Thank You

Hello. Happy Hump Day.

The Paper Players posted a fun sketch by Jaydee on Sunday for this week's challenge. I made this card on Sunday evening and had quite a fun time with it.

I used a Taylored Expressions die to cut the tree image, then backed it with some old My Mind's Eye paper. The flowers were created by sponging over a stencil. (stencils seem all the rage right now, don't they?) The banners are from the same MME paper pack. I finished with a few sequins.

Supplies
Stamps: Gifts of Kindness, Stampin' Up
Paper: Choice snow white card stock by Taylored Expressions and My Mind's Eye patterned paper
Ink: Memento tuxedo black and SU Pool Party
Other: TE Windy Tree die, Die-namics Fishtail Flags STAX die, flower stencil, Fiskar's corner chomper, sequins, the Big Shot, dimensionals

Thanks for stoping by. Have a great end of your week,
Colleen

Happy Birthday

Hi again stamping friends,

Here's another card that I made last Sunday. This one will most likely be my Mom's birthday card as her birthday is next month. (she doesn't read my blog so I'm safe posting, LOL). I used the Freshly Made Sketch #124 and the sweet Tulip set from Taylored Expressions.

The tulips were colored with Copics then cut out and popped up using foam dimensionals. Even with all of the layers, a relatively simple card to make and I think she'll love it.

Supplies
Spring Tulips set by Taylored Expressions
Paper: SU Mellow Moss, Pretty In Pink and X-Press It card stocks and My Minds Eye patterned papers
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics and SU Garden Green
Other: Kaiser pink pearls, dimensionals

Thanks all,
Colleen

You Are Sublime!

Hello friends,

It's Sunday evening already. The weekend went too fast! Then again, don't they all? We had fun playing Skipbo with our neighbors both Friday and Saturday night. If you haven't played, it's a very fun card game.

I did get some stamping time in as well this weekend. I managed to get cards completed for a few of my weekly favorite challenges. This post has the card that I made for the  CAS(E) this Sketch challenge. I think my card turned out rather cute too.

The smiling limes were stamped with SU craft black ink and embossed with clear EP onto SU water color paper. I used my aqua painter to water color the images. The greetings were stamped in the same manner and embossed. After watercoloring, I used some Glossy Effects over the lime rinds and segments. All in all, pretty simple to make with lot of WOW. I like the look that the green enamel dots add to the card.

Supplies
Stamps: Fruity Friends set by Taylored Expressions
Paper: SU Wild Wasabi card stock, SU water color paper, SU vellum,  and Doodlebug patterned papers
Ink: SU Craft Black, SU Wild Wasabi and So Saffron classic pads
Other:  Die-namics Fishtail Flags STAX die, Fiskars corner rounder punch, green enamel dots, dimensionals, SU clear EP, heating tool, aqua painter

I hope you have a fabulous week. Thanks for looking in,
Colleen

Thank You

Hello,

I don't know about you, but I'm super happy that tomorrow is Friday. I'm really ready for a weekend!

I have a card today that I made for Stacey's Cozy Quilt Curtain Call Challenge. I've been wanting to use this tree patterned paper from KaiserKraft. They remind me of the quilting technique called appliqué. So, when I saw the new CC challenge when Stacey posted it, I thought this paper would be perfect to use.

The layout is from the MFTWSC163. For the center element, I cut 1/2" pieces of coordinating papers from the pad and glued them down on diagonal to a piece of white cs, then used the MFT die to cut it out. I also cut the die from Rose Red card stock to use as a shadow to help the patterned paper one stand out better. To keep with the quilt/fabric theme, I used felt and a button for the flower element, as well as the tape measure ribbon. I hope you enjoy!

                                

                                  

Supplies
Stamps: Big Greetings set by My Favorite Things
Paper: SU Very Vanilla and Rose Red card stock and Suga Pop by KaiserKraft pattern papers
Ink: SU Rose Red
Other: Die-namics label die, Fishtail Flag die, and flower die, MFT pink felts, SU button, baker's twine, TE tape measure ribbon, Kaiser pink rhinestones, the Big Shot, mini glue dots and dimensionals

Thanks all and TGIF!
Colleen

Home For the Holidays

Happy Monday night,

I should be in bed, but I'm stamping while watching ice dancing instead. It will be an early morning. Last week, I squeaked in my Merry Monday card at the very last minute. This week, I did the opposite and got my Merry Monday #96 card done on Monday. This week's challenge is to use holly on our card.

I've used this week's Retro Sketches #102 for my layout.

I pulled out some old SU eyelets again for the top of the label die to thread the baker's twine through to make a bow. I colored the holly wreath with Copics and then added Xmas red Stickles on the berries to go with the SU red glimmer paper. The holly leaves in the bottom corner have black Stickles outlining the center, but it didn't show up in the photo. It looks pretty IRL.

Here's the inside. I used my all time favorite Christmas sentiment stamp. I bought this stamp years ago at Stamp Francisco in the city. The date on the label is 1982! Anyhoo, I love this saying:

I hope you enjoy the rest of your week. Thanks so much for stopping by my blog!

Colleen

Supplies
Stamps: Wreaths Of Joy set by Taylored Expressions and Christmas sentiment stamp by Stamp Francisco
Paper: SU black and whisper white card stock, X-Press It Blending card stock, SU red glimmer paper, and Lawn Fawn patterned papers
Ink: Memento tuxedo black and Copics
Other: Die-namics dies (label and holly leaf), red and black Stickles, red pearls, baker's twine, SU eyelets, the Big Shot, dimensionals and SU mini glue dots

Wishing You A Happy Birthday

Hello again,

Time for another post today. Two of my favorite challenges start on Sunday. Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch and The Paper Player's challenge where LeAnne has challenged us to use stars on a CAS card. I decided to combine the two and here's what I came up with.

I went a little "star crazy", but I think this will make a cute little boy's birthday card.

Supplies

Stamps: Happiest Birthday Wishes set by Stampin' Up

Paper: SU Whisper White, Brilliant Blue and Real Red card stock and SU BigTop DSP

Ink: SU Real Red

Other: Die-namics Star STAX die, Die-namics Fishtail Flags STAX die, Taylored Expressions Star Impressions Plate, SU Star eyelets, the Big Shot and dimensionals

Enjoy the rest of your day and thanks again,

Colleen

Happy Holidays

Hi all,

It's a foggy Sunday morning here in north San Diego. (Our version of winter this year) I know that there are many of you on the east coast getting yet more snow and ice. I pray that everyone is okay and stays warm.

I'm squeaking in with my Merry Monday challenge card this morning. I think the "linky" closes in another hour, LOL. No stamping time for me at all this past week until yesterday afternoon. This week's challenge is to use an animal on our card. I reached for one of my favorite Taylored Expressions sets called Woodland Winter. The layout comes from last week's Sweet Sunday Sketch.

The fox was stamped first, then masked. The deer was stamped second, then masked. Finally the trees were stamped. I colored them all with Copics and cut them out with circle Nesties. Before removing the die, I lightly sponged the background with Marina Mist ink.

Here's the inside:

Supplies
Stamps: Woodland Winter set by Taylored Expressions
Paper: SU Marina Mist, Old Olive card stock, white X-Press It Blending card stock, SU DSP
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, SU Marina Mist and Old Olive classic ink
Other: classic circle and scalloped circle Nesties, Die-namics flag die, TE label die (inside), TE holly leaves die, red pearls, green rhinestones, Crystal Effects, white gel pen, blue Stickles, the Big Shot and dimensionals

Have a great Sunday and week. Thanks for looking in,
Colleen

I {Heart} This

Hello,

How's the start of your week going? Mine has been super busy, work wise, and that's okay.

I made this card several days ago for Jen's February SFYTT on her Reverse Confetti blog. I used a couple Reverse Confetti sets, including my new favorite RC set called Freida Fox.

Instead of coloring Freida Fox, I stamped her in SU Melon Mambo ink and framed her with a frame cut from Nesties. I love Stacey Schafer's card here, and CASE'd it. After adhering the frame with dimensionals, I added some heart brads. The sentiment is from another RC set called Arrows N Elements. I did color the flower in Freida's hand and added a thick layer of red Stickles on the heart.

In addition to the SFYTT challenge, I'm also entering this card into Linda's Catered Crop Heart Of the Matter Recipe Swap.

Supplies
Stamps: Freida Fox set and Arrows N' Elements set by Reverse Confetti
Paper: SU Soft Sky, Melon Mambo and Whisper White card stocks and Cupcake Love by Little Yellow Bicycle patterned papers
Ink: SU Melon Mambo and Soft Sky ink, Copics
Other: Square Nesties, Doodlebug brads, Stickles, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Happy Hump Day tomorrow. Thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

Cocoa Melts the Winter Blues

Hi-ya all,

I have a card today that I made using this week's Sweet Sunday Sketch and inspiration from The Curtain Call challenge. The Curtain Call inspiration is "Cuppa Cocoa" and I have a couple stamps sets that would work well. I decided to use one of my WTG sets from My Favorite Things.

 
I used the brown and blue colors, and the cuppa for my inspiration. I paper pieced the cup with the patterned paper and colored the cocoa and marshmallows with Copics. A little layering, per the sketch, and some sewing finished up the look.

Here's the inside:

Have a wonderful Friday and thanks for looking in,
Colleen

Supplies
Stamps:WTG Gets Cozy With  Cocoa by My Favorite Things
Paper: TE blue and buttercream, SU Early Expresso card stocks and Simple Stories Harvest Lane patterned papers
Ink: SU Early Expresso marker, Memento tuxedo black, Copics
Other: SU heart dies, Die-namics Fishtail Banner STAX dies, SU punch (inside) sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Fred Bear Goes Camping and Kung Fu Fred

Hi and Happy Hump Day!

I had a rather long work day today and I'm really glad to be home. While sitting and watching the news, I thought I would blog a couple of cards that I made on Sunday. I was going through my MFT stamps looking for some inspiration and came across my collection of Fred Bear stamp sets. Ah, inspiration found!

For the first card I used the Retro Sketches #100 sketch. (congrats to the Retro Sketch team for their 100th sketch!)

My image is colored with Copics. I cut it out with a square Nestie, then fussy cut most of the image so I could use the constellation paper for the background. I love the way it turned out too! Here's the inside:

For my second Fred Bear card, I used last week's Mojo Monday sketch. Again, the image is colored with Copics. I love how intense Fred looks! It makes me smile every time I look at it.

The inside I kept simple:

Supplies
Card 1
Stamps: Fred Bear Goes Camping set by My Favorite Things
Paper: SU Chocolate Chip and Certainly Celery card stock, X-Press It Blending card stock and We R Memory Keepers "Happy Camper" patterned paper
Ink: Memento tuxedo black and Copics, SU Chocolate Chip
Other: Square Nesties, TE wooden buttons, baker's twine, SU candy dots, Stickles, the Big Shot, hot glue and gun for the buttons, SU label punch, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Card 2
Stamps: Kung Fu Fred set by My Favorite Things
Paper: SU Taken with Teal and X-Press It Blending card stocks and Simple Stories "Vintage Bliss" pattern papers
Ink: Memento tuxedo black and Copics, SU Teal
Other: circle and scalloped circle Nesties, Die-namics notched border die, teal ribbon, Fiskers corner rounder punch, flower rhinestones, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Here's looking at only two more days of work until the weekend! Thanks for coming by,
Colleen

A Very Merry Christmas to You. . . . .

Hello,

After dinner last night, I looked to see what this week's Merry Monday challenge is. This week we are to use a sock on our card. Pretty simple as I have many stamps with socks as well as patterned papers. I decided to use both along with Jen's Deconstructed Sketch # 136. While I have a lot of layers here, the card went together pretty quickly.

Supplies
Stamps: Gift Givers and More Merry Messages sets by Stampin' Up
Paper: SU turquoise card stock, Taylored Expressions choice snow white card stock, Jilly Bean Soup patterned papers
Ink: Memento tuxedo  black, Copics, SU Real Red
Other: Sizzix Seeing Spots EF, Wonky Rectangle Nestie, SU flag die,  SU Sock punch, red pearls, mini clothes pin, the Big Shot and dimensionals

Have a great evening and thanks,
Colleen

Serenity Now

Hi all and happy Sunday evening.

I'm typing this post while watching the Super Bowl. It's a bit one sided so far! I'm looking forward to the half-time show with Bruno Mars.

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I had a great day of stamping and made several cards. This is one of them and it uses the  MFTWSC161 sketch. I also planned my papers around the CMCC#5 challenge. This week we are to use five colors of our choice. My colors are light blue, bright blue, coral, yellow and green. (although technically, blue is the color and light and bright are shades)

I colored my PI with Copics and paper pieced her tank top then cut her out with the Wonky Rectangle Nestie. The other elements are Die-namics dies.

The inside:

Supplies
Stamps: Pure Innocence Serenity set by My Favorite Things
Paper: SU Bording Blue, Daffodil Delight card stock, X-Press It blending card stock, Lawn Fawn patterned papers
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, SU Bordering Blue and Old Olive
Other: Wonky Rectangle Nesties, classic circle and scalloped circle Nesties, Die-namics Fishtail Flags STAX die, Die-namics Hibiscus die, Kaiser rhinestones, sewing machine, the Big Shot and diemnsionals

Have a wonderful week all and thanks,
Colleen

Celebrate

Hello,

How was your Saturday? I started it off with a 6 mile walk/run then treated myself to stamping for the rest of the day. What fun!

I'm squeaking in with my card for this week's Merry Monday 93 challenge. This challenge is to use an ornament on your card. I pulled out some retired SU DSP and it's matching stamp set, also retired, and paired it with the current CAS(E) this Sketch #62. Here's what I came up with.

                         

After cutting the red card stock to fit diagonally across the card, I used one of my SU wheels inked with white craft ink to add the snowflakes. The "celebrate" word is a Die-namics die.

Supplies
Stamps: Delightful Ornaments set by Stampin' Up and Snowflake wheel by Stampin' Up
Paper: SU Real Red and Crumb Cake card stock and SU DSP
Ink: SU Real Red and Crumb Cake classic ink and SU White craft ink
Other: Die-namics die, SU ornament punch, SU border punch, SU silver twine, SU clear rhinestones, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great Sunday and thanks for looking in,
Colleen