Kristy's Crafts

DeNami February Blog Hop!!!

2012-02-12T11:04:00.002-05:00

**Sorry for the delay in this post! Blogger failed to post it at the correct time!**

Hello! And welcome to another DeNami Design Blog Hop!
Thanks for hopping along with us again! Hopefully, you've come here from the fabulous blog of Dana Seymour! Aren't her projects so beautiful? =) Don't forget to leave a comment on each blog for a chance to win a DeNami Gift Certificate!

I have some fabulous DeNami Chickies, but right now all I can think about is love and Valentines! I used some of my favorite DeNami Chickies, along with some scallops and bling, to make a super cute Valentine:

I'm really happy with how this card turned out! And aren't those chickies just adorable? =)

Ok well it's time for your NEXT stop on this blog hop! It's time to visit another fabulous blogger, Karen McAlpine! I know her project will be just fabulous! =) Have fun hopping!

Papertrey Ink - Stamper's Select White Cardstock	Papertrey Ink Cardstock - Pure Poppy	Bo Bunny CRUSH 6X6 Paper Pad	Memento Ink - Ladybug	Memento Tuxedo Black Ink
DeNami Design Stamps PF42 Love Sentiments	DeNami - Heart Chickie	DeNami Design - C69 Valentine Chickie	EK Tools - Embossed Dotted Lace Edger Punch	Inchie Arts - Inchie Squares
May Arts - 1/4" Silk Ribbon in SK01	Copic Sketch Marker - B14 Light Blue	Copic Sketch - R27 Cadmium Red	Copic Sketch YR15 - Pumpkin Yellow	Copic Sketch Y11 - Pale Yellow

InLinkz.com

You're my Cup of Tea!!!!

2012-02-10T20:21:00.002-05:00

Why hello there bloggers! The beginning of this year has been SO super busy! Of course, I've been making time to make my Valentines! Here's one that I made to play along with a few of my favorite challenges! I really couldn't wait to use Lawn Fawn's "My Cup of Tea" set for Valentine's Day this year! Here's how the card turned out:

How cute are these stamps? I stacked the sentiment -- I think it looks just great that way! I also just love that paper from Echo Park too! =)
I played along with the following FUN and awesome challenges:
1. Lawnscaping #27 - Inspiration Photo

2. Young Crafter's Unite #6: I turned the sketch just a little, so that the sentiment was vertical instead of horizontal! =)

3. Tuesday Throwdown #84 - Be My Valentine

I hope that you are all having a fabulous weekend! Stay warm! =)

Papertrey Ink - Smokey Shadow Cardstock	Echo Park Yours Truly 6x6 Paper Pad	Memento Ink - Ladybug	Memento Tuxedo Black Ink	Lawn Fawn - My Cup of Tea
May Arts - Solid/Stitched Center TS 14	Copic Sketch - R27 Cadmium Red	Copic Sketch C7 - Cool Gray	Copic Sketch - C5 Cool Gray

InLinkz.com

PS Ribbon Card/DeNami Theme Challenge #9

2012-01-23T10:00:00.000-05:00

Hello bloggers! Happy Monday! I'm back again today with a feature card for Practical Scrappers that I also used to play along in one of my favorite challenges over at DeNami Design! =)

I was over at the DeNami blog the other day when I saw Wendy's awesome tutorial for a pillow box with a lovely little ribbon detail around the focal point. I LOVED this idea, and I was in the market for something neat with ribbon for Practical Scrappers today, and so I used that idea to inspire me to make this cute little valentine:

I wanted to make a heart-shaped valentine with ribbon details all over the outside! I also used the same technique on the center medallion! If you look closely, you can see that the large heart has the "XOXO" stamp all over it too (it was very hard to photograph that detail!)
Here is the back of the card, which I covered in cardstock and finished to sign and write a little valentine's note on:

And I also made sure that the card was an appropriate size to fit into a 5x5 inch mailing envelope too:

As I said, you can see this card featured over at Practical Scrappers!!!

I'm also entering this card in the current challenge over at DeNami Design's Blog:

I hope you enjoyed this valentine! I've got lots more fun valentines to share in the upcoming weeks -- this is my FAVORITE time of year to make cards! =)

Papertrey Ink Cardstock - Pure Poppy	Papertrey Ink Cardstock - Sweet Blush	Memento Ink - Ladybug	Memento Tuxedo Black Ink	American Crafts Pigment Ink - White
DeNami Design E132 Small Heart Outline	DeNami Design Stamps PF42 Love Sentiments	Papertrey Ink Vintage Buttons - Holiday Mix	May Arts - 1/4" Silk Ribbon in SK01	Really Reasonable Ribbon - SWAK Grosgrain
Really Reasonable Ribbon - Sheer Organza w/Satin Center White

InLinkz.com

I'm back!

2012-01-13T13:41:00.003-05:00

Hello everyone! I'm sorry that I haven't been around much lately! The holidays got REALLY crazy for me! Let me give you some of the highlights!

Highlights:

We spent a BUNCH of time with family! I had a blast getting to hang out with my sister and my husband's brothers and our parents. It was amazing to just relax and enjoy each other!
My husband and I also spent lots of quality time with each other. It was so great to get to have several fun date nights and just relax with him! We really love our time together like that!
We also caught up with some of our friends from all over! We saw friends from Maryland, PA, Florida, and Missouri! It was fabulous!
I made a quilted table runner for my Mom and it turned out REALLY nice! I was super proud of this since it's my very first quilting project! I wanted to post this a LONG time ago, but of course life got in the way! Here's a picture of the finished product:

So as you can see we did a LOT of running around this holiday! =) Unfortunately, along with all of that fun, we also had two incredibly sad funerals as well. That was another thing that took up some time, and was very difficult. But enough sad stuff -- let's talk about what's coming up!

First of all, I'm back into the cardmaking and papercrafting spirit -- sorta. I'm paper crafting when I can, but I've also been spending a good amount of time working on home projects, decor projects, and some food and sewing projects! So while I'm still going to feature my paper crafts on this blog, you will also be seeing some of my other fun things!

Right now, I'm really thinking about Valentine's Day! Some people love it, some people hate it, but I think that it's a really special holiday. I look at Valentine's Day TOTALLY differently than most people -- I think of it as a day to tell EVERYONE special in your life that you love them. =) My hubs and I never go "all out" for it - we just use the day to make sure that we make time for each other! I LOVE making and sending Valentines!!! Here's some supplies I recently picked up from Simon Says Stamp to help me prepare for the holiday:

Jenni Bowlin Ink - Chewing Gum

Echo Park Yours Truly 6x6 Paper Pad

Bo Bunny CRUSH 6X6 Paper Pad

InLinkz.com
Aren't those paper pads just adorable? I can't wait to make some heart-shaped valentines with them! =D Stay tuned for that!

Ok readers, well you've read enough! I'll have another project to share with you tomorrow -- it's also a really special one! =D Until then!

DeNami December Blog Hop!

2011-12-11T09:00:00.000-05:00

*** For my Lawnscaping Blog Hop Post, CLICK HERE!***

Hello! And welcome to another DeNami Design Blog Hop!

You're almost at the end of this fabulous hop -- haven't the projects been SO inspiring? Hopefully, you've come here from the fabulous blog of Pam Wendt! Aren't her projects so beautiful? =) Don't forget to leave a comment on each blog for a chance to win a DeNami Gift Certificate!

Well, I thought about making all kinds of gift wrapping, and eventually I decided to make some fun, glittery gift bags for some of the handmade gifts I'm giving out this holiday season! Here's the gift bag:

I just LOVE that little Christmas tree from DeNami Design! And who doesn't love the Puppy in the Stocking? Here's a closer shot of the tag and the small trees on the gift bag:

I used a glitter pen and some glitter and scor tape to add the glittery details! =) I Hope you like my project idea! The supplies are listed below!

Ok well it's time for your LAST stop on this blog hop! It's time to visit one of my absolute favorite bloggers, Ayana Posadas! I know her project will be just fabulous! =) Have fun hopping!

Small White Paper Bags	Papertrey Ink - Stamper's Select White Cardstock	DeNami Design - E111 Small Curly Christmas Tree	DeNami Design - Puppy in Stocking	DeNami - Whimsical Merry Christmas
Memento Ink - Ladybug	Memento Tuxedo Black Ink	Ranger Jenni Bowlin Ink - Seed Packet	Stampendous - Green Glitter	Stampendous - Red Glitter
Really Reasonable Ribbon - Red Satin Double Ruffle Ribbon	May Arts - Solid/Stitched Center TS 14	Copic Sketch Y11 - Pale Yellow	Copic Sketch E35 - Chamois	Copic Sketch - G17 Forest Green
Copic Sketch - R27 Cadmium Red	Copic Sketch RV11 - Pink	Spica Clear Giltter Pen

InLinkz.com

Lawnscaping All About Red Blog Hop!!!!

2011-12-09T00:01:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone! I hope you are having fun hopping along with the second Lawnscaping blog hop! The theme this time is "All About Red"

The blog hop goes from December 9th until December 11th at 11:59 PM! Please remember to comment on every blog for a chance to win some AWESOME prizes! =D

If you are hopping along, you should be coming here from the blog of Patricia Hays! Her blog is just fabulous, isn't it? =) If you just stumbled upon this hop right now go back to the Lawnscaping Blog to start from the beginning!

I have TWO cards to share with you today! One of the things that I love most about Lawn Fawn stamps is how they can make projects that look elegant or whimsical so easily! I made one of each today:

Doilies just make EVERYTHING so much better! And I just love that sentiment from Lawn Fawn's Bows and Holly -- it's my absolute favorite Merry Christmas stamp that I have! =) My next card is much more fun and whimsical -- using Lawn Fawn's Hats off to You!

I just love those little Santa hats! I used my Spica glitter pen and added some fabulous ruffled ribbon that I just love! =) And I just LOVE the word Noel!!!

Well, I hope you enjoyed my cards! It's time for you to hop along! =D Your next stop on this FABULOUS hop is Cristina M!!! I know she'll have something absolutely fabulous for you! =D

Thanks again for hopping along!!! Enjoy the rest of the blog hop!

Papertrey Ink - Stamper's Select White Cardstock	Recollections - Assorted Paper Colors	Lawn Fawn - Frosties	Lawn Fawn - Hats Off to You	Lawn Fawn - Bows and Holly
Memento Tuxedo Black Ink	Memento Ink - Ladybug	Versamark Watermark Ink	Ranger Seafoam White Embossing Powder	Really Reasonable Ribbon - Red Satin Double Ruffle Ribbon
White Paper Doilies - Wilton	Queen and Co Pearls - Berry Red	Copic Sketch - R27 Cadmium Red	Spica Clear Giltter Pen

InLinkz.com

Joy to the World!!!

2011-12-07T23:25:00.001-05:00

Hellooooo blogland! It's the second post this week! Yeah! So I made cards tonight... among some other great crafty things! Woo hoo! First, I made some fab stuff for the blog hops I'm in over the weekend AND I made another Christmas card for some challenges that I really wanted to play along with! =) Here's the card that I wanted to share with you today:

All of the supplies are listed at the bottom of the post! How awesome is that musical background from Hero Arts? And I just LOVE that May Arts silk ribbon too -- what an amazing win that was! =) When I was growing up, "Joy to the World" was always one of my favorite Christmas Carols! My mom said I used to sing "sleep in heavenly peas" instead of "sleep in heavenly peace!" I was such a kooky kid! =)

I was inspired by three different challenges when making this card:
1. Simon Says Stamp Challenge - Photo Inspiration ( was really drawn to the poinsettias and the sheet music!)

2. Tuesday Throwdown #77 - Celebrate the Season

3. Wee Memories #78 - Free For All

In other news, I'm hard at work trying to put together the blank pages of my December Daily, and taking notes/pictures each day to put in it! Has anyone here DONE a December Daily before? Any advice on doing it? I'm feeling a little overwhelmed by the entire thing right now and could definitely use some advice! =)

Ok bloggers! It's WAY past my bedtime! See you all on Friday at 12:01AM for the Lawnscaping Blog Hop! Yay!

Papertrey Ink - Stamper's Select White Cardstock	Basic Grey - Nordic Holiday 6x6 Pad	Recollections - Assorted Paper Colors	Hero Arts Clings - Music Background	Lawn Fawn - Sally' ABC's
Ranger Jenni Bowlin Ink - Seed Packet	Ranger Distress Ink - Barn Door	May Arts - 1/4" Silk Ribbon in SK01	Queen and Co Pearls - Berry Red

InLinkz.com

A Much Needed Update!

2011-12-04T23:09:00.001-05:00

Hello hello readers! Wow... so it's been a REALLY long time between posts here! Sorry about that, between work, holidays, and crafting I've not had ANY time to do much posting!

This weekend, we hosted our annual "Friendsgiving" celebration! This is where my hubby and I roast a turkey and invite all of our favorites over for a festive holiday dinner with lots of great food, wine, and company! Of course, there are always games and singing and LOTS of laughing! Here's my favorite picture from the night:

=) So you can see that I've been enjoying our amazing friends and family lots right now! Don't worry though -- I'm still doing lots and LOTS of crafty things too! Here's some MUCH needed updates:

1. I've taken a brief hiatus from making cards! I KNOW right?!??! But not to worry, I've still been crafting up a storm! Latrice Murphy really inspired me during Handmade Holidays to try lots of new projects outside of cards! Here are some of the fun things I've been making:

Paper Christmas Tree Ornaments (these were featured on Practical Scrappers with a tutorial - click here to check that out!)
An ornament wreath for my front door
Making ruffled pillows
Christmas gifts of various mediums (canvases, scrapbooking paper, picture frames, etc...)
SCRAPBOOKING
QUILTING

2. Scrapbooking. I've really been doing a LOT more scrapbooking lately! It all started with a scrapbook that I'd *intended* to finish before we got married (in 2008... yeah) but that never happened and it sat alone FOREVER! I've been working on that lots AND I'm doing a December Daily this year (definitely more posts about this to come!) =D

3. Quilting. I know. I'm completely insane at this point. But honestly, the internet/pinterest has made me fearless. I'm starting to truly believe that with a good DIY tutorial I can learn how to do ANYTHING. So I've been doing lots of research on quilting and picking up the essentials (thank god for those 40% off crafting store coupons) and I'm going to start my first project super soon here! Stay tuned for that too -- we'll see if it actually makes it under the Christmas tree or not! =)

4. Blog Hopping! Not to worry, there's some serious paper crafting about this week too! I have two ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS blog hops coming up this weekend for two of my favorite blogs -- Lawnscaping Challenges and DeNami Design! Be excited -- I have some SUPER fun projects to share with you all this upcoming weekend for those hops! =)
Everyone keep their fingers crossed that I can actually get another post together BEFORE the weekend to share some of my other fun projects too!

Phew! Sorry for the sort of lengthy post.... but you all deserve an update! Next time -- there will be actual pictures of projects! =D Until then, have a fabulous day!

DeNami November Blog Hop!

2011-11-13T09:00:00.000-05:00

Hello fellow bloggers, and WELCOME to the DeNami Design November Blog Hop! So far, I KNOW you've had a great time on this blog hop featuring ANYTHING BUT A CARD:
You should have come over here from the absolutely awesome blog of Rochelle Washington! I'm sure she had something fabulous for you! If you are just stumbling by, be sure to head back to the DeNami website to start from the beginning, since commenting on EVERY blog gives you a chance to win prizes!!!! =D

So I've been in a SUPER Christmas-y place with my crafting lately, and so I wanted to pull out my DeNami Christmas stamps! I have two projects to share with you today, a Christmas tag AND a Christmas layout!

Doesn't that little flower remind you of a Poinsettia? I thought it definitely looked like one!!! I made several of these tags -- I just love how the sparkle!
Next, the scrapbook layout! I took a picture of it both with and without the pictures! I wanted you to see the background before it was covered up:

I love that little doggie and the Christmas bulb! In honor of that little doggie, I dedicated this layout to MY little doggie! =)

I really love using DeNami stamps for scrapbooking! SO many of them make fabulous backgrounds or accent stamps! I made at least three more layouts on them that use DeNami stamps in the past month alone! =)

OK well, it's time for me to hop you along! Your next stop on the hop is the gorgeous blog of Lindsey Wood! I'm sure she has something great to share with you! =) Happy Hopping to all! =D

Papertrey Ink - Stamper's Select White Cardstock	Recollections - Assorted Paper Colors	DeNami - Whimsical Merry Christmas	DeNami - Brushed Present	DeNami Design - Puppy in Stocking
DeNami Design - Curly Bulb	DeNami Design - Ornamental Flowers Petit Four	Lawn Fawn - Sally' ABC's	Memento Tuxedo Black Ink	Memento Ink - Ladybug
Authentique - Blissful Petite Type Stickers	Ranger - Crystal Stickles	Stampendous - Red Glitter	Tinsel Glitters	The Twinery Twine - Peapod
The Twinery Twine - Maraschino	Copic Sketch - R27 Cadmium Red	Copic Sketch - G17 Forest Green	Copic Sketch E35 - Chamois	Copic Sketch RV11 - Pink
Copic Sketch Y11 - Pale Yellow	Spica Clear Giltter Pen

InLinkz.com

Mini Haul Post - Plus lots of FUN news!

2011-11-09T23:42:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone! Well, the crafting world has been SUPER kind to me lately! I've had some absolutely awesome (and very lucky) prizes, and I've ALSO bought some really fabulous crafty stuff and have LOTS to share with you! I'm going to warn you that this post will be LONG so bear with me!

First of all, Practical Scrappers is having a FABULOUS giveaway on the blog right now! Head on over HERE to see some fabulous DT samples! All you have to do to enter is to become a follower of Practical Scrappers AND leave a comment for a chance to win!

In other news, I've been SO super LUCKY lately! I recently took Latrice Murphy's Handmade Holidays class, and I was lucky enough to win TWO FULL SPOOLS of May Arts Ribbon!!!! =D I chose the 1/8" White Silk AND the 3/8" Red/White ribbon with a stitch down the middle (listed below.) Also, I was the randomly chosen blog hop winner (again, so lucky!) from the Young Crafter's Unite Masculine Blog Hop! I won the lovely Paper Smooches "My Guy" stamp set! I've never used Paper Smooches stamps before... so I'm super excited to try them out! Here's some pictures of my winnings:

May Arts - 1/8" Silk Ribbon in SK01

May Arts - Solid/Stitched Center TS 14

Paper Smooches Stamps - My Guy

InLinkz.com

Next, I recently bought two new 6x6 paper pads from Simon Says Stamp! I picked up Basic Grey's Nordic Holiday AND Memory Box's Yuletide! They are both FABULOUS paper pads and I'm SUPER excited to use them for holiday cards and scrapbook pages! =D

Basic Grey - Nordic Holiday 6x6 Pad

The Memory Box - Yuletide 6x6 Pad

InLinkz.com

I also picked up some fab new things at my LSS! First, I got a great new Hero Arts Cling Stamp, some fabulous new Alpha Stickers and DieCuts from Authentique, AND a Teresa Collins chipboard cover for my December Daily I'm doing this year! So excited to use some of these fab products too!

Authentique Blissful Notables Diecuts

Authentique Block Type Alpha Stickers

Hero Arts Clings - Music Background

Teresa Collins - Christmas Home Chipboard Album Cover

InLinkz.com

Finally, I needed some chipboard to make my December Daily, and so I went over to The Kraft Outlet to pick some up! Have you been there yet? They have a fabulous website! I also picked up some fun envelopes and mini clothespins that I'm SUPER excited about!

The Kraft Outlet - Tiny Colored Wooden Clothespins

The Kraft Outlet - Card Sleeve Envelopes

The Kraft Outlet - Chipboard Sheets

InLinkz.com

Right now, I'm wishing for a few new items from Simon Says Stamp! There are two more paper pads I want (one isn't out yet!!!) AND those yummy seasonal distress inks from Tim Holtz:

Ranger Distress Ink - Winter Seasonal Set

Echo Park - Winter Park 6x6 Pad

SEI Kris Kringle 6x6 Pad

InLinkz.com

So there you have it! So if you guys have used any of these products I'd LOVE to hear what you think of them! I'll report back once I start using them as well! I'll be back tomorrow with a card/layouts and on Sunday for another Blog Hop... woo hoo! =D Happy Wednesday Blogland!

Young Crafter's Unite Blog Hop - Masculine Cards!!!

2011-11-04T01:01:00.000-04:00

Hello, and welcome to another blog hop with one of my favorite sites, Young Crafters Unite!

If you are just stumbling upon this blog post, please head back HERE to start at the beginning! You won't want to miss all of the fabulous projects along the way!
Hopefully you've made your way here from the lovely site of Karen Baker!!! I'm certain that you were TOTALLY inspired by her projects!!!! She's such a fabulous lady and crafter -- I just love her website!

Don't forget to leave comments on ALL of the post for a chance to win some awesome prizes from Simon Says Stamp and Paper Smooches!!! =)

My Dad's birthday is on Sunday, and so I took this topic and chose to make a birthday card for my dad! The design is very CAS, and I used both distress inks and Lawn Fawn (which I seem to be using on MOST cards these days!). I also used a blue/white/brown color combo which I found to be very masculine:

Ok, I know you still have lots of great inspiration to head off and see (you're almost all the way through!!!) From here, head on over to Lynsey's blog where I'm sure she has some great inspiration for you! =D Thanks SO much for stopping by and be sure to leave a comment for a chance to win! =) Happy Hopping everyone!

Papertrey Ink - Stamper's Select White Cardstock	We R Memory Keepers Runway Paper	Lawn Fawn - Year One	Lawn Fawn - My Cup of Tea	Ranger Distress Ink - Frayed Burlap
Ranger Distress Ink - Vintage Photo	Versamark Watermark Ink	Clear Embossing Powder	Queen and Co. Pearls - Chocolate Delight

InLinkz.com

Merry Merry Christmas!!!! =D

2011-10-26T20:32:00.001-04:00

Hello blogland! So what's up? I have so much fun to share with you today!!! Though I can't believe it, it's almost the end of October, and Christmas is right around the corner! I've got several Christmas-y projects to share today!

First, I have a Christmas card that I'm going to use as one that I'll mass-produce to send out to everyone! It's clean and simple, and I LOVE that I got to use my Copics on it:

I just LOVE Lawn Fawn's Ornate Ornaments set! I stamped the string, ornaments and sentiment, colored the ornaments with copics, and then added the starts as a final touch! I'm submitting this card for a few challenges this week:
1. CAS-ual Fridays #25 - Just Add Color!

2. Wee Memories Challenge #75 - Free For All

3. Simon Says Stamp Challenge - Anything Goes!

All of the supplies for both of these projects will be included at the end of my post! =D Yay! Ok I know this is turning into a LONG post, but I ALSO have a Scrapbooking Layout (yes, a LAYOUT) to share with you today! Our challenge yesterday for Latrice's Handmade Holidays class was to create a scrapbooking layout with a very fun sketch! I used the sketch to make a layout for a scrapbook that I have for my husband and I and our life together! I *finally* made a layout for our first Christmas that we were married:

I'm actually really glad with how nicely this turned out! The journaling at the bottom says "We spent our first married Christmas with our families - 2008" I'm also glad that I used some stitching around the outside, which gives a really fabulous homey touch! =) I hope you like the layout!

Okie dokie! It's time to enjoy my evening with my husband! Stay crafty friends!

Lawn Fawn Ornate Ornaments Stamp Set	Lawn Fawn - Sally' ABC's	Papertrey Ink - Tag Its #8	Hero Arts - Holiday Tags	Basic Grey Jovial 6x6 Paper Pad
Papertrey Ink - Stamper's Select White Cardstock	Papertrey Ink - Vintage Cream Cardstock	Recollections - Assorted Paper Colors	Memento Ink - Ladybug	Ranger Jenni Bowlin Ink - Seed Packet
Spica Clear Giltter Pen	Copic Sketch E00 - Skin White	Copic Sketch - G17 Forest Green	Copic Sketch - R27 Cadmium Red	Copic Sketch - R08 Vermillion
Inchie Arts - Twinchie Squares	Queen and Co Pearls - Berry Red	Really Reasonable Ribbon - Red Satin Snowflake	The Twinery Twine - Peapod	The Twinery Twine - Maraschino
Authentique - Blissful Petite Type Stickers

InLinkz.com

Handmade Holidays Card #1

2011-10-25T10:28:00.001-04:00

Good day everyone! I cannot believe that it's almost the END of October!?!?! Where did 2011 go? Anyhow, I'm here today because I'm taking my first ever online crafting class and I'm SO excited to share my very first project with you all! I'm taking a class titled "Handmade Holidays by Latrice" with the very lovely Latrice Murphy! Our first challenge was to create a card based off of a really awesome sketch! Here's my card that was super fun to make, and involved lots of Distress Inks and Lawn Fawn (two of my favorites!)

I chose to make a Christmas card, simply because I'm in need of a LOT of those and I'm desperately behind schedule on them! I really love Lawn Fawn's Winter Fox, and I'm in LOVE with Sally's ABC's from Lawn Fawn which I just picked up! So glad to have a second LF alpha set! I had lots of fun coloring in the fox with Copics... here's a close-up of that:

=) Well I hope you are inspired by my card today! I'll be back tomorrow with a new fun crafty project -- hopefully it's a scrapbook layout! Yeah, I don't do those much so it'll be super exciting! =D

Papertrey Ink - Stamper's Select White Cardstock	Lawn Fawn Winter Fox Stamp Set	Lawn Fawn - Sally' ABC's	Lawn Fawn - Frosties	Memento Tuxedo Black Ink
Versamark Watermark Ink	Clear Embossing Powder	Ranger Distress Ink - Tumbled Glass	Ranger Distress Ink - Broken China	Ranger Distress Ink - Chipped Sapphire
Ranger Ink Blending Tool	Queen and Co Pearls - Pearl	Copic Sketch V01 - Heath	Copic Sketch V04 - Lilac	Copic Sketch E35 - Chamois
Copic Sketch - E57 Light Walnut	Copic Sketch B16 - Cyanine Blue

InLinkz.com

You are my cup of tea!!!

2011-10-19T17:44:00.000-04:00

Hello readers!!! Today I have a little, fun card to share with you that I made for one of my very dearest friends! I wanted to send her a little selection of my favorite teas, and so I couldn't WAIT to get my hands on this amazing Lawn Fawn stamp set -- My Cup of Tea! Here's what I came up with:

I love love LOVE Basic Grey's Out of Print paper pack, and so I used it here because it totally fit with my color scheme! I wanted to play along with this month's challenge over at Jay Gee's Nook, and this was the inspiration picture:

As soon as I saw this photo, I knew I wanted to use Basic Grey's Out of Print paper! Then, I added matching inks and some of that fabulous twine from The Twinery! I've also been loving gray instead of black lately, so the sentiment is stamped in grey and the card base is PTI's Smokey Shadow! I'm really excited about how this card turned out -- my friend is going to love it! =D

Papertrey Ink - Vintage Cream Cardstock	Papertrey Ink - Smokey Shadow Cardstock	Basic Grey Out of Print 6x6 Paper Pad	Lawn Fawn - My Cup of Tea	Ranger Distress Ink - Worn Lipstick
Ranger Distress Ink - Tumbled Glass	Ranger Distress Ink - Shabby Shutters	Memento Ink - London Fog	The Twinery Twine - Stone	Copic Sketch YG03 - Yellow Green
Copic Sketch E35 - Chamois	Copic Sketch E00 - Skin White	Copic Sketch RV11 - Pink

InLinkz.com

Challenge Me Tuesday - 5 or More Stamps!!!

2011-10-18T13:12:00.003-04:00

Hi there readers! It's another fabulous Tuesday -- and that means that it's Challenge Me Tuesday over at Practical Scrappers! This week's challenge was to create a card using 5 or more stamps! As you all know, I love stamps and this challenge was right up my alley! I knew exactly what I was going to make -- a Christmas card that I can mass-produce fairly easily but that will look really great to send out to people! I usually make about 4 different designs for my Christmas cards, and so this one is my first "mock up." I love the way it turned out and I'm DEFINITELY using this one! =D

I used six stamps from Lawn Fawn's "Ornate Ornaments" set, and one stamp from PTI's "Think Big Favorites #8!" There were two stamps for the ornaments, one for the hooks, one for the strings, and two for the stars, and then the PTI sentiment makes seven! =) I colored in the ornaments with copics and used my Spica Glitter pen to finish off the details and the stars! I made a similar card to this earlier in the year, but it required a lot more stamping and masking, so I decided this one would be just as pretty, but easier for mass production! I also really like the blue/white/silver color scheme with the purple accent! =)

***Next week's Challenge Me Tuesday is to create projects with pets! Document a favorite childhood pet, a current pet, longing for a pet, loss of a pet. Maybe a card congratulating a new pet, or a pet birthday! Head on over to the Practical Scrappers blog for details on submission, and we hope you'll play along with us next week! =) ***

In other news, our big Halloween party is coming up this week! We are so SO super excited about it, and I can't wait to show you pictures of everything all decorated and ready to go! =D Until then readers, have a fabulous week !

Be Thankful!

2011-10-17T21:59:00.000-04:00

I know that I'm definitely thankful for everything that's wonderful in my life! =D Today over at Practical Scrappers, we are featuring leaf and fall cards! When I think of fall, I definitely think of one of my favorite flowers -- the sunflower! Here's a card I created with one of my new PTI sets for this fall:

Don't these die cuts just work perfectly with this stamp set? And how about that text background stamp? I just love LOVE it! I hope you like it too! =D

I'll be back tomorrow with another card! Happy Monday blogland! =D

Practical Scrappers Feature - Halloween Cards

2011-10-10T12:00:00.000-04:00

***Click HERE for my DeNami October Blog Hop Post!***

Happy Monday, blogland! Today, I have my first Design Team project that's featured over at Practical Scrappers! The feature today was Halloween cards! Here's my project:

I used stamps from three different stamp companies and lots of fun techniques! I also used my mini mister with perfect pearls and memento tangelo ink to make the background of the card. The ghostie is vellum also, and I paper-pieced some of the chickies from a DeNami stamp too! =) I hope you all like it! You can check out the rest of the AWESOME DT projects HERE at the Practical Scrappers website! =D

I hope that you are all having an amazing fall! My hubby and I have been really enjoying everything about the fall season! =D

Papertrey Ink - Stamper's Select White Cardstock	American Crafts Mustard Cardstock	Papertrey Ink - Smokey Shadow Cardstock	Papertrey Ink - Vellum Cardstock	Papertrey Ink - New Leaf Cardstock
Stampin Up Cardstock - Pumpkin Pie	Stampin Up Cardstock - Elegant Eggplant	DeNami Design - Trick or Treat Chickies	DeNami Design - Friendly Ghost	Lawn Fawn - Heebie Jeebies
Lawn Fawn Happy Haunting Stamp Set	Papertrey Ink - Tag Its #7	American Crafts Pigment Ink - White	Memento Tuxedo Black Ink	Memento Ink - Tangelo
Ranger Perfect Pearls - Perfect Pearl	Ranger Inkssentials - Mini Mister	Uni-ball Signo White Gel Pen	Copic Sketch - YG17 Grass Green	Copic Sketch E35 - Chamois
Copic Sketch V04 - Lilac	Copic Sketch Y15 - Cadmium Yellow	Copic Sketch Y11 - Pale Yellow	Copic Sketch YR15 - Pumpkin Yellow	Copic Sketch YR68 - Orange
Queen and Co Rhinestones - Light Green	Queen and Co Pearls - Pearl	Really Reasonable Ribbon - Checkerboard Satin Black	Really Reasonable RIbbon - Black, White and Yellow Diagonal Striped Grosgrain	Really Reasonable Ribbon - Swiss Dots Black

InLinkz.com

DeNami October Blog Hop!!!

2011-10-09T09:00:00.000-04:00

Hello fellow bloggers, and WELCOME to the DeNami Design October Blog Hop! So far, I KNOW you've had a great time on this fabulously FALL blog hop:

You should have come over here from the absolutely awesome blog of Ayana Posadas! Aren't her creations just amazing? I always love her bright and cheery style! If you are just stumbling by, be sure to head back to the DeNami website to start from the beginning, since commenting on EVERY blog gives you a chance to win prizes!!!! =D

So when I think of Fall, I of course think of things like apples, falling leaves, and of course some fabulous holidays like Halloween and Thanksgiving! I chose to make a Thanksgiving card here, and will be using this to give to a family member on Thanksgiving to remind them how thankful I am to have them in my life! Here's what I came up with:

I just love the Small Maple Leaf from Denami, and I'm STILL obsessed with that amazing Apple Basket! So cute! I didn't have a really nice Thanksgiving sentiment (though DeNami has MANY great ones!), and so I used some alpha stickers to make a cute sentiment! I'm super happy with the way that this one turned out! =)

OK well, it's time for me to hop you along! Your next stop on the hop is the gorgeous blog of Tenia Nelson! I'm sure she has something great to share with you! =) Happy Hopping to all! =D

Papertrey Ink - Stamper's Select White Cardstock	American Crafts Mustard Cardstock	Papertrey Ink - Pure Poppy Cardstock	Papertrey Ink - New Leaf Cardstock	Imaginisce - Apple Crisp Paper
Memento Tuxedo Black Ink	Versamark Watermark Ink	American Crafts Zing! Embossing Powder - Rouge	DeNami Design Apple Basket	DeNami Design - Small Maple
Papertrey Ink - Tag Its #7	Authentique - Blissful Petite Type Stickers	Queen and Co. Pearls - Chocolate Delight	Copic Sketch E35 - Chamois	Copic Sketch - E57 Light Walnut
Copic Sketch - YG17 Grass Green	Copic Sketch - R27 Cadmium Red

InLinkz.com

Super Exciting News and VOTE FOR ME!!!

2011-10-03T10:01:00.003-04:00

Why hello there bloggers! I have so SO much exciting news for you today!!! First of all, I was selected as one of four Fresh Face Designers over at Practical Scrappers!!!

My term will run through January, so be excited to check out many fun and exciting projects in the next four months! Thanks again to the team over at Practical Scrappers for choosing little ole me, I'm so excited to start showing you guys lots of fun, exciting cards and projects! =D

Second, Practical Scrappers is also holding a card challenge that was open to everyone, including the designers! I was chosen for round one of this challenge! The theme was THINK PINK! Now it's YOU'RE turn to help me make it to Round Two! Please head over to the link below (I'm in group one), and vote for me!!! You vote by commenting on the blog post (don't worry the admin review setting is set, so your vote will still be anonymous!) You can vote for up to three cards a day, so please vote for me and two of your other favorites! There are so many other beautiful cards that were chosen, I feel so lucky to be among such a talented group of ladies!

***CLICK HERE TO VOTE FOR ME***

Wow, so what a great weekend! I was away for World Card Making Day, but I'm going to try and participate in a few of the challenges this week that are still open! In the meantime, vote for me and as always, THANKS so much for your sweet comments and support! You are all truly the best, and I'm so blessed to have so many fabulous crafting friends! =D

Autumn Wishes to All!!

2011-09-29T19:40:00.001-04:00

Hello bloggers! Right now, I'm sitting on my couch enjoying a cup of fabulous tea, smelling my delicious fall candles, and LOVING LIFE! =)

Speaking of fall, I have this fun, fall-filled project to share with you today:

I bought a kit from the Scraptastic Club awhile back, and I FINALLY got the chance to use some of it! Isn't that patterned paper just luscious? I also love those Basic Grey blooms AND DeNami's Boutique Buttons! I was having so much fun with these colors and textures that I made an envelope to match:

I'm so glad that I picked up Fillable Frames #9 from Papertrey Ink recently -- the tag was perfect to finish off this envelope! Here's both together, they don't match exactly, but they contain the same elements which is what I was going for:

I was really excited to play along with LOTS of challenges this week, so this set was created with several challenges in mind!

1. Wee Memories #69 - Patterned Paper

2. Young Crafters Unite #2 - Create a Matching Envelope

3. Simon Says Stamp Challenge - Anything Goes!

Are you guys doing lots of fun fall things yet? We are going to visit family this weekend, and I know there will be fall fairs and pumpkin picking!!! Yay! =D Thanks for stopping by today, as always! You are absolutely the bees knees! =D

Papertrey Ink - Vintage Cream Cardstock	Imaginisce - Changing Leaves Paper	American Crafts Mustard Cardstock	Papertrey Ink - Fillable Frames #9	Papertrey Ink - Tag Its #7
Ranger Adirondack Ink - Espresso	EK Tools - Embossed Dotted Lace Edger Punch	The Twinery Twine - Lemondrop	The Twinery Twine - Mandarin	The Twinery Twine - Cappuccino
Basic Grey Pyrus Bloomers	DeNami Boutique Buttons - Harvest	Copic Sketch YR68 - Orange	Copic Sketch - E57 Light Walnut

InLinkz.com

Lawnscaping #18 and Practical Scrappers Challenge Me Tuesday!

2011-09-24T14:47:00.002-04:00

Well, happy weekend blogland! I hope this post finds you all doing well! We are having a fabulous fall weekend here! Tonight we are going to a house concert in Charm, Ohio to see one of my husband's favorite folk singers! It should be SO much fun! =) We are also going to visit the Renaissance Faire in Pittsburgh one more time tomorrow as it is the closing day!

Sorry I've been somewhat MIA lately with my crafting! Unfortunately, with school starting back up I've been really busy and our weekends have been SUPER busy! However, I still have found SOME crafty time, and here's one of the cards that I made recently! Considering that it's now officially fall, I think you guys will LOVE it!

I was SO excited to finally get Lawn Fawn's Happy Haunting set up and running! I colored this house awhile ago, and was saving it for a rainy day when I had an idea for it! When I saw the current Lawnscaping Challenge, I knew exactly what I was going to do! Orange/yellow and gray is such a great color combo, and I love how my distressed background plus the stamped text came out looking nice and distressed but not too busy!

Do you like those ghosts? They are made of PTI vellum cardstock! I just LOVE LOVE vellum cardstock! It's so fabulous! I also love how you can see right through them to see the text background! =) Here's the link if you'd like to play along over at Lawnscaping, too!

Along with the Lawnscaping Challenge, I'm also submitting this card for this week's "Challenge me Tuesday" over at Practical Scrappers! Have you checked out their website yet? There's is SO much fabulous inspiration over there! Their feature this Tuesday is "fussy cutting." This card took a LOT of fussy cutting, especially the house and the ghosts! =) All of the supplies for this card are listed below the post with the fabulous new Inlinkz tool that allows me to manage my supply links!

Is everyone enjoying the fall season? I'm just LOVING this weather and can't wait for more fall goodness! In the next week, we are going to go to at least one fall festival! =) I really get inspired for awesomeness this time of year!

Ok everyone, I'll be back tomorrow or Monday with some more fabulous goodness! Have a lovely weekend until then! =)

Papertrey Ink - Stamper's Select White Cardstock	Papertrey Ink - Smokey Shadow Cardstock	Papertrey Ink - Vellum Cardstock	Memento Tuxedo Black Ink	Memento Ink - London Fog
Ranger Distress Ink - Spiced Marmalade	Ranger Ink Blending Tool	Lawn Fawn Happy Haunting Stamp Set	Copic Sketch - C5 Cool Gray	Copic Sketch C7 - Cool Gray
Copic Sketch YR15 - Pumpkin Yellow	Copic Sketch Y15 - Cadmium Yellow	Copic Sketch Y13 - Lemon Yellow	Copic Sketch Y11 - Pale Yellow	Copic Sketch - E57 Light Walnut
Copic Sketch - E09 Burnt Sienna	Copic Sketch - R27 Cadmium Red

InLinkz.com

DeNami Challenge #7 Time!

2011-09-19T22:20:00.001-04:00

Hello everyone! Well, tonight I FINALLY made some time to get my craft on! I know I know... it's been TOO long! =) Well, I really wanted to play along in the DeNami Theme Challenge #7 - ANIMALS!

We ALL know how much I love the DeNami animal stamps - especially my chickies!!! So today I chose to share with you a Christmas card that I made with one super sweet Chickie who is giving love for Christmas this year:

The rest of the card is fairly CAS - I wanted to keep it to just Christmas colors! But how cute does he look jumping out of that gigantic present? I just think it's too cute! Also - all of this cardstock started white, and I used inks and copics to color it!!! =) Here's a close-up of the chickie!

Have you all started your Christmas cards yet? I really (REALLY) need to get moving on mine!!! I have gotten more done in the past few days (you'll see some more this week!) But I need to make 60 before Christmas... eep! This one will be great for mailing because it's flat and will definitely put a smile on someone's face!

OK, well that's all for me tonight! Stay tuned for more fabulous fun this week! =D

Papertrey Ink - Stamper's Select White Cardstock	DeNami - Brushed Present	DeNami - Heart Chickie	DeNami - Whimsical Merry Christmas	Memento Tuxedo Black Ink
Ranger Jenni Bowlin Ink - Seed Packet	Ranger Distress Ink - Barn Door	Ranger Ink Blending Tool	Copic Sketch - R27 Cadmium Red	Copic Sketch - G17 Forest Green
Copic Sketch - YG17 Grass Green	Copic Sketch RV25 - Dog Rose Flower	Copic Sketch Y13 - Lemon Yellow	Copic Sketch YR68 - Orange	Queen and Co Pearls - Berry Red

InLinkz.com

DeNami September Blog Hop!!!

2011-09-11T08:52:00.000-04:00

For my Lawnscapings Blog Hop Post, Click Here or Scroll Down!!!!

Hello everyone, and welcome to another fabulous DeNami Design Blog Hop!!! This month, the fabulous theme over at DeNami is Tasty Treats:

You should have come here from Lani's blog! I'm sure she had something fabulous for you! If you stumbled upon this blog hop in another way, head back over to the DeNami Design Blog to start from the beginning! You wanna make sure you visit and comment on all of the blogs as there are several great DeNami prizes up for grabs!

There were so many options for this theme, but being that we're getting into the fall season, I chose my absolute fall tasty treat -- apples! I have a teacher friend who has had a bit of a rough summer, and so I wanted to make a card for her with my DeNami apple stamps as a little pick me up here at the beginning of the schoolyear:

I'm really starting to have MUCH more fun with my Copics, now that my collection is getting bigger! I also love those DeNami Boutique buttons -- they just add so much to the card! Top it off with some pearls and some Twinery twine and I just really like how this one turned out!

OK, you still have LOTS of blogs to see -- so hop on over to the blog of the lovely Andrea Matthews! I'm sure she won't disappoint you! =) Happy hopping everyone! =D

Papertrey Ink - Stamper's Select White Cardstock	Memento Tuxedo Black Ink	Ranger Distress Ink - Mustard Seed	DeNami Design Thoughtful Greetings Stamp Set	DeNami Design Apple Basket
DeNami Design Small Apple	EK Tools - Embossed Dotted Lace Edger Punch	Ranger Ink Blending Tool	Copic Sketch - R27 Cadmium Red	Copic Sketch - R08 Vermillion
Copic Sketch - E57 Light Walnut	Copic Sketch - E09 Burnt Sienna	Copic Sketch - YG17 Grass Green	Copic Sketch - 00 Colorless Blender	DeNami Boutique Buttons - Harvest
The Twinery Twine - Peapod	Queen and Co Pearls - Purple

InLinkz.com

Lawnscaping Holidays Blog Hop!!!!

2011-09-09T00:01:00.000-04:00

Hello and WELCOME to the first ever Lawnscaping Blog Hop! I am SO excited to be a part of such a fabulous list of paper crafters! Speaking of fabulous paper crafters, you should have made your way here from the blog of the amazingly talented Marie! If you stumbled upon this hop just now, you'll wanna head back to the Lawnscaping Blog to start from the beginning!

You'll definitely want to start from the beginning because there are SO many amazing prizes! FOUR lucky winners will receive Lawn Fawn sets of their choice courtesy of Lawn Fawn! Also, ONE lucky winner will receive a $25 gift certificate to Mold Muse, a fabulous Etsy shop that has the most amazing silicon molds EVER! ALSO, there are a few mystery prizes along the way, so there are LOTS of opportunities to win! =D

The theme for this blog hop was HOLIDAY! Well, we all know that Lawn Fawn has amazing holiday sets! I chose to use two of my purchases from their most recent release for my projects! When I saw the new Ornate Ornaments set, I just KNEW I had to have it! I wanted to use the branches to create fun scenes with pine trees! Here's my first card:

How AMAZING are those little sparkles on the tree?!?! I just love that! I also love the script on this sentiment, it's just so whimsically fun! And my Spica glitter pen finished this card off perfectly for me! =)

For the next card, I wanted an outdoor pine tree that I could put Lawn Fawn's cute Winter Fox stamp under. Here's my next card:

I used a copic feathering technique to color in the tree, and if you look closely at the pine cones you can see that they are brown with a little hint of green, much like a real, unopened pine cone would look! The fox is brownish red, with red accents around the end of the tail and feet. Some Twinery twine and Basic Grey paper make this a fabulous little scene to remember! =)

Ok hoppers! It's time to hop hop along! Your next stop is the fabulous and ever-talented Ruby McGuire! I'm sure she has something amazing lined up for you to see! Don't forget to comment all along the way, and have fun!!!! =D

Papertrey Ink - Vintage Cream Cardstock	Papertrey Ink - Stamper's Select White Cardstock	Basic Grey Jovial 6x6 Paper Pad	Lawn Fawn Winter Fox Stamp Set	Lawn Fawn Ornate Ornaments Stamp Set
Papertrey Ink - Background Basics Text Style Stamp Set	Memento Tuxedo Black Ink	Ranger Adirondack Ink - Espresso	Tsukineko Versamagic Dew Drop Pretty Pastel Chalk Inks	Ranger Distress Ink - Broken China
Ranger Distress Ink - Antique Linen	Ranger Ink Blending Tool	The Twinery Twine - Peapod	The Twinery Twine - Maraschino	Queen and Co Pearls - Berry Red
Queen and Co Pearls - Baby Blue	Spica Clear Giltter Pen	Uni-ball Signo White Gel Pen	Copic Sketch - R27 Cadmium Red	Copic Sketch - R08 Vermillion
Copic Sketch - E57 Light Walnut	Copic Sketch - E09 Burnt Sienna	Copic Sketch - C5 Cool Gray	Copic Sketch - B14 Light Blue	Copic Sketch YG03 - Yellow Green
Copic Sketch - YG17 Grass Green	Copic Sketch - G17 Forest Green

InLinkz.com

Happy September/Blogoversary Winner!!!! =D

2011-09-01T21:25:00.001-04:00

Good Evening everyone! How are we all doing today? So I thought I'd share something kind of neat with you today! The school year started for me this week, and as always I'm getting prepared for all of my classes! =D One of the things that I do every year is to make monthly hall passes that I laminate for my classroom! I've decided to share each one with you at the beginning of the month! So without further adieu, here's my hall pass for September!!!

I had fun using some DeNami Design AND some PTI on this guy! I also used my glitter pen from Spica to add a little shine to the apples! I'm so SO excited that fall is finally here! =D

OOOOOk... so here's what you all really came to see... the winner of the Blogoversary $25 gift card! Here's the results:

RANDOM.ORG - Integer Widget

True Random Number Generator Min: Max: Result: 8 Powered by RANDOM.ORG

WENDY! That means you're the winner of a $25 Gift Card to one of the places I listed in the original entry (PTI, SSS or DeNami!) Please email me at kristybell34@gmail.com by September 8th to claim your prize and let me know which one you'd like for sure! =D

Ok everyone! Happy happy weekend and I'll be back soon with some more projects!

My First BLOGOVERSARY! It's Giveaway Time!

2011-08-22T23:26:00.000-04:00

***This post will remain on the top of my blog until the end of the giveaway! For other posts, scroll down! ***

That's right, this week I celebrated my first Blogoversary! I can't believe I've been blogging and creating and meeting such wonderful people for an entire YEAR! Thank you to each and every one of you who have made this such an amazing experience! I have met the most amazing, inspiring people and I'm so happy to keep on blogging! =D

OK, so here's the deal! I wanna do a giveaway, but I don't like trying to pick products to giveaway because we ALL have so much stuff but we all also have BIG wishlists! So what I've decided to do is giveaway a $25 GIFTCARD!!! That's right! =D So you have the chance to win a $25 giftcard to one of MY favorite stores:

DeNami Design

Simon Says Stamp

Papertrey Ink

So, if you are the LUCKY winner, you can choose a $25 gift card to one of those lovely places!!! Here's how you can enter:
1. Become a follower of my blog and leave a comment telling me what wishlist items you'd use the giftcard to buy!
2. Tweet/Facebook about this giveaway to spread the word and leave a second comment!
3. Blog about this giveaway to spread the word and leave a third comment!

So, that's up to three comments, or three possible ways to win!

I'm going to leave this giveaway open until Friday, August 26th at 11:59 EST. Good luck to all! =D

Happy Monday to all! =)

2011-08-22T23:20:00.000-04:00

Hello everyone! Well, this is my last week of freedom before I go back to school! I've got lots of crafty plans for this weekend, and also plan to work on cleaning up the house and whatnot. It's been a super busy but AWESOME summer!

This past weekend was a TON of fun! It was my hubby's birthday, so we went out to BRGR (the best burger place ever) for dinner and had a great meal! Then we went to the State College Microbrew Expo on Saturday with some friends. It was AWESOME! So many amazing microbrews! It was really neat to get to try so many delicious beers and talk to the breweries about how they got started, how they decided to make certain types of beer, etc... Finally, Sunday the hubs went golfing and I got to see my Dad perform in the local Senior Follies music and talent show! It's a huge fundraiser for his Aging Agency, and it's always a great time! We all met up for dinner after too, for a perfect ending to the weekend! =)

Ok, so onto the card! I made this last Friday, but didn't get to post it until today! This card uses several stamps and stamp companies, and I LOVE how it turned out:

Can you spy all of the stamp companies on this card? There's FOUR: Hot off the Press (scroll and border), Studio G (butterfly), Papertrey Ink (Circle), AND Lawn Fawn (sentiment). I also love that I once again got to use several of my favorite techniques -- distressing and embossing! The middle strip is embossed with clear powder and then covered with Mustard Seed Distress Ink -- I LOVE this particular stamp/color combination here! So vivid and pretty! I also heat embossed the sentiment and used watermark ink for the borders. I also added some teeny tiny pearls and embroidery floss to finish off the card. =)

So, this card was also inspired by a couple of my favorite challenge blogs:
CR84FN #36 - Yellow, Kraft and Neutral Colors

CAS-ual Fridays #16 - Embossing

Also, don't forget to check out my BLOGOVERSARY GIVEAWAY! There's only four more days to comment for a fabulous $25 giftcard to your favorite store! =)

Casual Fridays #16 and Off the Wall Craftiness #58

2011-08-19T23:22:00.000-04:00

Good evening readers!!! I've really been packing in the crafty time these days since school is about to start! I can't believe summer is almost over! Also, did you check out the updated header and design??? I hope you like it!

At any rate, today I wanted to have some fun with fun colors and embossing, so I played along with two of my favorite challenge blogs -- CAS-ual Fridays and Off the Wall Craftiness!

OTWC's colors right now are Navy and Coral. Coral! I LOVE coral, but I was certain that I didn't have an ink that I would call "Coral." Thus, I had to do some ink blending/mixing, and I ended up creating a pretty cool looking coral on this card:

What do you think? I'm really happy with the result! I dry embossed the background piece and then used a foam ink blender and blended Tim Holtz's Worn Lipstick and Memento's Tangelo over it, which creates a very corally color!!! I also used both inkpads to stamp the sentiment from one of my fabulous Wilson Designs sets! I added ribbon, pearls, and homemade coral resin roses to finish off the whole card! I'm really pleased at how this turned out -- and at how simple I was able to keep it!

I was playing along with two challenges today:
CAS-ual Fridays #16 - Embossing

Off the Wall Craftiness #58 - Navy and Coral

So there you have it!!! OK now I need to get some sleep... I have a long weekend of fun ahead of me! Have an amazing weekend everyone (and don't forget to check out my BLOGOVERSARY post!)

DeNami Sketch Challenge #9

2011-08-19T10:30:00.001-04:00

Good morning and happy Friday readers! Today I have a card to share with you for the recent DeNami sketch challenge that took a little time but was SO worth it!

First, I have to say that I love. LOVE. DeNami's new ornamental flowers Petit Four set! I just can't stay away from it! I've also been loving my Tim Holtz distress inks too! So, here's what happens when those two things come together:

So first of all, I made the background using Peeled Paint, Shabby Shutters, Tumbled Glass and Broken China. Then, after it was dry I stamped over it with DeNami's ornamental flowers in Versamark and used clear embossing powder to create the textured background! Then, I used a gel pen to color in the little white dots just for a little more white!
For the second layer, I stamped the flower and leaf in two colors each (kind of rolling the stamp around the edges of the darker color) for a multi colored effect. I really liked the way it turned out! Then I distressed the edge with Shabby Shutters. Finally, I finished the top layer with a scallop punch, some copic coloring, and a little bling! I also added some white grosgrain ribbon at the bottom and more bling (you can NEVER have enough bling!)

I'm really happy how this one turned out! It really shows off just how many ways you can use those amazing little DeNami stamps! =D Here's the sketch that I was working off of:

So there you have it! I had so much fun playing along with this sketch! =D

One last thing... I'm hoping that you've checked out my BLOGOVERSARY GIVEAWAY entry on my blog! There is a $25 gift card up for grabs... possibly to DeNami Design if you like! Check it out... it ends Friday, August 26th!!! =D

Ok everyone, have a LOVELY weekend! =D

Keep the Sun in your Heart

2011-08-17T18:29:00.000-04:00

You know, I just love that sentiment and I've not yet used it since I got Lawn Fawn's Partly Cloudy set forever ago! This card was a bit difficult for me, mainly because it had to be ONE LAYER, because I wanted to play along with the latest challenge over at Lawnscapings! I didn't know if I'd be able to make that happen, but then I saw this week's CAS-ual Friday's challenge, and I had an idea that matched the sketch and involved LOTS of Distress Ink (which I've been SUPER into lately!) Here's the final result:

This card really turned out better than I expected! I masked off that white strip and went to town with my Broken China distress ink! Then, I masked off the blue and stamped the white area with elements from Lawn Fawn's Partly Cloudy and Blissful Botanicals. I drew in my own flower stems and added some embroidery floss and pearls as added embellishments! I really like the way that the embroidery floss looks twisted around the front of the card, too! It's a super fun technique!

So, as I said I made this card with both Lawnscapings and CAS-ual Fridays on the brain:
Lawnscapings #16 - One Layer Cards

CAS-ual Fridays #15 - Sketch Challenge

Ok friends! This is a SUPER exciting time for me, stay tuned! There's something exciting coming up VERY soon on my blog, and it might just involve a giveaway! =D Happy Wednesday to all!