I Love Summer Holidays

I know that by the end of the summer I'll probably be pulling my hair out but right now I'm enjoying the fact that I don't have to get kids ready for school everyday and that our days start off nice and slow. This makes for perfect stamping time, and that can't be a bad thing, lol.

Today's card is a remake of yesterday's card just in different colors and I decided to add some ribbon. This card is for the color challenge over at Splitcoaststampers. I haven't done one of their callenges in such a long time, it felt really good.

Stamps: Refuge & Strength
Paper: Night Of Navy, So Saffron, Kraft, Vellum CS, DSP
Ink: Night of Navy
Other: Pretties Kit, So Saffron Ribbon

Thanks for stopping by, have a great day!

I'm Such a Bad Blogger

What a busy life we lead, I've been neglecting my blog lately and I'm hoping to get back into it. Blogging really is my therapy and I hate to let it slide. We've had a number of things to do lately in our lives and before you know it, a week's gone by and still no posts.

As some of you probably read in some earlier posts, we've been house hunting. And I'm happy to say that the search is over. We bought a house that is literally across the street from where we're living now, this should be a relatively easy move, lol. It's a fairly new house and the previous owners never finished the basement, so we'll have a good sized project to tackle this winter. But when it's all done, I will once again have my very own craft room, yeah! I am so excited that I'll be able to sit down any time I want and create a card, it's amzing what that does for your mojo!

Well onto my cards. I've been in such a creative rut lately and I think I finally broke out of it today. Don't you hate it when you make a card and you're just not satisfied with it?! I finally had a day where I ended up liking both cards. Both of my cards today are made using the Echos of Kindness set, this is one of the hostess sets that will be retiring by the end of this month.

Stamps: Echos of Kindness, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Kraft, Very Vanilla, Not Quite Navy, DSP-Bella Bleu
Ink: Basic Black, NQN, Mellow Moss
Other: Kraft Ribbon, Pretties Kit

This next card was a lot of fun to make. It is using my "comfort" colors but I feel like it's different then my usual. The flowers are from the pretties kit and I used my brayer to color them in kiwi kiss, such an easy way to tint your flowers. The picture doesn't really show it well, but I did run the background kraft cs through one of SU's texture plates. I love adding texture to my cards, which I'm sure most people have guessed already since almost every card has some sort of embossing on it, lol.

Stamps: Echoes of Kindness
Paper: Basic Black, Kraft, Kiwi Kiss, Vellum Cardstock, DSP-Urban Garden
Ink: Basic Black, Kiwi Kiss
Other: Black Brads

Thanks for stopping by!!

Wowzas!

I've made a lot of cards today already. It sounds like one of the local shops around here is willing to sell my cards for me so I'm trying to make sure I have cards for every occassion before I go to him to finalize the little details. So far I've done four today, two baby cards, one which won't be posted because the pink just does not want to show up well. But it is identical to the baby boy one, just in pink.
I should add that these cards look so much better in real life, I'm having some issues lately when taking the photos. For some reason the lighting is giving the cards a different look, go figure.

This first one is one of the two baby cards. It's almost identical to one I made a while back, but this time I made it your typical A2 size instead of the 5x5.

Recipe:
Stamps: Dollar Store Stamps, Nursery Neseccities
Paper: Baja Breeze, Very Vanilla, Kraft, DSP-Parisian Breeze
Ink: Baja Breeze
Other: Kraft Ribbon, Halfback pearls

This next one is made using some of the new in colors. I found some dsp in my stash that went okay with these colors. I used shimmery cardstock for the watercolored flowers. First I embossed them in black and then watercolored them. The shimmery pp adds such a pretty effect. I also used me new absolutely favorite sentiment stamp set, Teeny Tiny Wishes. I know it's a little pricey in the new Catalogue but with every occasion included you really won't need to buy another set to try and get all of your holidays covered.

Recipe:
Stamps: Fifth Avenue Floral, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Soft Suede, Very Vanilla, Rich Razzleberry, DSP- Bella Bleu
Ink: Rich Razzleberry
Other: Soft Suede Ribbon

This is also another remake of a card I did a while back, but in an A2 instead of a
5x5. I love 5x5's but realistically I think it might be easier to try and stick to A2 sizes when trying to sell my cards.


Recipe:
Stamps: Light Unto my Path, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Basic Black, Kraft, Very Vanilla
Ink: Basic Black
Other: Hemp Twine, Black Brads

Thanks for stopping by!

Summer is Finally Here!

It's been such a cool spring so far this year, any signs of a hot summer are very appreciated and so far we're off to a great start this week. We had such a great weekend enjoying the weather and spending time with the kids.

I made two cards this morning, both using the same layout (which is from a sketch challenge) but using different colors. I love some of the new in colors but I am struggling with using them so far. I think I need to see some ideas from the super talented stampers out there. Plus I usually use DSP when making cards and I have to wait until July to order some.
Both of today's cards are made with SU!'s new level 2 hostess set, Kind and Caring Thoughts. As demos we get the opportunity to order one level 2 and one level 3 set before the catalogue goes live, another reason I love being a demo!

Recipe:
Stamps: Kind & Caring Thoughts, Teen Tiny Wishes
Paper: Soft Suede, Bermuda Bay, Very Vanilla
Ink: Bermuda Bay, Soft Suede
Other: Silver Brads, Polka Dot Ribbon


Recipe:
Stamps: Kind & Caring Thoughts, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Kraft, Baja Breeze, Very Vanilla, DSP-Parisian Breeze
Ink: Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip
Other: Half Back pearls, Chocolate Chip ribbon

Thanks for stopping by!

Playing With my New Loot

I finally had some time this morning to play with all the new stuff I ordered. I had a workshop in my home yesterday which went really, we all got to play with my new bigshot. So this morning I redid the same card layout we did at the workshop, only I used the Fifth Avenue Floral set and also did a really cool technique for watercoloring the flower. LOVE this technique and I'm glad I finally got to try it.
And I also love this color combination, so pretty. What makes this card even prettier is that the flower uses shimmery cardstock, if yo look you'll see the subtle sparkle.

Recipe:
Stamps: Fifth Avenue Floral, Embrace Life, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Soft Suede, Rich Razzelberry, Very Vanilla, Shimmery White
Ink: Soft Suede. Rich Razzleberry
Other: Pretties Kit, Soft Suede Ribbon, Black Embossing Powder

This next card is the card we did at the workshop last night, it gave everyone the chance to try the Bigshot, but also kept it simple enough for any beginners. Love this layout. I should also mention that you can't see it in the picture, but we cut out two pieces of the top note die so that everyone could finish the inside. When you have a simple card, I think it really adds a wow factor when you do something to the inside.

Recipe:
Stamps: Eastern Blooms, Embrace Life, Sincere Salutations
Paper: Kraft, Very Vanilla
Ink: Perfect Plum, Always Artichoke

Thanks for stopping by!

So Excited

The delivery man was at my door today and I am so excited to play with my new stuff. I finally bit the bullet and ordered the Big Shot so that I could demo it at workshops, I am in love with it already! Plus with this order I got the new 09/10 catalogue and wow, I think I may have to get a loan just to get half of what I want. There are such beautiful ideas in there, and absolutely beautiful stamp sets. The one that I'm most excited about is the Teeny Tiny Wishes set. It has every holiday/event that you can think of, and they all fit in the new label punch, this set will be worth every penny.

I have no new card to post right now but I'm sure I'll come up with something after I've been able to ink up my new stuff!


Thanks for stopping by!

Feels like a Monday

Well as my title would suggest, it feels like a Monday to me today. But hopefully with enough cardmaking it'll start to feel like a better day.

I have two cards to post today, both using basic black and kiwi kiss. I can always tell when I'm in need of new stuff to play with, I get bored with my colors and find it harder to come up with something original. But if all goes well, my big order should get here tomorrow.
This first card is a case from a very talented stamper, Pam Varnell, you'll find her blog on the left- Stamping with Pam. She used such vibrant rich colors, all of which I don't have. But I loved the layout so I made due with what I had. I definitely want to order a bigger variety of DSP next time I order. So far my collection is mostly blues, and greens.

Recipe:
Stamps: Fifth Avenue Floral, Sincere Salutations
Paper: Basic Black, Basic Grey, Kiwi Kiss, Whisper White, DSP?
Ink: Tangerine Tango, Kiwi Kiss, Basic Black, Basic Grey
Other: Black brads


Recipe:
Stamps: Eastern Blooms, Cause For Celebration
Paper: Basic Black, Kiwi Kiss, Whisper White, DSP?
Ink: Basic Black
Other: Black Brads, Grosgrain Ribbon, Black Library Clip

Thanks for stopping by!

House hunting can be such a stressful thing, there are so many things to consider. Do you go over budget for a better home, do you build, do you buy a fixer upper or a newer one, and then you find a house you love but it sells before you can get in with an offer. At first we said we would take our time with the house hunting, but then you keep seeing places that you'd like, and no matter how much you tell yourself to take your time you can't help but get that feeling of panic that you're not going to find the right place. I'd rather buy something soon and get rid of that stress, lol.

But enough of my stuff, on to the card. This card is from a sketch challenge that I saw somewhere on the web. I'm not sure that I did it justice, I have moments where I like it and moments where I don't.

Recipe:
Stamps: Fifth Avenue Floral, All Holidays
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze, Very Vanilla, Watercolor pp
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze
Other: Kraft Ribbon, Halfback Pearls, Cuttlebug Embossing Folder

Thanks for stopping by!

What a Beautiful Day

It is such a georgous spring day out there, perfect for having bbq'd chicken for dinner, and then taking a nice long walk. There are so many things I should be doing today but yet I couldn't help but make a card this morning. Some would say get your priorities straight, others would say glad your priorities are straight, lol.

This card is a case, and once again I don't know by whom. I did add a few more layers but I loved the colors so I kept everything else the same. Plus this uses a stamp set that I had not had the chance to use so it was nice to get it "dirty".

Recipe:
Stamps: Friends 24-7, Birthday Whimsy
Paper: Kraft, Very Vanilla, DSP- Bella Bleu
Ink: Not Quite Navy, Basic Black, Mellow Moss
Pther: Half Back Pearls

Have a great day!

Wow

I say wow today for two reasons, one being that I just found out how many calories my supper had. Yikes, you would think that noodle soup would be low in calories but not the mennonite style soup. It's basically just a big bowl of homemade egg noodles with homemade chicken soup broth. Plus I had a taco sandwhich to go with that, let's just say it's over half of your daily calorie allowance eatin in one meal. I'll have to take a looooooooooooong walk today, lol.

My second wow is a much more exciting one! Stampin' Up! released their sneak peak of the new catty coming out in July and wow are the new in colours beautiful. I spent way too much money today but hopefully it'll all pay off once I get going over here. The hostess sets are so beautiful, ones that you would love to be able to purchase. I cannot wait to get my hands on the new catalogue and see everything. Now I have to patiently wait for my preorder to arrive...tapping my foot.

Since it's been a while since I lasted posted a card I figured I better get to it today. I made this card last week already but didn't have the mojo to post it. I'm used to having an actual room that I call my own, shelving everywhere, paper racks, etc. Now I have it all crammed in our kitchen pantry. So whenever I want to make a card I have to pull out my stuff to the kitchen table and push it back when I'm done. I guess that will just give me more motivation to do some serious house hunting.
The card I made is a very simple one using the upsy daisy set, I don't use this set nearly enough. I fell in love with it when it came out but I keep forgetting I have it amongst all my other stamps. Maybe that should be my cue to organize? lol

Recipe:
Stamps: Upsy Daisy
Paper: Basic Black, Kraft, Very Vanilla
Ink: Basic Black
Other: Kraft ribbon, Nestabilities, Embossing folders

Thanks for stopping by!