Happy Birthday Meme

Today my grandma would have celebrated 88 years of life...Happy Birthday Meme!  It makes me sad that she never had the chance to meet any of my boys...she would have spoiled them rotten and loved them all so much!  They may not have had the chance to meet their great grandma, but we speak of her often.  The relationship my boys have with my parents is very similar to the relationship I had with my Meme and Grandpa, which warms my heart.

I made today's card with my grandma in mind...

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Crumb Cake, Whisper White, So Saffron, Lucky Limeade, Sunshine & Sprinkles DSP

Ink ~ Melon Mambo, Lucky Limeade, So Saffron, Crumb Cake

Stamp Sets ~ Collage Curios, A Word for You, En Francais

Other Supplies ~ Apothecary Accents Framelits, Soda Pop Tops, Vine Street Embossing Folder, Rhinestones

The sketch for this card comes to you from Tui over at Freshly Made Sketches (sad this is her last sketch...she's awesome!).  And my color combo is from The Color Throwdown.

Sending big birthday loves up to my Meme...love you to the moon and back!

Happy Stamping!



Here comes Peter Cotton Tail

I can't believe Easter is already less than a month away...where does the time go as it flies by so fast? It seems like Christmas was just a few weeks ago and here it is the end of February already.  CRAZY!

I've been playing around with some of my spring and Easter stamp sets this week. I don't know about you, but I always seem to pull out my Aqua Painters and Blender Pens this time of year.  There is something about the watercolor effect that says Spring to me :)  The great team over at Hand Stamped Sentiments has a sketch this week that made for a fun Easter card.

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Crumb Cake, Island Indigo, Whisper White, Birds of a Feather DSP

Ink ~ Crumb Cake, Island Indigo, Primrose Petals, Raspberry Ripple, Summer Starfruit

Stamp Sets ~ A Little Bit of Spring, Teeny Tiny Wishes

Other Supplies ~ Oval Framelits, Primrose Petals Stitched Satin Ribbon, Whisper White Bakers Twine, Vintage Faceted Buttons, Occasions Paper-Piercing Pack, Delicate Details Lace Tape

I love the little eggs in this DSP...perfect for Easter creations :)  And the colors are so cheerful and Spring-y!

On a different note...I could use a little cheering up today.  Our dear sweet lab, Bailey, isn't doing so well :(  He has a football size mass on his side, that we thought was just a hematoma, which our vet said should resolve on its own.  Well, after almost 3 weeks, there is no change and now he is not eating and does nothing but sleep.  All of his blood work came back normal at his last visit, so we know it is not cancer.  I'll be taking him back in to the vet tomorrow to see what our options are.  Bailey is our first baby and has been a part of our family for almost 10 years.  We aren't ready to see him go yet and are praying that we can get him healthy and feeling better soon!

Thanks for stopping by today and for letting me ramble about my pup :)

Happy Stamping!

Sentimental Hello

Good morning and good news...we have sunshine today!  It's still cold and windy, but the skies are blue and the sunshine is wonderful!  Maybe my little creative and crafty sunshine yesterday did the trick! 

Today I've got a cheerful card created using the sketch from CAS(E) this Sketch!  Many stamps came to mind when I saw this sketch, but I settled on the retro phone booth from the Feeling Sentimental set, which is part of on of the FREE Sale-A-Bration stamp sets.  Sadly, I missed the deadline for entering my card, but I still love this sketch and will use it again for sure.  Here is the sketch for this week:

And here is my creation:

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Pool Party, Whisper White, Sycamore Street DSP

Ink ~ Tangerine Tango, Pool Party

Stamp Sets ~ Feeling Sentimental, Oh, Hello

Other Supplies ~ Sycamore Street Ribbon & Button Pack (Tangerine Tango Ribbon), Designer Buttons, Mini Silver brads

I love, love, LOVE these Designer Buttons from the Spring Catalog.  I have been having a ton of fun dressing them up with ribbon or a stamped image punched out to fit over the top!  And the colors in this DSP...so bright and cheerful.  Perfect for spring!

Here's to a great day and hopefully more sunshine for all!

Happy Stamping!

Wishing the sun would shine

It's official...I am ready for summer!  Sunshine, longer days, flip flops and fruity drinks on the back patio sound like Heaven right now.  Too bad I still have a few more months before I get to enjoy those things.  I guess for now I'll have to make do with some crafty sunshine! 

Have you seen the latest single stamps yet?  If not, be sure to check them out here at my online store.  You'll not only find the latest single stamps, but all of other new arrivals! One of my favorite singles is the Sunshine stamp.  After seeing this weeks Muse Challenge I knew I wanted to use this stamp.  I love the squiggly lines that were used in Deanna's card and pulled that element into my card....

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Whisper White, Basic Black, Parker's Patterns DSP, International Bazaar DSP

Ink ~ VersaMark, White Gel Pen, Daffodil Delight, White Craft Ink

Stamp Set ~ Sunshine

Other Supplies ~ White Embossing Powder, Soda Pop Tops, Basic Black Taffeta Ribbon, Sycamore Street Pool Party Ribbon (Sale-A-Bration)

I used a few different techniques in this card...the first is the chalkboard technique, which is one of the current and fun trends in the world of paper crafting.  I found this very easy and fun to do!  Simply heat emboss your image in white then lightly sponge with your White Craft Ink.  Super easy!  The second technique I used was the sunburst technique.  It's not as easy to see on this card since I used yellow and white DSP.  When you use different colored paper, you really get the "sunburst effect" and it can really make a card pop!  You can find a tutorial here.  It's a great way to use up some of your scraps too!

Here's to hoping that we will at least get some sunshine soon!  I'll gladly accept cold temps as long as the skies are blue and the sun is shining!

Thanks for visiting today!

Happy Stamping!

Freshly Made Swallowtail

Finally Friday...woo hoo!!!  I always look forward to Friday, but I've really been looking forward to this Friday.  I get to spend some time with two great friends for a belated GNO birthday celebration.  Sushi and Beautiful Creations...can't wait!

Another thing I've been looking forward to and patiently awaiting was my latest Stampin' Up! order.  The man in brown came knocking yesterday and delivered me my box of goodies...hooray!!  In this order was the awesome Swallowtail stamp that I have been lusting over, as has my 7 year old son.  We both squealed with excitement when I opened the box.  He will be very excited to see this card when he gets home from school :)

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Basic Black

Ink ~ VersaMark

Stamp Sets ~ Swallowtail, Vintage Versus (SAB)

Other Supplies ~ Pool Party Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Dimensionals

My cards almost always start with a sketch and this one comes to you from the current sketch at Freshly Made Sketches.  You can't tell very well from the picture, but the butterfly is cut out and popped up with some Dimensionals.  I don't know about you, but I LOVE the Pool Party EP on black...stunning!  And I love this sentiment too.  I wish the SAB items were around longer than they are...I'm having so much fun using them in my classes!

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

Happy Stamping!

This Little Piggy Pie

Good morning friends!  It's Thursday...one day closer to the weekend :D  Hope everyone is having a great week so far!

My good friend Katie over at Sweet n Spiffy has the cutest little girl {EVER} who has a favorite stuffed pig, whom she calls Piggy Pie.  How cute is that?!?!?  Ever since I saw the super cute picture of Katie's sweet little girl with her favorite pal Piggy Pie, I've wanted to make a card with the cute piggy image from the Button Buddies set.  I think this was one of the first sets I purchased when I went to my first card class and is still one of my faves!

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Melon Mambo, Pretty In Pink, Cherry Cobber, Whisper White

Ink ~ Melon Mambo

Stamp Sets ~ Button Buddies, Teeny Tiny Wishes

Other Supplies ~ Stripes & Perfect Polka Dots Embossing Folders, 2 1/2" Circle Punch, Owl Punch, Perfect Pennants Bigz, Subtles Designer Buttons, Cute Clips

I pulled my colors from this card from the latest Hand Stamped Sentiments color challenge.  These colors were perfect for this cute little Piggy Pie :)

Wishing you all a Happy Thursday and as always...Happy Stamping!

Rain or Shine...

...I'm here for you!

Everyone has that one friend who is always there for you, NO.MATTER.WHAT.  I am so blessed to have that one friend and I don't know what I would do without her!  When I'm having a bad day, she can always cheer me up...when all I can see is the negative, she always shows me the positive...and when I'm having "one of those days" with my kiddos, she is usually having "one of those days" too and we laugh our way through the craziness together.  Love you Erica!

The past few days have been full of sickness for my dear friend, so I wanted to send her a little note letting her know that I'm thinking about her (but staying the heck away because we've already had the crud and DON'T want it again!).  I finally got my hands on the Million-Dollar Moments Hostess stamp set from the spring catalog and could not wait to ink it up!  Those cute rain boots just screamed to be colored yellow - or Summer Starfruit in this case!

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Midnight Muse, Marina Mist, Very Vanilla, Summer Starfruit, Print Poetry DSP Stack

Ink ~ Summer Starfruit, Midnight Muse & Marina Mist Stampin' Write Markers

Stamp Set ~ Million-Dollar Moment

Other Supplies ~ Cloudy Day Embossing Folder, 2 1/2" Circle Punch, 1 1/4" Scallop Circle Punch, 1" Circle Punch

I gathered my inspiration for this card from The Friday Mashup.  Their latest Mashup challenge is to create a project with "Texture using your Markers".  These are two tools that I really can't live without!  I love ALL of the embossing folders and it is so easy to ink up your stamps with multiple colors using the Stampin' Write Markers.

Well, I hope this card will brighten Miss Erica's day and find her house healthy again soon!  (Especially by Friday...we have a very important GNO planned!!!)

Happy Stamping!

Mojo Take Two

Hello my friends!  I had so much fun with yesterday's sketch from Mojo Monday and I just had to use it again today. 

Do you think in Stampin' Up! colors like I do?  I was looking at my shower curtain this morning and thought to myself...Always Artichoke, Marina Mist, Bashful Blue and Sahara Sand.  And that is how this card all started!  I love it when inspiration strikes at the most random time or in the most random places :)

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Always Artichoke, Sahara Sand, Marina Mist, Bashful Blue, Very Vanilla

Ink ~ Always Artichoke, Night of Navy

Stamp Set ~ By the Tide

Other Supplies ~ Square Lattice Embossing Folder, 2 1/2", 1 3/8" & 1" Circle Punches, Silver Basics Designer Buttons, Natural Trim Ribbon

When I fist got my hands on the Spring catty, I really wasn't drawn to this stamp set.  But after seeing a few projects created with it, I caved...and I'm so happy I did!  I have used this set numerous times for projects that have all been very different.

 Thanks for visiting again today!

Happy Stamping!

Getting my Mojo Back

Happy {Mojo} Monday!  I hope you all had a fabulous weekend...and hopefully found some time to be crafty too :)  Our weekend was pretty busy, so other than wrapping up a few projects I had going, I didn't get much stamping time in...BOO!  But, I did have some extra time this morning since my kiddos didn't have school.  I had a birthday card that I needed to get done and this weeks sketch over at Mojo Monday gave me just the inspiration I needed!

This card is for a friend and co-worker who makes the BEST cupcakes ever, so of course I had to make her a card with a cupcake.  You may remember seeing another card with this image on it a few weeks ago...it's just too cute!

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Wisteria Wonder, Calypso Coral, Whisper White, 2011-2013 In Color DSP

Stamp Sets ~ Easy Events, A Word for You

Ink ~ Jet Black StazOn, Calypso Coral , Wisteria Wonder Stampin' Write Marker

Other Supplies ~ 2 1/2" Circle Punch, Perfect Pennants Bigz, Wisteria Wonder Bakers Twine, Owl Punch, Crystal Effects, Honeycomb Embossing Folder

Hoping to get more stamping this week, so stay tuned for more posts!

Happy Stamping!

Sent with Love...For my loves

Happy Valentines Day to each an every one of you!  I hope you are sharing lots of love with all of your loves today :)

The man in brown delivered me a box of {Stampin' Up!} love earlier this week, which contained the fun new Sent with Love Bundle.  If you haven't seen it, you MUST check it out!



Clear Mount Stamp Set ~ $17.95

Designer Series Paper ~ $10.95

Pretty Bundle ~ $25.50

(Bundle includes the stamp set, DSP and Calypso Coral Bakers Twine)

This exclusive stamp set and DSP are available through April 1, 2013 so contact me today to get yours ordered!

Here are some of the projects I made using this bundle...enjoy!

First up are two cards I made for my twins...everything always has to be the same for them, but just a little different!

They were excited to open these this morning!

Next up are the Valentines I made for my kiddos to give to their teachers and helpers at school.

Candy Wrapper treat box

Scalloped Envelope treat holder

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Real Red, Island Indigo, Pool Party, Whisper White, Sent with Love DSP

Ink ~ Real Red, Island Indigo, Pool Party

Stamp Set ~ Sent with Love

Other Supplies ~ Scallop Square Punch, Circle Punch, Scallop Circle Punch, Candy Wrapper Bigz, Scallop Envelope Bigz, Calypso Coral and Pool Party Bakers Twine, Sycamore Street Ribbon (Pool Party and Island Indigo)

I hope you all have a very Happy Valentines Day and get to some some time with those you love!

Happy Stamping!

A CASE of Pinterest Love

Anyone else out there addicted to Pinterest???  It is a major time sucker for me some days, but you just have to keep scrolling down to make sure you didn't miss something great!  When I've run out of crafting mojo, Pinterest is one of my favorite places to check for a little inspiration.  A few weeks ago I came across a beautiful card created by Michele Reynolds and I just HAD to CASE it!  I used most of the same elements and colors, but did add a few things of my own to make it mine :)

I don't know about you, but this reminds me of a pretty garter perfect for Valentine's Day...woohoo!!

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Cherry Cobbler, Very Vanilla, Basic Black

Ink ~ Cherry Cobber, VersaMark, Jet Black StazOn

Stamp Sets ~ Hearts a Flutter, Tiny Tags

Other Supplies ~ Delicate Designs Folder, Crochet Trim, Striped Satin Ribbon (retired), Hearts a Flutter Framelits, Tiny Tag Punch, Antique Brads, Vanilla Shimmer Smooch Spritz

I made this card with a very special friend in mind...my dear friend Bonnie!  She celebrated her birthday yesterday...Happy Birthday my beautiful friend! 

Happy Stamping!

February 2013 Stylin' Stampin' Squad Blog Hop



Welcome to February's Stylin' Stampin' Squad Blog Hop!  If you are hoping along in order, you've just come from Jennifer's page...aren't her projects great?!??! 
I will admit, I was a little stressed out about this month's theme...FABRIC!  I do not sew.  I don't even own a sewing machine.  All I could think was "what am I going to make???".  Thank goodness for Pinterest and all of the great no-sew ideas people have pinned :)  I found a fun no-sew headband and thought I would give it a shot.  Come to find out, it was super easy and a lot of fun to make!

I ripped strips of fabric and braided them together to create the headband portion.  The rosettes were made using the awesome instructions included with the Jumbo Sticky rounds.  All of the pieces are held together with hot glue...no thread, no needle, not one single stitch!  I will be making more of these for sure!

I tried to talk one of my boys into modeling this for me, but had no takers, so you are stuck with a picture of me! I set rosettes off to the side of the headband, which can be worn on either side. 

Supplies Used:

Tea for Two Designer Fabric, Hot Glue, Felt, Elastic Hair Ties

I had a few pieces of fabric left over, so I decided to put them to use on a card.  What a fun way to dress up a simple card!

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Crumb Cake, Baja Breeze

Ink ~ Whisper White Craft, Calypso Coral

Stamp Set ~ Oh, Hello

Other Supplies ~ Pop-Up Posies Designer Kit (flower), Tea for Two Fabric, Oval Framelits, Decorative Label, Delicate Designs Folders

Thanks for hoping along this month!  Now hop on over to Diana's blog to see what she has in store for you!  If you get lost, just click on the link below and you'll get back on track!

Blog Hop Participants:

1. Shellie G. of Craft Smashup
2. Annie L. of Love Me Cards
3. Nancy B. of Lady Stamps-A-Lot
4. Rose C. of Stamp with Rose
5. Tonya B. of Stampin' with Tonya
6. Dawn S. of Dawn's Creative Chalet
7. Pamela W. of Stinky Tofu
8. Kim R. of Stamping with Kim
9. Justin K of JK Cards
10. Heidi B of Stuck on Stampin'
11. Jennifer B of NW Stamper
12. Bree of Craft-somnia
13. Diana E of Stampin' Fun with Diana
14. Darcy J of Dj's Stampin Place

Reason to Celebrate

So many reasons to celebrate this week!!  My kiddos are all feeling better and it's a Winter Break at school which means it's time for our annual Mommy/Son beach trip.  Our bags are packed and we are ready to hit the road bright and early in the morning.  We are all pretty excited :)

Have you heard that Stampin' Up! is celebrating their Silver 25th Anniversary this year???  They are celebrating with so many fun and exciting things!!!  Keep watching my blog for all of the latest updates.

Guess who else is celebrating?!?!?  Try Stampin' on Tuesday is celebrating their 2nd Birthday this week!  If you haven't checked out their weekly sketch challenges, you must!  They always have something great to inspire you each and every week.  Here's a look at this weeks sketch:

And here's a look at my take on the sketch:

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Whisper White, Basic Black, Silver Glimmer Paper, Sycamore Street DSP

Ink ~ Rich Razzleberry

Stamp Set ~ Make a Wish

Other Supplies ~ Ovals Framelits, Adorning Accents Edgelits, Simply Scored Scoring Tool, Basic Rhinestones

Thanks for visiting today and don't forget to check back tomorrow for the Stylin' Stampin' Squad Blog Hop!

Happy Stamping!

Everything Will Be Ok...

Losing a loved one is never easy, no matter what the circumstances may be.  But when a loved one has been suffering, it is almost a blessing when their time with us is up.  One of my friends lost her mom last week after battling a long illness.  I am hoping my friend finds comfort in knowing that her mom is no longer suffering and is finally at peace. 

I found a simple sketch over at Clean and Simple Stamping and I thought it would make for a perfect sympathy card. 

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Perfect Plum, Whisper White

Ink ~ Wisteria Wonder, Perfect Plum, Lucky Limeade, Always Artichoke

Stamp Sets ~ Stippled Blossoms, Pursuit of Happiness

Other Supplies ~ Simply Scored Scoring Tool

It's not very often that I create a card with no added embellishments (unless you count the scoring ;)) and I am really happy with how this turned out.  Very simple, but pretty...just what I wanted for this card. 

This is the first time I've used a sketch from Clean and Simple Stamping, but I will be back for sure!

Be sure to check back on Thursday for the Stylin' Stampin' Squad Blog Hop! 
Happy Stamping! 

Pack Your Bags and Celebrate 25 Years

Time to pack your bags...your Crafting Bags!  Stampin' Up! has a new exclusive Sent with Love Stamp Set and Designer Series Paper available now through April 30th only!  Look how fun these stamps and paper are:



131847 Sent with Love Clear-Mount Stamp Set ~ $17.95.

132182  Sent with Love DSP ~ $10.95

132851  Pretty Bundle (20% off retail value) ~ $25.50

*Bundle includes Sent with Love Stamp Set, Sent with Love DSP and Calypso Coral Bakers Twine*

132914  Sent with Love Digital Kit ~ $9.95

Contact me today to place your order for this exclusive and oh-so-cute Pretty Bundle!

And if you haven't heard, Stampin' Up! is celebrating 25 years this year!  How amazing is that?!?!  To help celebrate, they are bringing back some of their favorite stamp images from the last 25 years in their Best of 25 Stamp Sets.  There will be 12 sets released this year, with each set including one never-before-seen image. 

Here are January and February's Best of Sets:

Each set, which will be released around the first of each month, will include 3-5 images, including the never-before-seen image.  All sets will be available for purchase through April 31, 2014. 

As an incentive to collect these great sets, Stampin' Up! is including a Collectors Card.  Each stamp set will come with a proof of purchase sticker, which you can stick on to your Collectors Card.  When you have collected 6 stickers, you can send your card in to redeem a FREE set of your choice up to $14.95 value!  Free sets must be redeemed by April 31, 2014.

So, Pack your {Crafting} Bags and join me on this fun trip of celebrating 25 years of Stampin' Up!

Happy Stamping!

Bloomin' Happy It's Friday!

This has been the longest, most tiring week I've had in a long time!  All 3 of my kiddos got a nasty flu bug...back, to back, to back!  And my hubby was gone for two days of it...waaaahhhh :(  I'm really hoping everyone is on the mend and we all get some good rest this weekend.  3-5 hours of sleep at night just isn't quiet enough for this momma! 

Ok, enough of me crying...LOL!  I got up this morning and told myself I was going to make the best of what ever today brought, no matter what!  So far, things are looking good.  I haven't had to clean up any sickie messes, it's almost 50 degrees out AND the sun is shining.  That makes for a pretty good day if you ask me!  Since I kept the big boys home from school today, I had a little extra time this morning, and of course I used it for some stamping!  With some spring inspiration over at The Friday Mashup, a great sketch from  Fab Friday and bright color inspiration from the latest Muse challenge, I was able to put together a "Bloomin' Marvelous" card!

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Basic Gray, Basic Black, Pool Party, Melon Mambo, Whisper White, Neutrals Collection DSP Stack

Ink ~ Melon Mambo, Daffodil Delight, Lucky Limeade

Stamp Set ~ Bloomin' Marvelous

Other Supplies ~ Top Note Bigz, Large Oval Punch, Scallop Oval Punch, Bitty Butterfly Punch, Rhinestones, Pool Party Bakers Twine, Pool Party Embossing Powder

I wasn't sure about all of these colors together at first, but once I got it all together, I kind of liked how it turned out.  I heat embossed the Pool Party flowers...I love them on the black paper!  Can I just say that I am going to be super sad when Pool Party is gone...it's one of my FAVORITES! 

Wishing you all a great {and healthy} weekend!

Happy Friday and Happy Stamping!