Do You Believe in Magic

Happy Thursday! Today's card is one I made to qualify for two challenges. Life has been so busy lately that killing two birds with one stamp seemed like the way to go. So here's my card for the Our Creative Corner Christmas in July challenge as well as the TCP Tuesday Christmas in July challenge.

The TCP reindeer stamps have always been some of my favorite holiday stamps. They just make me give a little contented sigh every time I see them. Doesn't he {Left Leaning Reindeer} just look majestic? And since he's flying through the air, I decided to pair him with the Believe in Magic sentiment. Both are stamped on Classic Cream cardstock in Memento Rich Cocoa ink and then I sponged the edges with Creamy Caramel, Close to Cocoa and Chocolate Chip. I ran just the corner through the Cuttlebug with the Snowflakes folder for a little embossing highlight and then I stamped another reindeer and cut it out to pop him up a little bit. Finished that piece with a few Hero Arts mini pearls on his antlers. This piece is matted on Chocolate Chip, which I punched with the Fiskars Diamond border punch across the bottom edge. The background layer is Classic Cream, which I embossed with the Snowflakes folder and then sponged with caramel, cocoa and chocolate chip.

For the sentiment, I stamped Dreaming of A White Christmas, punched out with the Designer Label punch, sponged with caramel, cocoa and chocolate chip and then secured with some Styled Silver hardware. I finished off with some 1/4" chocolate chip grosgrain and glued to a Chocolate Chip card base.

Okay, I promised you a RAK garden. ;) I've been so amazingly blessed (and spoiled)! Thanks to everyone who has sent these gorgeous cards and goodies. Each one has brought a smile to my face and touched my heart.

The first one's from Amelia


Next is from Maria:


And then we have Laura:


And Silke:


And a card from Charmaine:


With all sorts of crafting goodies...



And a card from Laurie:


With more crafting goodies...


And finally, this handmade "Time for Verve" clock from Shirley:

Possibilities

Happy Wednesday! Today's card is one I made last week for JulieHRR's Dare to Get Dirty challenge. However, the card's been lost on my desk since then, so it never got uploaded. I've never felt my one layer cards were very strong, but the two I did last week for the challenge turned out great (in my opinion, at least!) LOL!

I started by embossing a Nestabilities scallop rectangle directly on the front of the watercolor paper. Next I used the negative of a piece of cardstock I had cut the same rectangle from as a mask and stamped my image (Penny Black Clusters). I then used a brayer to ink (with mask still in place) the whole rectangle with Soft Sky ink. Next I colored the flowers with Copics, added a little Stardust Stickles to the flowers and then stamped the sentiment from Here For You in Garden Green. I finished off with a brown satin ribbon from target and some rounded corners for a finished look.

I know some of you have been wondering what I ended up asking for from DH for my birthday. After seeing Amber's Copic Heaven post, I realized I really needed to add to my Copic collection so I could line them up all pretty like in the photos of the store she went to. So I chose the markers to finish out my Green collection (BG, G and YG), plus a few Reds to help me in the pink department. DH also got me cases for them that fit perfectly across the little cubbies in my new desk I still haven't shown y'all. (I promise I will - can you believe half of my craft supplies are still in boxes because we've been too busy to finish building the other bookshelf and filing cabinet I bought to finish the room?) So I got Copics galore, enough cases to fit all the way across my desk, and these adorable little Hello Kitty rolling stampers and a strawberry scented pink Hello Kitty glitter pen. What could be better?

Well, DH decided I needed even more spoiling, so he took me to Archiver's to purchase the Clip-it-Up that his parents gave me a gift certificate to buy. And while we were there, he set me loose on a shopping spree. So I came home with not only the Clip-It-Up, but the upper tier add-on for the Clip-it-up, a Big Bite and it's matching storage case and a bunch of other little things I couldn't live without, like the luscious colored pearls from Kaiser Craft, and enough aqua and chocolate ribbon to last me... about a month. LOL, what can I say - I love these two colors together! :)

Well, this post has gone on and on and I still haven't shown you the RAK's I received. I just got the mail and received a few more, so I'll post them all tomorrow for y'all to see. Okay?

So Sweet

Happy Tuesday! Today I have my take on this week's Mojo Monday sketch for you. I wanted to use my new Tangerine Tango ink pad (thanks Lisa!) and thought I'd pull out So Many Scallops since I've barely used it and it's about to head to the big stamp retirement home in the sky.

I started by stamping the flower in Tangerine Tango and then punching out with my SU! scallop punch. Next I punched a 1/4" hole in the center and set a jumbo eyelet in the center with my Crop-a-dile. To give it a little sparkle I added an orange rhinestone in the opening of the eyelet. Next I focused on my horizontal panel. I knew I wanted to use the chocolate swiss dot pattern on the back of one of the Bella Rose papers, so I cut a strip and then took a piece of Tangerine Tango and scored two lines up top with my Scor-Pal to give it kind of a crimped effect. Next I made a scalloped border with my slit punch and glued it to the bottom of the piece of Bella rose and added some smaller rhinestones for sparkle. To finish off I used the "letterpress" or reverse embossing with ink technique using the Textile Cuttlebug folder and Tangerine Tango ink for the card base. I finished off with a Chocolate taffeta ribbon.

I've got some more birthday RAKS to share and some pics of the new toys hubby got me for my birthday, but my camera battery died before I was finished with the photo shoot, so they'll have to wait until tomorrow. Have a fantastic day everyone! :)

Mojo Monday Week #48

Happy Monday Everyone! Hope y'all had a fabulous week and are ready to kickstart another one. This week's card sketch is one that I think is pretty flexible. I haven't got to play yet, but I can picture a really pretty white card base with a splash of color and some simple stamping, as well as a card with more intricate matting and some fun patterned paper. If you don't have scallops or circles, feel free to get creative and see what you can come up with.

So to play along, just make a card using the provided sketch and leave a comment on this post with a link to a photo of your creation. There is no time limit - you can play any week at any time, but to be included in the slideshow next Monday, I need your link by Sunday at 8 PM Mountain time (6 PM ET). If you happen to upload to SCS, please use keyword Mojo48 so we can see everyone's mojoliciousness all in one happy place.

Okay, have fun! Hope you enjoy this week's sketch. Before you leave, be sure to check out all of last week's mojolicious entries in the slideshow below.


NOTE: If you get a message that says no photos found, please hit the refresh button on your browser or the F5 function key on your keyboard, and hopefully it will reload with the pictures!

They Say It's Your Birthday

Well, it's my birthday, too!!! :)

Today's card is just a fun one I made for myself. LOL! Do you ever make cards with yourself in mind? Well, I did on this one. I knew hubby hadn't been able to make it to the store since he's been home recovering from surgery so I made my own birthday card for him! I asked him what colors I should make it and his reply was yellow, pink and blue. I wrinkled my nose and then said, "What kind of blue?" To which he replied, "Verve blue of course!" LOL! Well, that made it all better, so I pulled out some So Saffron, Regal Rose and Soft Sky and went to work.

The sketch is one of the Dare to Get Dirty challenges from yesterday and the stamps are all from The Cat's Pajamas. These are some of my favorite stamps - I love this leaning tower of presents, the It's Your Day sentiment and the swirlies I stamped in the background are among my favorite swirly stamps evah! Props to Alma, the swingingiest creative cat there is. She's also having a sizzling hot sale this weekend (25% off EVERYTHING!), so now's your chance to add to your swanky stamp collection!

I started by stamping the tower of presents from Polar Holiday in Adirondack Pitch Black and then coloring with Copic markers and highlighting with Stardust Stickles. The ovals are cut and embossed with oval classic Nestabilities. For the sentiment panel, I stamped the swirlies (also from Polar Holiday) in Soft Sky on Soft Sky and then added the It's Your Day sentiment in Black, a dotted border with a black glaze pen, and then tied a knotted bow with some caribbean satin ribbon. The So Saffron layer is also stamped with the swirly and then I layered on Regal Rose and then a black card base. To finish, I added a black and soft sky photo corner punch and two black glitter dots.

I've received some gorgeous birthday RAK's this week, so I thought I'd share some of them here.

The first one is from Michelle Woerner. What a beautiful card. I love the dimension on her butterflies and the gorgeous colors, papers and layout. Thanks so much, Michelle!

The next one is from Tammy F. I love the fun colors and papers used on this card. It's nice to see a card that uses white space as the background layer, too. So crisp and clean - a total beauty. Thanks Tammy!

Then next card is from Chrissy and is just cupcake-alicious! I love the fun colors and the mixture of dots, scallops and CUPCAKES! Yummy! Thanks Chrissy!

The last one for today is from Lisa. This double pocket card is amazing, and inside the first pocket is a gorgeous post-it note holder she made. I love it! And if that wasn't enough, the card came along with some samples of the new in-colors and Bella Rose papers. WOOOHOOOOO! Thanks Lisa!

Loosen Up Your Buttons Baby

It's Thursday, and time for another Meet the Verve Divas challenge. This week our hostess with the mostess is this week's SCS featured stamper, Susan Liles, and she put out a challenge to use buttons on a project. Click here to read about the challenge and pepper Susan with get to know ya questions. More specifically, Susan challenged us to use AT LEAST 3 buttons on a project. However, being the multi-tasker that I am, I only half read the challenge, and so my sample card has only one button. Wonder if she'll let it slide - maybe she'll count the pearls as buttons? ;)

I don't know about you but I love collecting buttons. They're so pretty in a jar, all sorted by color, or mixed in together. But something about actually using them on a project makes me kind of shudder just a bit. Don't get me wrong - I love seeing them on the cards of "button whisperers", like Susan, Amy, and Laurie. They make buttons look cool, hip...awesome. But my button skills usually look like I made a card and then decided to throw a button on at the end. Well, maybe that's because it's not too far from what I really do! LOL

Anyhow, here's my "I threw a button on at the end to meet the challenge and then realized it still didn't meet the challenge" challenge card. :) It was also my attempt at two of the Dare to Get Dirty challenges from yesterday... watercoloring and one layer cards, neither of which are what I would consider my strong suits, but I still like my finished card. The card is pretty straight forward, so I won't bore you with all the step by step details. I used Thankful Blossoms and Filigree Fantasy and colored with Watercolor Wonder Crayons. Finished off with Hero Arts pearls, a button, a couple rows of piercings and some Chocolate grosgrain ribbon.

The Bright Side

Happy Wednesday! This week is flying by for me. I've been working on redesigning the packaging inserts for Verve, which leaves me sitting in front of a computer instead of in front of my craft desk. Only one more size to go and I'm officially done with the new packaging design. Woohoo! To reward myself for pushing through, this morning I decided to take a little detour into the stamp room for a 15 minute card.

This one was so simple. The DP is from October Afternoon, and I punched the bottom with the Fiskars Threading Water border punch and then matted on some Not Quite Navy cardstock, punched with the same border. Next I stamped a butterfly from Fluttering By on Soft Sky, trimmed with scissors and then added some tiny pearls and some dot accents with a white gel pen. All of this went on a 4.25" square Soft Sky card base and I stamped the sentiment in the bottom corner and accented with a few more pearls. To finish off I tied some chocolate satin ribbon from Target up top and then added some tiny pearls to each of the flower centers in the DP. Easy peasy! :)

Well, it's back to work for me. Hope y'all have a super productive, creative day!

MTVD02 Inspiration Challenge

Today I'm going to share with you the card I made for Amber's Meet The Verve Divas Challenge in the Verve Forum this week. You still have until Wednesday night to get your entries in for a chance to win $15 in Verve Bucks, so be sure you give it a go. You can't win if you don't try. ;) The inspiration photo is just yummy and has been inspiring some really cool and unique cards.

I took my inspiration from the colors and the diamond shapes in the plate. I really loved how the orange played against the blue, so I chose Pumpkin Pie, Night of Navy and Soft Sky for my color combination, and Asian Flair as my stamp set.

To begin, I started stamping the open square from Asian flair in Night of Navy across the paper and then I filled in the cracks above and below with rows of the closed square stamp in Pumpkin Pie. Next I stamped the butterfly in the three open squares and colored with Copic markers. I used a copic marker to color in the border on the pumpkin squares and then used some eclipse tape and a 7/8" square punch to mask off the squares, so I could stamp the viney flower inside the squares. Next I stamped the sentiment in Night of Navy, highlighted the canvas with an orange Copic marker and then masked off above and below the sentiment, so I could color the strip with the BG10 (match for Soft Sky) Copic marker. I added some piercings across the panel and then used my Swiss Dots cuttlebug folder to emboss just one row of dots across the bottom. I accented it with just a hint of the BG10 ink and then added Pumpkin Pie photo corner punches, which I stamped with the closed square stamp in Pumpkin Pie for some interest. This is glued to a Night of Navy panel with Pumpkin Pie Grosgrain tied in a knotted bow around the end. I finished off with a little orange bling and some Stardust Stickles, then matted everything on a Soft Sky card base.

Mojo Monday Week #47

Happy Monday Everyone! Hope y'all had a fabulous week and are ready to kickstart another one. This week's card sketch focus is rounded corners. I've just been in a super curvy mood lately. If you don't have scallops, feel free to use just plain ovals. If you don't have ovals, feel free to use circles or a square or rectangle with (you guessed it)... rounded corners! :)

So to play along, just make a card using the provided sketch and leave a comment on this post with a link to a photo of your creation. There is no time limit - you can play any week at any time, but to be included in the slideshow next Monday, I need your link by Sunday at 8 PM Mountain time (6 PM ET). If you happen to upload to SCS, please use keyword Mojo47 so we can see everyone's mojoliciousness all in one happy place.

This week's sample card features some of the oh-so-delicious summer images from The Cat's Pajamas. What's a better way to start a week than Sprinkle sipping lemonade in an inflatable pool? I started by stamping Sprinkle Relaxing in Rich Cocoa Memento ink and then cutting and embossing with Nestabilities Classic Ovals. I made coordinating mats with Chocolate Chip and Groovy Guava cardstock and then colored the image with Copic markers.

Next I started on the background. I knew I wanted to use this hip flower trio to match the flower by Sprinkle's ear, so I stamped 3 Small Flowers repeatedly on white cardstock and then colored with Copic markers to make my own DP. Next I added the Cheers! sentiment on Barely Banana, rounded the corners and added a Chocolate Chip mat. I finished with some 5/8" chocolate grosgrain ribbon, and rounded the corners on all my layers before glueing to a barely banana card base. Just a hint of Stardust Stickles on the images, and a super fun card was born.

Hope you enjoy this week's sketch as much as I did. Before you leave, be sure to check out the 71 mojolicious entries for last's week's mojo sketch in the slideshow below.


NOTE: If you get a message that says no photos found, please hit the refresh button on your browser or the F5 function key on your keyboard, and hopefully it will reload with the pictures!

Letterpress ATC Style

Happy Saturday everyone! This morning I woke up smiling, knowing it was time for another awesome Our Creative Corner challenge! This week's challenge was to use dry embossing, so I pulled out my bin of Cuttlebug folders and got to work. :)

I knew I wanted to make an ATC for the Verve Project Parade and figured I could combine the two challenges easily enough. One of my favorite ways to use Cuttlebug folders is what I call letterpress. I'm sure it has some other actual technical stamping name over on SCS, but it looks just like letterpress to me, so that's what I call it. I started by taking my Textile CB folder and inking the bottom inside plate with Chocolate Chip ink. Next I placed my cardstock inside the folder and ran it through my CB upside down (the Cuttlebug logo is on the bottom instead of the top). {Be sure to rinse your folder off with water immediately, so it doesn't stain.} Then I just cut my pieces to size and inked the edges with Chocolate Chip ink. Next I stamped Psalm 37:4 in Chocolate Chip on Classic Cream and then ran it through my CB with one of the small flower folders (upside down so it debosses). {Tip: You want to make sure you stamp first, and that you deboss instead of emboss, or it will be hard to read your sentiment.} I then colored in the debossed image with the BG10 Copic marker, inked the edges and matted with Chocolate Chip. To finish off the ATC, I just added some caribbean satin ribbon from Taylored Expressions and a Chocolate Chip 2.5" x 3.5" ATC card base.

Then to turn my little ATC into a card, I went for another simple layout that makes it easy to use ATC's on full cards. I used a piece of the leftover letterpressed paper, matted with Chocolate Chip to approx. 3.25" x 4", added two small photo corner punches and then added to a Soft Sky card base that was embossed with the Swiss Dots CB folder. Then I simply just added the ATC on dimensionals, and I had another finished card. Woohoo!

Verve Project Parade: ATC Style

Today is the start of two Vervalicious challenges. The first one is our second Meet the Verve Divas challenge in the member forum. Be sure to pop in and get to know Amber as well as check out her yummy inspiration challenge for a chance to win some Verve Bucks.

And today also kicks off the July Project Parade Challenge on the Verve Blog. This month the challenge is to make Artist Trading Cards (ATCs). Check out this post for all the details, including a link to Jen's tutorial on making ATC's if you've never made one before. I'm addicted to these cute little cards - they're great to tuck in a bag or an order, but also make for an easy card when you're strapped for time. I have one layout I particularly love to use when turning ATC's into cards, so today I'll be showing you both my ATC and a quick way to turn it into a simple but lovely card.

My inspiration started with this gorgeous paper from October Afternoon. I just love the color combination and the stylish stripes. I started by cutting a piece of DP to 3.25 x 2.25" and then using my Fiskars Threading Water border punch to add a cute little scallop border. Next I matted this on Chocolate Chip and then Cool Caribbean to make my ATC base. I then stamped my butterfly from Fluttering By on a small strip of Classic Cream cardstock in Memento Rich Cocoa ink and then again on a scrap of DP. Next to the butterfly I stamped the Smile sentiment from All About You and then matted this piece with Chocolate Chip. I cut out my DP butterfly and then used pop dots to pop it up on my card. I finished off with some orange rhinestones for the body and antennae, as well as a matching trio on the bottom corner of the card.

And here's my really easy layout for turning an ATC into a card. I use a 4.25" card base, since they fit in standard size A2 envelopes. Then I simply add a row of piercings to the bottom and a thin knotted bow above the piercings and paste the ATC in the center of the card. Voila! A card is born! :)

OCC Embrace

Happy Wednesday! Today's card is one I've been thinking about since Saturday when the Our Creative Corner challenge was posted, but didn't have time to try until today. This week the challenge is an inspiration challenge. When I took a look at the inspiration photo, the napkins in the glasses reminded me of calalillies, but as I searched through my entire stamp collection I realized I didn't have a single calalilly stamp. Can you believe that? Hmmm, might have to remedy that. Anyway, I figured Embrace Life was the next best thing.

I've also had Jen's Sketch For You To Try mulling around in my head, so I decided to combine the two and this is the card that resulted. Jen's sketch was actually for a square card, but I adapted it for a regular A2 sized card, since this was my very last large piece of So Saffron cardstock. I started by cutting two identical circles out of Classic Cream and Creamy Caramel. Next I aligned them back to back and cut them about 1/3 in from the edge, so the pieces would create a whole circle when put together. Next I stamped the long stemmed flower from Embrace Life three times on the cream panel and then used Eclipse tape to mask off just the flowers. Next I taped the stamped piece and the Caramel piece together on the backside and stamped the Weathered background over the top in Tea Dye Ranger Distress ink. I then sponged the edges of the circle with Tea Dye, pulled off the masks and colored the flowers with Copic markers. I added some Vanilla taffeta down the seam and decorated with some antique copper mini brads.

Next I used one of my Nestabilities label dies and cut out the embrace life sentiment, using one of the brads across the ribbon to anchor the sentiment. I matted the entire circle with a Creamy Caramel Circle and then set aside. For the background I stamped Weathered in So Saffron on So Saffron cardstock and then sponged the edges with Tea Dye ink. Next I glued down my circle, anchored the other side of my label with a minibrad and then glued to a classic cream card base.

Take a Break

Hey there, everyone! Here's the card I told you about the other day. The one that didn't quite turn out how I planned. I used a few of my new Annie LaPointe MFT stamps.

I started by stamping the Peppermint image and coloring with Copic markers, then cutting and embossing with Nestabilities Classic Circles. Next I added a Rose Red scallop circle mat and added tiny rhinestones to each scallop. The DP strip is a scrap of American Crafts Paper, which I added a strip of black grosgrain and three black glitter dots to.

I used a marker to ink up just the take a break from the Take A Break stamp and then punched it out, inked with Rose Red and matted with a Rose Red scallop circle punch. The background is white cardstock embossed with the Swiss Dots Cuttlebug folder.

Okay, that's all on the card front. Thanks to everyone who's been asking about DH. He's recovering nicely from his surgery and home this week, taking it easy. Today I received some beautiful flowers from the Verve Divas. Aren't they beautiful? Orchids are one of my favorite flowers, and these are just gorgeous. Thanks, girls! You're the bestest! :)

I also received a fabulous birthday card from Nancy. We share a birthday so she sent me this card full of sheer sparkly goodness. So pretty! Thanks so much Nancy!

I also received this gorgeous card from Amber. I've had a rough couple of weeks and she sent this beautiful card to lift my spirits. It totally worked, Amber. Your card is simply beautiful. Thanks for thinking of me!

Mojo Madness Winners & Slide Show #45

Okay, everyone! Sorry it took so long, but picking two winners was just SO HARD! Y'all are on fire with your creativity lately! I enlisted the help of my hubby who is home all week recovering from sinus surgery to narrow it down to the two mojo-est entries. So without further adieu...

This month's Mojo Madness Honors go to...

Jessica of There She Goes.... So clever and striking, this card totally caught my eye. I love the simplicity of the clean layers mixed with the intricacy of the suspension technique. The scalloped corners up top really set off the card beautifully.







Sarah of the Scrampin' Mama
What a gorgeous card! Classic, simple, elegant, trendy and sophisticated... all at the same time! I just can't take my eyes off it - a truly stunning card.

Congrats Jessica and Sarah!!! Email me (link in the sidebar below my photo) your addresses and your choice of Verve stamp set and I'll get your goodies on their way! Since there were so many fabulous entries, I decided to highlight a few of my favorites (in no particular order) in the mosaic below for everyone to see. The links below the mosaic go to their blog posts, so y'all can give them a little love and check out their fabulous creations if you haven't already.



1A. Stephanie H., 1B. Wendy J, 1C. Michelle W., 1D. Carol
2A. Rach, 2B. Maria G., 2C. Lori T., 2D. Susan L.
3A. Ida K., 3B. Denise M., 3C. Janette, 3D. Deb N.
4A. Angela J., 4B. Jennifer M., 4C. Denise, 4D. Dawn E.


And here's the slideshow of all 159 entries for Mojo 45! Each one is spectacular so be sure to take a little time to check them out.



NOTE: If you get a message that says no photos found, please hit the refresh button on your browser or the F5 function key on your keyboard, and hopefully it will reload with the pictures!

Mojo Monday Week #46

Hi Everyone! Are you ready to start another week? I sure am! After commenting on all 159 rocking entries for last week's Mojo contest, I still need a bit of time to select the winners. I honestly don't know how I'll choose - there are so many I just LOVE! But I'll mull it over for a while and announce the winners later today. In the meantime, I wanted to post this week's Mojo sketch to kickstart your week.

Here's the scoop on how to play along... just make a card using the sketch as inspiration and then leave a comment on this post with a link to a photo of your creation. There is no time limit - you can play any week at any time, but to be included in the slideshow next Monday, I need your link by Sunday at 8 PM Mountain time (6 PM ET). If you happen to upload to SCS, please use keyword Mojo46 so we can see everyone's mojoliciousness all in one happy place.

My sketch is based on this card I made last week for the first Meet The Verve Diva's Challenge over in the Verve forum on SCS. I tried to make a fresh sample for y'all, but after I got my image colored I didn't want to cover it up with the smaller circle, so I tried to adjust the layout a bit, but it didn't really turn out like I planned. And for some reason I glued the layers down with red line tape, so there's no budging it now! Anyhow, I'm too tired to find my camera and go take a picture of my failed mojo attempt, so I'll just have to show it to you another time. :)

Hope y'all have a fabulous and creative week. I'll be back later with the Mojo Madness winners.

TCP Fun in the Sun

Hey Everyone! Today's a really quick post since hubby is having sinus surgery this morning and I'll be gone all day. I've been hearing my TCP stamps call my name lately, so I had to pull out Moon Doggy and have some fun with this week's SCS color challenge. It's pretty self explanatory, so I'll just leave you with the recipe and wish y'all a great weekend!

What's in it:
Stamps: Moon Doggy, Fun in the Sun (The Cat's Pajamas)
Paper: Groovy Guava, Chocolate Chip, Barely Banana (SU!)
Ink: Rich Cocoa (Memento)
Accessories: Rectangle Nestabilities, Fiskars threading water punch, chocolate grosgrain, We R Memory Keepers hardware, Spots Cuttlebug folder, Stardust Stickles, Copic markers

Meet The Divas Challenge #1

Oh Happy Day! Today starts the first in a 12 week series of challenges over at the Verve forum. Our first challenge hostess is Shannan Teubner who came up with this lovely color combo as this week's challenge. Be sure to check out this post for all the challenge details and how you can enter. And if y'all ever wanted to pick the brains of a fabulous designer, be sure to make Shannan work hard for her hostess spot and drill her with questions this week, okay? :)

I woke up this morning with a new layout in my head, so went directly across the hall and started stamping to test it out. I pulled out Feeling Groovy and stamped the flower three times in Memento Rich Cocoa ink and then colored with Copic markers. Next I stamped the stems from Petals & Stems and colored again with a Copic marker. I cut and embossed this layer with a Nestabilities circle die and then matted with a Chocolate Chip scallop Nestability circle. For the background of the card, I stamped the flower randomly on So Saffron cardstock in Pumpkin Pie and then lightly sponged the edges with Pumpkin Pie ink. The designer paper is from October Afternoon and is matted with chocolate chip and secured with antique copper mini brads. I then stamped the sentiment from Feeling Groovy and punched out with a 1 3/8" circle punch and matted with a chocolate scallop circle punch. To finish off, I added some Stardust Stickles and pumpkin grograin on either side of the card. I'm not sold on the ribbons - maybe I should have used chocolate chip, so they'd stand out more?

Yesterday was a happy mail manifesto. I had a colossally bad week last week and then I received all these awesome cards this week! How cool is that? It's so nice to know lots of someones were thinking of me, even though they didn't know what was going on! What a difference a card can make! That's one of the main reasons I design stamps - because I love the thought of making something that other's use to brighten their worlds. Anyway, I'll share my loot with ya...

The first card is from Lori of Inking Aloud and uses Thankful Blossoms. Aquas and teals are some of my favorite colors and the texture and layout of thi card is just beautiful. Thanks Lori!

The next card is from Deb of My Little Crafting Corner and is the cutest little birthday card. The layout, colors and ribbon are simply beautiful. My birthday is 2 weeks from tomorrow, and I'm so excited that the cards are already starting! Woohoo! Thanks Deb!

The next card is from Cyndi of The Scrappy Chick who was one of our June guest designers. She used Floral Whimsy and a sentiment from All About You on this fabulously layered creation. Just beautiful, Cyndi! Thanks so much!

And this one is from Denise of The Paper Landscaper. She made this gorgeous little card with Seeing Stars and Starlight Starbright. I just love her use of white space and her sparkly brads just set off the card. Thanks Denise!

And last but certainly not lease is this absolute stunner from Jennifer of Jennifer's Sweet Designs. I loved this card when I saw it on her blog, and then totally went bonkers when I pulled it out of the envelope. You just see so much more detail in person than in a photo. All of the squares and the background are debossed with the Swiss Dots folder and it just looks so cool. She used one of my favorite SU! stamps and also the butterflies from Petals & Stems. Just a gorgeous card. Thanks so much for thinking of me Jennifer!

Birthday Wishes

Today's card is another one I made with this week's Our Creative Corner sketch. I pulled out another one of my favorite Penny Black floral images... Prince of Orange. I took the colors of my card from the gorgeous October Afternoon paper. I started by stamping on white cardstock with Adirondack Pitch Black ink and then coloring with Copic markers. Then I realized the polka dots in the paper were more cream than white, so I decided to soften the white by overstamping the panel with the Linen background in Creamy Caramel and the sponging the edges with Creamy Caramel, Close to Cocoa and Chocolate Chip. This ended up making the cream polka dots look too white next to the the image panel, so I added some sponging using Close to Cocoa and Chocolate Chip to blend it a little more. Sounds like an endless cycle, huh? :)

Next I did some faux stitching around the edges with a paper piercer and a chocolate chip marker and then distressed the edges with a paper distressing tool. The background is chocolate chip stamped with Linen in the same color ink. For the sentiment, I used Wonderful Wishes Remixed, punched it out with the round tab punch then stamped with Linen and sponged the edges. To finish off I died a piece of taffeta with a Copic marker and added some ribbon on the corners and a knotted bow by the sentiment. I painted on a little glitter/diamond glaze mixture for sparkle and then adhered everything to a Close to Cocoa card base.