Stampin' Addicts Occasions Mini Blog Hop!!

Hi Stamping Friends!!
Well today's is the day!  I'm so excited to be a part of the Stampin' Addicts Occasions Mini Blog Hop!  If you started the hop at the beginning, then you have finally reached the end.  I'm the last stop on the tour.  Which means, you just came from Debra's blog, Heartfelt Inkspirations, and I know you saw some fabulous creations there with the Be My Valentine stamp!!  If you are just starting the hop, that's A-Okay.  I'll have a link at the bottom of this post to the first blog in the loop and you can just make your way around.  If you somehow get lost along the way, check out this link at Stampin' Addicts.  It lists all the blogs that are participating in the hop.

Before I show you my projects, can I just tell you now how much I LOVE the new Occasions Mini Catalog?  So many fabulous new stampin' goodies to be had!  Be sure to contact your SU! demo and get your copy of the mini catalog.  If you are like me, you will want it all!!  That's enough chit chat, let's move on to some stampin'!!!

MOTHER OF MINE   #122195   $6.95

The item I chose to use for the blog hop is one of SU!'s a la carte stamps called Mother of Mine.  Other new items I used on this card is the Springtime Vintage DSP, Springtime Vintage Big Designer Buttons, and the Vanilla Rosettes.  I was going for a Kimberly Van Diepen/Tiffany Bauer look with this card.  They do the BEST vintage cards.  To make it perfect, it needs a little stitching around the edges.  Anybody want to sew for me?  This sketch comes form the Utah Divas blog.  I designed this card with Mother's Day in mind.  And here is a little coordinating gift matchbox to go with it.

The colors I used for these projects are Rose Red, Pear Pizzazz, Crumb Cake, and Very Vanilla.  This little box also uses the new Rose Red Seam Binding.  Other items from the big catty are Scallop Rectangle Clearlit and Basic Pearls.  It's easy to do a vintage look with this beautiful Springtime Vintage DSP.  I just sponged a little Soft Suede around all the edges to dirty it up a bit.  And of course a cute little box needs a cute little gift inside.

I love how the word "MOM" fits perfectly into our 1"x 1.25" Simply Adorned charms.  I had so much fun making this little insert!  Other stamp sets used are Charming and Tiny Tags.  I made the Rose Red thread by using my SU! marker and coloring a piece of Linen Thread.  I finshed it off by adding a little bling with a Basic Pearl on the crown.

I'm extra excited about my final project, because I tried a new-to-me technique.  And since I am not a technique junkie, this is a super special day at the blog!

From this angle, it doesn't really look like anything special.  But check out this...

Still can't see it?  How about a little close-up?

I used a new Letterpress Plate called Heart Pressed.  I inked it with Versamark ink, ran it through my Big Shot with a piece of Rose Red card stock and then sprinkled some Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder on it and heat set it with my heat tool.  It's so sparkly IRL life.  I just LOVE how it turned out!!  I can't wait to try out this techinque with my other Letterpress Plates. 

One thing great about the Mother of Mine single stamp is that you can use it for all different occasions, Mother's Day, Valentine's Day, even a birthday card, since the stamp itself does not say anything about a specific occasion.  This layout comes from the Techno Stamper blog.

I hope you enjoyed my projects.  I know I really enjoyed creating them for you!! And I hope you had fun hopping on the Stampin' Addicts Occasions Blog Hop.  There are some amazingly talented stampers on this hop.  I'm quite honored to be a part of this group.  Be sure to check out the Stampin' Addicts website too.  It really should be call Stampin' Up! Addicts, since it is an SUO community with a fabulous alphabetized gallery of only Stampin' Up! sets.  And lots of great members to boot.  We just added our 6000th member this week!

The first stop on this hop is Sarah's Ink Spot.  So if you started somewhere in the middle, you are going to want to keep hopping.  I know Sarah will have some fabulous creations waiting for you using the XOXO stamp set.

---GO TO NEXT BLOG---

Thanks for hopping by!

Happy Stamping!



Stampin' Celebration Inspiration Challenge #33

Hi Stamping Freinds!!!

I'm so glad you stopped by today!!  I've just been having the best time stamping the last couple of days.  I can't remember the last time I've had this much time to do this much stamping.  Now I know what my retirement is going to look like.  Nothing but stamping all day!!  :)

Today's card is for the inspiration challenge over at the Stampin' Celebration Inspiration Challenge.  We hope you will come celebrate with us and play along in our little challenge.  We would love to see what you've been stamping too.  This week we are celebrating in style with a black tie New Year's party.  I love all the silver and sparkle!!

FIFTH AVENUE FLORAL

It's such a bummer that I overexposed this photo.  You don't get to see how it sparkles and shines like IRL.  I used the Brushed Silver cardstock as my base.  Then embossed a piece of Basic Black with the Manhattan Flower Embossing Folder.  Below that I layered a piece of Wicked Fun DSP.  I really wanted to use Purely Pomegarante for this card, because that is the color I see in the photos.  But since PP is discontinued, I decided to use Rich Razzleberry instead.  I really like the silver, black and Razzleberry together. 

Where the two papers meet, I added a strip of Silver Glass Glitter.  Oh my!!!  This is my first time using the Glass Glitter (I know, I'm so behind the trends!) and I am in LOVE!!!  This stuff is so sparkly IRL.  It's just gorgeous!!  Then I layered one half of a silver Top Note.  The big, beautiful rose comes from the Fifth Avenue Floral set.  Love the modern look of this set.  I heat embossed two roses with black embossing powder.  Then I cut them out and layered them.  Gives it a wonderful 3-D effect.  I made the Glass Glitter "leaves" by using a piece of the Sticky Pages and adhering one side to a piece of cardstock.  Then I ran it through my Big Shot using the Table Setting die.  Then I exposed the other sticky side and smooshed lots of shimmery Glass glitter onto it.  I cut in half, so I would have two "leaves".  Then adhered it to my card.  I finished it all off with some Basic Rhinestones and Taffetta ribbon.  The sentiment is from a retired set called A Little Birthday Cheer.

This super fun sketch comes from my favorite Stampin' Up! online hangout... Stampin' Addicts.  December is "do-over" month, so this is sketch SASC57.  And this creation definitely qualifies for the two Bring on the Bling challenges going on at SUO Challenges and Hand Stamped Sentiments!  There's not much more bling you could add to this baby!

Speaking of Stampin' Addicts, I am soooooo excited because starting tomorrow we are hosting a Stampin' Up! Occasions Mini Blog Hop!!!  You will not want to miss this hop.  There are 20+ amazing stampers showcasing tons of new goodies from the SU! Occasions Mini Catalog that you can begin ordering from on January 4th.  Here's a link to all the fabulous stampers that will be partcipating in the hop:  SA OCCASIONS BLOG HOP.

Yours truly will be the last stop in the hop.  And I can't wait to show you the projects I made!!  I had the most fun playing with my new stamping toys.  I even came up with a new-to-me technique.  You will have to stop back by tomorrow and see what everyone has created.

And be sure to stop by the Stampin' Celebration Inspiration Challenge blog and see what the other fabulous Design Team members have made as well.  There's a whole lotta talent there!  And I hope you can play along with us!

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Stamping!

ColourQ #65

Hi Stamping Friends!!
It feels good to have some stamping time again!  It's been a couple weeks since I've been able to play at the ColourQ.  I'm so glad that Arielle is such a gracious host, or she would have kicked my booty to the curb a long time ago!!  Thankfully she keeps me around for old times sake.  :)  I love today's color inspiration picture.  I would love to make a scarf like that using my Big Shot.  Wouldn't that be so fun to wear?  I'll just add that to my list of things to do... make a scarf.  Yeah right! 

EXTREME ELEMENTS

I need to work on restocking my supply of birthday cards over at Goodies Cookies.  So you may be seeing a bunch of birthday madness over the next few weeks.  I thought these colors would make a great boy card.  And we all know those boy cards are the most difficult to create!!  I used a Crumb Cake base layered with some old, forgotten named DSP from SU!.  Then a piece of Old Olive cardstock that I embossed with me Big Shot using the Distressed Texturz Plate. 

My "go to" boy set is always Extreme Elements.  This is one of those sets that I will keep forever!  I paired it with the Extreme Dirt Bike single stamp.  The whole Extreme series of stamps is so perfect for tween and teen boy cards.  I even know some adult men that would like this card.  :)  

This fabulous sketch comes from my favorite Stampin' Up! only online hangout, Stampin' Addicts.  Every  week they have a new sketch challenge.  December is "do-over" month.  Since everyone is so busy, Paula (the sketch challenge hostess) chooses a sketch from the previous year for everyone to "do-over".  This was originally sketch #45.

If you love a great blog hop, be sure to stop by on Friday.  All my pals at Stampin' Addicts are joining me in showing off all the new stuff from the Stapmin' Up! Occasions Mini Catalog.  Trust me, you will LOVE what you see!  Here's a link to all the gals that will be partcipating: Stampin' Addicts Blog Hop.

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope you will be able to join us and play along at the ColourQ!

Happy Stamping!

Happy Belated Christmas!!!

Hi Stamping Friends!!!

My cousin married an Englishman and I love how they say Happy Christmas!!!  Since it finally stopped raining and all the holiday hoopla has died down, I finally had a chance to take a picture of our Christmas card.

I made and sent out 108 of these.  Of course it was half way through the assembly process that I figured out I needed more like 145 cards!  So My Digital Studio to the rescue!

Here's the card I made using MDS components.  The hardest part was trying to figure out who was going to get the handmade card and who was going to get the photo card!

I hope you and your family enjoyed a beautiful Christmas together.

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Stamping!

Stampin' Celebration Inspiration Challenge #32

Hi Stamping Friends!!  I'm so glad you took a minute to stop by today.  We have a yummy inspiration challenge for you at the Stampin' Celebration Inspiration Challenge.  Doesn't all that chocolate just make your taste buds tingle?!  I LOVE chocolate!!  And these photos make my mouth water.  That brownie looks to die for!!! 

For my project this week, I went digi.  I would love to say that I used only Stampin' Up!'s My Digital Studio, but I will admit that I cheated a little.  All of my components are from MDS, the digi papers and embellishments.  But I actually created the entire thing in PhotoShop Elements.  I have MDS, but I've been working for years with PSE, long before SU! came out with MDS.  And since I'm so used to how PSE works, I always go to it first.  It's a case of you can't teach an old dog new tricks.  I really just need to sit down and familiarize myself with MDS.  But who has time to sit?!

CHRISTMAS JINGLE

These are my sisters kids.  And yes, she has TWO sets of twins!!!  Lots of people tease her and tell her that she should try for one more set, but she gets extremely sick when she is pregnant.  It's not pretty.  We are talking IV's, stay's in the hospital, pic lines, the whole enchilada.  So I think she's done.

This card measures 7.5 x 6.  All of the elements come from the Christmas Jingle digital kit.  She saw this layout somewhere online, so I CASEd it.  Super easy.

I hope you will join over the next two weeks at the Stampin' Celebration Inspiration Challenge.  We would love for you to celebrate the holidays with us!!

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Stamping!

Stampin' Celebration Inspiration Challenge #31

Hi Stamping Friends!  It's time for another fabulous inspiration challenge from Stampin' Celebration Inspiration Challenge!!  We hope you can play along this week!  Aren't these such pretty and unique colors for Christmas?  I think they would be so fun for a little girls Christmas tree.  My sister has a tree in her girls' room.  It's a small white tree and they have some hot pink boas wrapped around it and all pink ornaments and some crowns and other sparkly stuff.  Very fun!!

A GIFT FROM HEAVEN

I thought these soft colors would make the perfect "Baby's First Christmas" card for any sweet little girl.  Just so happens that it will be my nieces first Christmas, so I have someone special to give it to.  The card base is one of the In-Colors, Blushing Bride which is layered with Very Vanilla and Brushed Gold that was embossed with one of the SU! Texturz plates.  The adorable manger image comes from my nativity stamp collection.  It is a retired SU! set called A Gift From Heaven.  Isn't it adorable?!!  This set was gifted to me by Lisa Hunter, a fellow SU! lover.  Wasn't that so sweet of her?!  I stamped the image on Blushing Bride cardstock with Early Espresso ink.  Then I used my chalks to add some soft highlights of color.  I didn't want to color it all in.  I wanted it to look dreamy and serene.  The sentiment comes from the retired SU! set called All God's Children.  Of course the perfect finishing touch is lots of Basic Pearls.  LOVE those things!!!  And the Whisper White Satin ribbon just makes it even more special.

This wonderful layout is from the Mojo Monday blog.  This is MOJO168.  It also works for the Stampin' Royalty Challenge #49 which is Winter Holidays.

Please stop by the Stampin' Celebration Inspiration Challenge and see the fabulous creations the other Design Team members have created.  Then after you have been throughly inspired, come play along with us!!  We would love to see your beautiful stampiness.

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Stamping!

ColourQ #62

Seriously Arielle?!  Glorious Green?!  That is exactly what I thought when I saw the ColourQ color challenge for this week.  It's not that I don't love the fun colors and inspiration photo, but I never used Glorious Green when it was in Stampin' Up!'s color palette, and I sure wasn't sad to see it go.  But being the rule followers that I am, I dug through my scraps and found some not-so Glorious Green pieces.  Of course, these would be adorable colors for a 1st day of school card, or even a child's birthday card.  But I really love using my collection of retired SU! nativity stamps at this time of year, so I "forced" myself to make a Christmas card.

BABY JESUS IS BORN

I tried the paper piecing technique on this card and was happy with the results.  I have a new found respect for stampers that do a lot of paper piecing.  It's very time consuming and some of those pieces are very tiny!!  I first stamped my image on Very Vanilla cardstock, using black Staz-On ink.  Then I stamped and cut out Mary, Joseph, and Baby Jesus' "clothes".  Then I stamped and cut out their heads and hands.  I added a little Blush Blossom chalk to their faces to gives them more of a flesh color.  Then I stamped and cut out the sheep with Whisper White. 

The not-so Glorious Green and Real Red combo give it a nice Christmasy feel.  Since I used a retired stamp set, I thought it would be okay to use a retired DSP as well.  I have no idea how old this paper is, but I loved the polka dots.  I was not happy with the Very Vanilla ribbon, but the card was completely assembled and I did not have time to rip it apart.  I'm thinking white grosgrain ribbon would have looked better.  I'm also thinking I should have colored their sandals.  What do you think... Chocolate Chip or Early Espresso? 

This fabulous sketch comes from the Friday Mashup blog.  It's a newer challenge blog and I hope I can play again.  Check them out and play along!

I wanted to give a shout out to all my friends at Stampin' Addicts.  Last year at this time, I posted that I was looking for any retired SU! nativity sets.  I got an instant response.  One sweet lady even gifted me two sets all the way from Michigan!!  How fabulous is that?!  So thanks for being such wonderful online friends.  You guys are the best!!

Be sure to stop by the ColourQ blog and see what the other amazing design team members have done with these colors.  As always, they have ROCKED this challenge.

Thanks for stopping by!
Happy Stamping!

Stampin' Celebration Inspiration Challenge #30

Hi Stampers!!  We have lots of sparkle to share with you this week at the Stampin' Celebration Inspiration Challenge.  We hope you can play along with us.  This would be such a fun Christmas theme, but I also think it would be gorgeous as a New Year's party.  Everytime I see these beautiful challenge pictures, I'm inspired to entertain more often.  But with the crazy schedule of a busy household, I may have to wait a few more years. 

COME TO BETHLEHEM

I loved this stamp set as soon as I saw it when the new catalog came out back in July.  But I was good and didn't actually purchase it until November.  :)  This is the first card I made using it and I love how it turned out!!  The card base is Perfect Plum layered with Brushed Silver to give it some sparkle.  The Elegant Eggplant pieces are embossed with the Vintage Wallpaper IF.  My Elegant Eggplant stamp pad needs to be reinked, so I pulled out my Craft Spots and inked up my stamp with those.  It worked out perfectly, since then I could ink up my star in a different color.  Of course any star would not be complete with out a little shine from our Basic Rhinestones.  LOVE those things!!  And the finishing touch is some soft White Satin ribbon.

I found this perfect layout at Diva Coffee Break Designs.  A great SUO challenge blog that I visit when I can.  This is DCBD205.

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Stamping!