TSG145: Owl-ways There For You!

Monday, February 27, 2012

Good Morning!

I hope you all had an awesome weekend. I had a jam-packed one myself...and mine started last Thursday! We said farewell to my brother and dad who had been staying with us since the start of February (I was a complete mess!), then picked up my two stamping besties for a whirlwind weekend of sightseeing, stamping and Twilight watching! Add a lot of driving, a stomach bug and three cards...I'm a wee little bit physically and emotionally drained today! But I'm glad I got to spend time with my favorite people. :)

I'll definitely share a photo or two with you later this week, but before this post gets any longer, here's one of those cards I worked on yesterday! This week's There She Goes challenge #145 is my favorite kind of challenge - a sketch!


It's a good one and I know you'll want to play along with us this week!

For my card I pulled out the You're A Hoot set because those cute, little owls fit perfectly in a rectangular panel! (No one said this was rocket science!) ;) I colored them with my reinkers and aquapainter brush, then cut them out and mounted them on the sky panel that I sponged with SU's Cool Caribbean and Rosie's Roadshow Cloud Template. Then I just used some scrap paper from MME and Crate Paper to create the rest of the elements. Added a little ribbon, a sweet sentiment, also from the set, and I was done!

To be eligible for the giveaway, create a card or project using an animal theme and then come back to the TSG Blog to add your name and a link to your project in the InLinkz that is located at the bottom of the challenge post. This challenge is open until the winner has been announced on the following Monday (March 6th). The winner will get a $5 gift certificate to use in the TSG Web store!

By participating in this challenge, you may also find yourself in the Trendsetting Spotlight that shines on the TSG Blog every Thursday. We will be on the lookout to find challenge cards that stand out and show Trendsetting qualities.TSG stamps are not required to participate in the challenges but are appreciated! :)

You do not need to have a blog to be able to participate in the TSG Challenges! You can simply add the URL link from your project after it has been uploaded to your online craft gallery. If you upload your card to an online craft gallery, please use the keyword TSG145 so we can check out your beautiful work!


Thank you so very much for popping in today! See you tomorrow!

Supplies
Stamps: There She Goes 'You're A Hoot'
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', SU's Curry Crush Morning Marigold, Really Rust, Soft Suede, Cool Caribbean, Distress Inks 'Peeling Paint'
Papers: Strathmore Bristol Vellum, Bazzil Basics - Bitter Chocolate, Kraft Cardstock, PP - MME Scrap, Crate Paper Scrap
Access: Ribbon, Fiskars Decorative Scissors, Fiskars Corner Punch, Rosies Roadshow Cloud Template, Sponges, Machine Stitching, Paper Piercer, Dimensionals

TSG Eggstra Special Release Sneak Peek!!

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Welcome to the second day of the There She Goes March releases! We have another fabulous set that speaks volumes to me!

A-tisket a-tasket, a green and yellow basket…Melyssa has created the most darling Easter stamp set! This mini-set will be sure to please that egg-stra special person. The sentiment fonts are so whimsically fun and you’ll enjoy coloring these Easter eggs. This is a must have set.


Egg-stra Special is a 3x4 set that includes a total of 9 stamps and will sell for $7.00.

As soon as I saw this sweet image, I thought of an Easter egg hunt, so I created some rolling hills with some scrap pink gingham paper and my Fiskars decorative edge scissors, a bright blue sky using Rosie's Roadshow Cloud template and SU's Cool Caribbean ink. This is the first time I have used this template and I really, really love it! I think you might see it again in the very near future! ;)

Would you like to win the new Egg-stra Special stamp sets? Here is what you need to do- visit the Trendsetter’s blogs that are participating in each of the blog hop challenges below and comment on their creations as you go. One of the Trendsetter’s blogs (from each hop day) will be randomly chosen as the ‘it’ blog and a winner will be picked using a random number generator from the comments left on that Trendsetter’s Blog Hop Challenge post. You will not know which blog has been chosen so the more you comment on the better your chances are of winning new stamps! The Blog Hop Challenges will be open until 5 PM Eastern Time Saturday February 25th with the winner being announced during the release party chat.

Here's a list of blogs you'll definitely want to visit for more sneak peeks! :)



I hope you've enjoyed all the sneak peeks this week! I know we've had a blast creating all of them for you! :) Have a great weekend everyone!

Supplies
Stamps: There She Goes 'Eggstra Special'
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', SU's Creamy Caramel, Regal Rose, Rich Razzleberry, Morning Marigold, Soft Suede, Cool Caribbean, Distress Inks 'Antique Linen, Tea Dye, Vintage Photo
Papers: Strathmore Bristol Vellum, Georgia Pacific, PTI Kraft Cardstock, SU's Old Olive, Bazzil Basics, PP - Basic Grey's 'Sweet Threads' Collection, MME scrap
Access: May Arts Wrinkled Ribbon - Pink, PTI Button - Sweet Blush, PTI Rustic Button Twine - Cream, Fiskars Decorative Scissors, Rosie's Roadshow Cloud Template, Machine Stitching, Sponges, Dimensionals

TSG Every Child Release Sneak Peek!!

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Welcome to the second day of the There She Goes March releases! We have another fabulous set that I know you're going to love!

Crayons, paint, canvass, and paint brushes are the tools of every great artist and Torico has created a set that will release our inner child. This set promises to bring out the artist in you. The darling line art in this set will having you pulling out all your favorite mediums and reconnecting to the ‚grown-up‛ artist that you are.


Every Child is a 4x6 set that includes a total of 14 stamps and will sell for $15.00.

My little girl constantly tells people that she knows she's an artist 'because my mama said I was'. Which is very true, but I think she's milking it for all it's worth though! :) But, you know, it's because of this that I fell in love with this set!

I wanted to do a simple layout and have the little girl scribbling be the main focal point of the card, so I made one, long panel and added the sentiment off to the side. As always, I colored in the image with reinkers and an aquapainter brush. I cut out the little girl and colored in a puddle of shadow (with SU's Sahara Sand) to ground the image.

Would you like to win the new Every Child stamp set? Here is what you need to do- visit the Trendsetter’s blogs that are participating in each of the blog hop challenges below and comment on their creations as you go. One of the Trendsetter’s blogs (from each hop day) will be randomly chosen as the ‘it’ blog and a winner will be picked using a random number generator from the comments left on that Trendsetter’s Blog Hop Challenge post. You will not know which blog has been chosen so the more you comment on the better your chances are of winning new stamps! The Blog Hop Challenges will be open until 5 PM Eastern Time Saturday February 25th with the winner being announced during the release party chat.

Here's a list of blogs you'll definitely want to visit for more sneak peeks! :)





Our last sneak peek day is tomorrow, so I hope to see you all back here for it! Don't tell Jess, but it's my favorite set of the release! ;)

Supplies
Stamps: There She Goes 'Every Child'
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black, SU's Creamy Caramel, Buckaroo Blue, Old Olive, Soft Suede, Sahara Sand, Distress Inks 'Antique Linen, Tea Dye and Vintage Photo'
Papers: Strathmore Bristol Vellum, Black Cardstock, PTI Kraft Cardstock, PP - October Afternoon's 'Thirft Store' Collection
Access: Fiskars Decorative Scissors, Machine Stitching, Sponging, Dimensionals

TSG BirthdayBot/Numbered Days Release Sneak Peek!!

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the first day of the There She Goes March releases! We have two sets to share with you today and I can't wait for you to see them!

We have all had a loss for words…but have you ever had a loss for ‚numbers?‛ Torico’s new illustrated set brings the numbers to the forefront. With two sets of numbers to color, paper piece, or be creative with ink Numbered days is the set for you to send those birthday and anniversary wishes.



Numbered Days is a 4x6 set that includes a total of 37 stamps and will sell for $15.00.

My stamp collection has been missing a set like this! Kids birthday cards will be a snap to make now that I have this one in my stash!

So that's what I made for my sneak peek - a kid's birthday card! I normally like to show you as many of the stamps from the set as possible, so I piled on 13 stamps from the set! Can you spot all of them?!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Friendbots, Lovebots, Nursebots, and now Birthdaybots. Torcio has been hard at work to bring us another fabulous bot! Is this bot ever so cute?! What a fabulous way to send out birthday wishes to your little bot!


Would you like to win the new Numbered Days and Birthdaybot stamp set? Here is what you need to do- visit the Trendsetter’s blogs that are participating in each of the blog hop challenges below and comment on their creations as you go. One of the Trendsetter’s blogs (from each hop day) will be randomly chosen as the ‘it’ blog and a winner will be picked using a random number generator from the comments left on that Trendsetter’s Blog Hop Challenge post.

Here's a list of blogs you should be hitting up! :)

See you back here tomorrow with another sneak peek!!

Supplies
Stamps: There She Goes 'Numbered' and 'World's Best'
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', SU's Morning Marigold, Pumpkin Pie, Sahara Sand, Regal Rose, Ruby Red, Distress Inks 'Antique Linen, Tea Dye'
Papers: Georgia Pacific, Kraft Cardstock, Black Cardstock, PP - Sassafras 'Apple Jack' Collection and Crate Paper's 'Recollection' Collection
Access: TSG World's Best Die, Spellbinders 'Labels Four', PTI Rustic Button Twine - Cream, Fiskars Corner Punch, Machine Stitching Sponges, Dimensionals

I Miss Your Mug!

Friday, February 17, 2012

Happy Friday everyone!

What a week this has been! My brother and Dad took an impromptu trip to NYC on Tuesday, then on Valentines Day, Syd's school was in lock-down because someone decided to have a domestic dispute near the school and was seen with a gun. Thankfully, they turned themselves in mid morning and the kids were allowed to go outside for recess. Yesterday, I picked Syd up from school around lunchtime after she vomited. Hopefully the weekend will turn out a bit better!

It's release week next week for There She Goes, but before we show you a new bunch of stamps, we're revisiting some old favorites this week. It's something we like to call There She Goes (Again!) and the sets we're showcasing this week are Let's Get Together, Slow and Steady and Special Delivery.

I looooove my coffee! It's usually the first thing I drink in the morning and the last thing I drink in the evening, so I immediately picked up the Let's Get Together set and went to town on a card. The papers are scraps of MME and Bo Bunny from my scrap draw. I've been trying to use up some of the old paper I have before buying anything new. It's been hard, especially when there are soooo many enablers in blog land! lol

I colored the coffee cup with SU's Going Gray ink, then paper pieced the sleeve with some more MME scrap paper. Then I used this week's Mojo Sketch #228 for my layout. (I think a couple other Trendsetters did too!) I added a little something extra to the card by randomly adhering some Kaisercraft adhesive pearls for 'steam' and sewed the Bo Bunny paper to the cardstock with a zigzag stitch. I ended up using a sentiment from the recently released Perk Up! set because it worked better with the layout.

Here's a close up of the paper piecing and stitching. I even colored on the patterned paper so that it would look like it was curved too. Each layer was sponged with Distress Ink and the circle panel was paper pierced instead of sewn. The scallops on the cardstock under the circle panel was done with some decorative scissors. I don't own the scalloped circle nesties from Spellbinders, but I don't let that stop me! ;)


If you haven't heard by now, There She Goes is running a special this week. If you've had your eye on a set or two, now's the time to get them!

I hope you all have had a great week and are looking forward to the weekend. Until next week...stay warm, my friends!

Supplies
Stamps: There She Goes 'Let's Get Together' and 'Perk Up'
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', SU's Going Gray and Sahara Sand, Distress Inks 'Antique Linen, Tea Dye and Vintage Photo'
Papers: Georgia Pacific, Bazzil Basics - Bitter Chocolate, PP - Bo Bunny and MME scrap
Access: Spellbinders Circle and Labels One Nesties, Fiskars Decorative Scissors, Kaisercrafts Pearls - Pearl, Machine Stitching, Sponges, Dimensionals

A Dirty Little Secret!

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Good Morning everyone! I've been keeping a dirty little secret for a while now. But it's time to spill the beans - I'm one of the newest Dirty Girls over at Splitcoastampers!!

I can honestly say that I never, ever thought that I would be chosen from all the wonderfully talented ladies on this site. In fact, it was the furthest thing from my mind when Lydia called me, but it happened and I am so excited and honored to be included in this wonderful group! The next six months are going to be busy and fast-paced...I hope you will come along for the ride!

I couldn't think of a better set to use to commemorate my new position than this fun set from There She Goes! It's called Loads of Fun and even though it's got a lot to do with the most mundane, thankless job in the world, there are some tongue-in-cheek sentiments in this set that I like...like this one!

When I made this card a week ago (yes, I was ahead of the game at that point!), I spied fellow Dirty Girl, Jen Shultz's sketch #37 on her blog, Deconstructing Jen. It was the perfect layout for this itty bitty underpants stamp! But it wasn't going to be just any old pair of undies - I had to dress them up a bit! I colored them in with my Black Soot Distress Ink, then added white polka dots with a white gel pen. Then I added some aptly named Frosted Lace Stickles to the lace on the image. Next, I cut out the image and mounted it on another piece of Strathmore Bristol Vellum cardstock (which I use to stamp all my images on) that I cut out with PTI's Fillable Frames #10 die. Then I used Antique Linen and Tea Dye Distress Ink to sponge the edges of the frame. The strip of patterned paper is a piece from Die Cuts With A View's La Creme Matstock collection that I matted with some black cardstock and trimmed the edges with my tiny scalloped decorative scissors. After that, it was just a matter of layering it all and tucking some feminine lace underneath it all.

Thanks so much for popping in today! Before I go, I thought I'd share a conversation I had with my little girl while making this card...

Syd: "Mama! Are those undies?"
Me: "Yes they are."
Syd: "Is that a baby birthday card?"
Me: "No. It's sort of a romantic card, for Valentines Day."
Syd: "Undies are NOT romantic Mama!"
Me: "Well, not all of them are honey."


See you tomorrow!

Supplies
Stamps: There She Goes 'Loads of Fun'
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', Distress Inks 'Antique Linen, Tea Dye, Vintage Photo and Black Soot'
Papers: Strathmore Bristol Vellum, Bazzil Basics - Vanilla Cream, Black Cardstock, PP - DCWV La Creme Matstock Collection
Access: PTI Fillable Frames #10, Fiskars Decorative Scissors, Lace - Joann's, Kaisercrafts Adhesive Pearls - Mango, Tim Holtz Edge Distresser, Sponges, Machine Stitching, Dimensionals

Best Wishes

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Good Morning and Happy Valentines Day!!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. We were very busy with the family again. On Saturday, The Man took my dad and brother on a tour of some breweries in the Vermont area, while the little one and I went to her dance class. Then we spent the afternoon making pulled pork and Mac 'n' Cheese for dinner. Sunday we went out for breakfast, then my In-laws took my family to visit the Yankee Candle factory in Massachusetts. Oh, and I made a couple of cards too. :) This week they're headed to NYC on their own then we're taking them to Boston on the weekend. It's amazing what you can squeeze into a three week vacation! lol

One of those cards I whipped up this weekend was this one for this week's There She Goes Challenge #143. It's a color challenge and the colors are: Olive, Rose and Razzleberry.

This super sweet image is from TSG's The Fairy Best set. Isn't it adorable?! (Edit: And it's on sale this week!!) I love coloring in little critters and mushrooms! As always, I colored in the image with my reinkers and aquapainter brush and punched it out with the deckled oval die from Spellbinders. I then carefully matted it with some more white paper. It's a little painstaking, but it's worth the effort. The layout is this week's sketch, DS38, from Jen's Deconstructing Jen's sketch challenge.

Since my coloring medium of choice is to watercolor, I have a big stash of SU's reinkers to choose from, but what I don't have is a lot of SU cardstock. In fact, I think all I have is a pack of their 2008 In Colors, and that's about it. So whenever I play a color challenge, I have to try to color match my Bazzil cardstock collection to the color combo and make them work for the challenge. So, if you're like me, and don't have an SU paper store in your craft room, work with whatever you've got! :)

I just so happened to pick up this piece of Basic Grey's Sweet Threads patterned paper this weekend and it wasn't until I got home that I realized it matched the colors perfectly! Score! Love it when that happens! I matched it with some scrap American Crafts paper and went to town!

This week on the TSG blog, it's the There She Goes (Again!) week, where Jess shares past projects using some much loved sets, then on Friday, the Trendsetters will have a bunch of new cards to share with you using the same sets. So, if you need some new inspiration for your Let's Get Together, Special Delivery or Slow and Steady, then head on over to the TSG blog and soak up a little inspiration!

Thanks so much for stopping by today!!

Supplies

Stamps: There She Goes 'The Fairy Best'

Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', SU's Creamy Caramel, Cool Caribbean, Old Olive, Sahara Sand, Rich Razzleberry, Distress Inks 'Antique Linen, Tea Dye'

Papers: Strathmore Bristol Vellum, Bazzil Basics - White, SU's Old Olive, PP - Basic Grey's Sweet Threads' and left over American Crafts paper

Access: Spellbinders Deckled Oval Nesties, PTI's Half and Half Die and Beautiful Blooms #1, PTI Rustic Button Twine - Cream, PTI Button - White & Cream, Machine Stitching, Sponges, Dimensionals

TSG142: Hi Sweets!

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Good Morning and happy Wednesday everyone!

I've been in a really good mood lately (even with the lack of sleep I've been getting) thanks to my family being in town! It's been so nice to sit down and chat with them again! So far, my brother has experienced falling through the ice while taking a walk over some wetlands with my daughter (she didn't fall in, but she did have a good laugh at his expense), and his first Superbowl, at which he also won some money at betting on the score at half time! If it's not going to snow here in New England, then at least he's getting to experience a few other traditional things! lol

While my dad and brother were napping on Sunday, I made this card for this week's There She Goes challenge which is brought to us by Torico! She has challenged us to make a card or project using a negative die cut. I had to give this a try since I've never done it before! Only, for my card, I didn't use a die! Yeah, I know it says 'die cut', but I thought I'd show you how you could turn one of your stamps into a negative image instead!

I used the large tea cup from the recently released Perk Up! set and stamped it onto some patterned paper. Then, using my Exacto knife, I cut around the lines, making sure to keep the negative space inside the handle so the cup would be complete. I just popped that little bit on a dimensional so it was at the same height as the rest of the image. I then colored up a few of the sweet treats from the set with my Distress Inks, cut them out and borrowed this month's Sketch For You To Try for my layout. I think negative cut-outs work really well when the underlying paper is a contrasting color....then the image really pops!


To be eligible for the giveaway, create a card or project using a negative die cut and then come back to the TSG Blog to add your name and a link to your project in the InLinkz that is located at the bottom of this challenge post. This challenge is open until the winner has been announced on the following Monday (February 13th). The winner will get a $5 gift certificate to use in the TSG Web store!

By participating in this challenge, you may also find yourself in the Trendsetting Spotlight that shines on the TSG Blog every Thursday. We will be on the lookout to find challenge cards that stand out and show Trendsetting qualities. TSG stamps are not required to participate in the challenges but are appreciated :

You do not need to have a blog to be able to participate in the TSG Challenges! You can simply add the URL link from your project after it has been uploaded to your online craft gallery. If you upload your card to an online craft gallery, please use the keyword TSG142 so we can check out your beautiful work!

Thanks SO much for popping in today! We're headed to the White Mountains tomorrow with my family. It should be quite an experience for them considering that Australia is pretty flat!


Supplies
Stamps: TSG 'Perk Up'
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', SU's Creamy Caramel, Distress Ink's 'Antique Linen, Tea Dye and Vintage Photo'
Papers: Strathmore Bristol Vellum, Bazzil Basics, PTI Kraft Cardstock, PP - Basic Grey's 'Nook and Pantry Collection' and MME scrap
Access: Spellbinders Large Circle Nesties, Stampendous 1-1/8" Circle Punch, Fiskars Decorative Scissors, Sponges, Dimensionals

Tweet Heart

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Happy Wednesday everyone!

We're half way through the week and I couldn't be happier! My family flies into town in three days and although I have a mountain of things still to do, I'm really looking forward to spending some quality time with them again. :) Over the last 8-10 years, I've only ever emailed them because my parents are deaf and my brother, well, he isn't exactly known for his lengthy conversations. :) I am thrilled they're coming!

So, on top of all the sewing and cleaning and painting I did over weekend, I managed to also squeeze some stamping time in too! I spied Tami's 5th Anniversary Card Positioning System's sketch #136 this past Sunday and thought it would make a great quick and easy card. And it did!

The image is from TSG's cute set, Love Birds. I think this card may find it's way into my hubby's lunchbox on Valentines Day! I colored the image with my reinkers, then once it was dry, I drew a line below their feet so they looked like they were sitting on a powerline. Each panel was matted with cardstock and machine stitched in place.

Do you have a entire draw dedicated to scraps of patterned paper like I do? It was getting a little out of hand, so I did what every good stamper would do and I dug deep into that door to find three papers that somewhat matched! lol They also had to be pink because this week's TSG challenge #141 is an inspiration one and I was inspired by all the feminine colors in the photo.

To be eligible for the giveaway, create a card or project using the photo as inspiration and then come back to the TSG Blog to add your name and a link to your project in the InLinkz that is located at the bottom of this challenge post. This challenge is open until the winner has been announced on the following Monday (February 6th). The winner will get a $5 gift certificate to use in the TSG Web store!

By participating in this challenge, you may also find yourself in the Trendsetting Spotlight that shines on the TSG Blog every Thursday. We will be on the lookout to find challenge cards that stand out and show Trendsetting qualities. TSG stamps are not required to participate in the challenges but are appreciated :)

You do not need to have a blog to be able to participate in the TSG Challenges! You can simply add the URL link from your project after it has been uploaded to your online craft gallery. If you upload your card to an online craft gallery, please use the keyword TSG141 so we can check out your beautiful work!


Thanks so much for stopping in today!

Supplies
Stamps: There She Goes 'Love Birds'
Inks: StazOn 'Jet Black', SU's Cool Caribbean, Distress Inks 'Antique Linen, Tea Dye and Vintage Photo'
Papers: Strathmore Bristol Vellum, Bazzil Basics, PP - Basic Grey, MME and K&Company
Access: PTI Fillable Frames #10, Sakura Micro Pen, Machine Stitching, Sponges, Dimensionals