Rhythm & Soul

Some people have babies.  Others have fur-babies.  Well, my dear friend's first baby was her baby grand.  Which makes complete sense considering she's a music teacher.  I put together a little hostess gift as a thank you for having us at her cottage last week using Rhythm & Soul and included this mini set.

Non-PTI Supplies:  Patterned papers (from Stampin' UP! and American Crafts  Dear Lizzy collection),

Ink (Colorbox & Memento), Happy Birthday sentiment (Verve), and satin ribbon (Offray).

I love the texture from the impression plates over the Copic pianos.  For the masculine cards, I used the woodgrain IP and the In Bloom IP for the pink cards (which isn't as crisp an impression as I would've hoped for).  I realized that I did forgot to take a pic of the card I gave as the actual thank you card, but it also used Rhythm & Soul, and the same colour palette from the gifts.  Minus the red.  :)

Thanks for taking a look today at what I've been cooking up in my craft room. 
Have a blessed day, friends. 

August Challenge - All About Me

Every little girl has wanted a pony at some point in her life.  But, they usually outgrow it.  Me.  Well, I just developed a crazy love of (you guessed it) Carousel Horses ... When I was in university, my older sister gave me a Christmas ornament which was the start of my collection.  Each year, there's a new horse released which is added to my tree.  When my sweet niece was 3 or 4, she tried to steal one of mine because "they're pretty."  So, I bought her her own.  But, that gave way to a new tradition the two of us share.  And now, each Christmas, my niece knows that once their tree is up, Aunt Suzanne will have a special ornament for her - an ornament to match the newest one on my own tree.

All supplies PTI unless otherwise noted.

Paper:  Rustic Cream, all prints (Hopscotch Collection, BasicGrey)

Stamps:  Admit One (LawnFawn), Birthday Basics

Ink:  Fountain Pen (Jenni Bowlin), Vintage Touch Tea Dye Duo

Tools:  Wonderful Words die, Tag Sale 3, Edgers #2,

Other:  Copics, seam binding (Hug Snug)

When I saw this set previewed, I just knew that I could not pass it up.  In my mind, carousel horses mean Christmas & family.  So, this card is perfect for my niece's birthday.  My ornament collection is one that always reminds me of my sister, and now, my niece. Regardless of where we are all spending the holidays, whether together or apart, the tree in my home always is dressed in reminders of them.  I know.  I'm such a sap.  LOL

Thanks for stopping in.  I hope you'll take some time to pop by the Papertrey Posse blog and join in the August All About Me challenge.  Have a good one & happy stamping!

SAF Challenge #3

What a day it's been.  Of the first seven challenges I checked out, an entry for Challenge #3 is really the only one that came together easily.  Funny, the last one I tried, is the only one worth blogging.  Nichole & Heather challenged all of us PTI junkies to combine punches and ribbon to create an interesting card front.  Since, my punch box is heavy (and SO messy), I used my trusty Mat Stack 3 die for the opening. 

 Supplies (All PTI unless otherwise noted.)

Paper:  Hibiscus Burst, Rustic Cream, and In Bloom (print)

Stamps:  Daydreamer and Fillable Frames #1

Inks: blue, dark green, and black (Jenni Bowlin),

light green and purple (Memento)

Other:  sponge daubers, satin ribbon (SU)

Even though the official contest closes tonight, be sure to drop by Nichole's blog to check out all of the Stamp-A-Faire challenges.  These challenges definitely give the mojo a good old-fashioned jump start.  Thanks Nichole for the inspiration as always.  And thanks blog-friends for dropping by!

Simple Birthday

Well, hello.  I was going through the folder on my desktop of card pictures and realized, I never blogged this one.  One of my favorite stamps to be released this year from PTI is Simple Sentiments.  Oh, how I love the versatility of this set.  This card was quick and simple.  Until I got to the rolled felt flower.  Wow.  That little embellie took FOR-EVER to get rolled right. 

The card base was covered with three prints from the By the Numbers paper collection.  The sentiment was stamped in Tuxedo Black ink which makes it stand out nicely from the wild background.  The flower was die cut from Harvest Gold felt using a Die-namics flower die from My Favorite Things.  I used a copper brad to tie in with the brown numbers on the card base.

Thanks for dropping by.  Hopefully I'll have my Make it Monday card up in a day or two.  I just need to watch the video first.  LOL  Have a great evening, friends. 

MIM #9 - Heat Embossing

Oh, my.  How time flies.  I had every intention of scheduling posts for this week and totally forgot.  Today's post is a quick update using lots of PTI goodness.  I made this card on Friday during a rare "ignore the family and stamp"-a-thon where I got 5, yes FIVE, cards done that are actually blog-worthy.  Colour me shocked.  This first one is not my favorite, but it is perfect for this week's MIM challenge of using heat embossing.  I love the gold sentiment on Enchanted Evening.  And I love the academic look.   

This card uses a variety of PTI sets.  In fact, each stamped element is from a different set.  Can you guess which ones?  Let me know your guesses in your comment.  Knowing the super-sleuths from the PTI forum, I'm sure you'll get them in no time.  Hope things are going well for you in your neck of the woods. 

Thanks for visiting!

girly birthday

What girl can resist pink, black, and glitter?  Not many.  The layout on this card is one that I've used a lot lately.  I find it is so simple, yet easy to change up for the occasion.  This time I used a piece of Sweet Blush cardstock impressed with the numbers plate (lovin' this one almost as much as my woodgrain IP).  I then layered on a strip of paper from the matching collection.  I dug out some DCWV adhesive ribbon from my scrapbooking days to cover the seam. 

The focal image was die cut using Mat Stack 4 and stamped in pale pink using Fancy Flourishes.  I traced the girly swirly with an uber-thin glue pen and sprinkled on some crystal Martha Stewart glitter.  It's my new addiction.  LOL  Now that April is finally here, it's time to break out the spring things.  Tulips.  Bunnies.  Flowers.  I can't wait.  It's been a long, LONG winter.  I'm so thankful that it's behind us. 

Hope you enjoyed your visit here today.  I know I did.  {hugs}

butterfly in bronze

Well, hello again. I'm not sure what's happened to me, but my style has changed. Or evolved. Lately, almost every card I make has a vintage flavor to it. This one is no different. I had dyed this piece of seam binding ages ago, but never got around to using it. I started playing with it and pulled a thread at the top & one at the bottom, to get the gorgeous ruffling. Then came the hard part: building a card that did not detract from my ribbon!

I haven't used my Butterfly Dreams set in a while, so I decided to ink it up for the occasion. The butterfly was stamped using Rich Cocoa then coloured with Copics. When I was done, I went over the stamped image with a brown marker to make it pop. To soften the white edges, both the butterfly and the sentiment were given the vintage touch with some Tea Dye ink. A quick swipe of chamomile ink around the aqua layer and I was finished.

Hope you find time today to get inky!


Supplies (All PTI unless otherwise noted)
Paper - Aqua Mist, Fine Linen, White, By The Numbers patterned paper
Stamps - Butterfly Dreams and Birthday Basics
Ink - Baja Breeze (SU), Rich Cocoa (Memento), Crumb Cake ink refill (SU) and Vintage Tea Dye Duo
Other - butterfly die, banner basics die, BTN impression plate, white seam binding (Hug Snug)

headline news

Do you ever buy a set, with every intention of using it, and find that it just fights you every step of the way?  Well, Background Basics: Newsprint is that set for me.  Try as I might,  I can't seem to finish a card that I like that uses this set. 

Being St. Patrick's Day, I had every intention to use Luck of the Irish and lots of greens and gold, but time got away from me.  Like, really, who`s gonna make a St. Patrick`s Day card when the day is pretty much over?  Instead, I whipped this little 4 x 4 notecard up (instead of cooking dinner *heehee*).  It uses green so I think it counts.  Plans to celebrate today fell through so I shall be celebrating tomorrow with my favorite Irishman. 

Hope your St. Patty's Day was happy!

Make It Monday #6

I know.  Two posts in one day.  This week's challenge was right up my alley.  I LOVE my PTI impression plates.  The only thing I don't enjoy is trying to photograph the cards so that the impression is as impressive on screen as it is in real life.  The card was made with all PTI products (minus the inks and label). 

The main layer was cut from Fine Linen cardstock and I impressed the top half using the By The Numbers plate.  I used Erin's trick of adding a score line to hide the dent.  I then used chocolate twine on either side of the score line before adding the focal image.  And here's the finished product: 

So, that's it, folks.  Thanks for stopping by and checking out what I made on Monday. 

See you tomorrow.

birthday fishes

It's Friday!!  It's FRIDAY!!!  I finally got around to posting my card for this month's "window card" challenge.  Well, I did but I couldn't resist lining the window with a piece of acetate to give my card an authentic underwater feel.  I am so happy with how it turned out.  This card was a definite labor of love.  All the paper piecing, copic-ing and fussy cutting took forever.  But, it was so worth it.  

Details:  All PTI unless otherwise noted.

Stamps - Critters in the Sea (LawnFawn), Birthday Bash Sentiments

Paper - Crumb Cake (SU), Spring Rain, Fine Linen, Spring Moss, Solar White (Neenah)

Patterned Paper - plaid (Marjolaine: BasicGrey), turtle shell (BoBunny), fish (Making Memories)

Other - coaster, circle die (Spellbinders), banner die, acetate transparency, polka dot impression plate, Copics

Hope you have a happy Friday and find time this weekend to get crafty & creative. 

TTFN

crazy rejects

A couple of us in the Papertrey Posse decided to try our hand at some of the crazy sketches put out during the last Paper Crafts call.  Well, here's my take on Sketch #35.  Thanks Becky for the challenge.  This card is pretty much all Papertrey products.  I had planned a wedding cake type card, but really wanted to use some fun and bright colours.  The cake layers are impressed with the In Bloom plate and I switched out the top layer of squares for candles.

The last one that I wanted to share is one of my least favorites of the lot.  I can't remember which sketch I used, but I did flip it to make the layout in my head work.  For this one, I combined dies from Papertrey, Lawn Fawn stamps, and glitter (yes, I used more glitter) to create this sparkly number.

I can't remember all the details, so I won't even try.  Thanks for dropping by and I promise, no more rejects.  On to cards I like and can't wait to share.  My March Challenge card should be up and ready for tomorrow.  Hope you come by and check it out.  Or better yet, why not play along with this month's challenge.

Have a fantastic evening.

dude, you're 16!

I've been having so much fun with Big Birthday Wishes and the By the Numbers dies that I had to make another milestone birthday card.  This spring, my oldest nephew is turning 16.  Where the years have gone, I do not know.  Even though his birthday isn't for a few months, I couldn't resist whipping this up for him.  His mom's birthday is in a few weeks, but somehow I don't think she'd appreciate some big ole die cuts announcing her age for all the world to see!  LOL

The card base was cut from Stampers Select, and covered with a light grey text print from SU's neutrals dsp pack.  The Smokey Shadow mat was run through my Big Shot with the By the Numbers impression plate.  A scallop die cut of Ruby Slipper cardstock (Bazzill) was the perfect mat for a crisp white circle.  The numbers were cut from a black glitter cardstock and popped up on foam dimensionals.  I guess this card is a work in progress, as I just realized that I haven't finished the inside. 

Thanks for visiting.  I hope you found a little bit of inspiration here today.   If you've got the time, leave a comment.  I love knowing who's been by for a peek and what you think of my work.  

See you soon!

MIM #3 - Yeah, ME!!

Yes, the infamous battle of me and the glitter strips is over.  And I am victorious.  I've been meaning to try out the Make It Monday challenges, but this is the first one that I've completed.  Mainly because I am a stubborn sort of person.  This challenge was seriously trying my patience but I was bound and determined to come out on top.  But, I'll let you in on a little secret.  After several failed attempts using red sticky tape (curse you sticky tape) and clear glitter, I went on a mad hunt for genuine Scor-Tape.  And that boys & girls is when my luck changed.  See?

So, I'm no fan of glitter after all this, but I'm not horridly opposed to using it.  After finding it EVERYWHERE for the past few days, I'm getting used to it.  LOL

Have a glittery brilliant day, friends!

Supplies:  (All supplies Papertrey Ink, unless otherwise noted.)

Card stock: Solar White (Neenah), Spring Rain

Patterned Paper: In Blooms collection

Stamps: Up, Up, and Away, sentiment from Communique Curves

Ink: Tuxedo Black, VersaMark (Tsukineko)

Other: Copics, white EP (Stampendous), Scor-Tape, green glitter, Die-namics Perfect Bracket Edge (MFT), balloon dies

Desperately Seeking Spring

Okay, is anyone else tired of winter?  The only thing worse than a long winter is the cold, icy blast you get after a few spring like days.  To hold onto that spring-y feeling, I broke out of my usual neutrals with a touch of colour and experimented with the lighter side of the spectrum.  When I finished, I realized that my card was perfect for our February "favorite things" challenge. Now, let me introduce you to my Top 3 go-to's. 




Favorite Thing #1 - Texture
I started with a linen weave cardstock that is embossed with a leaf pattern, that proved to be virtually impossible to photograph well.  I also love the impressed dots in the Banner Builder border.

Favorite Thing #2 - DIY Embellishments
Felt + Dies + Button = Embelly Heaven.  I love making my own embellishments and the right tools make it SO easy.  I don't think I'll ever buy another flower or butterfly embelly again thanks to PTI.

Favorite Thing #3 - A Bold Splash of Colour & Ribbons
The ruffled seam binding is my absolute favorite thing on this card.  It's shiny, funky, and lime green.  Or any other colour my Copic loving heart decides it should be. 

Thanks for dropping by and spending some time with me.  It's great to know that I'm not blogging just for myself and that people actually take the time to check out what I've been up to in my craft room. 

Have a great one, friends. 

happy 30th

Happy Monday!!  Oh how I LOVE holiday Mondays.  It's Family Day here so I've got a whole, blessed day to stamp, craft, and lounge around in Lululemon.  Gotta love it.  So, now that Valentine's Day is over, on to the March birthdays.  I've got a few, and as the mojo would have it, the card I got done first, happens to be the last card I need for the month.  Figures.  LOL  Anyhow, this is a little something inspired by a square card base covered in that fab Pure Poppy polka dot from the Beautiful Blooms paper pack that has been knocking around my craft bin for months.

The huge white polka dots always make me think of summer, so I used Enchanted Evening as a mat and stamped on Stamper's Select white.  The sentiment was from last month's release, Big Birthday Wishes, which I masked and inked up with Memento inks.  I really wanted the year to stand out, so I die cut the 30 from a springy green dot from Bo Bunny.  Love this paper!! 

The last line from the sentiment was the start of a well finished interior.  I added a present die cut from the Make A Wish die collection, and created a mat to mirror the one on the front that goes off the edge of the page.  So, here it is, a card full of my favorite things, for one of my favorite people.  Now, I just have to order the gift and I'm all set.  Weeks in advance, too!

Not much else other than, thanks for coming by.

Free ... is good!

The only thing better than PTI stuff, is free PTI stuff, right?  I don't own any of the Papertrey tag stamp sets, but I think that's gonna change soon.  They are so much fun to use on cards.  This card uses the same tag Nichole used on her post today.  I love the way it printed on matte photo paper.  Just enough of a shimmer to make it look really, really good in real life.

Details: (all PTI unless otherwise noted)

Cardstock:  white (Neenah), crumb cake & turquoise (SU)

Patterned Paper:  kraft print (BasicGrey)

Stamps:  everyday button bits, friendship jar

Ink:  tuxedo black (Memento)

Dies:  friendship jar, banner borders, & limitless layers dies

Other:  autumn & holiday vintage mix buttons, twine (unknown)

This has been a fantastic crafty weekend for me.  I should forget to bring work home more often.  Be sure to drop by this week as I've got a lot of things to share.  Hope you all had an equally great weekend!

See you soon.

let it snow ...

FINALLY!!  Our school board declared it's first snow day since 1999 yesterday.  And I was thrilled.  Granted, I would've been happier if they'd announced it before I had left for work, but, better late than never.  I took advantage of a found 6 hours to get my craft room a little more organized and to get my fingers a little inkier than usual.  My mom's birthday is next week, so I decided that my stamping task du jour was to finish a card for her.  I know that she saves every card we give her.  I mean.  Every.  Single.  Card.  So, this was definitely more labour intensive that most of my crafty creations.

I have a personal aversion to the colour purple, but in honour of her birthstone, amethyst, I went with a regal theme.  On the way home from work on Monday, I had stopped at Michael's on impulse and found these really cool fleur-de-lys embellishments from Jolee's Boutique on sale which were my inspiration.  I also was dying to try out my new Decorative Doily die and to make some wrinkled ribbons.  

I made a bit of an oops on the inside so I had to do a quick fix which turned out pretty okay, if I do say so myself.  All in all, I am thrilled with the finished product. The ribbon was so easy (I coloured it with a copic) but I need to figure out a better way to make bows and froo-froo thingies with it.  So, now that the card's taken care of , I just need to think of a gift for a mom who always says, "don't get me anything" when you ask her what she wants, or needs.  Any suggestions?

See you all later.   

Details: 

Paper:  purple (Core-dinations), chocolate (Bazzill), Rustic Cream & Happy Spots (PTI), Solar White (Neenah), bronze glitter paper (unknown)

Stamps:  Happy Birthday (PTI), inside sentiment (SU)

Ink:  brown, purples (Memento), tea dye duo (PTI)

Dies:  circles (Spellbinders), decorative doily (MFT), medium scallop border (PTI)

Other:  seam binding (white-Hug Snug), RV12 (Copic), fleur-de-lys (Jolee's)

cake & polka dots

Surprise, it's another birthday card!  This one uses one of my favorite image sets Bake Me a Cake from Lawn Fawn.  I just {heart} this company.  The card was supposed to be a masculine birthday card, but I realized the only manly paper I had was either this or a camoflage print.  Since my buddy is not the army type, he got the dots. 

I don't usually do square cards, but I'm finding that it's so much easier for me to create a layout from scratch on a square base instead of the usual A2 base.  Good thing I bought a 50 pack of square envelopes.  I love the finished look.

It's hard to believe that the entire Christmas vacation is over and it's back to work & school this morning.  Where did the time go?  And why am I still exhausted?  Guess that's what happens when you cram lots of fun, family, and friends into two weeks. 

See you all soon & thanks for taking time to drop in for a visit!

Supplies
Paper:  crumb cake (SU), spring moss (PTI), solar white (Neenah), all prints (retired SU)
Stamps:  Bake Me a Cake (Lawn Fawn)
Colouring Mediums:  tuxedo black ink (Memento), Copics
Other:  Limitless Layers dies (PTI), rustic button twine (PTI)

ribbons & bows

Am I the only crazy person who picks a ribbon then tries to design an entire card around it?  Well, that's what I did with this card and it took me forever.  Thankfully, this birthday card was for a very special friend of mine so I didn't mind spending the time to make it perfect.

I really like the In Bloom paper pack and am thinking that I should invest in the matching stamp set to create my own paper.  It would eventually pay for itself right?  I realized after the fact that the bow was way too big to fit into an envelope.  Lucky for me, my sweet friend lives nearby so I tucked the card inside the bag and hand delivered the gift.  

Not much else to say other than thanks for dropping by again.  It means a lot that people take the time to visit and comment.  And a big special thanks to my followers.  Wow ... when did I get up to 14?  I am humbled.  Really.

Have a great one!

Supplies (all PTI unless otherwise noted)
Paper:  In Bloom (print), spring moss, hibiscus burst (I think)
Stamps:  Plain Jane sentiment (Verve), BB: Retro
Ink:  tuxedo black (Memento), VersaMark
Other:  Tag Sale #1 die & Limitless Layers die set, ribbons (unknown)

winter birthday

When I sit down to stamp in December, it's usually for birthday cards.  There are so many birthdays among my family and close friends that it's ridiculous.  I'm trying to use up my paper scraps (since I have two new PTI paper packs en route as I type), so I started with the gorgeous swirly paper as my inspiration.  I used this colour combo a few weeks ago for a Christmas card and just love this patterned paper.  So wintery, yet so girly.

To add some oomph to the skates (which are so easy to line up on the die cut), I used a C1 to line the boot and BG10 to colour in the blades.  I also added some chunky glitter to the skate blades.  A quick wrap of baker's twine and my card was all set to mail.  On time, to boot.  I'm so proud of me!

Thanks for dropping in. See ya tomorrow.

Supplies
Paper:  sweet blush (PTI), solar white (Neenah), print (unknown)
Stamps:  On Ice (PTI)
Ink:  tuxedo black (Memento)
Other:  skate die (PTI), labels 3 (nesties), glitter & glitter glue (Martha Stewart), black baker's twine (papertreats)