SNOWFLAKES IN THE SUMMER

Happy Friday all!! Oh, I am soooo glad that the weekend is here - it was only three days this week, but man, they were looonnnggg!!!!! So, quick post today - gotta get to work early, heeehee!! This is yet another (sorry, I know you are probably tired of them) Christmas card using another new set from the holiday mini called Serene Snowflakes - they are soooo pretty! I used one of the larger stamps, and stamped the image twice, popping the second one up on dimensionals and adding some clear rhinestone bling in the center!! And, I could not help myself, I did add some Dazzling Diamonds because I just love it(click on the image for a closer look) The paper is the yummy Merry Moments line, I am lovin' the colors in this!! The sentiment is from the set Teeny Tiny Wishes. A pretty simple card, but I love how it turned out!!!! Now, off to work - have a fabulous weekend all and thanks sooo much for stopping by, I appreciate YOU!!!!!
Card Recipe:
Paper - Old Olive, Very Vanilla, Ruby Red card stock, Merry Moments Designer Series Paper
Inks- Ruby Red, Chocolate Chip classic in
Stamps - Serene Snowflakes, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Accessories - Chocolate Chip ribbon, clear rhinestone brad, stampin' dimensionals, dazzling diamonds

OLD FASHIONED CHRISTMAS

Hi all!! WOW!! Yesterday was a doozy of a day - I am sooo glad it's over!! People tried to cram all the days off work we had into yesterday - I had more meetings than the President, LOL! I tell ya, my days fly by in no time at all, I mean hey, tomorrow is already Friday :-) So, I came home last night and did a little stamping therapy to relieve the stress of the day and decided that I needed another Christmas card....yep, another one!! As I am sweating in this unbearable triple digit heat, I am having a blast stamping away about the frosty season!! I decided I wanted to use one of my favorite sets called Winter Post as it reminds me of a good ole' fashioned Christmas - hence my post title for the day!! I just love these skaters, they make me smile!! And, I got to try out my fabulous new snowflake punch....and I am hooked - I just love it!!!! Okay, I know there are no green snowflakes but I claim artistic license, heehee!!! I stayed with a theme of Very Vanilla and Old Olive with a dash of Chocolate Chip just to bring the image out and I am lovin' the colors together! And, I added some of my new yummy Mistletoe taffeta ribbon available in the holiday mini....this ribbon is gorgeous, the pic does NOT do it justice! I also decided to cut into some of my new holiday designer series paper in the Merry Moments series....sometimes I just like to admire my papers and hesitate to cut them up....silly I know, but I am sure I am not alone in this *wink* BUT, I bit the bullet and decided to use it and I am soooo glad I did, I just love it!! So very pretty! To top off my card, I decided my cute little skaters needed some ice to skate around on so I created some out of Dazzling Diamonds - love it! I had a great time stamping away last night and so I have decided that no matter what, a little stamping is called for each evening just to remember the fun stuff!! Now, off to work - gotta pay for those stamps, LOL!!! Thanks for stopping by and seeing me, I love your comments, they make my day (or my lunch hour, heehee!) I will visit you all while eating my salad - have a fabulous day!!!!

Card Recipe:

Paper - Old Olive, Always Artichoke, Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip card stock, Merry Moments Designer Series Paper

Inks - Close To Cocoa classic ink, Stampin' Write Markers (Old Olive, Always Artichoke, Close to Cocoa)

Stamps - Winter Post, Teeny Tiny Wishes

Accessories- Modern Label Punch, Mistletoe Taffeta ribbon, Eyelet Border punch, Dazzling Diamonds, liquid glue, Snowflake Punch, Silver brad, Stampin' Dimensionals

A LITTLE MORE SANTA IN SEPTEMBER....

Hi all!!! Happy Wednesday!! Back to work for me, LOL!!! But, a pretty short week so I have nothing to complain about *wink* This is another card I did for my Santa in September class....I got to play with one of my fabulous new Sizzix embossing folders from the holiday mini called Petals a Plenty - doesn't it look like poinsettias? Well, I am going with it, lol!! The image is from one of my fave sets called A Cardinal Christmas, I love to watercolor this little guy which is what we did on this card as well! He is such an elegant looking bird! And, of course I had to use some more of that yummy ribbon called Sleigh Bells, also in the holiday mini - I tell ya, this little catty is chock full of yumminess, I just love it all!!! The sentiment I used is from a Hostess Level I set called Holiday Best and I think it is fabulous - the sentiments are all so pretty and go so well with so many of our sets!! This one was perfect because it has a little bird on it - love that! And, in keeping with the elegance of my cardinal, I added some Very Vanilla Hodgepodge Hardware and am really happy with how it looks!!! So, there you have it - another Santa in September card!!! I am having so much fun with all these Christmas cards and I am really making a dent in my own cards for the holidays! Interested in taking this class? Well, I am offering this again on Monday, September 14th from 5-8pm - contact me for details, I have a few spots left!! Well, I am off to make money to buy more stamps...that's what I keep telling Tony who just rolls his eyes and laughs at me as he points to the rows and rows I already have - heehee!! They make me HAPPY!!! Thanks so much for stopping by today - I am planning on spending my lunch hour browsing blogs and checking out what you all are up to as I am really enjoying keeping up with my blurfing!! TTFN!!!

Card Recipe:

Paper - Very Vanilla, Ruby Red card stock

Inks - Ruby Red, Old Olive, Close to Cocoa classic inks

Stamps - A Cardinal Christmas, Holiday Best

Accessories - Very Vanilla Hodgepodge Hardware, Sleigh Bells ribbon, Designer Label Punch, Petals a Plenty Sizzix embossing folder

HOW ABOUT SOME SANTA IN SEPTEMBER?

Good morning all!! Oh, yesterday was a fabulous day!! I got to stamp, made homemade lasagna, and laid around watching movies with my man!!! I wish I had more days like that, I tell ya!!! So, I am teaching three classes this month centered around a Santa in September theme to assist all of us in getting our Christmas cards done without waiting until the last minute!! So, I have been madly stamping away because I don't repeat cards - and I do five for each class!! Well, while I had my Christmas stamps out, I decided to make a card using Beate's sketch challenge this week - I don't often have time but love to play when I can!! I enjoyed this sketch and think I will be pulling it out again to use!!! I played with some of my new stamps from the holiday mini - I just love this catty, it's full of fabulous things!! This set is called Delightful Decorations and it is just fun!! What makes this set so awesome is that we also have a punch to go with it - yep, I punched out my image with my ornament punch! It's such a great punch and set because you can use this to make holiday tags too. For this card, I stamped my image in versamark, then added heat and stick powder and voila! instant shine! I then broke out my chalks and, using my Always Artichoke, lightly chalked the image. I love how it turned out- it's really shiny and pretty IRL!! I popped it up on dimensionals and added some twine to the top. The little stamps are from the same set and I love how much they add to a card!! And, the paper - ACK!! It's gorgeous and shimmery and it is also available in the holiday mini! It's called Christmas Cocoa and it's flocked and metallic and totally YUMMY!!! Can you tell I like it? *wink* So, I had a lot of fun making this card - I always love to play with new product!! Now, I am off to do some blog hopping and then shopping, because I have today off too, WHOOHOOO!!!! Thanks for stopping by, I love your comments and appreciate each and every one of them!

Card Recipe: (all supplies are SU!)

Paper - Kraft, Always Artichoke, Ruby Red, Whisper White card stock, Christmas Cocoal Specialty papers

Inks - Always Artichoke classic ink, Versamark, Always Artichoke chalk

Stamps - Delightful Decorations

Accessories - Photo Corners Punch, 1 inch and 3/4 inch circle Punches, Ornament punch, circle cutter, Ruby Red brads, Sleigh Bells Ribbon, stampin' dimensionals, twine

SHOEBOX SWAP AND SOME FUN HALLOWEEN CARDS

Hi all!!! Oh, I am enjoying this long weekend!!! I did not want to do anything really but rest and stamp, and that is what I have been doing....feels sooooo good!!!! And, I wanted to share the fun time I had with my girlfriends last weekend at the shoebox swap in Sacramento - soooo worth the drive!!! We met some fabulous ladies, made some gorgeous cards, ate great food, and laughed all day - what a great way to spend a Saturday!! And, guess what??? My swap card took first place, WHOOOHOOOO!!! Yep, that's right - there were prizes for the top three and me and Kerry(my gf) took first and third with ours!!!! I got a really fun scrappy toy and Kerry got a whole package of designer paper so we were both thrilled!! This picture is us with our winning cards and our goodie bags - look at those smiles! Since we had never been to a shoebox swap before we did not know what to expect and I tell ya, these ladies outdid themselves - there was wonderful food, all the tables were nicely decorated and each place had a small goodie bag for each of us - how nice, right? The swaps were wonderful and we just had fun!! Check out these two beautiful ladies - they made this event really fabulous!! The gorgeous lady on the left is Betty and the one on the right is Candice - they are not only both very talented, but amazingly sweet and fun to be around!! We are already looking forward to the next swap in October....oh yeah, we will sooooo be there!! TONS of fun - I really needed it!! And, what better way to spend a day than with two of my favorite ladies? Kerry and Wendy are wonderful friends that I met through my SU! business and I feel soooo blessed to have them in my lives - they are truly wonderful friends!! Here are the three of us together.....we really did have a great girls day and I can't wait to do it again!! And, since I was in the mood for Halloween, I decided to share a couple more of my cards that I made with my fun new spooky sets!!! It's funny, I don't really like Halloween itself, but I love to make Halloween cards, lol!! For both of these cards I used the set Beware Pirates which I can honestly say is one of my favorites because I think it can be used for lots of different things, not just Halloween. I have all kinds of plans for this set, heehee!! I also used the Cast-a-Spell Designer Series Paper Pack for both cards, I just love all the great colors and patterns in this set! I kept the layout pretty simple since the image and sentiment are pretty large by themselves, but I did add some silver brads to give the card a little pop. And, I could not resist - I added some paper piercing because I think it really adds a lot to a card! The second card uses the same stamp set and paper pack, but just different elements of each and the cards look completely different!! So much you can do with one stamp set and a pack of designer paper!! I actually used one of my sizzix texture plates on the card stock that runs down the left side of the card, and I also tore the edges to add to the look. After I ran it through my Big Shot, I sponged the whole piece of card stock with Elegant Eggplant classic ink to give it a shabby look which really looks fabulous IRL. And, I could not help myself, I added the Crushed Curry polka dot ribbon....although my dh told me that Halloween cards should not have ribbon(well, I like it!!!) Again, I added some black brads for some dimension and also used my Modern Label Punch for the sentiment since it fits soooo perfectly!! It is popped up on dimensionals and I went with the silver brads for some contrast. I had fun making these two halloween cards....and I have some more to share tomorrow!!! Thanks for stopping by and seeing me - I love all your comments, and really appreciate you taking the time to leave them!! Now, I am off to blog hop - oh, how I love to drink my coffee and check out your fabulous creations!!!