I saw my name on the Club Anya blog on Saturday morning. It was such a nice surprise. I can't wait to play with the Miss Anyas when they arrive! :D

Thanks so much for stopping by today. I have a fun sketch challenge from Madelynn for you tomorrow.

Supplies

Stamps: Hanna Stamps! 'Good Luck Riley', sentiment by PTI
Inks: Distress Inks 'Black Soot', Copic Markers Riley set by Hanna Stamps
Papers: Georgia Pacific cs, Kraft cs, Bazzil cs, PP - Creative Imaginations 'Art Warehouse' and Daisy D's 'Fall Cords - Rust'
Access: Ribbon, dimensionals

Sweethearts!

Friday, February 13, 2009

A happy Friday to you all! If you're at work today, I hope it flies by, and if you're at home like me today, I hope it is nice and relaxing for you.

I have one last Valentines day card to show you. It might actually be my favorite out of the bunch....although the Twilight card does make my heart flutter! LOL

Club Anya threw out a sketch challenge this past week and I couldn't resist having a go at it. The sketch was fun but the prize was just too good to resist! The winner will receive the Miss Anya set being released tomorrow! (I plan on getting her one way or another, but free is better! haha)

I didn't stray from the sketch at all (why mess with a good thing). The patterned paper is My Mind's Eye valentine release last year. Most of you know by now that I don't own nesties, so I cut my circle out with my Fskars circle cutter then cut the circle in half. Then I got out my trusty and loyal decorative scissors and trimmed the curved edges of my half circles to create the scalloped edges. Like I told my friend Kadie, when you don't have stuff, you get creative! LOL

I sponged the edges of the patterned papers and sewed the pieces to the cardstock. Anya and Ian make such a cute couple don't they? I watercolored them in and added stickles to the heart. I stamped out Anya's bow again and popped that up on dimensionals and added a little flower gen to the center. Then it was just a matter of piecing it all together! Jess will announce the winner tomorrow, so keep your fingers crossed everyone!

I have some happy mail coming at the end of the day today. It's my very first order from Whipper Snapper! Eeek! I am very tempted to intercept the delivery at the UPS warehouse so I can play with the stamps this morning, but I have a few other projects to work on and really need to get them done, so that will be my motivation today! *grin*

Have a great Valentines Day and a relaxing weekend!

Supplies
Stamps: The Greeting Farms '50's Sweethearts DS'
Inks: Real Red, Creamy Caramel, Close to Cocoa, Pretty in Pink, Cool Caribbean, Distress Inks 'Black Soot'
Paper: Georgia Pacific cs, Bazzil cs, PP - My Minds Eye 'Kiss and Tell Collection (2008) - I Love You and Adore?'
Access: Ribbon, Stickles, Heidi Swapp flower bling, sewing machine, decorative scissors, dimensionals, sponges

Giraffe Boghart?!

Thursday, February 12, 2009

I told you I had a smoldering giraffe didn't I?!? Does he not have that 'come hither' look on his face?! I REALLY enjoyed coloring this guy in! The details on him are amazing!

He's from Doggone Stamps and you may have already seen some cards on SCS made with him from the other design team members, like this one by Mitzi or this one by Nancy, AKA Pound Master! LOL

I didn't have to do a lot of coloring to Mr Boghart to bring him to life. I used Morning Marigold first then Creamy Caramel on any shadow areas. Cool Caribbean is in the background to ground him.

Got my sewing machine out yet again! I'm trying to find a happy setting on my machine to prevent the corners from pulling towards the center. I think it's a tension thing. If anyone has any suggestions - I'm all ears! :D

It's Friday tomorrow and it's also my day off work!! Waahoooo! I soooo need the break!

Supplies
Stamps: Doggone Stamps 'Giraffe', sentiment by Studio G mini alphabet sets
Inks: StazOn 'Timber Brown', Morning Marigold, Creamy Caramel, Real Red, Certain Celery, True Thyme, Cool Caribbean
Paper: Georgia Pacific cs, Bazzil cs, PP - Basic Grey 'Aged and Confused Sublime Collection - Vintage Floral'
Access: Ribbon, sewing machine, dimensionals

Steal a kiss!

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

So last night Mr Brown delivered some new supplies to my house and now I can let you in on my little secret: This past year I've been coloring with just 14 SU colors. Fourteen!? I guessing most of you have more than that! They have served me VERY well, but with all the overtime I did, I decided it was time to add some new colors (and new life) to my overused stash. I now have 19 new colors to choose from!! Yippeee!

I bought reinkers instead of the stamp pads this time because 99.9% of the time I watercolor an image and very rarely stamp in an actual color other than black or brown, so reinkers made more sense. It's going to be so exciting to work with some fresh colors again! This makes me VERY happy! :D

How fabulous is this stamp?!? I was having a slow moment when I first saw it on Victoria Case's website because I held off buying it. But I must have been reading a really good part of the Twilight series of books because a light bulb went on and I had a 'Duh!!' moment! They look just like Bella and Edward!!! Don't they?!

Did ya notice Edward's eye color? hehe I couldn't resist! I could have probably darkened Bella's hair a bit but then it might have been too dark to notice the detail in her hair. Doesn't Victoria have MAD SKILLS?! I love her characters.

The layout uses this week's Mojo Sketch Challenge, MOJO73, and the color combo is from this week's CCEE challenge, which is to use pink, kraft and white! I used my favorite embellishment on this card, ribbon, and that fit the requirements of the OCC's inspiration challenge for this week too! Three challenges in one! A very rare trifecta for me indeed!! I think that deserves a celebratory glass of wine when I get home tonight. haha

Tomorrow I have a smoldering giraffe for you. Trust me.... :D


Supplies
Stamps: Victoria Case Stamps 'Steal A Kiss', sentiment by Studio G
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Creamy Caramel, Cool Caribbean, Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip, Distress Inks 'Black Soot'
Papers: Georgia Pacific cs, Bazzil cs, PP - Imaginisce 'All Kinds Of Happy Collection - Pink Frosting with Sprinkles'
Access: Ribbon, brad, dimensionals

What a sketch!

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Happy Tuesday morning to you all!

I have a doozer of a sketch for you all today! This sketch comes from our first Twinkling Guest Sketch Designer and can you believe she is only SIX years old?!? It's just crazy that a 6 year old can draw this well! And not only that, but to come up with a difficult sketch to boot!! Nuts I tell ya!
Piper is the amazing 6 six year old who came up with this weeks Twinkling sketch and she is the daughter of proud DT member Heather. Piper might give me the buzzer on this card since I didn't follow the sketch to a T!

I left off the cross pieces and heart embellies, but I have to get points for following the corner rounders on each layer right?! :D

The stamp I used, isn't of the rubber kind. It's a digital stamp! This is my first time branching out and using the digital stamps and I have to say that they work really well if using the right equipment. From what I've read, digital stamps work best if printed with a laser printer and not an inkjet printer because the ink doesn't run. I printed my Geisha stamp on Georgia Pacific cs with the laser printer at work (shhh! Don't tell anyone!) and it worked perfectly!

My sewing machine was still out from the last time I used it, so I added some sewing to each layer for some extra detail. Note how hard it was to follow the edge when I got to the rounded corners! Haha I'm still learning! I sponged the edges of the pink cardstock and the polka dotted patterned paper. Lots of dimensionals on this card!

The other DT gals had fun with this sketch too, so if you want to play long and need some ideas, hop on over to their blogs! If you are game enough this week and want to play along, use the key word MTTSC9 when uploading to SCS or PCP so we can leave some love!

I have a twilight-ish card for you tomorrow. *grin* Bet that brings you back tomorrow! LOL

Supplies
Stamps: The Greeting Farm's 'Geisha Anya DS'
Inks: Pretty in Pink, Creamy Caramel, Certain Celery, Distress Inks 'Black Soot'
Papers: Georgia Pacific cs, Bazzil cs, PP - Making Memories 'Black Small Dots' & Basic Grey 'Eva Collection - Extravagance'
Access: Ribbon, sewing machine, dimensionals

Bear Hugs!

Monday, February 9, 2009

Good Morning! I hope you all had a great weekend. I puttered around the house for most of it. It was nice to just be home and not have any out of town obligations.

Last Friday The Man came home with something I haven't had in the house in over two years - TIM TAMS!! Tim Tams are an Australian chocolate cookie/sandwich that I have not found easily in the US. The last time I had them was Christmas 2006 when The Man bought me a whole supply of Australian food from an importer here in the US. He found these at a somewhat local (1hr away) unique gift shop in Vermont. I was so excited to have a little taste of home this weekend that I got a little carried away and.....well, lets just say that no one else in the house got a taste! LOL

From all the blog surfing I've been doing, I know I'm WAYYY behind in showing you some Valentines Day cards, but then again, I don't want to get all 'department storie' on you and show you things three months ahead of schedule! All week I have some fun and sweet cards to show you that celebrate this heart warming holiday.

Today's card uses a stamp from Doggone Stamps, called 'Bear With Pillow'. He's a cute little thing and looks a little sad hugging his pillow. If he's anything like my little girl, he's getting some comfort from hugging it. The layout is a sketch challenge that Jana Mays put to the rest of the Doggone Stamps design team and is open to anyone who wants to play along with us. I didn't tweak it much at all since the layout is right up my alley.

If you pop over to the thread on PCP that the girls started for this sketch challenge, you can find some other fabulous cards, like Lauri Ingram's!

Tomorrow I have another Twinkling sketch challenge for you all tomorrow (it's a doozer!). Thanks for stopping by today!


Supplies
Stamps: Doggone Stamps 'Bear with pillow', sentiment by Studio G
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Creamy Caramel, Close to Cocoa, Pretty In Pink, Real Red, Vintage Violet
Paper: Georgia Pacific cs, Cranberry Crisp, Bazzil cs, PP - K & Company 'Sweet Talk Die Cut Mat'
Access: Ribbon, K&Company 'Sweet Talk Acetate Die Cuts', heart button, dimensionals

Doggone Stamps has new stamps!

Friday, February 6, 2009

Since I posted my usual Friday post late last night, I just wanted to make a quick post and announcement today.

Doggone Stamps has posted some new stamps in their shop and you need to go and check them out! They have a bunch of dog stamps available and I think I may have to order a couple for myself! I love the look of THIS one and THIS one!

I'll have some new cards for you next week using some of their images. I can't wait for you to see them!

See you next week! Toodles!

Hanna Stamps Challenge

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Thank god it's almost Friday!

I need another break from work. Lots of little deadlines that have kept me busy throughout the day and I am tired again. Suppose it might have helped if I went to bed at a decent hour, but I was near the end of Book 3 of Twilight and had to find out how it ended. I don't think I'll be catching up on any sleep this weekend with Book 4 sitting on my bedside table! haha

Today I have a non card to show you! Shocked? So am I!

I made this notebook for the Hanna Stamps release party challenge (HSFBC1) that your's truly is hosting! My challenge, which is open to everyone, is to use fabric somewhere, somehow on your card or 3D project. If you don't have fabric, that's ok, you can use patterned paper to represent the fabric instead.

In my teens, I used to make a lot of craft things for family and friends, and even sold a few things! I was definitely getting back to my crafting roots with this project.

It's a notebook that I found in the $1 bins at Michaels, and I covered it using fabric that I also found at Michaels (fat quarters). I should have taken a picture of the inside for you (but I wasn't thinking things through AGAIN!) because it has a layer of pink fabric covering the inside cover.

The notebook is held together by a metal spiral binder, so I started by prying open the binder and removing the front and back covers. Then I cut two pieces of fabric an inch larger (in length and width) than the covers. My spray glue had clogged up so I had to resort to the glue in my ATG gun to glue the fabric to the covers. Once the fabric was on, then I punched out the holes for the spiral binder, and covered two pieces of cardboard cut a little smaller than the covers in the pink fabric. Then I stuck the cover and the small piece of covered card 'wrong side to wrong side'. I hope that makes sense (kinda hard without pictures I know - sorry about that). Then it was just a matter of putting the covers back on the binder and closing it up again. The fun part was adding all the pieces of ribbon to the spiral binder!

I can't wait to see everyone's creations! What's that? Are there prizes? Why YES!! Entries close on Monday at 5pm and one random creation will be chosen and they will win the new 'IN VOGUE' set!!!! Waahoooo! Definitely worth a bit of blood, sweat and tears don't you think?? Ok, maybe not the blood, but definitely some sweat! ;)

Have a FUNTASTIC weekend everyone and I'll see you next week with some fun Valentine's Day cards!!


Supplies:
Stamps: Hanna Stamps! 'In Vogue'
Inks: Pretty in Pink, Creamy Caramel, Distress Inks 'Tea Dye'
Paper: Georgia Pacific cs, Bazzil cs,
Access: Ribbon (lots of it!), fabric, buttons, dimensionals, Marvy scalloped circle punch and circle punch

Sneak Peek: Bowling anyone?

You should have seen my face the first time I went bowling in the US. Hubby got nibblies before we started and came back with a pitcher of beer. I had to peel my jaw up off the floor! I had no idea you can drink beer while bowling in this country! I love this country....*sigh*. Hubby used to laugh at me when I explained to him how Australia has drive through liquor stores (to be taken home before opening), but he doesn't see the severity of being allowed to play with a 12lb wrecking ball while sloshed!? It's still a fabulous idea though.

This is the other set that I just had to have when Kristi showed us what she was releasing this month. Isn't it just plain FUN!?!

I wanted to showcase a few of the stamps in this set (I used 5), so I stamped the images on Georgia Pacific cs then colored them all in separately. It's a little harder to watercolor on this cardstock because it absorbs the ink and water so much faster and you don't have time to move it around to get an even coverage. But I like the smooth surface it has, which just means I have to be more careful where I start to apply the color and when I finish the brush stroke. Simple right? *wink*

I hope our Hanna has bike shorts on under her itty bitty dress!

I used this week's CCEE sketch challenge to create this card. I think my brain was on autopilot when making this card because it's really simple.....but I meant that. (Nod your heads and agree.) I faux stitched the horizontal panel, and added pierced holes to the edge of the circle. I was singing that sentiment the whole time I was making the card too!

And it's LADIES NITE tonight at the Hanna Stamps release party starting at 9pm EST!! Yay!! Vicki has stamp sets to give away and I'm sure Kristi will have some CHA stories to tell! As well as challenges to compete in...like the one I'll be hosting! :D See you there!

Toodles!

Supplies:

Card 1
Stamps: Hanna Stamps! 'Bowling'
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Creamy Caramel, Chocolate Chip, Buckaroo Blue, Morning Marigold, Cool Caribbean, Pumpkin Pie, Real Red
Paper: Georgia Pacific cs, Bazzil cs, PP - Moxxie 'Bowl-O-Rama Collection - Perfect Game'
Access: Sewing machine, dimensionals, precision scissors

Card 2
Stamps: Hanna Stamps! 'Bowling', sentiment by Karen Foster's Snap Stamps
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Cool Caribbean, Buckaroo Blue, Certain Celery, Pumpkin Pie
Paper: Georgia Pacific cs, Bazzil cs, PP - 'Bowl-O-Rama Collection - Perfect Game'
Access: Paper piercer, zig pen, dimensionals, circle punches

Sneak Peek: Day Three

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Riley's naked!!! Arghhhh! What's that?? He's always naked? Well, yeah he usually us, but for some reason he just strikes me as particularly more nakie in this image. Why?? He just DOES.

My mind could very well be in the gutter thought since I just read Chapter 20 of Book Three in the Twilight series.....it's a particularly GOOD chapter! ;)

Back to the card; I went with a cowboy theme for this card since there's a horse shoe involved. (It was an obvious route so I went with it!) The paper is from Cosmo Cricket. The edges of it are sponged with Distress Inks and the layer it's matted on was distressed to add to the rugged theme.

A simple card but I really like how this one turned out. I will have to revisit this card/theme again since I just remembered about some horse shoe ribbon I have that I need to pull out! :D

Tomorrow is BOWLING NIGHT! ;) Stay tuned!

Supplies:

Stamps: Hanna Stamps! 'Good Luck Riley', sentiment by Papertrey Ink

Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Creamy Caramel, Chocolate Chip, Distress Inks 'Black Soot'

Paper: Canson Watercolor, Bazzil cs, PP - Cosmo Cricket 'Wanted Collection - Slue Foot Sue'

Access: Ribbon, eyelets, dimensionals, edge distresser

Sneak Peek: Day Two

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

As soon as Kristi showed us this set I couldn't beg for it fast enough!! It's called 'In Vogue' and I love this cartoony look that this Hanna's has. Although, I will say that I think she needs to lay off the plastic surgery a wee bit! Those lips are making Angelina Jolie jealous! Haha

So I have two cards to show you today. You lucky ducks! :D

This first one showcases one of the main images (there are two) from the 'In Vogue' set. In all, this set has 5 stamps in it.

Eight year old Madelynn provided the sketch for this card. Madelynn has her own design team turn her sketches into gorgeous cards. If you'd like to play along this week, just pop on over to Madelynn's blog (yes, this 8 year old has her own blog) for the sketch and all the deets and remember to use the keyword MTTSC8 when you upload your cards to SCS or PCP so the team can leave some love. Head over to the other Twinkies blogs to see some more creations using Madelynn's sketch. (Psst! The list is on the left and you should visit Jessica's (Madelynn's mum) blog because I she has BLOG CANDY this week!)

I don't own a cuttle bug or nesties (did your jaw drop?) so I replaced the oval piece for a rectangular one. Hanna is stamped on watercolor paper and colored up with SU inks and my aquapainter. Then I cut her out and popped her on some dimensionals. The sentiment is one I found at Michaels and is by Hampton Arts. The patterned paper is something else I picked up at Michaels last week. And can you believe that the name of this paper is 'Fashion District'?! Seriously! I can't tell you how many times that has happened to me! I pick out paper for a stamp, make the card and when I add the supply deets to my blog post, I realize that the name of the paper matches the stamp set perfectly! It's SO weird!

My second card showcases three stamps from the set. The dress form stamp is part of the other main image in the set. I just stamped out a portion of it for this card.

For the life of me I could not come up with a sentiment for this card! So I just chickened out again. :D Don't you love those shoes and that bag stuffed full of money?! Obviously this is a BEFORE shot of the bag: before the shopping began! The patterned paper is again from the 8x8 'Fashion District' pad of paper by Me & My Big Ideas. I love the colors on this card!

Ok, so that's it from me today. I'll have another Riley for you tomorrow. If you want see more sneak peeks of the Hanna sets, run over to the blogs of the rest of the Hanna design team and our guest designer for this month - Jacqui Lines. You won't be disappointed! They're whipping up some FABULOUS cards this week!

Supplies
Card 1
Stamps: Hanna Stamps 'In Vogue', sentiment by Hampton Art Stamps DF4549
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Creamy Caramel, Chocolate Chip, Cool Caribbean, Real Red, Morning Marigold, Pretty in Pink, Distress Inks 'Black Soot'
Paper: Canson Watercolor, Bazzil cs, PP - Me & My Big Ideas 'Fashion District'
Access: Sheer ribbon and dimensionals

Card 2
Stamps: Hanna Stamps 'In Vogue'
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Close to Cocoa, Cool Caribbean, Certain Celery, Colorbox Chalk Inks 'Wisteria', Distress Inks 'Tea Dye'
Paper: Very Vanilla, Bazzil cs, PP - Me & My Big Ideas 'Fashion District'
Access: Ribbon, paper piercer, zig pen, decorative scissors, dimensionals

Sneak Peek: Day One

Monday, February 2, 2009

Can you believe it's release week for Hanna Stamps again?! It feels like I just got done showing you last month's set. But if you thought those sets were great - Whoa Nelly!! You ain't seen NOTHING yet! This month's sets are nothing short of AWESOME!!

Meet G.I. Jon Riley!

I LOVE a man in a uniform! And doesn't Riley fill in his just nicely?! I think he'll be a popular choice amongst all the Riley fans with loved ones in the military. They do so much for this country and I'm thankful for their service.

Great patterned paper isn't it?? Wanna guess where I got it? Yep. At that New Years Day sale. I'm seriously starting to think that it wasn't a bad thing to wait in line for those 4 hours. So many cards benefited from it. :) This one wasn't a flukie purchase though - I thought of GI Jon Riley as soon as I saw it. It's double sided too, so you'll probably see the other side in my next card.

I found that sentiment in the Studio G $1 bin at Michaels last week. Good find hey?

Please stop by the other design team members blogs for their sneak peeks this week. There are three clear sets and two Rileys being released this Friday and if you're lucky, you might see all the sets today!

Have a fabulous Monday!

Supplies:
Stamps: Hanna Stamps 'GI Jon Riley', sentiment by Studio G
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Creamy Caramel, Chocolate Chip, True Thyme, Morning Marigold, Distress Inks 'Black Soot & Vintage Photo'
Paper: Canson Watercolor, Bazzil cs, PP - Reminisce 'Go Army'
Access: Fiscars star punch, sponges, dimensionals

Greetings Club Anya!

Sunday, February 1, 2009

I hope you're all still having fun with the Club Anya celebrations!! I had a blast putting my part of the blog hop together for you. That was the first hop I've participated in. Could you tell?! I'm so green sometimes! Hahha

I promised I'd show my card in full and here she is! Did you guess correctly??

Mermaid Anya was one of the first Anya's I bought from The Greeting Farm (back when it was still known as Pink Poison) and I still love her most!! Those sparkles in her hair are just the perfect touch to her.

This is the first time I've done any REAL sewing on a card. I've always faked it with Zig pens and a paper piercer. My sewing machine had been packed away in our storage unit. I decided today was the day to dig it up and bring it out for this card! I practiced on a little bit of scrap paper first before touching any of my precious Basic Grey paper!

I used my aquapainter and SU inks to color Anya and added some diamond stickles to the sparkles in her hair. The faux dew drops (a Michael's find - long ago) and tile stickers are supposed to imitate air bubbles. I added the tiny pearls to the corners of the card to pull it all together.

Thanks so much for stopping by today on Superbowl Sunday. We are having a pretty low key day today since the New England Patriots aren't playing. I have HANNA STAMPS! sneak peeks to show you starting tomorrow, so I'll sign off for now and see you all then!

Supplies:
Stamps: The Greeting Farm 'Mermaid Anya', sentiment by PaperTrey Ink
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Pretty in Pink, Certain Celery, Creamy Caramel
Paper: Bazzil Bling cs, Canson Watercolor paper, PP - Basic Grey 'Sultry Collection'
Access: Ribbon, stickles, faux dew drops, Kaiser Scrapbook pearls, EK Success tile stickers, dimensionals, sewing machine

You're almost there!!

How excited are you all!?! This is so exciting I can't stand it! In exactly one half hour we all get to see the new Anyas being released AND Club Anya offically opens!!! Waahooooo!

Just incase you've accidently stumbled onto my blog today and haven't a clue as to what I'm raving on about, please visit The Whimsical Butterfly to start your Club Anya blog hop. Jess and Marie are making it worth your while to participate (can you say prizes!?!) And if you are visiting my blog because of THE hop, the you've come from the amazingly talented Jami Bova's eye candy of a blog, Stamp Happy! I can't wait to see her entire card!

I hope you all have had a lot of fun this afternoon with all the teases, clues and sneak peeks - I know I have! The Club Anya blog hostesses have put a lot of effort into putting this hop together so I hope you all have left some love at each of their blogs today. They have outdone themselves in making this the best grand opening EVER!! A big round of applause goes out to these girls!

Just reiterating the blog hop rules to you all again so bear with me please.

----------------------------------------------------------

OFFICIAL CONTEST RULES:

1.) ALL TIMES for contest are in Central Standard Times (CST).

2.) You must email Jessica at yeahshestamps@gmail.com with your answers for ALL NINE "Guess the Anyas" AND let her know that you have completed the scavenger hunt which is posted now on the Club Anya blog to be eligible to win an Anya Pocket Mirror. PLEASE EMAIL ONLY ONCE you have completed ALL NINE guesses. Multiple emails will not be able to be accepted or entered into the contest, sorry :( At 4:00 pm CST, the last Guess that Anya will be posted and you will have up to 1/2 hour after that to get your guesses in before the big reveal on the Club Anya blog at 4:30pm CST TODAY!!

Pocket mirrors will be given out to the FIRST 20 people who complete ALL NINE Guess the Anya's correctly as well as the Scavenger Hunt.

3.) To enter yourself into the Grand Prize drawing for one of FIVE new Anya stamps, you must complete the above requirements and also leave a comment on THIS post. Prizes will be drawn using Random.org after the reveal at 4:30 pm on 2/1/09 CST.

4.) No entries will be counted or accepted after the reveal of the new Anya on Sunday, February 1st, 2009 at 4:30 pm CST.

5.) GOOD LUCK and HAVE FUN!!! Anya ROCKS the Farm!!!

----------------------------------------------------------

I won't keep you in suspense any longer! I have the final 'Guess that Anya' for you today.

She's beautiful, serene and full of sparkle. A vision of beauty as her hair glistens in the sun. She may be a myth, but to sailor, she's good luck!

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!!!

Now follow the contest rules to be in with a chance to win a prize. Your next stop is Club Anya at 4.30pm CST!! I'll see you all there!

I'll be posting the full image of my card for you after 5pm CST if you would like to see it. Thanks for stopping by today!!