Mother's Day Cards

Today I have 2 Mother's Day cards to share with you. I made these for 2 of my neighbors who have been helping me tremendously since I had surgery. I couldn't get out to buy them flowers, so I made them each a card to let them know how much I appreciate their help. I used the same image by Rubber Stampede on both of them. On this card I also used chocolate chip, groovy guava and blush blossom. I used the linen backgrounder to stamp the chocolate chip with versamark, and embossed with white pearls ep for a glossy look. The top note die was stamped with the stitched backgrounder in guava and embossed with the CB flourishes ef. The image was sewn onto the labels 4 nestability after being stamped with Versafine Vintage Sepia ink. The ovals were cut with my Cricut and I added some ivory ribbon and MS mini pearls for accents. The sentiment is by Verve (Because of You) and the bow was made with the Bow-Easy.
For this card, I used the negative piece of guava from the first card for the frame. I lined it with a piece of polka dot dsp and layered the image on guava and chocolate chip, snipping the corners with scalloped scissors and adding some Kaiser blush pearls to the corners. The guava piece was embossed with the Swiss Dots ef. The sentiment is a $dollar clear stamp set, stamped in Versafine Vintage Sepia and lined with more Kaiser pearls. It's layered with blush blossom, guava, and chocolate chip. I also used the Bow-Easy to create the bow on this card. Since I had a little snippet of ribbon left over, I folded it in half and stuck it behind the sentiment panel rather than throw it away. The circular panel is popped up on foam tape and the image panel is popped up on dimensionals. I added a hint of color to the lips with a Tombow marker.
The SSNOTIME #138 is to make a Mother's Day card, so I'm entering these cards into that challenge.
Thanks for stopping by today and I wish each and every one of you Moms and Grandmothers out there a wonderful and special Mother's Day on Sunday!

Carol

Think spring!!

I made this card to meet 2 challenges. First is the KSS crew challenge #22 to create your own designer paper with stamps. Next up is the SSnotime #27 challenge to have some tabbed element on our project.
I began with white cardstock and stamped the large leaf image from the KSS Giant Sunflower, stamping some in 2 stages and some in 3, and also using a combination of 4 inks. The flower image was stamped on yellow cardstock, cut out and popped up on foam tape. The ribbon is So Saffron by SU! and the tab is from DCWV. I thought the white tab would look cute with a ladybug, so I stamped her there for a little interest.
I was in the mood to stamp some warm weather flowers because I'm ready for spring! Oh no, can there be yet another snowstorm in the works for us early next week again? We'll have to wait and see *sigh*
Thanks for these 2 great challenges ladies, and thanks to all of you for stopping by today :) Have a great weekend!!

Carol

stamps - KSS Giant Sunflower
paper - white cs, hunter green cs, yellow cs
inks - Memento new sprout, pear tart, bamboo leaves, cottage ivy, potters clay, dandelion, SU! so saffron, really rust, chocolate chip, Real Red, Colorbox marigold, lipstick red, versafine onyx black
accessories - adhesive tab by DCWV, so saffron ribbon

SSNOTIME#126

I made this card recently and it works for the SSNOTIME126 color challenge this week to use any shades of green and purple together.
I used a soft stone card stock base, adding some random scoring at the top for interest. I stamped the Fifth Avenue Floral rose image with Versamark on plum pudding cardstock and embossed it with white embossing powder. I cut it out and added some MS silver microbeads to some areas, and after that dried I added some crystal tinsel glitter to the remainder. It really does sparkle more IRL than my photo shows. The leaves were created by punching some New Leaf card stock with an oval punch, then running through the crimper. I added a piece of plum pudding satin ribbon and the sentiment by SU! was done in plum pudding ink.
We're still digging out from that wicked blizzard, but we never lost power so I'm grateful for that! A lot of folks didn't come through the storm quite so lucky!!
I wish you a happy weekend and it's going to be a great one! The winter Olympics begin in Vancouver, the first NASCAR cup race for 2010 begins in Daytona (Woot!), Sunday is Valentine's day, and Monday is President's day! Lots to see and do, and maybe catch a few good sales along the way :)
Thanks for stopping by and spending a little of your day with me :)

Carol

SSNOTIME #125

Sharon's stamp simply challenge #125 this week is to make something with baby in mind. I made this quick and easy card using a retired SU! set that included this heart image. I just stamped them in random fashion using my stamp-a-ma-jig to line them up. I pulled out all of my mini ink pads to do each heart a different color. I did some random piercing to connect them and matted it with pretty in pink that I punched using an EK mini scalloped border punch. The card stock and ribbon are from PTI, and the sentiment is from G Studio. Super quick and easy!
We're bracing for over a foot of snow here in PA, so stay warm wherever you are and have a great weekend! I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we don't lose power since the Shoot-out race kicks off the NASCAR season tomorrow! I'm so ready for some racing again!!

Carol

Vintage Woman in Repose

I played along with Sharon's Stamp Simply Challenge #123 this week to create something "very vintage". Whenever I think of vintage, this Rubber Stampede stamp always comes to mind. I pulled out a scrap of lacy dsp, along with some rose and brown papers from the DCWV old world stack and started creating. I stamped the image on Vintage Cream cardstock with Versafine Sepia ink, then embossed it with clear ep. I lightly chalked some color onto the face, hair and lips for a subtle look. 2 of the layers were stitched by machine. I used the MS doily and the EK Fleur de lis punches to make the borders. A slit punch was used to add the sentiment. I added some ivory satin ribbon and a few Blush Kaiser pearls and that's it! The sentiment is by Hero Arts.
I hope you're all enjoying your Friday and I hope it's fantastic for you!!

Carol

Stamp Simply #118

The Stamp Simply #118 challenge over at Sharon Johnson's blog today is to use snow on our creations, and do a C&S at the same time. I didn't make a card today because all my holiday cards are finally finished and sent, so I decided to use these mini loaves of cranberry nut bread that I baked yesterday. I found these adorable little mini loaf pans on sale last year at Michaels and they're perfect for little home-baked gifts! I made the tag from PTI soft stone cs because it perfectly matched the loaf pan color! I stamped the PTI sentiment in Versafine Onyx black ink and the tiny snowflake with Ballet blue. I added a felt snowflake and embellished both snowflakes with a Geo Sparkler. You can click the photo to see this detail much better. I wrapped some matching ribbon with snowflakes and this little gift is good to go!

Here's what it looks like with the tag slid underneath the ribbon.
For those who want this recipe, here it is. It's very basic and simple and makes 3 mini loaves like this, or one regular sized loaf.

Cranberry Nut Bread
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 3/4 cup white sugar
* 3/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1 cup chopped cranberries (I used Craisins)
* 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
* 1 egg
* 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
* 3/4 cup orange juice
* 1 tablespoon orange zest

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees . Grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan. (or 3 mini loaf pans)
2. Combine the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Add the cranberries and walnuts, and stir to coat with flour. Mix together the egg, oil, orange juice, and orange zest. Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture, and stir until just blended. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan(s).
3. Bake for 50 minutes in the preheated oven (25-30 minutes for mini loaf pans), or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack, and cool completely.

*I sprinkled a little cinnamon/sugar mix in the pans before adding batter and added a few craisins to the top before baking.

Have a wonderful Friday and keep that shovel handy if you live in PA! We're supposed to get "substantial" accumulations of snow tomorrow, so I'll be inside happily playing in my craft room I'm sure:) Maybe Sharon knew this was coming and that's why she used "snow" as her theme for today's challenge? Hmm..............

Carol

Stamp Simply #117

I haven't played along with the Stamp Simply challenges for much too long, but this week I knew I had to play along! The challenge was to alter a purchased card. For years a company has been sending my mother some card front samples with the hopes she'll order her cards through them. I've been saving them for some time because they're too pretty to throw out and I knew one day I'd find a use for them. This challenge was perfect to put at least one of those card fronts to good use! My granddaughter loves black labs and her beloved pet recently went to play on the rainbow bridge, so when I saw this image I knew it would melt her heart as it did mine. I cut the image out, leaving the puppy's muzzle out of the box. I went around the edges with my silver deco pen for interest. I used the modern label punch to cut the sentiment from the card front, and layered it with 2 separate punches of silver metallic cs. So quick, so easy, and so frugal! I think she's going to love this card as much as I do. There's just something about a puppies eyes that makes me cave in :)

Carol

Celebrate with Style, Stamp Simply #100

Here's a card I made that started out as a masculine birthday card, but I'm not so sure it turned out that way after it was done! LOL I realized I can use this now for Sharon Johnson's No Time to Stamp challenge #100, which is to make a birthday card. It's done with Kraft, Baja Breeze, Parisian Breeze, Paper Cotton, and Chocolate Chip. Punches used were the square scallop by SU!, the Fleur de Lis by EK, and the Fleur De Lis border by EK. The sentiment is by Hero Arts and I added some chocolate fiber and Kaiser chocolate pearls. Masculine or not? I'd love to hear your thoughts on this one :)
Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by!

Carol

Stamp Simply #88

Happy Friday Everyone!
Today I'm posting a 2-page scrapbook layout instead of a card. Our local scrapbook store is asking for donations of 8x8 layouts for a family who's lost their father in Iraq. A family member wants to make a scrapbook for each of the 3 children left behind and she'll be presenting it to the mother as a surprise. Right away I thought of a patriotic theme to honor their fallen father, so I pulled out some Scenic Route dsp and started creating. This was hard for me because I always design scrapbook pages around a photograph. Most folks design a layout and then add photos but I just can't be very creative working in that order. I left plenty of room for photos on both pages, and added the children's initials on the 3 tags. I added some tiny star-shaped stickles on both pages, and tried to work around an imaginary 4x6 photo. Hopefully these pages will be useful in one of the albums she intends to make. If anyone lives near the Pottstown/Boyertown area and would like to donate a 2-page layout, please check HERE for details. I'm more than happy to donate some time and effort to a family who's lost so much.
Have a wonderful holiday weekend and remember to honor all of our fallen heroes who have given the ultimate sacrifice so that we may enjoy our freedom.

Carol

No Time To Stamp Challenge #81

The assortment of stuff I made today. Click picture for a closer look.

Art impressions basket stamp, embossed in copper,
watercolored in (prism paper works great!), eggs are
paste embossing, with reinkers used as the colorant.
Snack bag is oval nestie, so are wings. Other nestie
forms the top, along with DP. Legs of "chick" are hand
drawn and cut, as are beak and tongue. Just drew crack
lines in with glitter pen.


These are just hinged plastic eggs, done with alcohol ink.
Turned out great, but I'm a mess!
Good Morning! Since today's challenge, at No Time To Stamp was to make the incredible egg, I decided to finish up stuff for our son and his wife. I still have 3 snack bags to make, (bunny, chick and lamb), but at least I got this done! They should enjoy getting an Easter basket, filled with goodies. I'll quickly describe each, under their photos, as my hands are full of embossing powder, adhesive, embossing paste and alcohol ink. Looks like I've been through a stamping marathon.

ssnotime80

Sharon's notimetostamp challenge today was to forget the rules! Use polka dots and stripes together. I put this sketch together as a way to use up some small scraps of that gorgeous Parisian Breeze dsp that I just LOVE. Sharon always says to stamp simply, and this went together very quickly. Thanks for another fun challenge Sharon - I love doing these:)

Carol

stamps - G Studio
paper - Parisian Breeze, Baja Breeze
inks - Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze
accessories - Kaiser Pearls, SU! ribbon

ssnotime79

It's Friday and that means it's time for another challenge from Sharon's notimetostamp.
Today's challenge was to use ribbon tabs. I don't know why I don't use this technique more often - it's a great way to use up those little pieces of ribbon that aren't large enough to tie around a card. Thanks for another great challenge Sharon, and thanks to Michelle for the beautiful stamped image I used on this card!
Have a wonderful first day of spring everyone!!

Carol

stamps - rubber soul, whiff of joy (willow kneeling)
ink - always artichoke
paper - PTI aqua mist, wc paper, basic grey "blush" dsp
accessories - aqua mist ribbons, circle punches, Kaiser pearls

No Time to Stamp Friday Challenge

I decided to do one of Carol's favorite Challenges, the Friday "no time to stamp". This was great, as I love to heat emboss and have been working with the SU set God's Beauty and wanted to make as many cards as possible, different variations, from this set. I used Old Olive and Baja Breeze card stocks for matting, other than that, it was all KC & Company paper. I added stickles onto the flowers and heat embossed the butterfly, then watercolored it in. Thanks for letting me play! Clicking on the card will give you more detail...hey Carol! I figured out how to make the card HUGE! :)

Heidi

ssnotime77

It's Friday and that means another great challenge from the No Time to Stamp? blog that you can find on the sidebar. Today's challenge is to heat things up by embossing something. I chose the CTMH stamp set called Treasure Life and went with the pink, gray, and white color combo. I tore the edges, popped up the embossed panel on foam squares, added ribbon, cording and a sentiment and the card was done. Thanks for another great challenge Sharon!

Carol