Happy Holidays

Hi stamping friends,

I've been working on some more Holiday cards this weekend. I still have many more to go before I have enough made. Luckily, Kim has a great sketch for us at Freshly Made Sketches this week. I took advantage of it to make this holiday card. I love the little animals in this Winter Woodland Wonders set by Avery Elle!

This is a simple card and was a quick one to make. I love the color combination in this new SU DSP, and Kim's sketch is perfect to showcase it. I stamped the bear on X-Press It Blending card stock and colored the image with Copics, then cut it out with the set dies. It's popped up with dimensionals on a square cut from DSP with a small Die-namics Stitched Square die. The square is layered on Old Olive card stock cut with a Die-namics Large Fishtail Flag die. The small white, star-shaped snowflake is from a package that I found at Paper Source last year. I added a small clear rhinestone to the center for some sparkle. The sentiment is from the Avery Elle set and it's stamped with Old Olive ink.

For the inside, I used another of the Large Fishtail Flag dies and a sentiment from a new Christmas SU set.

I was gone all week last week working in Los Angeles and I'll be traveling again this week, but only Tuesday through Thursday. I'm headed to Colorado this week and hoping it's not too cold yet.

Thanks for stoping in,
Colleen

Supplies
Stamps: Avery Elle set Winter Woodland Wonders and SU Snowflake Sentiments
Paper: SU Whisper White, Old Olive, and X-Press It Blending card stock and SU Merry Little Christmas DSP
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, SU Old Olive
Other: Avery Elle Winter Woodland Wonders dies, Die-namics Large Fishtail Flag dies, Remarks Dimensional Snowflake stickers, clear rhinestone, the Big Shot, dimensionals

Peace On Earth

Hello,

I hope everyone had a great weekend. I made Christmas cards both days, and got about 20 made. I usually make them all year long, but this year I didn't and so I really needed to get cracking, since November will be here next week. How the time flies by!

I got this SU stamp set called Carols of Christmas when it was released for demos to order. I have not used it since it arrived! I'm sure it was feeling very neglected. Linda has a great sketch this week for the Freshly Made Sketches challenge and so I pulled it out and went to work. I kind of used a little "creative license" with the sketch by using the trees for the smaller circle element.

I started with some new holiday SU DSP called Merry Little Christmas and cut it to cover the whole card front. I love the olive green shade with black. It's very versatile. I heat embossed the sentiment with silver EP and cut it out with a Die-namics circle die. It's layered with a Spellbinder circle die cut from black card stock. The SU trees are cut from black card stock, and using a VersaMark pad, I inked them all over, then sprinkled glitter EP over them and heat set. I did this step twice to give it a nice thick coat. They are layered over the larger circle per the sketch. I used some new SU silver twine along the bottom of the horizontal element, and finished the embellishing with three red rhinestones at the top of the sentiment circle.

The inside uses a sentiment from another new SU holiday set called Hearts Come Home.

I really liked how this card turned out and so I made 9 more.

We are doing a Sunday neighbor dinner tonight, then I have to come home and pack for a work trip to Los Angeles. I'll be gone Monday through Friday this week.

I hope your week is a good one! Thanks for stopping in,
Colleen

Supplies
Stamps: SU Carols of Christmas and Hearts Come Home sets
Paper: SU Basic Black, Old Olive and Whisper White card stock, SU Merry Little Christmas DSP
Ink: Memento tuxedo black and VersaMark
Other: Die-Namics and Spellbinders circle dies, SU Carols of Christmas dies, silver and glitter EP, heat tool, SU silver twine, red rhinestones, the Big Shot, dimensionals and mini-dimensionals

You Say Witch. . .

Hi again,

Here's my post with the second card that I made using this week's Sketch Saturday challenge.

The stamp set is from Simon Says Stamp and this sentiment gave me a chuckle when I saw it, so I had to order the set.

The patterned papers are Echo Park-Halloween. I cut some of the strips so the chevron points are centered, then placed them so that the middle strip is going the opposite direction than the outside strips. I used a TE grass border upside-down for another spooky element. The small bats and the moon are brads that I found in my stash. The hat is colored with Copics.

Here's the inside using another hat and sentiment in the SSS set.

Thanks again and have a wonderful Friday,
Colleen

Supplies
Stamps: If the Hat Fits set by Simon Says Stamp
Paper: SU Blackberry Bliss, Old Olive and X-Press It Blending card stock, Echo Park-Halloween patterned papers
Ink: SU Blackberry Bliss, Hello Honey, Memento tuxedo black, Copics
Other: SSS If the Hat Fits dies, black rhinestones, halloween brads, the Big Shot, Dimensionals

I Love You More Than Candy Corn

Hello peeps,

It's Thursday evening already! This week seemed to fly by, but I'm good with that since it means the weekend is here shortly.  I've had a couple very long days that started very early, so I'm ready.

I'm playing in the Sketch Saturday Challenge today. I don't know that I've played along with this one before. Their sketch this week caught my eye as it looked like a great one to use some fun patterned papers.

I ended up making three cards using this sketch I liked it so much. Another just like this one, but with some SU DSP with candy corn, and one with a witch's hat that I'll put in another blog post.

I used Doodlebug patterned papers and Lawn Fawn stamps and dies, following the sketch just like it's drawn.

Here is the inside:

Thanks for looking in,
Colleen

Supplies
Stamps: Lawn Fawn Candy Corn add-on (to How You Bean? set)
Paper: SU Basic Black and X-Press It Blending card stock, tan velum, Doodlebug Halloween 6 x 6 paper pad
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU Pumpkin Pie, Copics, Hero Arts craft white
Other: Doodlebug enamel candy corn embellishment, Hero Arts white EP, heat tool, LF co-ordinating dies, the Big Shot, twine, dimensionals

When Witches Go Riding. . .

Hello,

Well, two cancelled appointments today and I'm home way earlier than I expected to be. Unfortunately, it means that tomorrow will be a long day making up the meetings in addition to my already scheduled work.

I've been making Halloween cards like crazy the last two evenings. For today's post, I'm sharing one that I made using this week's Paper Players challenge. Laurie is the hostess with a CAS Spooky Halloween theme.

I always have trouble with determining if something is really CAS. I'm hoping this qualifies.

I started off with a Whisper White panel and using a cloud stencil, sponged Distress Inks in Stormy Sky and Pumice Stone to create the "Stormy" sky. The witch's dress and sentiment are from an older Taylored Expressions set called Toil and Trouble. I love the spooky sentiment! I first stamped the sentiment on the sponged panel and then over the die cut moon (circle), matching up the letters for placement. The dress is stamped on X-Press It Blending card stock and colored with Copics. I fussy cut it out and popped it up as if floating in the clouds. The bats are from a package of Halloween sequins.

Here's the witch's riding companion on the inside.

Thanks for stopping by. Happy hump-day tomorrow,
Colleen

Supplies
Stamps: Toil and Trouble set by Taylored Expressions
Paper: SU Concord Crush, Whisper White, So Saffron and X-Press It Blending card stocks
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, Distress Stormy Sky and Pumice Stone, SU Concord Crush
Other: Cloud stencil, sponge, Die-namics Stitched Circle die, the Big Shot, dimensionals, bat sequins

Warmer With You

Hello and Happy Monday afternoon to all,

I hope that the week has started off as a good one for you. I had a relatively easy Monday, but beginning tomorrow, work will ramp up for the rest of the week. I'm happy to say that by Thursday, I'll have one big project completed for a customer. That is always a great feeling!

Today's card, which I made last week, is for the Sunday Stamps Challenge. Bold and Beautiful is the theme this time with vibrant colors of blues and reds. I had just received some new products that I ordered from Simon Says Stamp and of course, I had to use some of it right away.

I stamped the Christmas Sweater background stamp using Cherry Cobbler ink onto the Real Red card base. I used my larger Misti stamping too so that I could ink it up several times to get good coverage. I saw on one of Jennifer McGuire's videos that you can use rubber stamps in the Misti by removing the foam pad. It works really well and I've used this technique many times since.

The snow family are from a Gina K set called Warmer With You. They are stamped on X-Press It Blending card stock, colored with Copics and cut out with the co-ordinating dies. I used a very liberal amount of Wink of Stella over them for sparkle. I stamped the sentiment onto a really old SU color called Bordering Blue, which is one of my fave SU shades, and used an Avery Elle heart die to cut it out. The enamel dots are SU. I used Nuvo white drops to add more dimension to the hats and ear muffs.

Here is the inside of the card:

This was a totally fun card to make!

Thanks for looking in,
Colleen

Supplies
Stamps: SSS Christmas Sweater background stamp, Warmer WithYou set by Gina K
Paper: SU Real Red, Bordering Blue, Night of Navy and X-Press It Blending card stock
Ink: SU Cherry Cobbler, Real Red, Pacific Point, Memento tuxedo black, Copics, Hero Arts white craft
Other: Gina K Warmer With You dies, Die-namics Stitched Oval die, Avery Elle Heart die, Lawn Fawn House Border die, Wink of Stella, SU enamel dots, Nuvo drops, Hero Arts white EP, heat tool, Misti Stamping Tool, the Big Shot, dimensionals

Ghouls Night Out

Hello,

I hope everyone had a fun, relaxing weekend. It was nice weather here in San Diego and I did some walking, and lots of stamping. I've been trying to get Halloween cards made in time to send.

Today's post is a Halloween card that I made using this week's Freshly Made Sketch #308. The sketch looks like a picture that's been snapped and that's the direction I went with it.

I pulled out this fun Lawn Fawn Halloween set called Booyah with it's coordinating dies and some old SU Halloween DSP called Motley Monsters. The images are stamped on X-Press It Blending card stock and colored with Copics. The sentiment is stamped in Tangerine Tango, and I added the #selfie/#friends stamps from the LF Elphie Selfie set. (It seemed fitting.)

Here's the inside:

Thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

Supplies
Stamps: Lawn Fawn Booyah and Elphie Selfie sets
Paper: SU Basic Black, Whisper White and X-Press It Blending card stocks, SU Motley Monsters DSP
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, Tangerine Tango
 Other: Die-namics square, Wonky Stitched Rectangle, Fishtail Flags dies, LF Booyah dies, glitter Boo embellishment, Wink of Stella, the Big Shot, dimensionals

Hello

Hi everyone,

I have another card that I made Sunday afternoon to share with you. This one uses Joanne's color theme, this week's challenge at The Paper Players.

I've noticed that I've certainly posted lots of cards with yellows and oranges lately. This one continues that trend as Joanne's colors are Crushed Curry, Peekaboo Peach and Early Expresso.

I stamped the image onto Strathmore water color paper with VersaMark ink and heat embossed it with dark brown EP. Using the SU inks and a water brush, I colored it with the challenge colors. The stamp is from Lil' Inkers called Wreath of Roses.

The sentiment is a Lil' Inkers die that matches the stamp set. It's cut from Early Expresso card stock. The water color paper is embossed with a Lil' Inkers Wonky stitched die. It's layered on a panel of Early Expresso and popped up with foam tape on the Crushed Curry card base.

For the inside, I've use an SU set called Lots of Love.

Thanks for coming by today,
Colleen

Supplies
Stamps: Wreath of Roses set by Lil' Inkers and Lots of Love set by Stampin' Up
Paper: Strathmore water color paper, SU Early Expresso and Crushed Curry
Ink: SU Peekaboo Peach, Early Expresso, Crushed Curry, VersaMark
Other: Lil' Inker Hello and Wonky Stitched Square dies, dark brown EP, heat tool, water brush, the Big Shot, enamel dots, foam tape

It's Your Day-Celebrate

Hi all,

I made a couple of cards yesterday afternoon, but didn't get around to taking pictures until this afternoon. My brother's birthday is coming up at the end of the month and one of my goals was to get a card made for him.

The other day while I was at Paper Source to get some wrapping paper, I saw some cute fox stickers and had to buy them. Yesterday, I managed to actually use one. They are made with multi-layered papers and have accompanying tiny enamel acorns. Using the current MFT Wednesday Sketch, here's my brother's birthday card.

All of the dies are Die-namics and the sentiments and leaves are from various MFT sets. The cute patterned papers are from an older Doodlebug Fall 6 x 6" pad.

Here is the inside. More stamps from MFT.

I was also going to link up to the As You See It blog challenge which is shades of Orange this week, but when I went back to the blog to read the challenge, it's also a 10 minute card. This one didn't qualify. Next time.

Thanks for stopping in. Have a great week.
Colleen

Supplies
Stamps: Big Birthday Greetings (front sentiments), Harvest Mouse (leaves on front), Fall Friends (inside) sets all by My Favorite Things
Paper: X-Press It Blending card stock and Doodlebug patterned papers
Ink: SU Pumpkin Pie and Early Expresso, Memento tuxedo black, Copics
Other: Little B Stickers (Paper Source), Die-namics Stitched Rounded Corner Rectangle, Inside and Out Stitched Circle, and an older single Banner dies, Harvest Mouse dies, enamel dots, dimensionals

With Sympathy

Hello stampers,

Sadly, our neighbor Christina's father passed away this morning, so I turned the card that I planned to make today into a sympathy card for her.

Using the sketch from CAS(E) this Sketch!, and the inspiration photo from Inspired By All the Little Things, here's what I came up with.

I was inspired to use the fall colors in the flowers and the pumpkins for a fall-ish themed card. The pumpkin washi tape is from Paper Source. The Asters are from Altenew. Using the Misti Stamping Tool I stamped the two flowers on X-Press It Blending card stock using some Hero Arts inks. I cut them out with the corresponding dies. The white panel is a piece of wood grained paper from a pack that I got years ago. I placed a strip of the washi tape down on it and then cut it with the Die-namics Wonky Stitched Rectangle die. I layered the flowers on one end and cut off the overhanging pieces, then glued it down to a Really Rust card base. The sentiment is stamped with Memento tuxedo black and is from Simon Says Stamp.

Here is the inside:

The sentiment is a really old wooden stamp that doesn't have a label on it. Not sure what company it's from.

It's a beautiful Saturday here in Southern California. Since I live close to the coast, it's not hot at all, but mid 70s and not a cloud. I went walking early and got in a 4.5 mile walk, so no guilt sitting and stamping this afternoon, LOL.

Thanks for looking in,
Colleen

Supplies
Stamps: Build a Flower - Asters by Altenew and With Sympathy stamp by SSS
Paper: SU Really Rust and X-Press It Blending, wood grain card stock
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Hero Arts
Other: Die-namics Wonky Stitched Rectangle die, Altenew Asters dies, Paper Source pumpkin washi tape, gold enamel dots, the Big Shot, dimensionals

Have a Wild, Wild Birthday

Hi fellow stampers,

Yay! It's Thursday already. One more day until the weekend. I'm always ready for one, LOL.

We are attending a little birthday party tonight for a seven year old. I'm not so sure he'll love his presents, books, but he'll like his card. (I'm pretty sure.) These Lawn Fawn animals from the Wild For You set are so, so fun!

I started by stamping them all on X-Press It Blending card stock. I colored them with Copics and used the corresponding LF dies to cut them out. The background is made by cutting another piece of X-Press It card stock out with the Avery Elle Diagonal Stripes die and using some Distress Oxide inks and the SU Gorgeous Grunge set I stamped the splotches. It's layered onto a Tempting Turquoise card base.

Our friends at Stamp, Ink, Paper blog have an "anything goes" challenge this week. Use some of your favorite stamps. Not sure how I'd ever pick favorite stamps from my collection, but these are super cute.

On the inside I've used another LF set called Elphie Selfie.

I need to go wrap those books up. Thanks for stopping in and have a great Friday.
Colleen

Supplies
Stamps: Lawn Fawn sets Wild For You and Elphie Selfie. SU set Gorgeous Grunge
Paper: SU Tempting Turquoise and X-Press It Blending card stock
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, Distress Oxide
Other: LF Wild For You dies, Avery Elle Diagonal Stripes die, the Big Shot, dimensionals

Happy Birthday

Hello,

Today I have my card for this week's Paper Players Challenge. When I saw Sandy's theme this week, I had to laugh because on Saturday afternoon I posted a card that would have been perfect for Sandy's Autumn Floral theme this week. But, not to worry. I already had another idea brewing.

It just so happens that I had picked up some cute Fall journals at Paper Source Saturday morning. (I use them for work notes instead of just plain note books.) One of them had sparked an idea or re-creating it for a card front. Here's the result and I rather like how it turned out.

I started by rounding up some images that would work to make my card. The small pumpkins are from the SU set called Pick a Pumpkin. The oak leaf is from the Taylored Expressions Autumn Wreath set, and the flowers and small leaves are from Hero Arts Little Florals set.

I stamped the flowers first using Memento tuxedo black on the Crumb Cake panel so they would have the space needed. Then using Hero Arts craft white ink, I stamped the pumpkins. Sprinkled the white EP and heat embossed them. Next came the oak leaves, then the flower leaves. For the colored flowers, I stamped them on X-Press It Blending card stock with Memento tuxedo black and colored them with fall shades of Copics. They were cut out with the corresponding dies and glued over the original stamped images. Next I cut the panel out using the largest Die-namics Wonky Stitched Rectangle die. It's glued to a Cajun Craze card base. The sentiment is from the SU Happy Birthday Gorgeous set. Stamped in the Hero Arts white craft ink and heat embossed with white EP. It's punched with an old SU label punch. I wrapped some SU copper thread behind it and popped it up with dimensionals.

Here's the Paper Source journal that gave me the inspiration for this design, and finally, the inside of the card.  The inside is super simple with just a sentiment from the older SU set called Really Good Greetings.

This is going to our good friend, who's birthday is actually today. We're having dinner with her on Wednesday, so I'll just hand it instead of mail it. I have two more birthday's this week to make cards for. Hopefully, one will get done tonight.

Have a good week all. Hopefully, we won't have any more horrible news this week!

Thanks for looking in,
Colleen

Supplies
Stamps: Hero Arts Little Florals set, Taylored Expressions Autumn Wreath set, SU sets Pick a Pumpkin, Really Good Greetings, Happy Birthday Gorgeous
Paper: SU Cajun Craze, Crumb Cake, X-Press It Blending card stocks
Ink: Hero Arts white craft, SU Cajun Craze, Memento tuxedo black, Copics
Other: Hero Arts Little Florals dies, Die-namics Wonky Stitched Rectangle die, SU label punch, SU Copper thread, sequins, white EP, heat tool, the Big shot, dimensionals