Sea of Friends - #TGIFC520

It's Friday and time for an all new TGIF Challenges Sketch Challenge!

I'm getting all the use out of the Friends of the Ocean suite that I can!  I'm so sad these cute little crustaceans aren't carrying over.  They will be staying in my stash, along with all of my other most loved ocean stamp sets!

I fussy cut the Friends of the Ocean DSP to create an underwater scene, complete with rippling Soft Waves of Summer Splash.

Short and sweet post today...my youngest and I are on a little spring break get away and have a full day ahead of us!

Happy Stamping!

Products Used:

Celebrating Five Years Around The World on Wednesday

 

Five years ago yesterday (April 8, 2020) in the midst of the COVID pandemic we shared our first hug around the world on Wednesday!!!  To celebrate this milestone, we are CAS(e)ing one of our beautiful team members, Anne Marie Hile. 

Whether you are arriving here from the talented Theresa McEntee or just getting started, be sure you hop all the way through to see all of the creative and inspired projects created by this talented team of stampers!

I chose to CASE an adorable card that Anne Marie created (seen below) for another Around the World on Wednesday hop a couple of years ago.  I love anything "school" related and this gave me the perfect reason to ink up the new School Days stamp set in some of the brand new 2025-2027 In Colors.

I went with the same layout, using the new 6x6 patterns of the 2025-2027 In Color DSP in shades of Darling Duckling and Secret Sea.  Have you seen that Strawberry Slush has made a comeback with the new In Colors as well?  I'm so excited! This was the perfect alternative for the apple!

I hope you continue to feel the big hugs we share each and every month! We always need a little love in our lives, every single day!

Happy Stamping!

Next up is my friend Teri West - Alaska Stamper. I can't wait to see what she has to share with us this month.  

Jan Clothier - NZ
Leonie Stuart - AU
Rochelle Laird-Smith - AU
Cheryll Miller - AU
Danielle Kassing - NL
Marga Bultena - DE
Aurélie Fabre - FR
Kim Fee - UK
Annette Ball - CA
Kelly Taranto - US
Chris Smith - US
Theresa McEntee - US
Bree Renwick - US
Teri West - US
Cheryl Hamilton - US

Hand Stamped Note of Appreciation

It's time for an all new color challenge at Hand Stamped Sentiments!

I was a bit stumped with this color combo at first, but as soon as I pulled out the ink pads, I instantly knew I needed to use the Texture Notes bundle.  These earthly colors are beautiful with this stamp set!

I stamped the leaf images in Pretty Peacock and Summer Splash, then put my snips to work...fussy cutting is one of my favorite crafty things to do! The wicker round was stamped in Pecan Pie, which was the perfect centerpiece for the greenery.

A couple of Textured Notes die cut Pecan Pie rectangles added a bit more color and texture to the card, along with a die cut card front.  A Pretty Peacock card base and sentiment brought a bit of boldness to the card.  And I can't forget the Summer Splash Resin Dots!

Join along in the colorful fun!

Happy Stamping!

Products Used:

Mixed Florals For Piccadilli Players

Welcome to the first ever Piccadilli Players post! You might be asking what or who these Piccadilli Players are...follow along over on Instagram to see all of the talented designers who share a little love for pickles.  IYKYK!

Our first hop theme is flowers in our favorite colors.  It was hard to decide which of my favorite colors I wanted to use, so I decided to go with my favorite color of tulips in my garden...Petal Pink!

While they might be the most difficult colors to photograph, the softness of the Petal Pink blooms, with a splash of Lemon Lolly and Soft Sea Foam stems creates the most lovely bouquet of spring flowers.

I heat embossed one of the Elements of Text images in white then blended a little Gray Granite over the top.  The fun banner adds a bit of flair to the Spotlight on Nature die cut sentiment.

What's another color that's hard to photograph?!? Gray Granite!  I tried my best, but there are some green undertones that I just couldn't seem to edit out.  If you look past that, you'll see the beautiful embossed background for this bunch of greenery.  The background technique and layout of this card come from a couple Crafty Carrot tutorials this month. (If you haven't checked them out, do it now!  They have a free month coming up in May!)

Follow along on Instagram starting with me craftsomnia to see the rest of the amazing floral creations in our favorite colors!

Happy Stamping!

Products Used:

 

Beautiful Butterflies

Welcome to the latest TGIF Challenges Inspiration Challenge!  There are so many beautiful images and colors to pull inspiration from...I can't wait to see what everyone is inspired to create!

I embossed the Beautiful Butterflies in gold, adding some color with the Water Painters in shades of Petunia Pop, Peach Pie and Lemon Lolly.  To achieve the darker colors, applied a few layers of color, allowing the paper to dry in between each application.

Nature's Sweetness DSP helped to bring out the gold embossing, along with my favorite Brushed Brass Butterflies.

Thanks for visiting!

Happy Stamping!

Products Used:

Inspiration Squad

Happy Monday friends!!  I have some cute little critters from the soon-to-be-released Inspiration Squad for the latest Monday Montage hop.  Be sure to check us all out over on Instagram.  You can find me at @craftsomnia and hop along with all of us!

I always love a fun stamp set that requires coloring.  These little critters are so cute and have the BEST motivating and inspiring sentiments.  I love them all, but I think the dragon is my favorite!

The fun background images from With You In Mind were the perfect little added to touch to each of these cards.  A sweet and simple design made creating multiples of each card super easy!

The Inspiration Squad stamp set will be available in the May 2025 Online Exclusive release. 

Happy Stamping!

Products Used:

 

Freshly Made Impressions Abloom

 Happy Saturday friends!  I think I am finally recovered from my time at OnStage.  Between the time change and catching up on things at work and home, I was in a bit of a fog most of the week!  Please tell me I'm not alone...

I'm happy to be back in my craft room and diving in to some of the products we received at OnStage.  I participated in OnStage After Hours and chose the Impressions Abloom bundle...I'm so happy I did! (But those turtles are growing on me!)

Inspired by the latest Freshly Made Sketches sketch, I die cut a few of the Impressions Abloom flowers. The Painted Strips background stamp, once again, helped to complete the sketch.  Have you noticed how much I love this background stamp?

The oval shaped dies that are included in this bundle are awesome!  The stitched outer ring adds so much!  And the Greetings For All Mix & Match Ephemera Pack are so good!  

When you attend OnStage events, you also have the opportunity to order select items from the Product Purchase Premier.  My order arrived yesterday, just in time for the weekend.  Be on the lookout for more sneak peeks of new products!

Happy Stamping!

Bright and Bold Birthday

It's Friday and you all know what that means...time for an all new TGIF Technique Challenge!  Today we are creating bold backgrounds with stamps, embossing, paper...whatever you choose!

I needed an easy button this week, so I went with the bright and bold Full of Life DSP as the background.  These wonky circles went along perfectly with the Around It All dies.

Saying Hey helped to create a bold sentiment to go along with this weeks challenge.  I can't get enough of that Hey!

Happy Stamping!

Products Used:

Once An Artisan, Always An Artisan

 Last week at OnStage in Raleigh, past and present Artisan's met up for hugs, laughs and swaps.  This was my favorite moment of the week!

I used the Online Exclusives You Are Remarkable and Painted Stripes stamp sets for my card.  Bright and cheerful colors were a must...Petunia Pop, Lemon Lime Twist and, my favorite, Coastal Cabana.

This sentiment was absolutely perfect for all of my talented and crafty friends...they make my world a happier place!

Some Lemon Lime Twist Painted Stripes and some heat embossed splatters created a fun background for these pretty flowers.

Look at all of these beautiful, talented, loving and caring friends...it was sooooo good to see all of them! Once an Artisan, always an Artisan!

Happy Stamping!

Products Used:

Just a Little Thank You

Happy Tuesday and welcome to the latest Hand Stamped Sentiments Inspiration Challenge.  This one is full of beautiful images that are certain to inspire you!

I was inspired by the pretty blue mushroom in the image, so of course I had to use the Terrific Toadstools.  The mushroom tops were inked in Boho Blue and the stems in Basic Beige.

I initially stamped the mound in Pecan Pie...not the best choice of colors!  My husband, who hates mushrooms, is always quick to remind me that mushrooms grow best in poo! After I good laugh, I quickly changed the color out to Soft Sea Foam. Much better!

Perennial Postage dies added a fun little frame to this magical fairy mushrooms.  I love this color combo...very spring-y!

Join in the fun and play along with us.

Happy Stamping!

Products Used:

Textured Appreciation

Happy Friday from Raleigh, NC!  I am here with 2000+ stampers for OnStage and can't wait to meet up with some of my TGIF Challenges friends in person!

We might be away playing, but we are still crafting along with this week's sketch challenge!  I have one more card to share with the Textured Notes bundle.

I love the black and white patterns in the Botanical Textures DSP, especially with the bright pop of Lemon Lime Twist!

I added more texture to this bundle with the new Mini Corrugated and Exposed Brick 3D embossing folders. 

Short, sweet and simple post today...we have a day packed full of fun ahead of us!

Happy Stamping!

Products Used:

Textured Best

Happy Monday stampin' friends!  How many of you are getting ready to attend OnStage later this week?  I'll be there and I hope to get to see some of you!  I'll be joining several of my Monday Montage friends in North Carolina and I can't wait to see all of them!

Today I'm sharing a card created with the newly release Online Exclusive Botanical Textures Suite.  If you love neutral colors and tons of texture, this suite is for you!

I die cut 3 rectangles using the Textured Notes dies and Woven Textures DSP.  Then I stamped various images from the Texture Notes stamp set in shades of Mossy Meadow and Pecan Pie.

I stamped more leaves on the Basic White card front to add just a bit more color. A little strip of the beautiful black and white Botanical Textures DSP gives the perfect pop of boldness to the neutral colors.  The White Ribbon and Linen Tread add just a bit more texture to the project, along with the Neutral Matte Dots.

Be sure to check out the rest of the Monday Montage creations in our Instagram Hop.  You can start with me at @craftsomnia and hop your way though all of the amazing creativity!

Happy Stamping!

Products Used:

 

Lovely Garden

Hooray for Tuesday and an all new Hand Stamped Sentiments sketch challenge.

Today I'm sharing a card created with the new Lovely Garden Suite Collection.  I love flowers as much as I love stamps and hydrangeas are some of my favorites!

These beautiful blooms were fussy cut from the Lovely Garden DSP.  In addition to the pretty floral patterns, there are some pretty awesome black and white pattens of paper in this pack.  I love black and white with a pop of color!

The Fresh Freesia Faux Velvet ribbon is so soft and pretty!  This is a suite that you won't want to miss out on!

Happy Stamping!

All The Delightful Best

Happy Friday, friends!  This week's TGIF Challenges Inspiration Challenge feels like spring!  Our weather this week has also felt like spring, which brings me hope that we are nearing the end of our dreaded winter blah's where I live.

Daffodil Delight is not a color I use very often, but I am loving all this yellow with the pop of Pool Party from the Floral & Gingham Vellum.  Isn't it pretty?

I stamped the flowers in Daffodil Delight on Basic White, along with a few Old Olive leaves.  I love the sweet simplicity!

Join along in the fun this week and share what you were inspired to create!

Happy Stamping!

Products Used:

Ocean of Thanks

This weeks Hand Stamped Sentiments Color Challenge feels like summer!  I don't know about you, but I am ready for the cold and snow to go away and make way for summer sunshine!

 A mixture of products from the Friends of the Ocean suite were perfect for this color combo!  I love how the Soft Waves 3D embossing folder makes you feel like you are right in the water at the beach!

I love that the Ocean Friends Dies coordinate with the Designer Series Paper...perfect for times that I'm too lazy to stamp!

Happy Stamping!

Products Used: