Beary Big Hugs

This is one of the new Belles 'n Whistles' stamps that I recently got and I couldn't wait to ink her and enter her in some challenges.   I so love Amy's (A Thousand Sheets of Paper) beautiful cards and how she scatters her flowers so I was inspired by her to "try" to do the same.  Keyword is try--Amy is so the master of this!

 

1.  Papertake Weekly Challenge, Sketch #33

2.  Cute Card Thursday, Challenge 97 - Blooming Gorgeous!

3.  Quixotic Challenges, #11 - Flutter By

4.  Just Cute Bears Challenge, #1 - One for the Girls

5.  A Spoon Full of Sugar, #88 - Freestyle

6.  Fussy & Fancy Friday Challenge, #1 - New (new stamp)

7.  Totally Gorjuss - Dimension

Card recipe:

Paper:  Basic Grey Euphoria

Stamp:  Belles 'n Whistles, Beary Big Hugs

Ink:  Copic Markers, Memento Tuxedo Black

Embellies/Tools:  Rub-on Stitches, Adhesive Pearls, Flowers from my stash; Making Memories Clip, Nestabilities

Whew, that was a lot of challenges for one little card...

Have a great weekend everyone!

Beary Big Hugs!

i Heart you

Hello friends!  I know a lot of you are busy as heck with the ongoing TGF CHA Relay and I've been so impressed with all of your creations!  I myself decided not to participate in this relay because I was not confident I'd be able to finish.  So, I'll just sit back and enjoy your entries.  Good luck everyone!

As for me, I was in the mood for some "hearts & romance" so I dug up my old Penny Black stamp and made a card to fit these challenges. 

Crafty Cardmakers - Challenge 13, Hearts & Romance

Basic Grey Challenges - Week 12, Animals

Penny Black Saturday Challenge - Week 85, Something Sweet

Allsorts Challenge - Week 36, Hearts & Flowers

Flourishes Timeless Tuesday - Challenge 51 (FTTC51), Inspired by the Letter P (pearls)

Card recipe:

Paper:  Basic Grey Euphoria

Stamp:  Penny Black, So Glad to Catch You!

Ink:  Copic Markers, Memento Tuxedo Black

Embellies:  Basic Grey Brad, Adhesive Pearls, American Crafts MiniMarks, Ribbon

Tools:  Nestabilities Blossom, Circles, Scallop Dies

Whatever it is you are doing, I hope you're having fun creating and sharing!

Thanks for stopping by!

Pretty in Pink

Happy Friday to you! 

I had some happy mail yesterday.   In my package was not only my chocolate truffles but also a very special surprise.  Jacque's blog candy was only supposed to be her cannister filled with truffles but guess what--she also gave me her matching card!  Did you hear me shouting from the rooftop?!!!   I am so thrilled to have a Jacque original in my very own hands!  Thank you so much, Jacque, you are such a sweetheart!  I will forever treasure your gorgeous card!

And, I must say her card came at just the right time.  As I was starring at the big blank space on my valentine, nothing I tried looked right.  But when Jacque's card came and as I was admiring the flowers on her card , I couldn't help but case her.   I think the tulle added just the touch I needed.  Jacque you are an inspiration!

I will be sending this to someone special but first she'll be entered in these challenges.

Crazy 4 Challenges - C4C20, sketch

A Spoon Full of Sugar - Challenge 87, Lots of Layering

Magnolia Down Under - Challenge 30, Valentines

Magnolia-licious - Pretty in Pink

Papertake Weekly Challenge, Pretty Pink Papertake

Simon Says Stamp Challenge, Simon Says....PUNCH IT!!!

Card recipe:

Paper:  Basic Grey Euphoria

Stamp:  Magnolia Jam Tilda Yummy Tummy

Ink:  Copic Markers, Memento Tuxedo Black

Embellies:  Magnolia Flowers, K&Co Adhesive Pearls, Doodlebug Sew Easy Rub-Ons, American Crafts MiniMarks Kate, Tulle from my stash

Tools:  Martha Stewart Border Punch, Coluzzle Heart

Thanks for stopping by

Have a wonderful weekend!

OCS Card for Michelle

My OCS card for Michelle

I was so happy when I found out that my partner this month was Michelle from Mushi's Creative Inspirations!  If you saw the beautiful shaker card she made for me in my previous posting and if you visited her blog, you  already know what I mean when I say she is a very talented crafter. 

My card for Michelle is actually a stair-step fold card.  I was inspired by a card I saw on Suzanne Dean's blog and Beate Johns, the creator of this fold (her instructions can be found here) but I altered mine to 2 steps insead of 3.

The ribbons were added inside the card to keep it from doing the "splits".  I know Michelle just recently posted a beautiful calendar that she made, but I'm hoping she won't mind one more.

Thank you Teri for organizing this fun OCS once again!   And to all of you, thanks for stopping by and for always leaving me such sweet comments!

Blog Candy Winner

and the winner is...

Congrats Amy!  LMK your mailing addy so I can send you your candy!

Thanks everyone for playing.  Hugs to all!!!

Jacque's Pink Sweet Stuff!

How would you like to win your own truffles!

I told you all about my chocolate truffle win in my previous post, how would you like to win some strawberry truffles of your own?    Visit Jacque's blog and place your entry for your chance to win, too.  As a DT member for Magnolia-licious Highlites,  she will tell you all about their Pretty in Pink Blog Hop and you can see the gorgeous card that she made.

My blog candy ends today so if you have not yet entered, you still have a few more hours to do so.  I'll announce the winner tomorrow.   Thanks again for dropping in and good luck!

Blog Candy

Last year I had the good fortune to win several blog candies, the last one on Dec. 26 from the Belles 'n Whistles Blog (thanks Summer!).   The prize was a whopping $35 Gift Certificate to the BnW store but what made it even more special was that it was the perfect time to shop for their just-released Sweet Things Collection!   Well, when I placed my order, I also ordered a stamp for one of you, as I wanted to share my good fortune.

This stamp is called Sweet Love and will be perfect for your Valentines card.

Be sure to stop by the BnW Blog and see the cards the DT made with this image! 

I also wanted to thank you all for taking the time to visit me and for always leaving me such encouraging comments.  I wish I could make something for each and every one of you as my thank you but since I can't, I am including my calendar project as part of this blog candy.   I wanted to give you something that was handmade and from my heart and I hope whoever wins this will enjoy using it.

 

The picture on the left is what goes inside the calendar stand.  The pen is "telescopic" so you can shorten or lengthen it.  Attached to the back is a note pad and a couple of little pads to mark your place.

If you would like a chance to win this blog candy, this is what you need to do.  Leave me a comment and tell me what three (3) things you most often reach for when you are crafting (excluding copics, lol).  Mine are my cuttlebug, center ruler, and un-du (seems I'm never satisfied with my first placement).  But don't worry, you won't be disqualified if you don't do this--I'm just being nosey.  Just make sure you leave me a comment so you'll be entered in the drawing!  Easy peasy that's it!

This candy will end on January 18.  I'll be doing this the old-fashioned way by cutting up your comments, throwing it in a hat and letting my DH pick a winner.  I'll post the winner on Tuesday, the 19th.  

 

Happy news!  Seems like my good fortune is still with me as I just recently found out that I won some sweet stuff from Jacque!  I won her Bells n' Whistles canister filled with truffles!  How SWEET is that!  I wish I could share this candy with you!   Please visit Jacque's blog.  She is an amazingly talented lady and her creations are all so gorgeous!  Thanks Jacque!!!

Thanks for stopping by and

Good Luck!

Surprise, SURPRISE!!!

The postman knocked at the door and instead of the usual junk mail/prescription meds we get (yeah, at our age that's all we get nowdays, lol), I got--WOW, 2 happy mail!  Who said Christmas was over?

Jan. OCS card from Michelle

My very first shaker card and ohhhh, is it a beauty!  Michelle, this card is so adorable!  For one thing, I just love Tilda and this image is so cute and so beautifully colored.  I love the colors she chose and the cupcakes in the shaker box is just so darned cute!   Beautifully done, Michelle.  Thank you so much, I just LOVE it!

(Um, my card for you isn't ready yet :( but I promise to get it to you before month end!)

 RAK from Joy

As you can see from this picture, you really would think Christmas was not over, right?  Joy was so thoughtful and sent me so many nice things and I so appreciate them all but what will be treasured the most will be the beautifully colored card and notebook she took the time to make.  She, too, used another one of my favorite images and since Joy so generously gave me this same Heidi stamp, I now have a sample to follow when I practice my coloring.  Thank you so much Joy!

Please visit Michelle and Joy's blogs.

  You, too, will be inspired by their beautiful creations!

Mini Calendar

Hello!

Hope you're having a nice weekend!  I spent my afternoon practicing my coloring with my copic markers and was so frustrated!  So much so that I ended up paper piecing part of my image.  Even cutting her cute itsy bitsy fingers was easier for me than coloring today, lol!   

I wish I could color these cute Pure Innocence images like Donna.  I only recently found out about her blog through my friend, Charlene, and I really love how Donna does her cards with these adorable images.  Visit her at Three Umbrellas if you haven't yet seen her work.

I want to make some of these calendars for some friends (I hope they don't all turn out paper pieced, lol) but in the meantime I thought I'd enter this one in a couple of challenges:

1.  Cute Card Thursday, Challenge 94 - All New (my calendar)

2.  Flourishes - Feel the Love!

Card Recipe:
Paper:  Basic Grey Lemonade
Digi Stamp:  Pure Innocence
Ink:  Copic Markers
Tools:  Nestabilities Blossom and Circle
Embellies:  Calendar (fm MunchKins); Doodlebug Loopy Love Sequin,  Brad & Glitters; Crystal Stickers; Ribbon; Pop Dots

Thanks for taking the time to stop by!

Have a good evening!

A Little Bit of Thanks

For a Whole Lot of Nice!

What do you say when someone gives you a "RAK"? 

RANDOM ACT OF KINDNESS...when someone gives you something not because they had to but because they were thinking of you, something that comes from the heart...this is what I received  from my dear friend 1LuvnMama.  Thank you seems so inadequate but it comes from the bottom of MY heart.   Thank you Mama!

I luv, luv LUV this!

And what do you say when you receive a hand-made card

not a store-bought card--but a card that was made especially for you, one that was colored so meticulously and beautifully, just for you.  Not just..thank you, but "thank you for the time and love you put into making this just for me!" 

This beautiful Christmas card was from my dear friend Jodi.   Thank you Jodi, I so LOVE this gorgeous card! 

Thank for you visiting me today and I hope you will visit the blogs of these 2 wonderful and creative artists, too.

Have a great day!

A New Year Challenge

Hello everyone.  Happy New Year!  I hope everyone had a safe and fabulous New Year celebration.  Are you all ready for another year of crafting?  I kinda sorta lost my mojo and couldn't get back into the mood to craft but as I was blog hopping yesterday, I came across a challenge I couldn't resist.

Hop on over to Caardvarks' and check out their New Year Kick-Off Challenge which is to create a card based on this sketch.  Their sponsor is JustRite Stampers and the prize is 2 new stamp sets plus a $100 gift certificate to JustRite Stampers.   Now is that enough to make you want to enter, too? 

My entry is pretty much a CAS card as I followed the sketch pretty closely.  I used the JustRite oval border stamp, left the inside blank and cut it out with one of the Large Classic Oval Nestabilities (see Karen's alignment tips).  Since both of my JustRite sets are for Christmas, I used a rub-on sentiment and a Hero Art's stamp instead.  If you have not heard about JustRite Stamps, check out their site and see how versatile these stamps are.  It works well with the Nestabilities, too (click here to see their compatibility chart).

Card recipe:

Paper:  Sweetwater

Stamp:  Hero Arts Holiday Birds, JustRite Oval Border Christmas Joy set

Ink:  Copic Markers, Memento Tuxedo Black

Embellies:  Silk ribbon (not sure of the brand but I got it at MunchKins, Kaisercraft Pearl Strips, Crystal Stickers, flowers, rubon stitches and sentiment

Tools:  Nestabilities, Martha Stewart Border Punch

Thank you for looking and have a great day!