Asian Beauty & My Great News!

The great news that I've been holding back is finally out of the bag!  Patricia Dunbar asked me to be on her design team for the Paper Temptress!  I'm SO EXCITED!!!  Below is my first post on the Paper Temptresses Blog.  I hope you enjoy it!

My project today  is Asian inspired and I have a little tutorial for you.  This is my first post here so I hope you like it!

First up I used a Sheri Baldy digital stamp for my focal point image, isn’t she cute?  I printed her onto Cryogen White cardstock which has a bit of a shine to it.  I colored her with copics and then carefully cut her out.

I used Whip Cream cardstock for the base and cut it out using Spellbinder’s Grand Labels One.  I used #3 for the outside and #1 for the cut-out on the inside.

 Next I took a 6×6 piece of Bamboo Forest Screenprint and also cut it out using Spellbinder’s Grand Labels One.  This paper is GORGEOUS!  Notice how it shimmers and changes color in the light!  It’s also somewhat transparent as the last photo shows with the dark brown paper behind it.

I layered the card as such:  First the Whip Cream base with cut-out,next theBamboo Forest,then on top I used Brown cardstock also cut with the Spellbinder’s Grand Labels One.

 Here is my card once I put it all together.

 The  reason I cut out a window in the base of the card behind the Bamboo Forest is because of how cool it looks with the light behind the top of the card.

Dontcha just LOVE it?!  Here’s a close up of the Asian girl and of the cherry blossoms which are from Flourishes.

I hope you enjoyed my little tutorial.  May you have an inky weekend!

Here’s a photo I took of the Cryogen White to show the sparkles and then a photo of the image after I colored her with copics as I was cutting her out.  I hope you can see the sparkles!  The Cryogen White is super smooth which makes it an excellent cardstock for using copics on.

I'm entering this card in the following challenge:
Besties Challenge - Sewing or use a button (my button is on the bow)

Fabulous Sale at Paper Temptress

Happy Memorial Day and HUGE sale at Paper Temptress!

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the Cryogen White Iridescent for coloring with Copics and guess what? It's on SALE!  I also LOVE the incandescent paper and Hambly Overlays and screenprints which are also on sale 60% off!  Keep scrolling to see all products on sale at the Paper Temptress!

Patricia posted this in Designer greeting cards on May 25th,2013Happy Memorial Day to all but especially for our soldiers of today and all the soldier’s of yesterday!  Thank you for keeping us safe!  Of course Memorial Day also means great sales so let’s get right to PaperTemptress.com sale!
Patriotic Paper Package 25% off  includes everything to make all the designs below:

The whole Incandescent paperline is 25% off too….the Incandescent line is GORGEOUS…it’s gorgeous finish just doesn’t show thru on a computer screen…this paperline is the main reason PaperTemptress.com doors opened!

And now the best part 40% off the BASIS Paper Package which is one sheet of 20 very popular colors! WOW WOW WOW! and 50% off ALL RIBBON…that’s right ALL RIBBON IS 50% off!

The BASIS pkg of 1 or 2 sheets which contains 20 sheets of a very high quality 80# (base weight)cardstock in the most popular colors is now 40% off. I also HAVE to keep the amazing Vellum Paperline on sale for 25% off too since there is no other paperline that reflects the gorgeous colors of spring's flowers available!

Since the 4th of July is right around the corner this is also a perfect time to offer thePatriotic Variety Package @ 25% too......If that isn't enough (I know I have lost my mind LOL) the whole Incandescent line is also 25% off! The Incandescent line offers the perfect 4th of July colors in a GORGEOUS speciality finish.

Don't forget that PaperTemptress is stocking Hambly Studio's overlays and screenprints that are 60% off too! PaperTemptress is now offering many of the

Overlays and Screenprints in a 6x 6 package that can be used for cardmaking at

a great price!

PaperTemptress has chosen to offer a 10% discount instead of free shipping so everyone gets a discount with absolutely no minimum purchase amount!

Huge Sale! All Hambly Studio Products are 60% off for a limited time only! 20 sheets can be shipped for $3.30 so perfect time to stock up on the very popular Silk Screenprints! See amazing designs using overlays and screeprints here used for home decor, greeting cards, and scrapbook layouts! They are very versatile! All designed by the very talented Alison Kreft now with Webster's Pages!

 

Everyone has absolutely fallen in love with the Cryogen White Iridescent for coloring with Copics. This is what is said by Suzanne J. Dean, an amazing Copic instructor...."I am using Cryogen White now, love it.....it's a mix between a smooth paper & and some with tooth too---lite iridescent too, really pretty and easy to use!" Perfect reason to keep the Cryogen White on sale at 30% discount!

I'm a HUGE fan on the Paper Temptress and I have some great news coming soon to this blog but for now, check out Patricia's great sales!  

Dinosaur card and some news

Hello and welcome to my design team post for MTME's Pretty Patterns challenge.  The news I have for you is kind of sad if you have been enjoying the MTME challenges. They have decided to discontinue the challenges so this is my last DT post for them.  I will, however, still use My Time Made Easy's products because they are just THAT awesome!   

I had a lot of fun making this card.  For the dinosaur image I used Not So Dangerous Dinos.  If you click onto the link it will take you to the store where you can see all 5 of the digi dinos included in this set.  You'll also see some images of a 3-D dinosaur that you can make when adding the dinosaur head with Crazy for Candy  pretty packaging template.  Even if you don't have an electronic cutter for the cut files, this set includes a PDF of the instructions and templates so you can print, cut and assemble your own!

I used Spellbinders Decorative Labels One and Spellbinder's Circles to make the frame.  The digi papers I used on this card are: MTME Minty Chocolate and Un-Wined Vinyard.  The copics I used for this cute little guy are:  BG11, BG13, BG49, RV000, RV00, R81, R83, Y00, Y11  

Please hop on over to the MTME Blog and see what the other designers have made for you to enjoy.  While you are there, I hope you will take a look at the sketch and play along with us!  Let's make this last challenge the BEST!

Thank you for stopping by and don't forget to leave a comment.  I truly appreciate each and every visit and comment.

Princess Jenn

I named this card Princess Jenn because it is going to a very amazing young lady in CT named Jenn.  Jenn is a very special girl with very special needs.  She also has some severe medical problems and is going through a rough time right now.  She LOVES receiving cards so I am making some to send to her.  I'm sure she will like this princess.

For the princess image I used MTME's new digi stamp set Something Magical.  I colored her with copics and cut her out with Spellbinders.

Here's a close-up of the princess.  I've been soooooo tempted to add glitter to her crown and dress but I'm not sure if it's a good idea.  I don't know if Jenn's mom would want glitter all over the house!  *smile*

Here is the angle view so you can see that I popped up the princess and the frame with pop dots.  I love the 3-dimensional look.  The patterned paper I used is from the new MTME digi paper pack Pretty Princess Paper.

Thank you for coming by my blog!  I hope you have a wonderful weekend and please stop by the MTME Pretty Patterns blog post to see what the other design team members have made for you.  I apologize for being so late with my post.  I've been dealing with illness but am glad to have the opportunity to be a part of the MTME Pretty Patterns team.

AND: if you haven't seen My Time Made Easy's February release yet then you NEED to go over and see it!  Don't walk - RUN!!!  *smile*  Lauren has a FREE template for you today as well!

Spellbinders used:
Labels Seventeen & Decorative Labels Eight

You're Turtley Cool!

I can't believe it's almost Valentine's day already!  As a kid I used to love giving and receiving Valentines.  When my kids were younger they liked doing Valentines as well so I thought it would be fun to make a Valentine with today's sketch.  

I used MTME's new release BFF Valentine images for the Turtle and BFF Valentine Sentiments for the sentiment: You're Turtley Cool.  The paper is from the set Minty Chocolate and then I embossed the pink square with a Cuttlebug Word-Filled Hearts which I've had for ages.

I took the digi heart paper and scaled it way down to where I liked it for the turtle's shell.  I then placed the digi turtle on top of it and erased the paper that went beyond the edges of the turtle.  That's how I got the digi heart paper on the turtle's shell.  Another great way to use the digi images and papers!

I hope you will join us at MTME Pretty Patterns sketch challenge.  Please hop on over there and play along!  Thank you for stopping by!  I appreciate each and every visit and comment.

Your Love is My Anchor

It's time for another excellent sketch at My Time Made Easy's Pretty Patterns Blog.  My husband's birthday was this past Sunday so I made a birthday card for him using this week's sketch.  I hope you like it!

Making male cards isn't my forte so I went to the MTME store to see what stamps would be appropriate for my husband's birthday card.  I was pleasantly surprised at all the great stamps MTME has. I used Seas the Day stamp set for the boat and digitally changed the flourishes on the sails of the boat from red to the blue you see in the photo.  I then printed it, colored the wooden parts with copics and then cut it out.  I then printed the sentiment "Your love is my anchor amidst the stormy sea" from the Seas the Day Sentiments.

I already had the background embossed and put away so I forgot which embossing folder I used, but it was perfect!  (If you would really like to know, please post a comment below and I'll be happy to look for it for you.)  I have two cloud dies and a wave die that I used. to add some interest.  I popped up the boat with dimensional adhesive and curled the end of the flag with the sentiment on it.  I thought it gave it an extra pop of fun!

I wanted to be sure and make it a birthday card so as you open it....

you see that I added the birthday wish on the inside!  I used Sentimental Occasions for both the frame and the "Happy Birthday for the inside of the card.

Below is an angel view of my card.  

My husband and I have sure weathered a lot of "storms" together.  In April we will celebrate our 28th anniversary!  We've had plenty of ups and downs during all these years especially with the death of our beautiful daughter, Jessica, just over two years ago.  My husband and I take turns holding each other up during our times of grief and we remind each other of the blessings to come in the here-after when we are reunited with her again.  We have our wonderful sons (3) and a daughter-in-law who bring joy to our lives.  Our marriage has been made even stronger by all the storms and we are thankful for them.  Whatever your storms may be, I hope you have hope that things will get better and that God loves you.  

Thank you so much for stopping by my blog today.  One of my New Year's resolutions is to craft, sew and get back into music.  I feel at my best when I'm being creative and I hope you do too!  Please join us at the MTME Pretty Patterns challenge and have some fun!    

 

Praying for Faith to Uphold You

A dear friend of mine's daughter passed away unexpectedly this past weekend.  It is a sad situation but out of this tragedy came a miracle.  My friend and his wife donated their daughter's organs and there are numerous lives that were saved.  Losing a child is never easy but how wonderful that they thought of others during the most difficult time in their lives.

I used this week's sketch to make a sympathy card to send to my friends.  

I used the sentiment from Sentimentally Yours and digitally colorized the words "Faith" and "Memories".

I took the frame (below) in the set  Sentimentally Yours and colorized it with the same color of blue as the words on the front of the card, added the sentiment "With Deepest Sympathy" in the center, printed it and cut it out.  I then adhered it to the inside of the card.  

Thank you for stopping by.  I hope the new year brings you love, laughter and good health.

Don't forget to stop by the MTME blog and see what other designers have in store for you.

Little Christmas Elf

Christmas is almost here!  I don't know about you but I could use at least another week to prepare!  This week we are having another review.  You can choose between sketches # 48 - #52.  You can see the different sketches on the MTME Blog HERE.  I used sketch #51. 

I made another Christmas card since next week is Christmas.  I used this cute little elf from the set Holly Jolly.  I cut her out and put her on an ornament I made using Spellbinders 2012 Heirloom Ornaments.  I colored her with copics and used Liquid Applique on her collar and the pom-pom on her hat.  

I cut out a poinsettia using Spellbinders Layered Poinsettia and added some yellow pearls to the center.  The paper I used is from Candy Clause.  

I hope you are getting ready for Christmas or any other holiday that you celebrate.  Please stop by the MTME Blog and see what the other designers have in store for you.  

Thank you for coming by today.  I appreciate each and every visit and comment.  

NEW! Gingerbread Box

Just a quick post to tell you about an adorable and festive cut file that Lauren is giving away for FREE!  Head on over to her blog and see the cute boxes and get the coupon code.  I'll be back next week with another sketch challenge sample.  Have a great weekend!

NEW! Gingerbread Box

Christmas Ornament Card

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!!!  Oh yeah, Christmas shopping, baking, decorating, going to parties and of course performances.  My youngest son is performing in Sweeny Todd, one of my nieces is in a dance company and will be performing several times and another niece is in band.  To top it all off, we tore up the 40-year old carpet in living room, old tile in hallway and 40 year old vinyl in the kitchen and re-did all those floors.  We still don'g have it all put back together again.  What fun!  

This week we are to choose a sketch from the weeks of 41 - 47.  I chose to use #46.  The circle on the sketch made me think of a Christmas ornament so I made one!

I printed the red stripped digi paper from Candy Claus and punched out 6 ornaments with my Stampin' Up ornament punch.  I then scored each ornament in half, lined up the back halves and glued them together.   I added some diamond Stickles over the top of each side and smoothed it out with a brush.  I couldn't get a good picture of the glitter but it's there.  I poked a hole in the top, threaded fishing wire the hole and through the back of the bow.  I tied the bow onto the top of the ornament and then tied a knot at the top of the fishing line forming a loop to hang onto the tree.

The card base paper is also from Candy Claus.  I used the banner "Merry Christmas" from our new release, Christmas Swag.  I temporarily put some pop-up dots behind the ornament so it will stay on the card.  The ornament will easily come off the card and can be hung onto a tree. 

I hope you enjoyed my card today.  Please stop on by the MTME Pretty Patterns blog and see the rest of the great samples our team has made for you today.

As always, I appreciate each visit and comment you leave for me.  Hope you enjoy the holidays!

Thankful for You!

November sure came fast, didn't it?  I am getting ready for Thanksgiving and looking forward to having all much of my family together on that day.  What are YOUR plans for Thanksgiving?

Today's card is "Thankful" card in honor of the wonderful holiday we call Thanksgiving that brings so many families together.  

I used MTME's Thankful digi stamp set and I also used the pumpkin from the digi stamp set A Spooky Surprise.  I used my digi program to put them all together in a cluster.  I printed it up, colored it with my copic and use Spellbinder's Labels Eighteen to cut it out.  I then sponged a bit of Stampin' Up's Purely Pomegranate for a contrast around the edges.

I used the digi paper Dainty Damask and Fall Foliage.  I used a die from My Favorite Things called Dizzy Duo.  I added some burgundy seam binding and a small flower from Stampin' Up.  To finish it off I added a little stickles to the flower and the focal point.     

Thank you for coming by and I hope you will stop by the MTME Pretty Patterns Blog and see what the other designers have prepared for you.  Play along for an opportunity to win prizes but most of all to have fun!  

Count Dracula

This cute Dracula image makes me think of Sesame Street's Count.  He's too adorable to be scary!

For today's card I used MTME's The Count digi image.  I digitally removed the extra elements so all I had left was the count.  I colored him with copics and sponged a little Brilliance pearlescent Lavender ink around the raised edge.

The background paper I used is from the Traditional Halloween pack.  Don't you LOVE those little spiders?  The rick-rac I used is shiny... it was hard to get it to photograph easily but it is really pretty in real life.

I used Spellbinder's for the spiderweb and spiders which I popped up to give them more dimension.

Thank you so much for stopping by today.  I appreciate each and every visit and comment!  Hop on over to the MTME Pretty Patterns Blog and play along with us.  

Just Popping By To Say HI!

We have some new neighbors who just moved in across the street.  I found out that one of the daughters was recently diagnosed with diabetes.  I wanted to bake them some cookies or some other treat but didn't want to leave the little girl out so I contacted my cousin who has a son with diabetes.  She recommended taking them some pre-packaged popcorn so they can count the carbs. I immediately remembered the popcorn stamps in the digi sets About to Pop and Night at the Movies so I got started on this card, using this week's sketch of course.

I digitally arranged the popcorn bags and popcorn kernels and printed it up.  Using my spellbinders I cut it out and did some sponging and colored the image with copics. 

I added a little element to the sketch by typing "Just popping by to say HI!" and instead of an "o" I placed a popcorn kernel in it's place.  I think it turned out kinda cute!

The paper I used was from Pop Some Fun.  

Speaking of popping, I popped the main image and the sentiment up with pop dots after I tied the red checked ribbon around the main image.  Below is another angle of the card.  

Here's the sketch for this week.  I turned the sketch sideways so it would fit what I had in mind.  You are free to flip it anyway you want so long as the main sketch can be recognizable.

I hope you will join in the fun and play along with us.  Come and check out what the rest of the design team has in store for you.  Lots of great inspiration!

Thank you for stopping by my blog today.  I truly appreciate each and every visit.  Don't forget to comment - everyone LOVES comments!

Pink Roses

Good Morning!  Today at MTME's Pretty Patterns sketch challenge we have a great new sketch for you try!  Here is the card I made for this challenge.  I hope you like it!

I used the rose digi stamp from  MTME's Grammy's Sewing Kit.  I enlarged it to be the focal image on my card, I printed it up and colored it with copics.  I used RV000, RV00, R81, R83, R85 for the roses and G24 and YG63 for the leaves.  I used a Martha Stewart ink pad for the sponging around the edge of the oval Spellbinder's die.

The background paper is from MTME's digi paper Grammy's Pretty Patterns.  I LOVE this set!  I added a crinkled ribbon bow and placed a dome center from Prima.  I think it added a nice touch. 

Thank you for coming by my blog today.  I hope you will stop on over at My Time Made Easy's blog and see all the other great cards the design team has waiting for you.  I hope you will play along with us.  And as always, I truly appreciate each and every comment!