Hello!

Yep, even a Sunday post this week!
I haven't had much stamping time lately, and what I have had has been spent working towards a Christmas Card class. Today I thought I'd switch gears and do a little more autumn before December starts! This afternoon I am planning to write some thank you notes, so of course I'll need to replenish that stash just a bit too!
This card design comes from wanting to play along with the NAC color challenge before time was up, and I also used a sketch from the Viva La Verve blog. And I completely switched things up with a stamp set I haven't paid much attention to in what feels like forever, but is really probably just a matter of weeks... haha! The fern is stamped off in Old Olive, for the lighter shade, and then I inked it with Early Espresso, stamped first on my scratch paper, then twice on the card panel for the two shades. I like that method!
And again with the lighting!! I have got to be done stamping earlier in the day!

Supplies:
Stamps: Butterfly Basics, Six Sided Sampler
Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Old Olive, Early Espresso
Paper: Old Olive, Whisper White, Early Espresso card stocks, Into The Woods DP
Accessories: Into The Woods ribbon, Butterflies dies, Big Shot, Dimensionals, stapler

More CITM!

Nothing new from *me today, but I do have these four fabulous cards other demonstrators have made and sent me! Seriously, I love this!

Blog Hop: It's SUMMER!

Oh my goodness HOW is it July already?? I have no idea other than...it IS hot enough.....but wow, this summer is flying past! And since it's a new month, it's time for a new blog hop!!

This time we chose the theme of SUMMER, which really, all of my posts the last week or so feel like summer...and I keep mentioning that it really is HOT, haha! So let's continue that theme!

This card uses some bright, summer shades, a splash of watery blue and a good dirty brown shade! (actually, I got the color combo from the Nacho Average Challenge blog, but I thought it totally fit the summer theme!) I have never used this big butterfly before, so that was fun. Also stamping on the DP is a really fun thing for me, kinda takes 'coloring outside the lines' to a whole new level to color on the lines! haha!
This card proved nearly impossible to capture with a camera so you get several shots to see the details!

Supplies:
Stamps: Six Sided Sampler, Gorgeous Grunge
Ink: Bermuda Bay, Tip Top Taupe
Paper: Watermelon Wonder card stock, In Color Envelope Paper
Accessories: In Color Blossom Accents, Butterflys Thinlits, Big Shot, Hexagon Punch (flagged end), Glue Dots

And this second card uses the latest sketch from Mojo Monday. This time the color scheme is much cooler. And apparently I think of butterflies when I think of summer because um........

Supplies:
Stamps: Kinda Eclectic
Ink: Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Tip Top Taupe, Soft Sky
Paper: Old Olive, Soft Sky & Whisper White card stock, In Color Envelope Paper
Accessories: Subtles Candy Dots, Bitty Butterfly Punch, Dimensionals

Also, can I just mention the In Color Envelope Paper that I used on both cards? It's thinner than our other DP, which means you don't add weight or bulk to your creations, but you still get the fun prints! And at only $6.00 a package, it's a steal!

Now, go check out Cheryl's blog and hop all the way thru to see some awesome SUMMER inspiration!! And leave us your thoughts- we all love comments! *grin

Pink & Gray Birthday!

Today was fun! Today I got to go to a birthday lunch with some of my closest friends! There was a group of us in the townhouse complex I live in but they keep moving away... Two of us have birthdays in March (my birthday was last week) and four of us got together today for lunch! Of course that meant I needed to make a card for my friend whose birthday is next!
I used the Mojo Monday sketch as my starting point, but instead of three shapes I ended up with something of a collage! I think it's fun!

Supplies:
Stamps: Snuggles & Smooches, Six Sided Sampler, Honeycomb Hello
Ink: Crisp Canteloupe, Calypso Coral, Basic Gray, Smoky Slate
Paper: Whisper White card stock, Stacked with Love DP
Accessories: Epic Day Washi Tape, Subtles Candy Dots, Hexagon Punch, Hexagon Hive thinlit die, Honeycomb Embossing Folder, Big Shot

And here's our fun lunch!

a friend's farewell...

Yeah, I too noticed that I was posting daily and now I'm not. haha...
I was also stamping more, and now I'm not.
What am I busy with? Well, on top of things like swimming lessons, babysitting, my son mowing my parents lawn every week, attempting to cram summertime fun into the days...and all the normal parts of being a wife and mother...our very good friends moved away this past week! The kind of friends where the dad's are movie buddies and the mom's are always chatting about this or that, and the kids are all friends too. Rats. We helped pack, load, unload and clean. Fortunately they are only about 30 minutes away, so we'll still be able to visit...it just won't be the same as having them right out the back gate.

Aside from helping with the move......
One of the little girls told my daughter that she hoped her friends would give her something to remember them by. aww...! My daughter and I decided that friend photos would be great! Another mom suggested that a little photo album full of pics of their friends would be even better! (of course I agreed 100%- have you seen my photo addiction/scrapbooking problem?! haha!) And another mom suggested a disk of all the photos we've taken together! Love it!
So! We took pictures of the groups of friends...
we put together small albums with photos and notes...
(I put together two of the kids' albums and the mom's)

and the disk of photos evolved to an MDS slideshow, including music, burned to a dvd that the kiddos can watch anytime they want, home-movie style! hahaha!
Most of my MDS "pages" were kept suuuuper simple! I just used the pre-designed photo layouts for almost every page.

Then I created a title and ending page, which are identical except for the text. (this is the end...)

And then! I even stamped on the disk sleeve! 

(note: Stampin' Up!'s ink does not stay on a disk. It never dried. Came off super easy with a clorox wipe!)

So! Plenty busy, using my stamp supplies, but very little to blog! haha...

*Slideshow Supplies: 
MDS, Lemonade Stand content disk, Sycamore Street embellishments, Font: Throw My Hands Up
*Disk Sleeve Supplies:
Stamps: Six Sided Sampler, Teeny Tiny Wishes 
Ink: Lost Lagoon, Pumpkin Pie, Basic Gray

New Toys!

Happy Monday! I hope your weekend was enjoyable! We had a kind of lazy Saturday and then a fun date night! Sunday I had a migraine but I think I'm past it, so here I am stamping!
I just got a new stamp order and I was excited to have some play time! I used a brand new stamp and ribbon for this card, along with the Retro Sketch 101. I went for a spring look and it sure seems like a lovely spring day outside at my house! {that's not 100% good, we really need the snow that so many other states are getting too much of, but I'll take the clear blue skies any day!}

If you look really closely, you might notice the open part of the card behind...yeah, I made this card upside down or backwards, haha. The first time I stamped the hexagon and greeting, it got smudged AND it was too high to put the ribbon on...so I flipped it, haha!
But its okay, I have just the friend to send it to, who will completely understand the wackiness we sometimes find ourselves in, haha....

Supplies:
Stamps: Hardwood, Summer Silhouettes, Six Sided Sampler
Ink: Crumb Cake, Island Indigo, Midnight Muse, Daffodil Delight, Wild Wasabi
Paper: Very Vanilla card stock
Accessories: Natural Chevron Ribbon, Dimensionals

Sneak Peeks!

Today I am showing off a little Sale-A-Bration preview! The DP on this card (the stripes and polka dots) and the punch I used to make the cute banners are going to be available in just a couple more weeks! :)
The card uses the latest Verve sketch, and kind of an odd color combination, but it comes from the DP so whatever, lol! I thought the pop of Summer Starfruit peeking out at the bottom was a good way to tie it in...

Supplies:
Stamps: Six Sided Sampler
Ink: Basic Black, Summer Starfruit
Paper: Sahara Sand, Crisp Cantaloupe, Pistachio Pudding, Summer Starfruit, Whisper White card stocks, Silver Glimmer DP, Sweet Sorbet DP
Accessories: Banner Punch, Designer Label Punch, Rhinestones

Masculine Cards

Yes, my first Christmas Card Class is tonight!! Are you coming?
In the meantime, here are the final cards from last weeks class! These two are quite masculine, even tho some of the others can certainly be used for men/boys. I find many people struggle with making masculine cards so I thought I'd help my class attendees out! (apparently I like Smoky Slate for guys...)

First up, my very favorite combination of stamps- the gorgeous ship with the fabulous map! Can't beat that!

Supplies:
Stamps: The Open Sea, World Map
Ink: Smoky Slate, Pacific Point, Real Red
Paper: Pacific Point, Whisper White & Real Red card stocks
Accessories: Silver Mini Brads, Dimensionals, Mat Pack

And this one uses a couple of masculine accessories to give it a bit of flair!

Supplies:
Stamps: Six Sided Sampler, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Ink: Smoky Slate, Soft Sky, Midnight Muse, Basic Gray
Paper: Smoky Slate & Whisper White card stocks
Accessories: Epic Day Washi Tape, Neutral Buttons, Hexagon Punch, Glue Dots

Double Sketch

I wrote out all the sketches I could find to maybe work on today, and I ended up using the same sketch twice! It comes from the Freshly Made Sketches blog, sketch # 109
First I thought I'd make a simple card and play with this tree and fall leaves! Pretty sure I've never done that, haha...

Supplies:
Stamps: Thoughts & Prayers
Ink: Raspberry Ripple, Calypso Coral, Crushed Curry, Chocolate Chip markers
Paper: Raspberry Ripple, Crushed Curry, Chocolate Chip & Very Vanilla card stocks


Then I made this card. I used MDS to find a color combination to go with Gumball Green! How handy is that?? Also, I just love (ha!) that both my greetings came out crooked.... niiiice.....

Supplies:
Stamps: Wonderfall, Six Sided Sampler
Ink: Cajun Craze, Gumball Green, Early Espresso
Paper: Gumball Green, Early Espresso, Cajun Craze & Very Vanilla card stocks
Accessories: Big Shot, Woodgrain Embossing Folder

Autumn Hexagons!

Happy Monday! It is definitely autumn now. Around here we wear jackets to school and play barefoot afterwards, but not so much with the rain... and that's okay!
So here's a thank you card I made with the Clean & Simple sketch 262 and this fun fall color combo... I really struggle to line these hexagons up, even with the Stamp A Ma Jig, but when they're punched out it works really well!

Stamps: Six Sided Sampler
Ink: Elegant Eggplant, Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, Chocolate Chip
Paper: Chocolate Chip & Very Vanilla card stock
Accessories: Hexagon Punch

Happy Hello!

I love how this card turned out and it was really simple to make! I used a little bit older Retro Sketch that included this window...It would have been much easier to just make it a layer and trim off some flower, lol, but I went the hard way! I trimmed out the square using my paper trimmer, stamped the flourishes and greeting, and put the flower on a white insert sized sheet, glued to the front of the card! Yep, complicated, but simple, haha! I added a little Rhinestone to the center of the flower for a bit of somethin'. Its bright and happy and I love it!

Supplies:

Stamps: Creative Elements, Six Sided Sampler

Ink: Calypso Coral, Coastal Cabana

Paper: Coastal Cabana & Whisper White card stocks

Accessories: Rhinestones

Daddy Daughter Date

This page was so fun to put together! Earlier this summer, my husband took our daughter out to dinner and to see a play, just the two of them! I had her type up a blog post for it on our {private} family blog so then I just printed off what she'd written for the journaling! I used their tickets and also printed off what he had to say on facebook while they were out. So fun and simple! And then I made some hexagon-punch flowers for a bit of personality.

Supplies:
Stamps: Six Sided Sampler, Remember Rotary Stamp
Ink: Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry, Basic Gray
Paper: Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry, Basic Gray, Whisper White card stocks
Accessories: Hexagon Punch, Brights Candy Dots

and since its been so many days since I posted anything (since I created anything!!!) here's a few close ups for you...the stamping:

 and the candy dots on the hexagons... 



 

Hexagons for Him & Her!

Alliterated titles make me happy, haha...
Anyway, I got a new box of goodies and took some time to play with them. I wondered if I might need to get the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig when I got this new set, but I thought I'd try it myself first. annnd now I'm thinkin' I better get it!! haha! (the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig is a tool to help you line up your images. I asked a demo friend about it years ago and she said she feels like it takes away from the "homemade" look. I definitely am NOT a perfectionist so I haven't cared much....til now!)

So here's a masculine card. I was just playing around with it this time... some of it lined up with no problem and then others didn't turn out so nicely, and yes, I have the clear mount stamps.

Supplies:
Stamps: Six Sided Sampler
Ink: Midnight Muse, Wild Wasabi, Smoky Slate
Paper: Smoky Slate, Whisper White
Accessories: Hexagon Punch

And this one uses the current Freshly Made Sketch. When I first looked at that sketch I thought "what the heck would I do with a curve?!" but the samples turned out adorable...I chose to do a hexagon collage with my curved piece, haha!

 and here's a close up so you can better see the rhinestones I put on the Wisteria spaces.

Supplies:
Stamps: Six Sided Sampler
Ink: Melon Mambo, Wisteria Wonder, Coastal Cabana
Paper: Melon Mambo & Whisper White card stocks
Accessories: Rhinestones

Epic Day Class!

Today is my Epic Day Stickers & Washi Tape class. The idea was to see what we can do with the Epic Day accessories if we're not into keeping a scrapbook. We put together 4 quick cards and the attendees took home their own package of stickers and washi tape to create as many other projects as they like!

First up:

Supplies:
Paper: Vanilla card stock
Accessories: Epic Day Stickers, Epic Day Washi Tape

This card uses a recent Mojo Monday Sketch.

Supplies:
Paper: Crumb Cake & Basic Gray card stocks
Accessories: Epic Day Stickers, Epic Day Washi Tape

This card was inspired by THIS sketch:

Supplies:
Stamps: Six Sided Sampler
Ink: Basic Gray
Paper: Pool Party card stock, Epic Day DP
Accessories: Epic Day stickers

And this card uses THIS sketch!

Supplies:
Paper: Pool Party Cardstock
Accessories: Epic Day Stickers, Epic Day Washi Tape

There you have it. A very quick, simple idea for some cute cards- all you have to do is assemble!