A Merry Christmas to You

Today I'm sharing a Christmas card I made for my first ever Caardvarks challenge! I can't remember how I stumbled over to that site this week but think it was a circuitous route from Hero Arts to Lucy's Cards to Caardvarks! No matter, I found it, right?

The challenge this time was to create a card decorated inside and out. I was a bit stumped for the inside but came up with a snowy hill theme that I think coordinated well with the snowy look of the front!
Supplies: Stamps - Compliments of the Season, Holiday Labels 14 (WMS), DP - Winter's Wings (Webster's Pages), Glitter CS (Martha Stewart), Card Stock - Riding Hood Red (SU!), Ink - Riding Hood Red, Basic Black (SU!), Tea Dye Duo (PTI), Corner Chomper, Die Cuts - Cuttlebug, Labels 14 (Spellbinders), Ribbon (Michaels), Foam Squares

Christmas Wishes

A quick post of one more tag that I made for the holiday tag challenge over on the Waltzingmouse Stamps blog! Free stamps!! Go check it out!! I had this one half made all week as we packed to leave for our trip to Spain and finally got it finished this morning while my hubby was sleeping. Nothing like priorities in the correct order. Who needs a passport when you can have $200 in Waltzingmouse goodness? Right? :)

Supplies: Stamps - Very Vintage Labels (WMS), DP - Christmas Past (Graphic 45), Card Stock - Select Cream (PTI), Old Olive (SU!), Ribbon (Kate's Paperie), Seam Binding (Etsy), Brad - Jovial Collection (Basic Gray), Ink - Basic Black, Riding Hood Red, Old Olive (SU!), Glossy Accents, Die Cuts - Cuttlebug, Spellbinders

Cupcake Decorations

Last week I shared the birthday card I made for my hubby's 40th and today I want to share the decorations I made for his birthday cupcakes! Being a paper crafter comes in so handy when it comes to various decorations and these are no exception!

I used a simple 1 3/4" punch to make the circles (you could use stars, tickets, flags, or any other shape you'd like!), stamped them with various birthday motifs, and added Stickles for a glittery touch. I taped the toothpick to the decorated circle and then added a plain circle to the back. Cute!

Supplies: Stamps - Big Bold Birthday (SU!), Cardstock - Select Cream (Papertrey Ink), Ink - Various Colors (SU!), Stickles, Punch (SU!), Toothpicks

Ho Ho Ho (Tag Style)

And for the second act (though I think I like this enough to be the first act!), may I present you the ho ho ho tag? This is a fun little number that was born around the same time as the card in my prior post. I honestly can't say which came first but once one came along, the other wasn't too far behind!

Claire (purveyor of Waltzingmouse Stamps) has issued a tag challenge and the winner will take a whole heck of a lot of stamps home for free! Great fun!! Now, I may have to cry foul since we'll be on vacation for the whole last week it is open, but I'm doing my best to get a few done before I leave. Free stamps is a great motivator to put aside my packing but I won't be too happy if I find I forgot my underwear for 10 days in Spain. :)

Supplies: Stamps - Very Vintage Christmas (WMS), Cardstock - Silver and Shimmer Navy (PTI), Silver Embossing Powder/Heat & Stick Powder/Glitter (SU!), Punch (PTI), Die Cuts - Cuttlebug, Spellbinders, DP (Anna Griffin), Twine/Stick Pins (Crafta), Feathers (Michaels)

Ho Ho Ho

This is the first of two posts today (the other item needed its own spotlight!) - two different ideas using basically the same supply set. First up is this card which is based on this week's Waltzingmouse Sketch. There is even a prize for a lucky participant so head over and check it out!

I used the "ho ho ho" sentiment and the label stamps from the Very Vintage Christmas set, used a good amount of embossing and heat and stick powders, some glitter and some yummy snowflake paper. I love how wintry it turned out!
Supplies: Stamps - Very Vintage Christmas (WMS), Cardstock - Silver and Shimmer Navy (PTI), Silver Embossing Powder/Heat & Stick Powder/Glitter (SU!), Punch (PTI), Die Cuts - Cuttlebug, Spellbinders, DP (Anna Griffin), Twine (Crafta), Vintage Button (eBay)

Christmas in the Heart

As promised (and out of order), here is my card for the VLV challenge, week 3! Apparently I'm quite taken with the burgundy/gold Christmas cards this year and needed something to separate two posts with very similar color combos! :)

The challenge for week 3 was to CASE a card by Verve Diva and new member of the Dirty Dozen, Jackie Pedro. Wow, talk about inspirational! I loved browsing through her gallery and settled on this little number using one of my favorite dies, Labels 10.

I finished the card off with some lovely lace and a pretty, crinkled ribbon. I'm sure you'll see more of this color combo from me this year and hope you are still enjoying it! I know I am!

Supplies: Stamps - Christmas in the Air (Verve), DP - Christmas Past (Graphic 45), Cardstock - Very Vanilla, Bravo Burgundy (SU!), Ink - Bravo Burgundy (SU!), Pearls (Hero Arts), Die Cuts - Cuttlebug, Labels 10 (Spellbinders), Lace (Crafta), Ribbon (Etsy)

Jeremiah 29:11

This is a card I made for the Viva La Verve challenge - week 4! Can you believe it, I've finished all four cards this month!! (I'll be posting my week 3 card tomorrow...) Very excited to play along with such talented crafters!

The challenge was a sketch challenge along with using something that we've been inspired by this fall and this verse totally leaped out at me. This has been one of my favorite verses for a long time but for the past few weeks, it has helped boost some hope that was dwindling a bit. Thanks, Julee for making stamps with such great messages!

Supplies: Stamps - Jeremiah 29:11 (Verve), DP/Ribbon - WonderFALL (Webster's Pages), Ink/Cardstock - Old Olive (SU!), Distressing Tool (Making Memories)

Blast From the Past

I am a fairly new user of stamps from Taylored Expressions but just love their creativity, signed up for the newsletter and saw there was a blog hop! Who doesn't love a good hop, right?!? Anyway, when I saw that the hop for October was a "blast from the past" with a Christmas/holiday theme, I thought it was the perfect excuse to get a new stamp set and participate! If you just happened by my blog, look to the bottom of the post to start from the beginning!

I remember seeing some projects last year around blog land that used the Christmas Blessings set and I've loved it ever since I first laid eyes on it. The images and the sentiments ring so true for me and are a great reminder of what Christmas is all about! "Wise men still seek Him" is one of my favorite expressions I had to use it! I embossed the manger image in gold over beautiful Webster's Pages papers. If you look closely at the burgundy paper, you can see where it says "a child a child, sleeping in the night...He will bring us goodness and light." Very cool! I finished the card with a lovely crinkle ribbon tied with a wee jingle bell.




Supplies: Stamps - Christmas Blessings (TE), DP - Waiting for Santa (Webster's Pages), Ink - Versamark, Basic Black (SU!), Embossing Powder (SU!), Bell (Michaels), Crinkle Ribbon (Etsy)

Happy Birthday, Sweetie!!

Just a quick post since tonight is my hubby's 40th birthday! I made this card using this weeks WMS Sketch Challenge sketch and used the adorable Half Pint Heroes set!

They say that life begins at 40 but I may have to disagree. My life began the minute I met him 7 years ago. I love you boo bear!!

Supplies: Stamps - Half Pint Heroes (WMS), DP - Joy Ride (Cosmo Cricket), Card Stock - Vintage Cream (PTI), Ink - Basic Black (SU!), Copic Markers, Stickles

Luxurious

The minute I saw this amazing Tuesday Trigger photograph, I immediately thought of this wonderful peacock stamp from Hero Arts. I've had it for a while but haven't ever used it until now. I used Versamark ink to stamp onto white card stock and then heat embossed it with black powder.

It is a bit hard to see but the "eyes" of the tail feathers and the feathers of the crown have been glittered with some Stickles. I think the pink feather is a great embellishment and brings in the color of the orchid in the photo. Fun!

Supplies: Stamps - Peacock (Hero Arts), Card Stock - Basic Black, Tempting Turquoise (SU!), Ink - Versamark, Black Embossing Powder (SU!), Copic Markers, Stardust Stickles, Corner Chomper, DP (DCWV), Feather (Michaels)

Give Thanks

I'm happy to participate in the October blog waltz with Waltzingmouse Stamps! I've you've just happened by, head on over to the 'Mouse House to get started!

My plan was to make a single card using the leaf paper you see in the card above and the pumpkin image you see in the card below. Unfortunately, when I put the two pieces together, they just didn't look right so I pulled the pumpkins off of the first card. After looking at it a bit, I decided I really liked it "just like that" and left it alone. I added a sentiment from the Basket Additions set to the leaf paper.

For the second card, I decided to mount the cream panel on a cream card base for a simple yet elegant statement. I took the falling leaves a step further and mounted a large paper leaf inside of the card.


Supplies: Stamps - Basket Additions (WMS), Cardstock - Very Vanilla, Old Olive (SU!), Ink - Basic Black (SU!), Cuttlebug, Spellbinders, Stickles, Copic Markers, Patterned Paper (Making Memories), Leaf (Paper Source), Washi Tape (Ginko Tapes)

Great News!!

I have some fabulous news to share - I am now part of the design team for Stampin' D'Amour! They have amazing vintage-inspired stamps that I can't wait to start using! Stay tuned!

Paper Crafts Publication

I am so excited to finally be able to share a project that is featured in the new, special issue, Paper Crafts Holiday Cards & More! I had so much fun making these and even more fun offering to sign copies for magazine readers at my local Borders a couple of weeks ago. Okay, "readers" were the two girlfriends I was having brunch with... :)

The stamp set I used was the very first set I purchased from the lovely Claire at Waltzingmouse Stamps. She's got a wonderful vintage feel to many of her designs that suits my style just perfectly.

Supplies: Stamps - Very Vintage Christmas (WMS), DP - Oh Joy (Cosmo Cricket), Card Stock - Forest Foliage, Very Vanilla, Riding Hood Red (SU!), Ink - Riding Hood Red (SU!), Versamark, Tea Dye Duo (PTI), Edge Punch (Fiskars), Die Cuts - Cuttlebug, Spellbinders, Ribbon (Crafta), Foam Squares

You Make Me Smile

I'm actually on top of the Viva La Verve challenges this month - here is the week 2 card I made and am getting posted during...wait for it...week 2! Seriously, this is a huge personal victory for me! :)

This week's challenge was a sketch and a color challenge using brown, white, turquoise, and orange. I found a couple of patterned papers in my stash that I thought went nicely with the brown background, used an old Cuttlebug tag die and, voila! I really like how the stamped flowers look at the bottom of the turquoise panel. I used dye inks to get the subtle look.

Supplies: Stamps - Beautiful You, Blue Skies (Verve), DP - The Crafty Stack (DCWV), Card Stock - Chocolate Chip, Whisper White (SU!), Ink - Chocolate Chip (SU!), Tea Dye (Distress Ink), Tea Dye Duo (PTI), Die Cuts - Cuttlebug, Spellbinders, Distressing Tool (Making Memories), Ribbon (Etsy), Vintage Button (eBay), Foam Squares

Our Christmas Cards?

It is about that time of year when we start auditioning various ideas to be our Christmas card and I think this one has a pretty good chance of making the cut! Is it wrong to say I'm totally in love with how this came out?

I used the layout for this week's WMS Sketch Challenge and the colors over at the Color Throwdown to make this cozy little fireplace scene. If you look closely, I used my wood grain embossing plate on the brown card stock and hand cut it to make the little mantle. I used some tinsel and some vine ribbon for the wee garland and some felt for the flickering fire.
Supplies: Stamps - Sewing Box Christmas (WMS), DP - Jovial (Basic Gray), Ink - Basic Black (SU!), Cardstock - Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip (SU!), Wood Grain Embossing Plate/Vine Ribbon/Felt (PTI), Cuttlebug, Tinsel (my stash), Foam Squares

Give Thanks

This is my second post of the day and my second card for two challenges - yes, there is a theme of 2's right?

I made this card for Viva La Verve as well as the Tuesday Trigger over on the Moxie Fab Blog. I've been wanting to play along with the VLV challenges forever but never seem to realize when the new month starts and end up being so far behind it doesn't seem worth it to try to catch up! Believe it or not, I actually put it on my calendar at work so I wouldn't forget!

I adored this week's Tuesday Trigger photo and the palette reminded me so much of these adorable papers from Cosmo Cricket. The leaves are from my stash - K&Co - that I've had forever! Simple but I think very cute!

Supplies: Stamps (Verve, Plain Jane), Cardstock - Kraft (SU!), DP - Nutmeg (Cosmo Cricket), Leaves (K&Co.), Ink - Chocolate Chip (SU!), Die Cuts - Cuttlebug, Labels 10 (Spellbinders)

Thank You

This week has been busy and I'm really excited about my SF Giants being in the playoffs so I haven't been focusing as much on cards lately as I usually do! This card is for two challenges - the Mojo Monday challenge, and the Color Throwdown! This is my first time playing with the Throwdown but I've been following along for a while.

Supplies: Stamps - Dream Big (Verve), DP - Latte Stack (DCWV), Cardstock - Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip (SU!), Ink - Chocolate Chip, Perfect Plum (SU!), Punch (EK Success), Ribbon (Kate's Paperie), Pearls (Michaels)

Wedding Wishes

I made this card for the background stamping challenge over at Embellish Magazine! I just love background stamping and, with the abundance of designer papers, don't always remember I have more than enough tools to do it myself!
Along with the challenge to create our own backgrounds, this is also a color challenge. For some reason, these colors really remind me of a wedding so I chose to make a wedding card. And, I just adore my new Love Story stamps so never tire of getting them out to play! I stamped the background with another Verve set, Artful Elegance, and added some lovely ribbons and a gorgeous vintage button for some sparkle!

Supplies: Stamps - Artful Elegance, Love Story (Verve), Cardstock - Whisper White, Basic Black (SU!), Harvest Moon (PTI), Ink - Going Gray, Basic Black (SU!), Ribbon (American Crafts), Seam Binding (Etsy), Vintage Button (eBay), Misc - Stickles, Foam Squares, Corner Chomper

Snowflakes

Another card to celebrate World Card Making Day via the American Crafts blog! I immediately thought of my new Dear Lizzy Christmas papers and remembered a Verve stamp set that I thought would go perfectly. It is a bit hard to see in the photo but the sentiment says "Snowflakes are Winter's Butterflies."

I hope you all had a wonderful day and make lots of lovely creations! My biggest win of the weekend was finally putting the Halloween supplies away and digging out the Christmas stamps. Game on! :)

Supplies: DP/Buttons - Dear Lizzy Christmas (American Crafts), Stamps - Christmas in the Air (Verve), Silver/White Cardstock/Silver Ink (PTI), Twine (Crafta), Brads (SU!), Die Cuts - Cuttlebug, Spellbinders, Glue Dots

Thankful

Happy World Card Making Day (a day late...)! I was out almost all day yesterday with my girlfriends (we celebrated the day by eating good food and looking at my card in Paper Crafts Holiday Cards & More - that counts, right?!) I even offered to set up a little autograph stand in the magazine section but the guy reading Motor Week wasn't interested...made this card when I got home for the Offset Scallop Gallop over on the Moxie Fab World Blog.

I've known for a long time what this card would look like but my original plan was to use my Origins fabric for the scallops. Um, how do you die cut fabric? I didn't want to break my 'bug and it kept getting stuck in my punches... If any of you out there have had success, do share! After the failure, I grabbed my Origins papers and went to town. I chose the sentiment because I am so thankful for this craft and how many cool people I've "met" and get to interact with on a regular basis. Someday I hope to meet y'all!

As Cath says, it is World Card Making Day every day for most of us so let's celebrate!

Supplies: Stamps - First Fruits (PTI), Cardstock - Old Olive (SU!), DP - Origins (Basic Grey), Ink - Chocolate Chip (SU!), Scallop Punch (EK Success), Ribbon (Kate's Paperie)