Nature's Sweetness

Hello stampers!  I finally opened my box of new stamps, paper and other fun products and took a short break from Christmas cards for the latest Hand Stamped Sentiments Sketch Challenge.  It was love at first sight when I saw Nature's Sweetness shared during OnStage@Home.  I was so happy it was included in the list of items we were able to order early!

I used the Notes of Nature stamp set to create a collage background on the Pecan Pie circle on the front as well as the Very Vanilla panel peeking from the background.  I love the freestyle stamping that sets like this allow!

The floral image was die cut from the GORGEOUS Nature's Sweetness DSP and colored with Stampin' Blends in shades of Old Olive, Pecan Pie and Petal Pink.  The Lovely & Sweet dies coordinate with some of the images in the DSP, which makes cutting some of the beautiful images super easy!

Do you spy the cute little Cork Rounds?  These may easily be my new favorite embellishments!  A simple "congratulations" sentiment from Lovely & Sweet was just that...lovely and sweet.

I can't wait to create more projects with this suite.  There are endless possibilities!

Happy Stamping!

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O Holy Night

Hello and happy Friday friends!  I hope you all had a beautiful Thanksgiving yesterday!  We are officially kicking off the Christmas season over at TGIF Challenges  with a fun Theme Challenge.  What is your favorite Christmas song?

There are so many joyful, beautiful and meaningful Christmas songs I love, but O Holy Night is probably the one I love the most!  The story this song tells is beautiful.

The Night Devine bundle is one that I will hang on to forever!  This bundle brings the true meaning of Christmas to life in whatever project you create with it. Paired up with the gorgeous O Holy Night DSP, I quickly created a beautiful nativity scene using the Night Devine dies.  I stamped the sentiment in Misty Moonlight and fussy cut around the beautiful script. A few golden stars were the only embellishments needed.

As we jump into the craziness that the holiday season can bring, my hope is that we can all take time to remember the true meaning of Christmas.

Happy Stamping!

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Festive Merry Monday

 

It's that time again...time for another amazing Monday Montage Blog Hop!  We are missing a few in the lineup this week, but we've still got a ton of creative inspiration to share with you!

I'm still plugging along with the #30DayChristmasCardMakingChallenge. The theme for day 20 is Festive Vibes Only.  It doesn't get much more festive than bright, shiny Christmas lights, right?

Merry Bold & Bright DSP has been my go-to Christmas paper this year...if you haven't noticed!  I paired up with brightly lit bulbs with the Poppy and Melon stripes, along with a row of fussy cut lights.

Oh, what fun the sentiment is to finish off the card.  Granny Apple Green has been my go-to Christmas green this year too.  Give me all the bright colors!

Hop on over to see what my crafty friend Cathy has to share or take a hop back to see what the amazing Wendy has in store.

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Make It Merry

Happy Tuesday friends and welcome to an all new Hand Stamped Sentiments Color Challenge.  Aren't these colors beautiful together?

It's still operation Christmas Cards in my craft room, so I inked up the wreath of trees from Wishes All Around. I alternated Berry Burst and Mossy Meadow for the trees and love how it turned out.

I stamped Whisper White snowflakes on a Pebbled Path panel than ran it through the Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine with the Exposed Brick 3D embossing folder.  I love the texture in the background.

A couple sprigs of Mossy Meadow and Berry Burst topped with a Whisper White snowflake brought just a bit more color to the card.  I pulled some strands of Pebbled Path Textured Ribbon for a soft and wispy bow.

Be sure to hop on over to the Hand Stamped Sentiments Blog to see what the rest of the team created and be sure to play along with us!

Happy Stamping!

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Merry Monday and Weekend Recap

Happy Merry Monday friends!  It's Day 13 of Martin's Mayhem #30DayChristmasCardMaking Challenge and the theme is Elfed Up.  I love all of his themes and the fun inspiration and interpretation that come from them!

I used the cute elves from the Jolly Words stamp set.  After stamping and coloring the images, I fussy cut each piece and rearranged them in a fun and festive way.  I have a newfound love for Bubble Bath, especially when paired up with Poppy Parade and Granny Apple Green.  What do you think?!?

Before we jump in to a new week, I want to share a bit of a recap from this past weekend.  Many demonstrators from all over the world gathered for the OnStage@Home virtual event.  While nothing beats in person events, my heart is still full after spending time with everyone virtually.

Along with some business updates, demonstrations and stamping, some BIG news in my crafty world was finally revealed.  I am honored and beyond blessed to have been selected to be a part of the 2023 Artisan Design Team!

Once upon a time I was an Artisan Finalist, back when it was only US residents who made up the team.  There were 20 finalists and only 10 were selected.  Unfortunately, I did not make it on the team at that time, but I didn't give up on trying.  It took some time, but thanks to the amazing guidance, support and love from so many stamping friends, my dream finally came true!

            

This beautiful tin arrived before the OnStage@Home event, but I waited until the morning of the event to open it.  Along with personalized Artisan stamp, we also received a beautiful engraved clear block.  I love it and will proudly display it in my craft room!

I can't wait to create with all of the amazing Artisan Design Team members in 2024.  Hopefully some of us will have the opportunity to meet up in Houston!

Happy Stamping!

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Happy Dance

Happy Friday stamping friends!  TGIF Challenges has an all new sketch for us to play along with this week. Who doesn't love a good sketch?!?

Today is extra happy Friday because I have the day off, which means more time to stamp! And tomorrow will be even happier because it's OnStage@Home...I've been looking forward to this virtual event all week long!

I'm sure many of you have seen pictures of the OnStage@Home gift box floating around social media.  That, along with today's sketch, was the inspiration behind my card. The Curved Occasions roller-skates went along with the fun patterns on the box so well.  And the colors are so much fun!

In-person events are always the best, but I love that we are still able to connect with demonstrators all around the world for virtual events.  I can't wait to see all they have to share with us tomorrow!

Happy Stamping!

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A Beary Merry Monday Montage Blog Hop

 

We're back with another Monday Montage Blog Hop!  Be sure to hop all the way through to see all of the amazing talent!

Once again, I'm sharing some Merry Monday creations...this time using the Beary Christmas DSP along with the fun sentiments from Merry & Bright.

I absolutely LOVE to fussy cut images from Designer Series Paper and make them come to life on cards. I sat down with the adorable polar bears and friends this past weekend and fussy cut my heart out!

In keeping up with the #30DayChristmasCardMakingChallenge, I had to use this cuddly polar bear and bunny Topping the Tree for Day 6 of the challenge.  I'm pretty sure I could use the tree pattern of this DSP for ALL of my Christmas cards...it's so awesome!

It doesn't get much cuter than a momma bear and her baby toting gifts through the snow to wish you all a Happy Christmas.  I love the sweet simplicity of this card..nothing more than ink, paper and stamps!

Caribou and deers in sweaters and scarves are also pretty stinking cute too!  I love the footprints in the snow pattern of DSP...it goes along perfectly with these Christmas critters!

Be sure to keep hoping along to see what all of my crafty friends have created!

Happy Stamping!

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Shining Merry & Bright

Happy November friends! Today officially kicks off the @martinmayhem 30 Day Christmas Card Making Challenge on Instagram and I am so excited!  I play along last year and had so much fun!

The first theme challenge is Shining Bright.  How about some bright and shinny Merry & Bright Christmas lights?

I stamped these fun little lights in Melon Mambo, Parakeet Party, Bubble Bath and Pool Party, topping them with the amazing Silver & Gold Adhesive-Backed Glimmer Paper.  (I hope this makes a comeback soon!) Aren't the shimmery filaments the cutest?!

Inspired by this weeks Global Design Project Sketch Challenge , I arranged the lights behind a Deckled Circle topped with Merry & Bright. I pulled a few strands of the White Iridescent Ribbon to tuck in behind the sentiment.

The light wires were perfect to go along with the sketch in the background, adding just a bit more sparkle.  And just when you think you have enough shimmer and shine, you remember the super cute Iridescent Discs that go along with these colors perfectly!

If you don't follow @martinmayhem on Instagram, you are missing out!  He creates the most AMAZING projects and has a month full of fun and creative Christmas card challenges!

Happy Stamping!

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A Harvest of Blessings

It's the end of October, which means pumpkin season is just about over!  Did you make it to a pumpkin patch this year? I'm so happy my youngest still wanted to go this year!  It's one of my favorite things to do in the fall.

This weeks Hand Stamped Sentiments Inspiration Challenge is all about fall favorites!  I'm soaking up every last minute of it as our cold weather is officially here, which means snow isn't too far behind!

I had almost talked myself out of the Pick of the Patch bundle, but more and more cute cards keep popping up and I could no longer resist. I'm so happy this bundle joined all the others in my craft room.

With fall comes not only all things pumpkin, but also all things plaid.  The Tartan Foil Specialty DSP has the perfect fall vibe and went along so well with Pick of the patch. I stamped a variety of pumpkins in Pumpkin Pie, Gray Granite, Pebbled Path, Lost Lagoon and Garden Green, all topped with Old Olive stems and leaves.  I'm loving this color combo! 

But I couldn't stop there!  I had to change up the color combo a bit to go along with the Copper Clay pattern of the DSP.  Copper Clay, Crumb Cake, Mossy Meadow, Moody Mauve and Pebbled Path filled this little pumpkin patch.  I love this color combo just as much!

Some texture was added to both cards using one of the Basics 3D embossing folder and a color coordinating ribbon.  These cards just feel so warm and cozy!

I hope you'll join along and share what you were inspired to create with our latest challenge!

Happy Stamping!

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Freshly Caught Birthday Wishes

 Happy Saturday stampers! Do you have any fun plans this weekend?  I am headed to the corn maze with a group of teens and young adults later this afternoon...wish us luck in finding out way out!

I'm starting my day off with some stamping and hope to end it that way as well! I had a friend ask me for a fishing themed card for a friend...ask and you shall receive, thanks to Gone Fishing!

Inspired by the latest Freshly Made Sketches design, I pulled some of the fabulous patterns from Let's Go Fishing DSP to create a freshly caught birthday wish.  

It's been a while since I've used this suite and I forgot just how much I love it! The colors and textures of the DSP are amazing and the feathered fishing lure is my favorite! A simple Artistically Inked Happy Birthday sentiment (my favorite go-to birthday sentiment) tucked in with the fishes perfectly!

I hope you all have an amazing weekend that includes some crafty time of your own!

Happy Stamping!

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Falling of Leaves

Happy Friday friends!  This week's Layered Leaves TGIF Challenges Theme Challenge is perfect for the current season in the US.  Our leaves are all changing, and thanks to our first freeze, they are quickly falling as well!

Inspired by the colors of the theme image as well, I stamped the sprigs, twigs and berries from Ringed With Nature in Lost Lagoon, Pebbled Path, Pecan Pie and Early Espresso.  These colors are so warm and calming!  After stamping all of the images, I embossed the paper with the Timeworn 3D Embossing Folder and distressed the edges a bit.

Some swirly, twirly Linen Thread was tucked behind the sentiment panel, along with some more leaves and branch die cuts from the Tree Rings Hybrid.  A few Pebbled Path In-Color Dots were the finishing touch.

Is it fall where you live as well or are you jumping in to spring?  I'm already dreaming of summer as the temperatures begin to drop here.  I am not a fan of the cold fall and winter months!

Wishing you all a fabulous weekend full of some creative time in your favorite crafting space!

Happy Stamping!

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Sending Merry {Monday Montage} Cheer

It's just another Merry Monday...Monday Montage Blog Hop, that is!  Hop along with us as we take you on a creative journey again this week!

I'm doing my best to keep up with my Merry Monday challenge, creating at least one Christmas card each week. This Monday I have THREE to share!

In an effort to make sure I'm using ALL of my stamp sets more than one time (I know I'm not the only one who does that, right?!?) I have been trying to make at least 3 cards with a stamp set before I put it away.  When you have a stamp set as cute as Sending Cheer, it's not too hard to do!

First up is a jolly ol' Santa hat. You can never go wrong with a Santa hat for a Christmas card.  I used some of the fun Brights 6 x 6 DSP for some cheerful color and added in a few Merry Bold & Bright DSP trees.  I love how well these paired up! A little added texture was added to the Santa hat with the embossing paste. Fun, right???

Next up are some sweet and simple stockings on an Exposed Brick 3D embossing folder background.  Parakeet Party, Sweet Sorbet and Coastal Cabana is one of my favorite Christmas color combos!

And lastly is this jolly little gingerbread man that looks like he's party of an ugly Christmas sweater!  I got a little carried away with all of the Merry Bold & Bright DSP patterns, but in the end, I kind of liked it. He's sending ALL of the Christmas cheer!

I hope you have a very Merry Monday and cheerful rest of the week!

Don't stop here...keep on hopping by clicking on the next or back button below to make your way through the hop!

Happy Stamping!

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Fluffiest Friends

Happy Tuesday friends! Who is ready for an all new Hand Stamped Sentiments Sketch Challenge this week?!?

I just got the Fluffiest Friends stamp set as part of the Online Exclusives pre-order and these fluffy little critters were perfect for this weeks sketch!

All of these adorable furry friends are so cute, but the kitty is my favorite!  It reminds me of the kitty we used to have! The polka dot pattern from the 3D Essentials Embossing folders gave the perfect amount of texture for these sweet and simple cards.

I couldn't color just one friend though...I had to color them all! Take a look at how cute they all are!

I'm only missing the big fluffy bear with the honey pot.  Stay tuned for that one...I have plans for that bear!

Happy Stamping!

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