Stamping Shapes for Friday Mashup

It's my turn to host the challenge at Friday Mashup this week and I've got a technique for everyone to try, the Embossing Folder Stamping Technique. It's really easy to do and gives you another excuse to pull out your embossing folders!

While we're at it, let's throw some shapes in there and mix them up! It's the beginning of the year so just throw caution to the wind and have fun :)

I took the Arrows TIEF and used Lost Lagoon and Smoky Slate ink, spraying it with some water, and then I put down a panel of Whisper White to get my design. This panel is adhered to the left side of the card for contrast against the DSP. I used some shapes from the Just Sayin' set for my focal area, finishing it off with the "hey there" sentiment.

Head over to The Friday Mashup to check out all the great projects from the DT, and then play along with us, I'd love to see what you create!

Stamps: Just Sayin'

Paper: Basic Gray, Hello Honey, Blackberry Bliss, Lost Lagoon, Whisper White, Moonlight DSP Paper Stack

Ink: Lost Lagoon, Smoky Slate

Accessories: Big Shot, Word Bubbles Framelits, sponge, dimensionals

Orange and Blue for You

I needed to come up with a thank you card for a friend of the family and the sketch at Sunday Stamps was the perfect starting point.

Like myself, our friend is from Colorado (well, I lived in MA until I was 12, and spent my teen years in CO) and she is a huge Broncos fan. I HATE the Donkeys, as I call them, but I like to tailor my cards to fit the personality of the people receiving them so Donkey colors it is on this card, especially since her team is in the playoffs (and my Giants are not, grrrrr).

I just love the Pleasant Poppies stamp. Such pretty flowers and so easy to use! I colored in the poppies with Pumpkin Pie Blendabilities, and in doing so discovered my medium and dark are dry. Not too happy about that as the caps all seemed to be on tight but whatever, I'll order a new set.

Anyway, I colored the flowers in and used Old Olive for the stems. To do the Broncos theme I made the scallop border Pacific Point and also stamped the sentiment in the blue. Nice and easy card!

Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Pleasant Poppies, sentiment from Trendy Trees(retired)

Paper: Pumpkin Pie, Pacific Point, Whisper White

Ink: Memento Black, Blendabilities: Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie

Accessories: Sponge, Pumpkin Pie ribbon (retired), Scallop Edge Border Punch

Through the Window for 'Tis The Season

'Tis The Season is back for it's first challenge of 2015 and we've got a color challenge to start off the New Year!

The orange in this combo could be in interpreted a few different ways. You could go for a lighter peach color or a brighter orange, which is the way I leaned. I got the Gentle Peace set as part of a Christmas gift and so I colored it in with shades of blue and orange. For the gold portion of the color challenge I embossed the sentiment in gold and also added a strip of gold glitter paper to separate the top panel from the sentiment area. To help the window image stand out a bit more I put it on an embossed panel of Crumb Cake.

We hope you'll come by 'Tis The Season and play along with us! It's never too early to start getting ready for Christmas 2015!

Stamps: Gentle Peace

Paper: Crumb Cake, Whisper White, Gold Glimmer Paper

Ink: Crumb Cake, Pacific Blue, Tangerine Twist, Blendabilities (Daffodil Delight, Skin Tones)

Accessories: Big Shot, Square Lattice EF, sponge, dimensionals

Winter Thanks for Friday Mashup

Welcome to the first Friday Mashup challenge of 2015! Heidi is our hostess kicking the year off and she wants to see winter projects with snowflakes on them.

I used the Holiday Home set and my snowflakes are on the DSP I used. This card is going to be used as a thank you card for some gifts we received for Christmas. Since my usual card critic moved to AZ I grabbed my 16 yr old son and asked his thoughts. He said it needed more snow so I added Dazzling Diamonds to the roof of the house and the yard. I think his sister got to him because that is definitely what she would have told me also :)

My layout came from the sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches. After adhering it all to the Cherry Cobbler card stock it still seemed blah to me so I ended up doing some paper piercing around the edges of the card and DSP layers.

Head over to The Friday Mashup to check out what the rest of the DT came up with and meet one of our new design team members!

Stamps: Holiday Home

Paper: Sahara Sand, Cherry Cobbler, Whisper White, Trim the Tree DSP

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Blendabilities(Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive, Crumb Cake), Garden Green

Accessories: 2 1/2" Circle Punch, Paper Piercing Kit, Dazzling Diamonds, dimensionals

2014 in Review: July through December

It's New Years Eve, time to say goodbye to 2014 and welcome in 2015. I do hope that if you are out celebrating that you do not drink and drive....it's not worth the drinks you had if something awful should happen so please be safe and smart.

To finish out the year here are my favorites out of cards I made July through December.

July:

This set just really appeals to me and I really like how this card came together. 

August:

I think this is probably my favorite card of the entire year. I love the papers, the colors, the layout (a sketch from Create with Connie and Mary).....everything about this card is just perfect to/for me.

September:

I love the soft colors that give this card an elegant feel.

October:

Another card that is so me. I made it for a friends son and was just thrilled with how it turned out.

November:

This Ugly Sweater set from Simon Says Stamp is right up my alley and I just had so much fun making this card. I smile every time I look at it.

December:

To me this is a fun Christmas card. Traditional colors, a fun scene, snow falling :) Great way to close out the year!

Thank you to those who visited my blog over the course of the year, to those who left comments, to those who provide great challenges for the rest of us to try out, I appreciate it all!

Moosing You

It's my last week of vacation and I finally had some time to stamp and play along with challenges, woooohooo! Hopefully 2015 brings me even more crafting time (fingers crossed).

I had visitors in my yard Sunday and these 2 inspired me. I was really surprised to see them as once again Alaska is having a crappy winter with above normal temps and below normal snowfall. Usually when we don't have much snow the moose stay further up in the hills. I was very glad to see this mama and her calf and I must have stayed outside for over an hour taking photos and just watching them. Mama wasn't bothered by my presence but baby was very curious and at one point I had to retreat back towards the house because baby was headed straight for me. I have no desire to get mama mad at me! One must always keep a safe distance from the wildlife (which many tourists don't seem to understand, but that's a whole other post!).

Mama Moose snacking

Mama and baby

 Baby checking me out with mama's ears visible above the fence

The sketch is from Freshly Made Sketches. Instead of the circle I popped up my moose in that spot and then I added some sequins because the white space to the right of the moose was really bugging me.

SugarPea Designs is having an "anything goes" challenge so this sweet moose and his winter greeting of "moosing you" was perfect for the challenge.

Thanks for stopping by!

*I'm playing along with the Let's Get The Party Started linky party at Paper Issues* (celebrating love, has heart on it).

Stamps: SugarPea Designs Merry Christmoose

Paper: Coastal Cabana (SU), Whisper White (SU)

Ink: SU Blendabilities: Crumb Cake, Coastal Cabana(SU), Real Red (SU)

Accessories: Sequins, sponge, dimensionals

2014 in Review: January through June

It's hard to believe that another year is coming to an end. 2014 has been full of many changes for my family, both good and bad, and will definitely be a year to remember. I'm looking forward to 2015 and what it may bring.

Here is a look at my favorite cards I made in 2014:

January:

I like the colors and layout of this card, it just makes me smile!

February:

This card is nice and simple and I really like that.

March:

I made this for my cousins wedding and it came together perfectly. I didn't fly in for the wedding until 2 days before it happened so I tried to pick colors as close to the wedding as I could and I can't lie, I nailed it and my cousin loved it LOL

April:

I love patriotic cards and supporting those who serve this country. Everything about this card just makes me happy.

May:

This card got one of the biggest responses I've ever had on this blog. I was proud of myself for making it because I'm usually not good at making projects with lots of little details.

June:

I adore this set from SU and am just so pleased with how this card came out.