YNS is having a DT call

Your Next Stamp is having a DT call and since I had such a great time being a Guest Designer for them I decided to give it a shot. They asked us to post 3 of our favorite creations (which is always hard for me to do ~ an one of my absolute favorites I just posted recently, so I won't add that since it's on this page), so I chose a shaped card, a basket and an easel card I made and decided to pick both girl and boy creations:

(This is a re-posting as my original posted but disappeared)
Wish me luck!

Halloween is Hoppin' at Tiddly Inks

When I heard that Tiddly Inks was having a Halloween Blog Hop I knew I had to join in since I really love Christy's images.  The list of all hop participants can be found on the Tiddly Inks challenge blog.   

I chose Batty to use for my card. I colored the image with copics and tried a different way to color black hair.  The "flower" was made with some tulle I had left over from my wedding ~  way back when ~ and then I added a purple button and some organdy to the center.  I pulled out the sewing machine once again and stitched the two larger panels with a zig zag stitch.  I had this zipper trim for awhile and thought it would be a fun addition.

I am entering this card in the following challenges:
The Sweet Stop - sketch
Creative Inspirations - Use the oldest thing in your stash (well the tulle definitely is that ~ 13 years old, and I actually forgot all about it until I looked through my fabric basket)
One Stitch at a Time - "Digi Madness" - use a digi image
Paper Sundaes - Make your Own Flowers
Stamp and Create - "Stitching"  
Dare U 2 Digi Stamp - "Stitching"
Crazy 4 Challenges - "Buttons" 
Stamp Something - "Something Digital" 

Have a wonderful day!
 
Recipe ~ all items SU unless indicated
Stamps:  Batty - digi stamp (Tiddly Inks)  
Ink/Coloring:  Copics 
Paper:  Orchid Opulence, Basic Black; Gina K Pure Luxury White; DP - Michael's Halloween Stack and Pebbles Inc (Halloween Stripe).
Embellishments:   Tulle (unknown); Organdy Ribbon (JoAnn's); Zipper Trim (Wright's); Button (from stash); Office Tag (Avery); Black Rhinestones (Zva)
Tools: Sewing Machine; Martha Stewart Border Punch; Nesties; dimensionals

Audrey in Pink

Wow, two Club Anya/The Greeting Farm challenges in one week.....  This one is for the Farm Fresh Friday Challenge over at The Greeting Farm - use a digi image and a new technique.  The digi image I used is Wild Sprout Audrey and added a cute little digi dog from Victoria Case (Spot and Sammy image).  My new technique is decorating chipboard with Designer papers.  I just started doing this the other day because I looked at all the chipboard just laying around I figured I better start using it.  I stitched all the designer paper panels with my sewing machine using pink thread.   


The sketch I used for this card is from Sketch Saturday and replaced the sentiment with a flower.

I went back to T.J. Maxx and while they didn't have the punch I forgot to get they did have one they didn't have when I was there the day before, the embossed snowflake border punch, so I picked that one up instead. 

I would also like to enter this card in the following challenges:
For Fun - "Color with your favorite medium"
Gingersnap Creations - GC62 Spicy Supply - Markers 
AI Factory - "Flower Frenzy" - flower image or as embellishment
Charisma Cardz - "Pink""
Aud Sentiments - "No sentiments"
C.R.A.F.T. Challenge - "Babies or Children" 
Allsorts - "Summer Days" - images or colors 
Anyone for Anya - "Bedazzled" 
Basic Grey Challenge - "Gingham"
Crazy 4 Challenges - "Buttons"
Lots to Do- "Stitches"
One Stop Craft Challenge - "Pink, Blue, Green & a hint of red (in the DP)"
Stamp Scrap and Doodle - "Animals"

One Stitch at a Time - "Digi Madness" - use digi image
Cupcake Craft Challenge - "Cats & Dogs"
Stamp and Create - "Stitching"
Our Daily Bread - "Color It" - use an image you colored
Papertake - "Cutie Patootie"
My Time to Craft - "Check It Out" - used a checked pattern paper
Stamp Something - "Something Digital" 


  
Have a wonderful day!
Recipe ~ all items SU unless indicated
Stamps:  Wild Sprout Audrey - digi stamp (The Greeting Farm); Sammy and Spot - digi stamp (Victoria Case)  
Ink/Coloring:  Pink Pirouette; Copics 
Paper:  Regal Rose, Very Vanilla; Gina K Pure Luxury White; DP - My Mind's Eye "Quite Contrary"
Embellishments:  Pink Gingham Ribbon; Chipboard Flower (Basic Grey); Gemstones (Michael's); Button (from stash)
Tools: Sewing Machine; Nesties; lots of dimensionals

Virginia's Birthday Blog Hop

Happy Birthday Virginia!  

To celebrate, we are all wishing her a Happy Birthday with a Birthday Blog Hop.  You should have arrived her from the letter A.  If not, please head on over to the letter H to start the hop.   

For my tag I took some chipboard, covered it with Designer Paper and then cut the corners to make a tag.  The letter N is a from a monogram chipboard pack and is also covered in Designer Paper.  I sanded the edges to make it stand out a bit better on the background paper and added Dazzling Diamonds to the vines and leaves and then tied a ribbon around it.  I chose to use Princess Clarissa (and if you head on over to the store right now she is available for a special price of only $1.00) for my tag because every girl wants to be treated like a Princess on their birthday!   She was colored in with copics and I added Dazzling Diamonds to the ribbon on her hat and along the bottom of her dress.  I really love how this turned out and think I just may have to make something similar for my girls.


If Virginia came to visit me on her birthday I would take her to the following places because I think these are some of the "must sees" if you visit the Milwaukee area.  

Now what is one of the first things that comes to mind when you think of Milwaukee?  And no, it's not Cheese Heads.  Give up....well, it's beer (even though I don't like it at all), so the first place to visit is Miller Brewing Company for a tour:

Harley Davidson is also another big deal in Milwaukee, so perhaps Virginia's husband (provided she brought him along) would like to visit the Harley Davidson Museum.

The next place is rather unusual looking, but it is really cool....the Mitchell Park Domes.  Right now they are showcasing "Riverboat Tales" - A Celebration of Mark Twain.  (note to self....try to get the kids here before school starts).

And then a few minutes away from here is Potawotami Casino where we can get lucky on the slots, at the casino tables or even playing bingo.  We may even stay for the entertainment as well ~ depends on who is there when we visit.

And then I have to at least take you past the Milwaukee Art Museum ~ it's right on the lake and quite unique.  The "wings" open and close two times each day :

And finally, I have to take you to the Pabst Mansion (and yes it is the same Pabst as the old Pabst Brewing Company).  I love visiting here ~ this house is just gorgeous!  If you ever get the chance to see it over the Christmas season I highly recommend it ~ it is just decorated so beautifully!

I hope you enjoyed your virtual visit of Milwaukee.  

Since this is a Birthday Blog Hop, we can't leave you without a chance at a party prize!

   
So here are the rules:

1.  Start at the beginning of the blog hop with the letter H
2.  Comment on each Design Team Member's blog because they need a little love and you will also increase your chances at the party prize.
3.  Go to Paper Yumness and wish Virginia a Happy Birthday.

The deadline to win a digital image is Sunday, July 18th 8:00pm Pacific Time.

That's all you need to do!  The prize?????Not one, but two!  You might win either one by commenting on a blog.  Good luck and hope you have fun all along the way!

Your next stop is the letter E.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Recipe ~ all items SU unless indicated
Stamps:    Princess Clarissa (InStyle Stamps)
Ink/Coloring:  Copics
Paper:  Chipboard; Chipboard Letter (Colorbok); DP - DCWV (Pocket full of Posies)
Embellishments:  Ribbon (Offray); Flowers (Unknown and Prima); Dazzling Diamonds
Tools:  Dimensionals; Sanding file (Basic Grey)

KLSNS Challlenge #39

Today Risa was the host for the weekly challenge over at KLSNS and her challenge to us was to use Ribbon.  I almost always use ribbon, so this was an easy one, but I decided to use my ribbon a bit differently this time around. 

For my card I used this cute little boy image from Stampavie, Henri Playing with Turtles.  I colored it in with copics and used a different color than I normally do for the sky.  I really like how it turned out and think I may go with this color more often (but I think I better get a refill for it first).  Since this image is leaves a lot of empty space in the upper right side, I added my ribbon to that corner, found a button to match and added some ribbon to that as well.  When I started my card, I knew I wanted to use this patterned Basic Grey paper, but since it is rather busy, I didn't want it to overwhelm the image so I used this great sketch from Midnight Madness to balance it out. 

We would love to have you join in our challenge this week.  Stop on over at the KL Stamping N Scrappin blog for all the challenge details and to see the fantastic cards from the rest of the Design Team.

Enjoy your weekend :)

Recipe ~ all items SU unless indicated
Stamps:  Henri Playing with Turtles (Stampavie)
Ink/Coloring:  Memento Tuxedo Black; Copics
Paper:  Kraft; Gina K Luxury White; DP - Basic Grey 
Embellishments:  Taffeta Ribbon; Button (from stash)
Tools:  

Flowers for you

This morning I decided to play along with Tiddly Inks challenge - "Make It Match".  This is an easy one for me since I always try to match my colors to my papers, or paper piece with some of the same papers.  In this case I just used the colors from the Designer Papers for the vases and the flowers.  I had colored the centers of the flowers to match the way they are on the paper, but since they have little black dots in them, it is hard to see that.  This was a really quick card to put together, especially since I already had the image colored and had the paper picked out ~ all just sitting in a pile waiting to be put together.  Since this is such a bright vivid card, I didn't use any embellishments, but I did put the image on dimensionals

I also followed the sketch over at Taylored Expressions.  I really liked the sketch this week and will be using it again.

I am not getting much crafting done this week.  We have been really busy since Friday, spending the entire weekend at the fair ~ and we did get to see fireworks again ~ good thing they were on Friday night, because both Saturday and Sunday, we got rained on at the fair!  Then there were doctor appointments, play dates, swimming ~ just lots of running! Right now the girls are at their Ummy and Grandpa's house ~ they went over there last night and will be coming home sometime tomorrow ~ wow, it sure is different with only two kids at home.  I really miss the girls, but I know they are having a lot of fun.  So, it's just me and the boys today ~ off to make some cookies and then head out to go miniature golfing (although going into the pool sounds better to me ~ it is really hot and humid today).  Tomorrow my parents are taking all 4 kids to the movie, which would normally mean guilt free craft time for me, but unfortunately I'll be at the dentist while they are enjoying the movie.  Afterwards we will all be off to dinner and then swimming since we promised the kids we would go back to the pool (where they have their swim lessons) on Friday night.  
  
Have a wonderful day!

Recipe ~ all items SU unless indicated
Stamps:  Three for You - Tiddly Inks (digi image)  
Ink/Coloring:  Copics 
Paper:  Purely Pomegranate; Gina K Pure Luxury White; DP - Cutie Pie
Embellishments:  None - what a shocker!
Tools: Martha Stewart Border Punch 

InStyle InSpiration Wednesday

Same thing, different name.  InStyle InSpiration Wednesday is the new name for OTHBCGA (Over the Hump Blog Candy Giveaway) at InStyle Stamps.  I think it has a nice ring to it, and is much easier to remember ;).  This month our theme is Halloween and there are a lot of fantastic new images arriving in the store on Friday, July 16th.

I used Witchy Chloe (available on Friday, July 16th) for my card.  This time, I decided to make it look like Chloe was wearing a dress and colored it all in black and added stickles to it.  It's hard to see in the picture, but there are 3 black gemstones in three of the corners and there is a ribbon tied onto the first ribbon.  
  
We'd love to see your Halloween creations, so go visit the InStyle Stamps blog to link your project for the chance to win a fantastic prize. 
 
Please stop by and visit the rest of the Design Team to see their wonderful Halloween Creations.      

Remember by shopping through this link: InStyle Stamps you will receive an automatic 5% discount on any stamp purchase you make.

I am entering this card in the following challenge(s):
Friday Sketchers - Sketch



Have a wonderful day!

Recipe ~ all items SU unless indicated
Stamps:  Witchy Chole - InStyle Stamps (digi image); Sentiment - Amy R by CC Designs 
Ink/Coloring:  Memento Tuxedo Black; Copics
Paper:  Basic Black; Gina K Pure Luxury White; DP - Recollections (Halloween Stack)
Embellishments:  Stickles; Ribbon; Gemstones (Zva)
Tools: Oval and Scalloped Oval Punch; Martha Stewart Bat and Border punch 

Stampin N Scrappin With Jodi - Corner Bookmark

It's time for me to be in the KLSNS Stampin N' Scrappin spotlight again and this time I have a Corner Bookmark tutorial to share with you.  I read a lot....at least two books a week.  When I was reading the Twilight Saga a little while ago, I read all 4 books in a week (and I even stretched out the last book because I just didn't want it to end).  Most of the books I read are romance novels so I did my bookmark with a love theme.   

Can you guess what book this is?  

To start off, you will need the following supplies:

1 piece of Cardstock 4" x 4"

1 piece of Cardstock 2 3/4" x 2 3/4"

Scoring Board

Strong Adhesive

Extra cardstock/designer paper if you would like 

Stamps, Ink, Embellishments (in this instance flatter is better), Nesties or Punches

Take the 4" x 4" piece of cardstock and mark the center on three sides. 

After marking the 4" x 4" cardstock, place it on your scoring board, aligning two of the marked spots in one groove.  Because the lines on the Martha Stewart scoring board are so close together, I added a piece of paper to the side as a guide so I could ensure I had them in the same groove. 

Rotate your scored cardstock square on your scoring board again aligning the marked spots as shown below and then score.  

After scoring, your image should look like this:

Fold your paper on both of the score lines and you will end up with this:

Add strong adhesive tape to the back side as shown:

Now take your 2 3/4" x 2 3/4" cardstock square and cut it in half diagonally, making two even triangles.  

Take one of these triangles and attach it to the area you added the adhesive tape.

Now decorate the front as desired.  Because I am very fussy about my books, I didn't want anything on my bookmark that might leave an impression on the pages, so I kept mine very flat.

If you are giving a book to someone, this would be a great addition to it ~ you could even make it to match the book cover! 

Have a wonderful day!  

Recipe ~ All items SU unless indicated
Stamps:   Hey Cupid (CC Designs)
Ink/Coloring:  Memento Tuxedo Black; Baja Breeze; Copics
Paper:  Baja Breeze; Gina K Pure Luxury White; DP - Basic Grey (Lemonade)
Embellishments: Dazzling Diamonds
Tools:  Martha Stewart Border Punch