A Blog Called Wanda

Merry Christmas Snowmen!

HELLLOOOOOOO! As I'm typing this blog post I'm thinking this might be my last Christmas card post for this year! Not sure if I'll have time to make any more Christmas cards or not! I still have a few ideas, and some pretty (unused) stamp sets on my desk! We'll see what happens! I really like this card, so if it's the last one, I'm okay with it! LOL. Merry Christmas 2018!! This card combines stamps from three of my favorite companies. I love to combine stamp sets and dies to make my own design. This card is wintery and cooooooool. 

The finished card is a horizontal A2 card base in white with one other layer, also in white. Pretty simple color palette - white, blue and red. LOVE. I can almost feel a cool breeze go by when I look at this card. Haha. And, who doesn't love tiny snowmen!? 

 

Those big alphabet dies are from Honey Bee Stamps. The snowmen stamps and dies are from Mama Elephant. And the pretty snow background and the 'christmas' word are from Right At Home Stamps. The letters were colored with Distress Inks and the snowmen were colored with Copic Markers. 

 

EEEEEP! How adorable is that guy?? Peeking out from behind the letter! Just saying hi! On the top layer, I used the pretty Snow Flurries background stamp and stamped it in Tumbled Glass Distress Ink. I placed it just on top of the panel. The stamp is huge and would actually fill that whole space! 

 

To make the letters I got a piece of white paper and used a sponge dauber to put down Tumbled Glass and Mermaid Lagoon Distress Inks. Then I splattered snow onto the paper. I dried it really quickly with my heat tool. Then I used the Bee Bold Alphabet dies to die cut out the word M E R R Y. I attached the letters to the center of the card and stamped the sentiment below it in rich black ink. Then I added some cute snowmen!! (I stamped and die cut the snowmen out and colored them with Copics.)

 

This is my paper I used for the letters. I also had sprinkled some clean water onto this panel - before the white snow splatters!! 

 

 

 

 

 

This card has lots going on, but still looks simple and cute! And it has dimension - but will be flat enough to mail! I have loads of ideas for more cards like this!! Never enough time - too many ideas!

 

 

Have a happy, fun, festive and creative day, my friends! XOXO

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Celebrate Christmas!

Hi there! Hope today finds you happy and smiling! I'm having a good week so far. It's my hubs' birthday this week so we did some low key celebrating and there was cake! YAY! My chapter of Tuesdays Together is doing an awesome event today and I'm really looking forward to that. Then before we blink again this year will be in the rear view mirror! 2018 was not a fabulous year so I'm not sad about saying goodbye to it! I need to start making New Year Cards too! EEKS. 

Today I'm sharing another one of my favorite stamp sets from this season. It's called Bells and Baubles and it's from Right At Home Stamps. I LOVE their stamps! Yay! I wanted to put my own twist on this stamp set. So instead of using all the layering stamps, I chose some of the smaller decorative stamps and heat embossed them onto the ornament shaped die cuts. Then I colored them with Distress Inks. Fun! This is an A2 card finished with a white A2 card base. Let's take a look...

 

I cut and folded my white A2 card base. Then I cut a layer of Rock Candy Cardstock (the perfect shade of medium gray) and splattered snow all over that layer! I used a white gel pen to draw some sparkles onto the grey also. Then I heat embossed the sentiment with white embossing powder - in the lower right hand corner. I set that aside to dry. To make the ornaments I die cut the ornament shapes out first. Then I used the small detail stamps to add the designs - also with white heat embossing. I used bright colors of Distress Inks and sponge daubers to add the color to the ornaments. I also splattered snow on them. I really wanted them to look like pastel vintage 60's ornaments!

 

Here is a close up of the sentiment. Such a pretty pretty font! I only used part of the stamp! I used washi tape to crop off the other words so I just had the word 'celebrate' on my card. 

 

For the top of the card, I used the very pretty die set from Hello Bluebird Stamps - called Holly and Pine. It's perfect for winter cards! I die cut the branches from silver cardstock and cut the bow from pink cardstock. Then I added a big ole gem at the top! Silver thread makes for the ornament strings...

 

 

Thanks for coming by today! Hope the rest of your week is fantastic! XOXO See you soon!

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Beep Beep! Hello Christmas!

Hi crafty friends! Happy Weekend! Hope you're out having fun and enjoying the season. I'm finishing up the last of my Christmas projects and posting them. Some stamping companies have already moved on to Valentine's Day projects! EEK! I am running out of time to share holiday cards with you. I have a few more! My cards aren't mailed out yet either! Never enough time at the holidays right?? 

BEEP BEEP! I have a cute and happy card to share on today's post! A little Christmas car, loaded with presents, and driving over the river and through the woods! This card was super fun to make! I used stamps and dies from Ellen Hutson and Impress Stamps...oh and an action wobble too!

 

I started with a red card base, A2 size. Then I used bright white cardstock and die cut it using the pretty Snowfall Backdrop die from Ellen Hutson. I stamped the sentiment in black onto the bottom of the snowy layer and set it aside. I stamped the car stamp and cut it out with some small scissors because I knew I wanted it to pop off the page!

 

It was pretty easy to cut out this stamp - not too many small parts! I used a black pen and wrote the word 'merry' on the license plate! I colored the car in using my Copic Markers in Christmas colors. 

 

I die cut lime green Christmas trees from the Ellen Hutson Winter Window Die set. I tried to create a little forest for my car to drive through. Now the super fun part! I used an action wobble to attach the car to the card! It shakes down the road! LOL! (Kind of like how I drive!). It's super cool in person. Have you ever used action wobbles?? They lay flat for mailing but then they pop up when the person opens the card. 

 

Here's a side view of the wobble! It's a teeny tiny plastic spring! 

 

I love wood mounted stamps....I have a pretty good collection, but I always like to add new ones!

 

 

 

 

That's my card for today! Best wishes for a great week to come! XOXO See you soon!

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Something Different! A crochet project!

Hi everyone! How are you? Hope you're having a great week! My husband has been away for work all week and it's been a crafting marathon here! Lucky and I have been staying up very (too) late every night crafting and watching too much tv! I can't sleep when my husband isn't home so I end up all wonky. I can't wait to see him Friday night! The house seems too big and too creaky when I'm here alone. Anyhoo - lots of crafting happening! LOL. 

If you follow along with me on Instagram and/or Facebook, then you know I've finally learned how to crochet...and I finally finished a project! This quest to crochet started over a year ago. I took some lessons at a local store but it didn't sink in. Then I took some more classes at Michael's. But I just never finished anything. I really wanted to, though! As luck would have it, I recently became aware of TWO awesome knit/crochet meet ups right near my house! I vowed to stick with it, and I joined both of the groups! I have met the loveliest and most talented ladies through the meetings! And, they have encouraged me and helped me along. Yay! I think I'm on my way now! I have finished two scarves and started a blanket. It's so fun now that I know what I'm doing. LOL. I'm doing basic stitches until I get my confidence up. I can't read a pattern yet.  But I'm having a blast. Turns out that yarn people are just like paper people.... Crafty girls are the best. 

Since my blog is also my way of documenting my creative journey,  I wanted to post about my first project here! I'm sure that a lot of you are also yarn hoarders?! Am I right? I have found that it's been good for my creative juices to do something different. New ways to look at colors and textures and try something that challenges me. I'm loving it so far. I have oodles of yarn already and projects in my mind. I'm going to start a journal to remember everything. Oh, and of course a Pinterest Board! 

Here's my finished scarf - and styled the way I wore it out the other day. HOW fun to receive compliments and say "I made it!" Love that. It's simple, really. Just row after row of double crochet stitches until I ran out of yarn. Then I added fringe to the bottom. Well, because, fringe is better! 

 

In progress... I accidentally threw away the label for the yarn! But I did some research and found out the brand and type. It doesn't have a dye lot system because each skein is hand dyed. It's called Malabrigo. It's all my favorite deep rich Fall colors. SO so pretty! One of the cool things about this hobby is that it's so easy to bring it with you. You just need your project, yarn, hook and scissors and off you go! 

 

I am totally addicted to this type of yarn - that has multiple colors in it. I like watching how the colors match up as you stitch along. And it looks so pretty when it's finished. I think it's easier to hide my mistakes too!! 

 

 

Thanks for stopping by and for sharing something new and different with me! I hope your day is extra fabulous! XOXO

AMAZON LINK TO MALABRIGO YARN

Your Friendship Warms My Heart!

Hi crafty friends and Happy Monday! I hope you had a most delightful winter weekend! We have been very busy - that's how December is right? Going, going, going all the time! I love it though. There are so many fun things to do! Craft shows, lights, shopping, coffee, friends... It's awesome. This weekend we went to a beautiful barn market not too far from our house, and I'll share some photos of it at the bottom of my post, after the card. I loooove stuff like that! Being outside on a beautiful winter day, seeing the handmade goods. I'm going to wrap up the rest of my Christmas cards this coming week I think. Time to start the process of addressing and mailing them out. (I'm bad at that part)! 

Now, on for my card for the day. I COULD NOT WAIT TO SHARE THIS!!! OMG these new stamps from Concord & 9th called "Winter Wear" are maybe the most adorable stamps everrrr. I was smitten like a mitten right away! I bought them and had them sitting on my desk when I woke up one night at 2am with an idea! Ha! So that next morning I stamped and colored and tried again until I was able to execute my idea. I'll explain later! Here's the finished card...

 

These stamps!! Oh gosh, how much fun to make this card! The face, the scarf, the hat and the glasses are all different stamps so you can mix and match. There are two girl faces and several other accessories - so you can make it however you want. I love it when I can customize things. So I made this girl to look like me! She has glasses...and she loves buffalo plaid and she's wearing a snowflake pin - just like me! So the idea that woke me up at 2am was that she needed a buffalo plaid scarf! This scarf stamp is NOT checkered. I did that with my Copic Markers. Yes, it took a while, but I love the result!

 

 

This card started with an A2 card base is vivid Christmas red! I layered vellum and then kraft paper. On the vellum paper I splattered Copic Opaque White with a toothbrush to look like snow flurries. On the kraft layer, I used the Concord & 9th Swirls Dies to make snow swirls. Then I stamped snowflakes in white over that. Finally, I used sponge and white ink to go around the top edges. 

I stamped and die cut the pieces out and colored them all with markers. Then I heat embossed the sentiment with white embossing powder onto black paper. I like that look on a sentiment. It makes it pop! In this photo you can see all the layers. 

For accents I added some die cut snowflakes and pearls. I also added a bit of glitter shimmer to the brim and pom pom on the hat. It's frosty out there, you know! One of my signature pieces during winter is to wear a snowflake brooch. I have two that I love and I wear them all the time. So I die cut a tiny snowflake and made her (me!) a brooch. 

 

 

 

Supplies for this card are at the bottom of my post! You're going to want these fun stamps and dies I know it! Endless combinations of fun cards for gal pals!! Can't wait to make some more! IN the photo below you can where I got my ideas! LOL. Mark took this photo at the Barn Market on Friday. My new haircut is kinda short but I'm happy and that's what matters. XOXO

 

 

Here are a few photos I took at the H3 Barn Market on Friday. It's in Rescue California, which isn't too far from my house. Mark and I had a delightful time there! So peaceful and beautiful. The vendors were great and so so talented. The weather was perfect. It reminded us of an old fashioned Christmas - lovely! Big shout out to Laura, the proprietor, for creating something so special. I can't wait to go back.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I hope you have the best, blessed, happy, fun and creative week ahead! XOXO

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Christmas Joy Card with Tim Holtz Stamps and Dies!

Hey there crafty friends! How's your week going? It feels like Winter and now it's only a month until Christmas! My studio is FULL of Christmas crafty projects and new stamps and I'm having a hard time keeping up with it all. I want to use everything, but I'm running out of time! Eeeeeek! I want to stamp, and make treats, and crochet, and decorate! Trying to cram it all in to my favorite time of year! How's your holiday planning coming along?? Yesterday Lucky and I did a Christmas card photo shoot and I got some adorable pictures of him. Christmas cards were ordered late last night. Check! Enjoy your day my friends!

Today's card is a Vintage/Retro/Old Fashioned Christmas card! I LOOOOOVE everything Tim Holtz for Christmas, don't you?? No one does it like Tim! Everything is so pretty and fun to play with. This card started with me coloring those pretty Blueprints stamps one day... Then another day I made the stenciled background.... And they went together perfectly! The finished card is A2 size made from woodgrain paper splattered with white paint to look like snow. 

I stamped the Holly and Poinsettia onto watercolor paper with Versafine Ink. I watercolored the images with my Distress Markers and a water brush. EASY PEASY! After I colored the images I inked the edged with brown ink. I also added snow splatters and a tiny bit of blue ink (marker) around the edges of the images. Here's a close up....

I used the Tim Holtz Sizzix Festive Greens Dies to make some leaves to tuck in between the images. I colored those with Distress Ink pads and a sponge dauber. I like to have just that bit of a spray there! Makes the card have more texture. 

Now for this stencil! It's called Peppermint - of course! I used a small sponge dauber and red ink to ink the stencil onto watercolor paper. Next I used a water brush to blur the lines of the edges. Then I sprayed it with clean water for some water droplets effect. Next I splattered it with Copic Opaque White ink. FINALLY I inked the edges with Vintage Corduroy DIstress Ink! OOHHHH LA LA! At first I wondered if I ruined a perfectly good stenciled paper... But this look really grew on me! 

 

 

 

 

I used the Holiday Words Script Dies from Sizzix and die cut the word joy out. I inked it with Black Distress Ink and glued it onto the card. I like this die set because the scale is small - and I needed a little word right in that spot!

 

 

 

Thanks for stopping by! What's on your holiday agenda for this weekend? Tell me what you're up to! XO

 

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Right at Home Stamps - Coffee with a Friend!

Helloooo! So happy to see you today! Happy Monday....and don't look now, but it's almost December! Cheers to a good week ahead. I'm getting my hair cut and going to stamp night and then crochet meet up...lots of fun things planned. Our college rivalry football game was rescheduled because of the fires so we'll head down to Berkeley on Saturday for the game. So excited for Winter activities and being out in the now fresh air. 

Today I have a super fun card to share with you, made with stamps from one of my favorite stamp companies - Right at Home! Gosh, I love Nicole and her creative and innovative stamp designs. I'm a huge fan of this girl and love to stamp with her products. I'm happy to see her following grow and see her company thrive. I love it when good things happen to good people. I'm happy she invites me along sometimes on her creative journey. 

My card today features the Cuppa Friendship Stamp set with matching dies...and the awesome large Woodgrain Background stamp. This stamp set is not necessarily a Christmas set, but I made a Christmas Friendship card by choosing red, green and gold as my colors and adding snowflakes to the background. I love their big chunky scarves - so fun to color. The finished card is an A2 card base from kraft cardstock. 

 

To start, I stamped and die cut out the girls and the word bubble (HOW CUTE IS that???) and colored them in with my Copic Markers. I added white highlights over my coloring by using a white gel pen. I resisted the urge to glitter.... 

 

The sentiment was heat embossed with gold embossing powder onto an olive green piece of cardstock. I chose that color to match the green Copics in the coloring so it all works together. I layered the green piece over some heart patterned paper from Sunny Studio Stamps. 

 

The woodgrain background layer was made by using the large background stamp and stamping it with Versamark ink for a subtle watermark effect! I love how that came out! TIP: You will need a mega mount rocker (see supplies) or some other jumbo stamping block to use this stamp! I used white ink and added snowflakes to the background.

 

 

 

I'm going to be using that "hey girl" stamp a lot! SO many uses for that one! EEP. The girls and the word bubble were attached to the card using foam tape. 

Thank you for coming by today! Be sure to visit the RIGHT AT HOME BLOG for more fun inspiration from this great company. I know you're going to love it! Have a wonderful week. XOXO

 

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Merry, Merry, Pretty Layered Trees!

Hey everyone! How was your Thanksgiving!? And, did you go shopping yesterday?? Our Thanksgiving was really nice. We stayed home all day, and it rained ALL DAY! It was fabulous and cozy and perfect. Since it's just two of us here, I made us an Italian dinner for Thanksgiving. Baked rigatoni, salad and garlic bread...and of course pie! Sometimes I cook us an entire turkey dinner but this year I wasn't in the mood. We watched movies and I crafted... No running around all crazy like we do some years. Usually on Black Friday we are the crazy ones up at 4am and out shopping, but this year we didn't go! Again, it was pouring rain all day and we both felt like staying in and relaxing. Mark ran out to Lowe's and got us a new Shop Vac but other than that we didn't buy anything! Go us! I have been spending so much time decluttering and it felt good to not bring more stuff into our home. I'll venture out shopping next week sometime. Anyhoo - happy weekend! I've been doing lots of crafting, so I have projects to share!

I'm pretty quick to know what I like when I see new crafting supplies. Something usually grabs my attention right away or it doesn't. Well...when I first saw a project on Instagram made with the new Pretty Pink Posh Layered Tree Dies....I was like POW! Yes! I need that asap! Hahahaha. It's a set of dies that make a beautiful Christmas tree that you can layer. Genius and so so pretty. I chose to ink up some trees using Distress Inks... Then later I made some backgrounds for them - also with Distress Inks. Here are my two finished cards. Both cards are on white A2 card bases. 

 

To make the trees, I used shades of green Distress Inks on the pieces. I used the small sponge daubers to do the blending. Each piece is not very big by itself so the small daubers are perfect. After the ink was dry, I splattered white ink over them to look like snow! I also used a clear Wink of Stella pen to splash shimmer onto the tree pieces. I attached the pieces together using foam tape. The star, trunk and some ornaments are all included in the die set. 

 

For the backgrounds I used the brand new Swirls Dies from Concord & 9th. Another awesome genius product. I used them on another card too - to share later. I die cut the swirls into the paper layer and then inked shades of blue ink, keeping the color lighter in the center. I also splashed Wink of Stella pen onto this background layer. SOOOOO pretty! I added the Wink of Stella to the star too. 

 

The Merry word was die cut from silver cardstock from my stash. The die is very large and actually says Merry and Bright! I used a pair of detail scissors to cut the word Merry out of the bigger die cut. It's the exact right size for this space! I glued it on using clear glue. 

 

Here is my tree in my work space. You can see the dies in the background. LOVE. 

 

 

 

The next card has a super bright red background! I made the card the same exact way as the first one. But with a red background and a gold word die. I also decided to add a snippet of black paper with the word Christmas embossed in white. I felt like that was A LOT of red so I wanted to break it up with some black. 

 

 

 

Those swirls....sigh... They are so pretty! 

Okay, that's it for me! I'll be back on Monday with a really cute coffee themed card made with supplies from Right at Home! Looking forward to sharing so much with you in the coming weeks. Take care and have a wonderful day! XOXO

 

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Happy Thanksgiving 2018 - Counting My Blessings!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

BEST WISHES FOR A BEAUTIFUL HOLIDAY

FROM MY HOME TO YOURS! 

Hey everyone! Happy Thanksgiving 2018! I hope that you enjoy a great day with family and friends and that you feel loved and blessed. Whether you are partying with 50 relatives or enjoying a peaceful small gathering at home I hope that you have a good time. It's the one day of the year when we pause and reflect on our blessings outwardly. It's so important right now. The world is crazy and it's important to find some peace. I'm sending you a virtual hug right now! Normally I do not post a card on Thanksgiving, but I made this card last week and it seemed perfect to save it for today. Enjoy!

I used four different stamp sets from one of my new favorite companies - Hello Bluebird - to make this card. Their stamps and so sweet and adorable, and oh so fun to color! I used Copic Markers to color all the images and I made a pretty Distress Ink background for the card base. I am REALLY into blended ink backgrounds right now! The finished card is an odd size. I needed room at the top for the sentiment. So the finished card is 4" x 6".  

 

This sentiment set is gorgeous! Big words in a scripty font and then lots of smaller words to mix and match with them. That is one of my favorite ways to do sentiments. I stamped the sentiments in rich black ink at the top of my card after the distress ink was dry.  I stamped it first and then rearranged all the other images below it, starting with that tree branch. 

 

This little deer and his squirrel friend are enjoying a day out in the Autumn forest together. They are all ready for a pumpkin feast! Maybe they will make a pie! LOL. I really had so much fun coloring all the pieces. I kept the color palette warm and Fall-ish so that it would all go well together. 

 

 

 

Here is my blended background before I put all the images on. I am totally in love with Peacock Feathers ink right now. And that color looks so pretty with orange and yellow. I left a bit of white space in between the yellows and the blues so they wouldn't make green there in the middle. I splattered some white ink too. In order to get this pretty blend, be sure to use the Tim Holtz Ink Blending tool. I've tried everything and that's the only way I can get this to work. Oh, and use LOTS of ink. 

 

 

 

 

 

Everything is attached to the card using foam tape. I love the dimension!

 

 

That's it for today! It's time to start cooking! I count all of you in my list of blessings. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving! XOXO

 

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Hello card with Sizzix Tim Holtz Funky Foliage Dies!

Hi friends! How are you doing? It's almost Thanksgiving! Wow. Are you in holiday prep mode? Are you traveling? I hope you have a great week, whatever it is you're doing! This was a strange week here in Sacramento. There is a horrible, huge wildfire burning about 75 miles Northeast of us and we have been inundated with awful smoke for going on a second week now. I've never seen anything like it. On Thursday last week, Sacramento had the worst air quality IN THE ENTIRE WORLD. Whoa. School is cancelled, everything is cancelled and it is so terribly sad. They are telling everyone to stay indoors. And, I repeat, this is 75 miles away. Gosh. I've been depressed the entire time. Thinking about those poor families. The thick smoke is a constant reminder of what is happening. I pray for my fellow Californians and pray for rain. My heart is heavy and I am again reminded to be so grateful for the blessings I have. Hug your loved ones a bit tighter this Thanksgiving and let the small things go. 

Today I'm sharing a card I made with the super cool new Funky Foliage Dies from Sizzix and Tim Holtz. They've been sitting on my desk for at least a month and I just needed some time to ink them up. The other day I finally just sat down and did it! These dies have all kinds of foliage in a cool retro style: mushrooms, ferns, flowers, leaves, branches... Perfect to create a forest scene. I love the little mushrooms the best. All the coloring of the die cuts was done with distress ink pads. The finished card is an A2 size. 

 

I die cut all the pieces out of watercolor paper so they are nice and thick. I used pretty shades of distress ink pads, water, and a paint brush, to color the images in. I dried them with my heat tool. (when it's cold outside I used my heat tool a lot more to dry watercolors and even my Copic coloring!). After the pieces were dry, I went back and splattered Vintage Photo ink onto all of them. 

 

The 2nd layer and the top layer are Cream cardstock. I used the pretty leaves from the Nature's Wonder stamp set to stamp my own background paper with Antique Linen ink. I stamped the sentiment in brown ink. Both cream layers were inked around the edges using distress ink and a big sponge dauber. 

 

I used a bit of Rock Candy Distress Glitter on the mushrooms and leaves for just a hint of sparkle and vintage feeling. Here's a close up of the layers and the background stamping. 

 

 

 

I arranged two different clusters on the card front. Usually when I'm making a card like this I will stamp/die cut and color a bunch of pieces and then mix and match them until I get the look I want. This arrangement took a while! I wanted to use ALLLLL the pieces!

That's it for today. Much love and good wishes for a safe and happy Thanksgiving week. If you're traveling - have a great journey! I'll be back on Thursday with a Thanksgiving card. Until then, take care friends. XOXO 

 

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Fun Christmas Cards with Flora and Fauna Stamps!

Hi crafty friends! What's up this week? I'm not up to too much around here. Later today I'm meeting up with my friend Wendy for some girl talk and lunch but other than that, the week is pretty mellow. I am getting over a cold and trying to lay low and take care of myself. I'm feeling my age in aches and pains lately. Getting old ain't for sissies - whoever said that was right on the money. Learning to show myself grace and slow down when I need to. That's hard for me - the girl who's been going 100 miles an hour her entire life and was born with a day planner in her tiny hand. But, God has a way of showing us the next steps.... The fuzzy blankets are on the bed and we are all ready for snuggle season. Lucky loves to burrow into a blanket and hide out - he's a world class snuggler for sure. 

Today I'm sharing a couple of sweet and simple Christmas cards made with the wonderful stamps from Flora and Fauna Clear. I love their style and love to sit and mix and match my stamp sets to create scenes. Today it's a llama and a reindeer-icorn! LOL. Some pretty patterned paper and watercolors make for quick one layer cards that are sure to make someone smile! Both ards are A2 and are the kraft prefolded cards from Scrapbook.com (supplies at the bottom of my post). I like these notecards because the kraft is a bit darker and earthier. 

 

This adorable mini reindeer set comes with a unicorn horn! EEP. It's a little Christmas unicorn reindeer thingee. Ha! I used some branches to frame it and stamped some snow too. I used a brush and clean water to smudge the aqua ink a bit to look water colored. The images on both cards were colored with Daniel Smith Watercolor Dots. 

 

 

 

A few Nuvo Crystal Drops in red for holly berries! 

 

 

 

Fleece Navidad! OMG I loooooove this! That little llama with his festive scarf! I made him out Christmas tree shopping! I stamped a couple of trees and then stamped the banner in between then. Doesn't he look like he's out on the lot? These stamps seriously just make me smile. They are so whimsical and cheerful. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cheerful wishes to you! As always, be sure to pop over to the Flora and Fauna Blog to show them some love! Thanks for coming by today to see me. Have a blessed and creative day! XOXO

 

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Watercolor Butterflies - You Make Me Smile!

Good morning and happy Monday! Today I'm sharing a project I made as part of Tonic Studios' Nuvember celebration. This month, they are celebrating all things Nuvo, and we love Nuvo! I chose to feature the Watercolor Pencils as my product choice. I used some more new stamps from Elizabeth Crafts and created a soft and pretty card with butterflies and other garden creatures. Thank you to Tonic Studios for sponsoring this fun event! I hope you have a wonderful week! 

When I first started stamping, my favorite medium was watercolor pencils. They are a super easy and inexpensive way to get a lot of different looks. You can achieve a soft wash or color, or go more intense with it. I still get out my watercolor pencils often - do you? My card is an A2 made from a pretty kraft folded card from Scrapbook.com (supplies listed below). 

 

 

I stamped and die cut the butterflies, bee and snail using watercolor paper. I watercolored them using the pretty Nuvo Watercolour Pencils. Then it was a matter of arranging them onto the card panel. The top layer is also watercolor paper. I splattered it with water mixed with Vintage Photo Distress Ink. The sentiment is from a pretty stamp set from Hello Bluebird.

 

All of the critters were attached to the card using foam tape. I added a few sprinkles of green glitter enamel dots for a bit more color.

 

 

 

 

On Instagram, Tonic Studios are celebrating all things Nuvo throughout ‘Nuvember’. Check out Tonic Studios USA on Instagram and get all the details - or click the graphic below! Have a wonderful day! See you soon. XOXO

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Queen And Company Happy Harvest Shaker Card Kit - Fall Greetings!

Happy Weekend Crafty People! Happy Saturday! I have Thanksgiving on my mind, and making the last few projects for Fall. It's been busy in the studio and there's a mix of Christmas stamps and Fall stamps pretty much scattered everywhere! Just a couple of weeks now until Turkey Day and I can't wait. I am debating putting up some Christmas decorations but, nah... Not quite yet. I love the warm tones so I'm not ready! What are you up to this weekend? 

Today's project is a card I made with the brand new, beautiful, latest shaker card kit from Queen and Company. This one is called Happy Harvest and it's right up my alley! It has a pretty fall color paper pad, a wonderful stamp set (maybe my favorite one yet from Queen and Co), dies, and everything you need to make cool shaker cards. I looooove these kits - I know you're used to me saying it. SUCH a good value for the money. CHECK IT OUT here. The kit is on sale right now too! Woot!

My card started with an A2 card base in cream cardstock. I layered a bit of woodgrain cardstock from my stash. Then all the other papers are from the kit. Pretty stripes and polka dots... I used a bunch of the papers. 

 

I made the cute little acorn shaker using the included paper pad and the included gems and pearls in warm tones. I wrapped a bit of twine around the card and paper layers. I used one of the shaker elements dies (the oak leaf) and die cut leaves to put behind the acorn. It's so cute! I stamped the sentiment using brown ink, and again on cream cardstock.

 

 

 

I'm so glad I got this kit - because I know I will use these sentiments on lots of things. The font combinations are wonderful! 

 

 

That's it for today! Happy Harvest! CLICK HERE to check out the kit - or click on the photo below. I hope you have an outstanding weekend! I will see you soon my friends! XOXO

QUEEN & COMPANY HAPPY HARVEST KIT!

 

Reverse Confetti New Release Blog Hop! November 2018!

Hi my crafty friends! How's your week going? I hope it's been an awesome one! I'm so happy it's November and Fall activities are happening. The nights are cool now and life is good! Today we're blog hopping to launch the brand new November product release from Reverse Confetti! Woot! Pretty, fun, and fabulous new stamps, dies and paper launch TODAY! Yes! There's a lot of winter crafting stuff and COFFEEEE! Yes, brand new coffee stamps and dies. I always love a coffee themed craft project. I know you're going to love this release. CLICK HERE TO SHOP WHAT'S NEW at Reverse Confetti! The full blog hop list and the shopping links are at the bottom of my post. Hope you enjoy this fun and inspirational hop! You should have arrived here from the wonderful blog of Amy Rohl! 

I made two cards to share today - used my Copic Markers and some fun ink blending techniques too. I'm really into ink blending backgrounds lately! So much fun to customize your own background paper colors for cards. Let's get started! 

First up is a BRIGHT coffee card! (Get out your sunglasses!) I used the brand new "Drink More Coffee" stamps and dies for this one. I looooove the sentiments in this stamp set. I chose to use the Sun's Up Mug's Up sentiment and that is what inspired my bright yellow background. This is an A2 sized card with a white card base. 

 

I started by making this fun background. The background die is one of my favorite products from Reverse Confetti. I used it quite often. It's the Stitched Rays cover. I used two shades of yellow Distress Inks and went over it with looooots of color. I dried all that ink with my heat gun and then splattered clean water on it and Copic Opaque White splatters. I set that aside to make the rest of the card. 

 

I stamped and die cut the cup, saucer and spoon and colored them all with Copic Markers. I also die cut the coffee die and splattered it with white paint. I die cut a white circle and stamped the sun rays in yellow behind where I wanted to put the coffee cup. Then I layered the coffee cup and saucer onto the white circle. 

 

The sentiment was white heat embossed onto a strip of vellum - I did this to let the yellow show through, but also to tone it down just a little bit. I love sentiments on vellum! 

 

 

 

Next up is an adorable little bunny and his birdie friend sledding by to say hello! I used the brand new "Snow Buddies" stamps and dies for this card. I started with an A2 card base in white and then layered dark aqua and kraft. The snow mound was made by die cutting a circle die from white paper and trimming it to fit over the kraft layer. Easy peasy! I stamped the snow flakes in white ink onto the kraft. 

 

 

Sweetest sentiment! I stamped and die cut out the snow bunny and his sled and colored them with Copic Markers. I added bits of Diamond Stickles too! 

 

Everything is layered onto the card using foam tape. I used another new set called "Snowflake Magic" to create the small let it snow sentiment. 

 

 

Thank you SO very much for joining me today on my stop on this fun and fabulous blog hop! Hip Hooray for the brand new Reverse Confetti November Release! The entire release is available for shopping now! What is on your wish list? Hope you find something to tickle your creative fancy. Enjoy the hop! Next up is the awesome Heather Hoffman! Full blog hop list below! XOXO

 

BLOG HOP LIST FOR TODAY!

Reverse Confetti Blog
Amy Kolling
Melissa Phillips
Amy Sheffer
Lydia Fiedler
Tricia Barber
Kelly Lunceford
Lisa Henke
Leanne West 
Amy Rohl
Wanda Guess
Heather Hoffman
Therese Calvird
Amy Tsuruta
Kathy Schweinfurth
Michelle Short
Audrey Tokach
Melissa Bickford 
Jeanne Jachna
Olga Moss
Ali Farmer
Deanne Kuntz

 

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY!

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Jingle All the Way! Honey Bee Stamps Deerly Loved Release!

Greetings and happy Monday! Let's kick this week off right with a happy, cheerful snowman! Did you have a good weekend? It was my birthday this weekend and I had a very nice weekend indeed. Friday we went shopping and walking all day, outside at this pretty mall and I got some new presents... And spent way too much money at Sephora! Yikes. I love that place! Then we had a day of rest and watched movies... Sunday I worked all day at the Voting Center and that was great too. Lots happening. Oh, and did I mention it was 85 degrees??? So, I am totally in the mood for a snowman! I need fog and rain, and I need to wear a sweater. Dang!! This is very unusual weather indeed. I'm trying to get my Christmas spirit going! 

Honey Bee Stamps launched a new release last week called Deerly Loved, and it has the cutest and best new stamps, dies and stencils for Winter Holidays! CHECK IT OUT here! I fell in love with the Jingle all the way sentiment set and knew that's what I wanted to use first. Paired with an adorable snowman and you have today's card! This card makes me smile. 

I started with a white A2 card base from Neenah Solar White cardstock. The top layer is Bristol Cardstock - because it really holds up well to all that Distress Ink! The background was made with two shades of blue DIstress Inks and heat embossing. YUM. 

 

After I made my background, I stamped the snowman, his hat, scarf and birdie, and colored them in with my Copics. I added accents with a white gel pen, and then some Diamond Stickles for a bit of sparkle. The plaid on his scarf was made with the white gel pen. I colored it red first with Copic Markers and then just made diagonal lines across the red. SO easy! 

 

To make the background, I die cut the scallop rectangle from Bristol paper. I used Broken China and Chipped Sapphire DIstress inks and an ink blending tool to add the color in a circular motion, with the lighter color in the center. Oops! First things first! I heat embossed the sentiment and the snowflakes in white embossing powder first! The distress inks were applied over the top of the embossed parts. I love this effect! I used the Distress Sprayer to sprinkle water droplets onto the ink for some blotches. Then I used a small paint brush and Copic Opaque White to add snow splatters! 

 

This is the background before adding the water drops and white ink splatters. I like it this way too...

 

I attached the snowman onto the card base using foam tape. How cute is that little bird sitting on top of his hat? So fun! This stamp set comes with so many cute accessories - you can make your snowman a million different ways! 

That's it for today! Have a wonderful, happy week! I will see you back here on Thursday to launch the brand new release from Reverse Confetti! XOXO

 

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY!

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Pinkfresh Studio Holiday Cards Blog Hop!

Hi everyone! Happy November! Time to get in the spirit of the holidays! The rest of the year is coming fast and we're here today to help you plan out your holiday cards! I'm so excited to be part of this awesome Pinkfresh Holiday Cards Blog Hop today! This is a huge TWO DAY blog hop with fun, inspiration, prizes and a free gift with your order too! Please CLICK HERE to see the entire beautiful line of holiday stamps and dies from Pinkfresh Studio - one of my favorite companies! CLICK HERE to go to the Pinkfresh Blog to see all the details each day, or if you get sidetracked along the hop! The full list of all the designers is at the bottom of my post! Grab some cocoa and relax with us and get inspired for the Winter Holidays! Thank you for coming by today. If you're new to my blog - welcome welcome! Glad to see you! 

I made two cards to share today - one is icy blue and the other is warm and extra sparkly. Both are made with gorgeous stamps and dies from Pinkfresh in their truly unique whimsical and pretty style. The images are happy and they make me happy too. 

First up is a Magical Chrisma-corn! I just made that up! A Christmas Unicorn! Love her! She is flying through the air to spread glitter and sparkle over everyone. This stamp set is called Magical Christmas. Love. The card base is A2 in white. Then I layered red, some pretty patterned paper, and then vellum. I love the look of vellum over patterned papers... 

 

I stamped and die cut out the Christmas Unicorn and then colored her mane and tail with Copic Markers in red and green. Her horn is silver embossed and the scarf is red ink. The head, body, scarf, and horn are all different stamps - so you can make them different colors. Genius I'd say! Made it so easy to stamp a red scarf and emboss the horn. I used a bit of white twine and pretty small silver bells to put around her neck. She is a Chrisma-corn after all!

 

The sentiment and the snowflakes were stamped onto the vellum with white pigment ink. I also used Copic Opaque White to make snowy splatters onto the vellum. Be sure to set that aside and let it get good and dry before attaching it to your card. 

 

Isn't she beautiful? 

 

Next up are these adorable bunnies skating by to say hello and Merry Wishes! This card was made with the Pinkfresh Skating Bunnies stamps and dies. I used an icy blue and grey color palette for this card. I love how it came out! This is also an A2 white card base. I layered grey and then pretty plaid patterned paper on a diagonal.. 

 

I stamped and die cut the bunnies and colored them with Copic Markers. I die cut a circle for them to skate on and used Distress Ink and a blending tool to make a pretty matching blue sky. I stamped snowflakes in blue onto the sky portion. I also splattered some of the same Copic Opaque White as on the first card. (Supplies are all listed below). 

 

They are just so so sweet skating around. The one on the left reminds me of John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever! He's going for it out on the ice! This card is perfect for any winter holiday occasion. 

 

I glued on a few sparkly blue gems at the end to finish off the card. 

 

 

Now for the good stuff! Prizes and Free GIfts! Pinkfresh Studio will be picking SIX random comments from the designer blog posts, from each day to win a $25 gift card to the Pinkfresh Studio store. That's twelve total prizes! How awesome is that? AND - there will be TWO GRAND PRIZES picked from the Pinkfresh Blog posts: each day a different bundle of their holiday stamps & dies. (The prizes will be pictured each day on the Pinkfresh blog).

Pinkfresh Studio will pull the winners & post them on Sunday, November 11th by 2pm CST on their GIVEAWAY PAGE. Note: You must check that page & claim your prize within 2 weeks.

BUT WAIT!  Pinkfresh is also offering a FREE Holiday Vibes die with $25 purchase in the Pinkfresh Studio shop.  A photo of the free die is below! Yay!

 

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY!

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FULL LIST OF TODAY'S DESIGNERS! ENJOY THE HOP!

An InLinkz Link-up

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Happy Halloween from A Witch Called Wanda!

Hi crafty friends! Happy Halloween!! Man, how did that happen? Tomorrow is NOVEMBER??? I say that every year, but doesn't the time go so fast lately? It's still warm here and I guess that hasn't really put me in the Halloween mood. Supposed to be 80 degrees here today! Yikes. I'm ready for sweater time! I've been working a lot in the studio making fun projects for next month. Lots to share!! I took all of my Election Worker training classes last week so now I'm on call to work at a voting center. And I'll be working every day at the center the days right before the election. I have to say that the behind the scenes of setting up an election are fascinating! I've really enjoyed being part of things and learning more about the laws surrounding voting. I am glad I signed up to do it! In bigger news my birthday is on Saturday! Woot! Not sure what we'll be doing. I'm happy with a low key birthday to be sure.... The hubs and I will find something fun to do. I am not that psyched about another year under my belt so to speak. 

Today I'm sharing a fun Halloween card made with a stamp named after me! I looooove wood mounted RUBBER stamps and buy them as often as I can! My friend Lindsay Ostrom is a local artist and she illustrates stamps for Impression Obsession! (VERY cool stamps I might add). I almost always buy her wood stamps. Well, imagine my surprise to find out that she made one called Witch Wanda! And she has a kitty! Awesome. I inked up Witch Wanda with my Polychromos Pencils on Kraft paper.... Kept a clean layout.... Used my favorite Ellen Hutson Background die... There you have it. Happy Halloween!  

 

There are three layers of Kraft cardstock on this card: The card base (A2), the background die/embossed layer, and the top layer with the image. I added just a touch of a hint of purple cardstock under that top layer. I like to layer the same color cardstock - it gives added dimension without having a ton of colors going on. I do this a lot with white cardstock also. Coloring with pencils on Kraft is a great technique to shake it up and get a different look. (The Halloween die is from SSS and unfortunately is not available anymore). I added some bitty bats from an old style punch. 

 

When you color with pencils, make sure to utilize that white pencil to add highlights! It makes your project pop! 

 

 

 

And there she is! Witch Wanda! LOL!

 

 

I hope you have a FUN HALLOWEEN with no tricks and lots of treats! Are you dressing up? We'll stay home and hang out and wait for trick or treaters. We don't get a ton of kids on our street but I love to see their costumes and pass out candy! I'll be back tomorrow with a fun blog hop for Pink Fresh Studio! Yay! See you then. XOXO

 

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY:

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Halloween Cuties from Elizabeth Crafts!

Hey there! How's your week going? I'm spending the day in training today for working the election in a couple weeks! Should be interesting! ALLLLL day training. Gosh, it's been a while for that! Looking forward to seeing what's up and what I'll be doing during election week. I hope your week is going great so far. Today I'm sharing a card I made with some SUPER cute stamps I bought at the Stamp and Scrapbook Expo last weekend. I literally could not wait to ink these up! They are from Elizabeth Crafts. Although Elizabeth Crafts is definitely not new to me, this new line of stamps (a new artist) was new to me and I BOUGHT EIGHT SETS! I couldn't help myself. They are so sweet and whimsical and adorable!! CLICK HERE to see all of them! EEKS! Love. 

I used the Halloween stamps and dies to make this card. I used my Distress Ink Mini Ink Pads and a small paint brush to do the coloring. I wanted it to look like illustrations! I used a clean and simple card layout with some cute gingham and just a bit of glitter and twine. This is an A2 card size with the fold on the left side. 

 

A little twine bow on the side fold always looks cute and cheerful! I stamped the sentiment directly onto my top layer. Simple layers here of gingham, black and white cardstock. All the little images were stamped and die cut out and attached with foam tape. 

 

To color everything, I used Distress Ink Minis and a small paint brush. SO fast to water color this way! Quick and easy. HOW cute is that candy corn witch??? OMG. 

 

 

 

 

I used the Elizabeth Crafts super fine glitter and a glue pen to add glitter bits to most of the images. A little touch of sparkle is always good!

 

 

 

 

 

I can totally picture this adorable crew showing up at my doorstep on Halloween night! 

That's it for today! Have a blessed and creative day! See you soon! XOXO

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY!

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BOO! Fun shaker card with Queen & Company Fright Fest Kit!

BOO! Hey everyone! Happy Sunday! I'm getting a slow start today... Relaxing with the hubs and Lucky and enjoying a second cup of coffee with nowhere to be today. Ahhhhh. I had the best time the past three days! The Stamp and Scrapbook Expo was in town and I did it right! LOL. I had friends here from San Diego, Canada, and the bay area. In addition to all my Sacramento Crafty friends. Whew. Hugs galore, laughter, coffee, snacks, shopping....It was all wonderful. My back hurts and my wallet is empty. But my heart is happy. I really just had a great time. Two of my friends rented a house here and we stayed up long after the show talking and being silly. There is definitely not enough of that in my life! I hope you've had a great weekend too!

Next week is going to be super busy for me. I signed up to be an election worker and I have to go to ten hours worth of training next week. I also have a fun stamping class one night. All good stuff happens in the Fall. 

Today I'm sharing a super fun Halloween card made with a fabooolous kit from Queen & Company. The kit is called Fright Fest! It has everything you need included in the kit - to make tons of Halloween cards. The Queen & Company kits are the best value and the highest quality. Can't recommend them enough really. You get a full stamp set, tons of dies, a paper pad, the shaker shapes, the acetate pieces and all the shaker bits! I hope you will check them out! CLICK HERE to see all the fun kits. 

For my card I decided - if one shaker bit is good, then TWO is better! I used the BOO and the Pumpkin shapes to make this card. It's an A2 sized card. I started with a white card base, then layered black, and then the pretty stripes. I stamped the sentiment in black ink and added a few spooky splatters for effect. 

 

The dies set comes with all the little pieces to make the pumpkin into a jack-o-lantern treat bucket. LOVE. So easy to put this together!! 

 

I like this sentiment with the combination of different fonts. 

 

I wrapped a bit of twine around the card and added some gems. These gems are also from Queen & Co and they're called halos. They come in a bunch of colors! 

 

These are just a few of the items that come in the Fright Fest Kit!

 

 

 

I love that happy Jack-o-lantern!!

 

 

That's it for today! Thanks for popping by! Hope I didn't scare ya! LOLZ. I hope you have a fantastic week ahead. Not sure what I'll be posting next, but I hope to use some of the new cute stamps I got at the Stamp and Scrapbook Expo this weekend. I have loads of ideas. Take care! XOXO

Remember to check out my last post about Stampin' Up and how to get a free gift with your order! 

 

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY! 

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Fun with the Stampin' Up 2018 Holiday Catalog!

Hi friends! I have something fun to share today. And I also have some stories too! Today I'm featuring three cards I made using supplies, stamps, dies, and papers from the new Holiday 2018 Stampin' Up Catalog. Boy, Stampin' Up hit it out of the park with this catalog. I'm going to say it's the best one ever. I wanted everything! Yikes. My love affair with Stampin' Up goes back to 1994! Yes, almost 25 years ago! I still very vividly remember my first SU party! It was at my boss's house! LOL. His wife was really into it and she got us hooked. Back then, the SU catalog had stamps from tons of different stamping companies: Hero Arts, All Night Media, PSX, etc. etc. So you placed your order... Then Stampin' Up got all those items together from all those different companies and sent the big order to your hostess. The she had to bag everything for everyone. Whew. Oh yeah, and this all took about SIX WEEKS!!! Boy how times have changed! Now you place your order online and it's at your house practically the next day. Dang! I have so many wonderful memories, and so many stamp sets. A couple of years ago when I was doing the major purge of my studio I (sadly) threw out 20 years' worth of Stampin' Up catalogs. They were like old friends. Anyhoo I'm getting pretty far down memory lane - time to come back! LOL. 

My good friend Wendy is an AWESOME Stampin' Up Demonstrator! Always in the top 100 of all demonstrators! She is a total boss. I love her and I'm so happy she lives close enough that we can hang out. You guys have seen me post photos from her amazing retreats. This post is done in support from one girl boss to another. I really wanted to feature some products from Stampin' Up and maybe get you all connected with her. Please go by her wonderful, and newly revamped website to say hi and leave some love. I helped her do the photographs for her site. Yay! She is cool and talented and generous. I would be super happy if you would shop with her. At the bottom of my post is some info on a giveaway she's doing for you with an order. Thank you for supporting me - and my friends. 

Okay, first project is a winter wonderland, vintage, cabin, plaid, creation! OH MAN. This stamp and die combo was the first thing that caught my eye in the new catty. It's called Alpine Adventure. LOVE. I combined the stamps and dies with the gorgeous plaid paper and then went to town layering. The finished card is a 5.25 x 5.25 inch square. (Sometimes you need more room, amiright?) 

 

This card started with a kraft card base in a big square. Then I used the beautiful Tin Tile Embossing Folder and embossed it with cream cardstock. I used Antique Linen Distress Ink and a sponge to go over the embossing to add more visual interest and shadows. I love this look. Next I die cut the sled and the snowshoes and the snowflakes out of red, cream and kraft cardstock. Then I stamped and die cut that cute little wreath and bow! I used Copic Opaque White ink to add snow splatters to the pieces, and I inked the edges of everything with more distress ink. 

 

I wrapped a strip of that beautiful plaid paper around the embossed panel and attached it to the card base. I stamped the sentiment in brown ink onto cream cardstock. I hand cut it out in a banner using some small scissors. I added pearls to the centers of the snowflakes. 

 

 

 

Here is a close up of the embossing folder. I swear that thing weighs like ten pounds! It's super think and fancy. Look at that impression!! I first thought I was going to use Kraft for this part but then changed my mind and used the cream paper. 

 

 

 

 

 

I wanted the red sled to stand out more from the background so I die cut a second sled from cream cardstock and offset it just slightly. Gives it a pop! 

 

Next up is a happy snowman full of Winter Cheer! He's skating by to say helloooooo! I used the Spirited Snowmen stamp set for this next card. I colored him with Copic Markers and added some gem accents for a bit of snowy sparkle. I really like the sketch illustration style of this set. The stamps are all really sweet. I started with a white A2 card base and layered light blue paper and a bit of striped paper from my stash.  I stamped the snowman onto white paper and then die cut a circle around it. I added some snowflakes in a light blue ink around him and on the sentiment oval. 

 

I used the pretty new burlap trim for this card to add visual interest down the center and break up all those stripes. I stamped and hand cut out the holly leaves to add around the circle.

 

 

 

This is a good card layout for almost any stamp set. Clean and simple - and a good way to use that patterned paper!!

 

And lastly I made an elegant Fall card using the new Falling For Leaves stamps and dies bundle. This is going to be a Thanksgiving card. I went with a very simple color palette to show off those pretty leaves dies. I love the black, gold and vellum together. This is an A2 card base in cream instead of bright white. 

 

 

These intricate leaves cut like a dream and all the pieces fell right out. I did use my metal shim in my Big Shot and it was perfect. The background is another embossing folder from Stampin' Up that I've had for a while. I stamped the sentiment in rich black ink.

 

This is the perfect sentiment for lots of Autumn occasions...

 

Here's a side view so you can see that pretty embossing. I added a few sequins from my giant sequin stash - in a matte gold finish.

 

 

Thank you for coming by today! I hope you enjoyed my take on these great supplies from Stampin' Up! Please go over to Wendy's Blog and look around at her great content and hopefully shop too! CLICK HERE to go to Luvin Stampin! Wendy is very kind and generous to me - so let's be generous to her!

Wendy has allowed me to offer a freebie to my blog readers! Woot! Here are the details: If you make an order of $30 or more, Wendy will send you a package of the fun and pretty Santa's Workshop Enamel Shapes from the Holiday Catalog! ($7 value) I love enamel dots! PLEASE make sure that WENDY CRANFORD is selected as your demonstrator on your order! 

This offer is one per customer and US orders only. And your order needs to go through Wendy. This will expire on November 1st! In order to receive your freebie, please just send me a quick email to stampcatwg@aol.com and tell me you ordered! I'll let Wendy know and she will send out all the freebies after the November 1st date. THANK YOU! 

 

SUPPLY LINKS FOR TODAY!

(These are not affiliate links - they're helpful shopping links today!) 

Falling For Leaves Photopolymer Bundle - 149938

Price: $44.00

Alpine Adventure Photopolymer Bundle - 149919

Price: $41.25

Spirited Snowmen Clear-Mount Stamp Set - 148072

Price: $19.00

Festive Farmhouse 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper - 147820

Price: $11.00

Tin Tile Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder - 147906

Price: $10.00

Quilt Top Textured Impressions Embossing Folder - 144687

Price: $8.50

5/8" (1.6 Cm) Striped Burlap Trim - 147889

Price: $8.00

Pearl Basic Jewels - 144219

Price: $5.00

Rhinestone Basic Jewels - 144220

Price: $5.00

Vellum 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock - 101856

Price: $9.0

 

I'm batty about Halloween! Fun project with Tim Holtz supplies!

Hello crafty friends! Happy Monday! Boo! Did I scare you? I'm sharing a Halloween card finally! Did you have a nice weekend? It was 85 degrees here yesterday! And, lots of my friends are posting photos on Facebook of SNOW! Sheesh. I wish it would cool down here and warm up there. October is a crazy month. I had a really nice weekend. I stamped all day on Saturday (for my post on Thursday). Then on Sunday we went for coffee and a nice drive and out to dinner. A perfect weekend. My husband is working really hard on a work project so I tried to get him out of the house for a bit and get his mind off things. This week has some fun things coming... It's the Stamp/Scrap Expo here in Sacramento and I have a friend coming from Canada and one from San Diego and some from the Bay! A full weekend of girls and crafting awaits me! But first things first...today's card!

This card was inspired by two things: I HAD to make a Halloween card and I just got this awesome new Diamond Shifter Stencil in the mail and wanted to ink it up! So I started by inking the diamond background....then I rummaged up some cool bat stamps....and it all kind of came together. I'm sure you'll recognize the supplies are all from Tim Holtz. He really knows how to do Halloween right. Vintage and cool. 

 

The project started with stenciling the diamond background using the new Diamond Shifter Stencil. It's SO EASY to stencil this!! I used olive and gray for a kind of spooky color palette. You simply stencil the first color (for me olive) and then shift the stencil over and stencil the second color (for me the gray). Seriously so simple and such a great result! To complete the background I added some text stamps and some black and grey ink splatters. I set that aside to make everything else. The finished card is a green A2 card base. 

 

I stamped the bats (small and large) in black ink and then cut them out by hand. I colored them with grey, black and purple Distress Inks and a paint brush with just a bit of water. Kind of let it all flow together. I think it's more spooky with the purple in there. 

 

I stamped the Happy Halloween stamp onto some cardstock and then really inked the edges with Vintage Photo Distress Ink. Then I splattered clean water over it and let that dry. To make the words blurry I used a paint brush and clean water and gently went over the letters. I think it makes it look old or something. And that font is AWESOME. I also inked the edges of my diamond panel with the same Vintage Photo Ink. I added a jump ring and a Tim Holtz 31 Halloween Token charm. Cool. 

 

I dyed my own crinkle ribbon using distress inks and water. I haven't done this technique in a while and I always love the results from this! Never comes out the same way twice. 

 

When I attached the bats to the card I used a bit of foam tape just in the middle. Then I used my fingers to gently curve the wings upwards to look like they're flying right at ya! 

 

 

 

Mr. Lucky was VERY interested in this project...until he fell asleep! LOL! He just turned seven months old the other day. Can you believe it? He is growing so fast and has been such a wonderful studio companion. He keeps me company and is the sweetest thing ever. 

Okay, so I need to try to make something else for Halloween but we're running out of time! YEEKS! Are you done with Halloween cards? Have you started? LOL. I got behind this year because we were on vacation. Oh well, it was worth it! I have some fun things to share on Thursday so I hope to see you then. Have a fabulous week and thanks for stopping by today! XOXO

 

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY!

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Guest Designing for Ellen Hutson today - with some new Leading Ladies!

Hello friends! How is your week going? Mine is going FAST! Dang! So much to get done around here and so little time. I feel like since Fall is my favorite season, that it goes by way too quickly. I wish I could slow down time for the next few months! And it's getting close to my birthday too. Fall slow down! I'm back on schedule after getting back from vacation. I need to start making Halloween goodies asap!

Today I have a super fun blog post for you! I am very excited to be the guest designer today over on the Ellen Hutson Blog! Wooooot! I am joining to fun in launching the newest product release which includes two fabulous new Leading Ladies! I am sharing two cards today - one Fall card and one Christmas card. Yippeee! Please be sure to click over and visit the Ellen Hutson Blog and leave some love. I'm so grateful for the kind invitation to join them!

My first card is a Fall explosion! I had so much fun making this card. She is ME! Lol. I stamped, die cut, colored, and inked to my heart's content with this one. I combined the brand new Bookworm Lady with a bunch of the smaller stamps from the Cozy Lady stamp set. I think they're perfect together. I created a cozy Fall scene. Can't you imagine sitting outside under the trees with a stack of books and a cup of coffee? I can!  

 

First I stamped and die cut all of the pieces. I colored everything with Copic Markers and added small highlight touches with a white gel pen. I used the same color palette for all the items and her clothes so that the card would look nice when finished. Warm tones of olive, brown, orange and slate blue...YUM. The arm on the lady is partially die cut so you can put a book in her hands. I love that. 

 

The background for the scene was made by inking Distress Inks onto white cardstock panels. I used olive green for the bottom and two shades of yellow/gold for the top. I also inked the small circle with the sentiment.

 

The sentiment was stamped in black onto a circle and attached with foam tape. All the elements were also attached with foam tape. I used clear Nuvo Drops to add accents around the card. A glaze pen was the perfect tool for her glasses.

 

 

 

This next card is a fun Christmas card made with the new Holiday Shopper Lady! She is also me! I have been known to wear an ugly Christmas sweater and a Santa hat....and I always make lists! She is ready to rock and roll and shop til she drops! I used the beautiful new Snowfall Backdrop die and turned the card into a shaker card. FUN.

 

I stamped and die cut the Shopper Lady, her hat and her sweater and colored it all with Copic Markers. I die cut the Snowfall Backdrop for my top layer and put a pretty blue behind it before adding the sequins for the shaker. 

 

LOVE this sentiment! I stamped some snowflakes randomly on the panel....

 

 

 

 

I used Diamond Stickles to add glittery accents to the snowman, pen and hat!

 

 

That's it for today! SO MUCH FUN to guest design for Ellen Hutson and share these projects with you! The Leading Ladies stamps are so creative and fun to work with. I am gathering quite a collection now! Who is your favorite lady? I think Cozy Lady is mine...or maybe Photo Lady... I can't choose! I hope you have a great day and I'll see you soon. Happy crafting! XOXO

VISIT THE ELLEN HUTSON BLOG FOR MORE INSPIRATION!

 

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An Autumn Hello with Pretty Pink Posh!

Hi everybody! It's good to be back home and blogging again! We got home from our road trip late Friday night...and you know what happens next... Laundry! And kitten snuggles. LOL. We had an amazing and fun time together on our vacation through California, Oregon and Washington. We saw so many beautiful sights, and ate good food, and took loads of pictures! I know a lot of you followed along with us on Instagram Stories! It might take me a while to sort through all the pictures and get a post ready to share about our trip. In the meantime, you can see some of my favorite pictures on my Instagram account. CLICK HERE! (You do not need an account to view the photos on your computer!) I am totally renewed by time away from the computer and the TV and all of life's responsibilities. I loved having my husband all to myself every day. We got to talk and laugh together and drink coffee and walk. It was wonderful!! My feet are tired and my heart is full. It is already Fall in the Pacific Northwest and we saw tons of Fall leaves! The weather was perfect too. Late September/Early October is our favorite time to take a break and travel. It was also our wedding anniversary last week! Yay! We thank God for a safe and fun journey! 

Yesterday was my first day back in the studio, and it also happened to be World Cardmaking Day! I had to hustle to make something for the day! LOL. I didn't plan ahead on that one! I hadn't created anything in more than two weeks and it was a bit of a rough start to craft! I decided to use some of my new supplies I got at Impress Rubber Stamps in Seattle! I got the beautiful Foliage Dies from Pretty Pink Posh! And my inspiration was all the gorgeous Fall color! So I got out my Distress Inks and made an Autumn wreath! I didn't have the energy to blog yesterday - so I'm sharing it with you now. I think after this I'd better get busy and make some Halloween projects! Be sure to read my last post, and comment for a chance to win a spot in a cool class I"m part of. Nice to be back!

I started this project by die cutting a bunch of the leaves and pumpkins out of Bristol Cardstock. I like the way Bristol interacts with Distress Inks and it's thick enough to stand up to lots of ink. This card is a five inch square and the layers are simple: Woodgrain cardstock and cream cardstock.  

 

I used LOTS of colors of Distress Inks and the small size sponge daubers to ink the color onto the leaves and pumpkin. Each leaf/pumpkin has at least five colors on it! Yikes. Yes, I was ready to play! The final touch of all of the images is that I sponged them with Walnut Stain ink. Really gives a rustic deep touch to the project. I don't normally use that dark of a brown, but I like it in this instance. The splatters were done with Vintage Photo Ink. 

 

There really is no right or wrong way to do these leaves! Play. Have fun. Get dirty! Try new colors together! This part of the process was so relaxing and enjoyable. I love mixing colors. The leaves were arranged onto the card in a circle/wreath shape.  A simple twine bow at the top to finish it off. I wasn't sure what to use for a greeting, so I used a pretty hello die cut. I think this would make a nice Thanksgiving card or any other type of Fall greeting. 

 

To attach the hello die, I used liquid glue on the h and the o and glued it to the leaves. The middle part is sort of floating there... 

 

 

 

The list of all the Distress Ink Colors I used is in the supplies section. 

 

 

 

This is a photo of a gorgeously perfect leaf I found on the ground in Seattle. The leaf colors are a perfect Fall rainbow! It was so pretty I had to snap a picture of it! This photo was the color inspiration for my card today. I took a lot of leaf pictures in the past two weeks! The perfect artist drawing a Fall palette for us to enjoy. Sigh. 

It's very good to be back! I missed you! This week I'm guest blogging over at Ellen Hutson (Yay) and I'll have two fun cards to share for that project. Can't wait to show you. Hope all is well with you in your corner of the world. XOXO

 

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World Cardmaking Day 2018 Online Card Class Giveaway!

10-11-18 UPDATE!!! MY WINNER IS HELEN G! She has been notified via email! Congratulations Helen!

Hi everyone! I have something really fun to announce! I'm one of the instructors for an awesome online card class created by Scrapbook and Cards Today Magazine for World Cardmaking Day 2018! World Cardmaking Day is tomorrow! Are you doing something fun to honor the day? Maybe crafting with some friends or taking a class? I hope you do something crafty tomorrow! I'm still on vacation so I'll be taking pictures! Cardmaking will commence the moment I get home! 

Would you like to win a free spot in the Scrapbook & Cards Today second annual WCD Online Card Class? Here’s your chance! SCT has amped up the creativity for this year’s 4-week self-paced class, bringing you special video techniques, step-by-step instructions, PageMaps card sketches, and loads of tips, tricks and trending styles. You will love the artwork created by many of your favorite cardmakers, including me! This four-week class begins Monday, October 15^th.

SCT Magazine has generously given me one class to give away to one of my readers! YAHOOO! In order to be eligible to win the free class, please leave a comment on this post and let me know what was the last thing you created! I'd love to know what you're making! I will pull a random winner on 10-11 and email that person to receive their class. Good Luck! 

 

Here is the description from the class website: 

"Join SCT to celebrate the love of cardmaking with our second annual WCD Online Card Class! We’ve amped up the creativity for this year’s 4-week self-paced class, bringing you special video techniques, step-by-step instructions, PageMaps card sketches, and loads of tips, tricks and trending styles. You will love the artwork created by Gina K Designs, Kathy Racoosin, Kelly Latevola, Wanda Guess, Latisha Yoast, Yana Smakula and many more of your favourite cardmakers!" 

CLICK the photo above or THIS LINK to learn more about this class and to see more sneak peeks. I guarantee you're going to love it - and it's an amazing value for the price. I am so happy to be part of it all. See you soon! XOXO

See you in a couple of weeks! We're on vacation!

Hey hey hey! I'm here with a quick announcement! I won't be blogging for the next couple of weeks and didn't want you to wonder what was up around here! The hubs and I are going on a road trip and I'm so super excited! I get to have him to myself! Yay - no work, no stress, no responsibilities. CANNOT wait. Our road trip is one of the celebrations of our Silver Jubilee this year. We haven't been on vacation in quite a long time. We'll be taking a road trip up through California, Oregon and Washington. Cool temps, crisp Fall air, waterfalls, coffee, whales...everything we love to see. 

Usually when I've been away for a time for work or play I have continued scheduled blog posts for my design teams. For ten years I haven't missed a week of posting! Dang. This time around I decided to schedule myself free time too. A creative break and a blogging break. I will definitely be sharing on Instagram and Instagram Stories along the way!  I'll be so inspired to create when I get home I'm sure. 

See you soon, friends! XOXO

 

 

You're the caramel apple of my eye! Lawn Fawn cards!

Helllloooooooo! There's a lot going on around the old bloggy blog lately! So many fun and cool opportunities...and I've been on a creative roll! Just getting around to posting some cards I made a little bit ago. Sometimes, when I get new stamps, I can't wait to color them! So I sit down and stamp and die cut the images, color them, and enjoy that part of the process. Then I'll come back around and make the cards. That's what happened with this adorable new Caramel Apple stamp set from Lawn Fawn! EEEK. It's from their brand new release. It makes me smile! Those little caramel apples with their smiles and cheeks. What a fun thing to color. I've been working on my Copic coloring lately - trying out some darker colors and getting a bit more bold with things. I really like how these guys (and gals) came out!  I ended up with a clean and simple card design to feature them apples! LOL.  

 

The background die is one of my all time favorite Lawn Fawn products. I use it a lot. It's clean and classic and just the perfect touch when you don't want plain white paper as your background. This card started with a Juicy Pear (my favorite green paper) A2 card base. Then I layered colors to match the apples. 

 

For their chubby pink cheeks I used Doodlebug Glitter Sprinkles! I love that tiny bit of dimension instead of flat coloring. I used my white gel pen to add accents over my coloring and to the red heart in the scene. How fun is that sentiment? I love it when Lawn Fawn separates out the sentiments so you can easily use different colors of ink. 

 

 

 

You're the caramel APPLE of my eye indeed! Can't wait to give these cards out! Maybe I'll have to make some caramel apples to go with them! I haven't made caramel apples in a long time. Man, does that sound gooooood right now!

Thanks for popping in today to see my card! Do you love these little apples as much as I do?? Too fun! Have a fabulous day, my fabulous crafty friends! XOXO

 

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Mama Elephant 6 Year Anniversary Release Stampede! Holiday Treats!

Hello and welcome to Mama Elephant's #celebrating6years Anniversary Release Stampede with some wonderful crafty friends and designers! What is a stampede? A blog hop! Yay! The wait is finally over! The new Mama Elephant release is now live and available for purchase in the shop!  CLICK HERE to shop mamaelephant.com! I'm super excited to be part of the fun here with the gang from Mama Elephant and some of my favorite designers. I'm introducing, and using the new Yappy Woofmas stamps and dies! SO adorable! I think this might be my first holiday project??? Is it?? I'm just dipping my toe into Christmas for now. I knew I wanted to make Favor Bags because that is one of my favorite products ever from Mama Elephant!  

 

To start at the beginning of the hop and see all the inspiration and details CLICK HERE to go to the Mama Elephant Blog!  Please read this post all the way to the end for special sale information, prizes and the rest of the hop list! XOXO 

 

    

 

 

 

For my project to share today, I made sweet treat favor bags and decorated them with all kinds of cute Mama Elephant Christmas goodies. The center images on both favor bags are from the brand new Yappy Woofmas stamp set. SO FUN. I made the favor bags from Kraft cardstock and then put on a layer of patterned paper before my top layer of stamping and die cutting images.  

 

 

 

How cute is the doggie wreath and kitty snowman! LOVE. 

 

 

 

 

I cut a white layer with the ME Basic Set dies and used the Landscape Trio dies to make a hill for my snowcat! I edged the hill in blue ink. Next I stamped and die cut the images and the banner and colored with my Copic Markers. I added glitter too!  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The super tiny and adorable bow dies make me happy. :-)

 

 

 

 

I used blue ink to stamp snowflakes onto the main panel to make it more festive! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

To celebrate with you, MAMA ELEPHANT has an amazing sale and promotion and giveaway! Keep reading to the end! 

 

 

 

 

From 9/15 - 9/17

10% off entire store! No code required!

 

From 9/15 - 9/30

Spend $100* - receive 1 free 'Color Me Letters' 4x6 stamp set.
Spend $150* - receive 1 free 'Color Me Letters' 4x6 stamp set and 'Hilly THANKS' dies.

Spend $200* - receive 1 free 'Color Me Letters' 4x6 stamp set, 'Hilly THANKS' dies, and 'Hilly HELLO' dies.

 

Please read all the fine print carefully! :)

*Subtotal amount must be met before any shipping fees/tax/customs.
Free item(s) valid only a single order/transaction.
Limit one of each free offer per order.
Orders cannot be combined. New orders only.
Limit one free offer per customer/order.
We reserve the right to cancel/modify orders.
Free offer valid 9/15-9/30 or while supplies last!

 

 

To celebrate this mega anniversary release, we are giving away of ten $25 ME gift certificates throughout the 3 day stampede! Winners will be chosen at random from the collective blogs in the Stampede. Winners will be announced on the last day of Stamp Highlights. You have up to 4 chances to qualify to win!

 

» 1. Leave a comment on this blog post «

 

» 2. Like/share us on Facebook: facebook.com/mamaelephant ;«

 

» 3. Follow/tweet us on Twitter: twitter.com/heymamaelephant «

» 4. Follow/comment on Instagram: instagram.com/mamaelephant «

 

Each action qualifies for one entry, max 4 entries per stampeder please!

 

Joining Mama Elephant on this wild ride of a stampede are some favorite crafty designer friends!

Please visit each blog to see what we all did with the new goodies!

 

Laura Bassen
Anna Kossakovskaya
Vera Rhuhay
Lisa Spangler
Wanda Guess
Rina Galit
Francesca Vignoli
Joan Ma
Kathy Racoosin

 

 

  

 

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Guest Designing for Sunny Studio Stamps with some happy, cheery Autumn projects!

Hey everyone! Happpppyyyyy Weekend! I'm excited to share some projects with you today! I am guest designing for AWESOME Sunny Studio Stamps today! YAHOOOO! You know I love Sunny Studio and I always love it when the kind and generous Mendi invites me to stamp with her gorgeous stamps and dies. I had a blast making today's card and treat bag to show you. Of course... as you've suspected... More Fall projects! The latest release from Sunny Studio is so great. I am especially smitten with the adorable Nutty For You acorn die set! EEP! A smiling acorn?? Yes please! Sign. Me. Up! CLICK HERE to go to the Sunny Studio Blog to check out all the other inspiration and projects! I used several new stamp sets - all the supplies are listed at the bottom of my post. Enjoy!

 

First up a pretty Autumn greeting! I featured the Happy Harvest Stamp set and then the sentiment from the Beautiful Autumn Stamp Set! I started with an A2 card base and layered beautiful Sunny Studio Gingham paper in pretty teal, and then vellum... Yeah, lots of layers on this one! The background was made with Distress Inks in Peacock and Honey - such a pretty combination! 

 

All of the images were colored with Copic Markers. I LOVE to color! Looks at those cute crows on the pumpkins! And that tree with a heart carved into it??? 

I die cut the top panel using Stitched Rectangles dies. Then I used an ink blending tool and two shades of distress inks to ink the background. I also splattered some Copic Opaque White ink over the blended ink. I stamped the sentiment in black ink directly onto the panel. 

 

 

 

After all the images were colored and die cut out with the matching dies, I layered them onto the card with foam tape. I used clear Nuvo drops to add a few sprinkles of dew around the card. Such a fun accent!

 

And next up I have a cute and sweet treat bag! I really like to make glassine treat bags for presents or place settings for a party or dinner. A glassine bag is a great blank canvas to decorate for any occasion. I put some gold almond Hershey's Kisses inside the bag before decorating it. 

 

 

I used all kinds of mix and match patterned papers in Autumn hues for this project. Since the scale is small and the patterns are simple, it all just kind of works! I used yellow, brown, orange and marroon from the new paper packs from Sunny Studio. I'm quite sure I've mentioned about a million times how much I use these awesome papers!! You need them in your life. Trust me. I used the veins part of the stamps from the Autumn Splendor stamp set to stamp directly onto the leaf die cut shapes. I really like how this looks. The Nutty For You acorn dies set has all the pieces to make this cutie pie! 

 

I wrapped maroon paper around the glassine bag first. Then I put the acorn together and glued him on with foam tape. I added twine to his little top hat! I die cut a circle and stamped the sentiment and some leaves onto it. That part is also attached with foam tape. I used Doodlebug black sprinkles for the eyes. Like, don't you want to give him a hug? LOL.

 

 

 

 

Okay! That's it for today! Thank you to Mendi for her kind invitation to guest design! I'm such a fan and always enjoy teaming up with Sunny Studio Stamps! Already looking forward to next time. I hope you have a wonderful weekend! XOXO I'll be back TOMORROW with something else super fun and fabulous! See you then!

 

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Spending the day at Beautiful Palladio Shopping Center in Folsom!

Greetings Friends! It's getting close to the weekend now! I hope you have some fun things planned for your Fall weekend. I'm here today with a different kind of post - a photo essay of the beautiful Palladio Shopping Center in Folsom, California. This shopping center is close to my house and it's one of my favorite places to hang out with Mark and with my gal friends. I was invited recently to participate in their guest blogger program and I gladly accepted. Last Friday Mark and I spent the entire day at Palladio - shopping, dining, going to the movies, and generally enjoying the beautiful surroundings. I hope you saw my Instagram stories from our trip! Palladio is conveniently located right off Highway 50 at the Bidwell Street Exit. 

Palladio is a gorgeous outdoor destination. It's like walking through a European village. There are lots of benches and cozy places to sit down and chat while you're exploring. In the Summer they have free concerts and we have enjoyed several of them in the past couple of years. The center offers free yoga on the plaza and now coming into Fall, family game nights. There is always something going on here! CLICK HERE to go to the center website! 

I was happy that our shopping trip coincided with the change of the seasons. All the stores right now are stocked with wonderful Fall decorations and pretty things to buy for your home. The restaurants are all switching to their Fall menus too. The weather is perfect so now is the time to go! I love looking at all the home stores here - my favorites are Kirklands and Rod Works, but there are so many more! So today I'm doing a photo essay to share with you the shoppping center. I'll share stories as we go along....

This is the beautiful main plaza area - complete with gorgeous metal sculptures and waterfalls and benches. The perfect place to meet up! 

 

It was a beautiful day for our trip! Palm trees everywhere create a great vibe - so pretty. 

 

 

The shopping center has TWO movie complexes! the Palladio 16 Cinemas and the Palladio Luxe Cinemas. I've been to both and they are fabulous and new and clean! Great place to catch a flick! 

 

One of the views down the shopping area. VERY pretty and inviting!

 

This is the beautiful fountain in front of the Barnes and Noble store. This Barnes and Noble has a full coffee bar, but also a full service restaurant inside. It's beautiful! It's a great spot to meet a friend. I've even been to some of my photographer meet up groups here. It's a busy hub with books and even vinyl records! Love that. I'm going to take a minute and share a story about one of the main reasons I love to come to Palladio. I consider this a great date destination - either for a day time date or an evening date. You can park your car one time and go to lunch or dinner, to a movie, grab a drink after, do some shopping. I love that!! Parking is free and plentiful and I always feel very safe here. Great place to meet with girl friends for the same reasons. 

 

There are beautiful flowers everywhere you turn!

 

 

 

 

 

We started our day off at Barnes and Noble Cafe with tasty treats and lattes, and magazines! It's a delicious way to begin your morning. The almond croissant was DEElicious! They have a big magazine section - and I love to read magazines!

 

Right around the corner from Barnes and Noble is the awesome Kirkland's Store. ALLLL decked out for Fall! Pumpkins and leaves everywhere! I bought a cute pillow for our family room and some photo props for my upcoming assignments. They have beautiful farmhouse decor and even Rae Dunn items! Kirkland's is one of my favorite stores in the entire center. Be sure to sign up for their emails - they have great sales! 

 

I bought this beautiful wreath for our front door too! It's never too early to start giving thanks. 

 

This pillow is now on our couch! 

 

A fan favorite is always See's Candies! It's right next door to Kirkland's. We popped in and bought some candy treats decorated for Autumn. See's is the best! It's my favorite candy in the world. I love the Almond Buds especially. Mark is a fan of the Peanut Crunch. 

 

Such pretty Fall packaging. Perfect to bring over to a friend's house for Thanksgiving! And, they have awesome Halloween treats too - for all your ghosts and goblins!

 

The Painted Studio is soooooo cool! Pop in to create a painting and have a cocktail with your friends! What is better than that?? And, you can reserve the studio for your private events. Wouldn't it be fun to have a birthday party here? They are so nice and friendly. You can choose which painting you want to make. Right now they have cool Fall crafting projects too. Totally a place to hang out and have a blast! The space is bright and fun and cheerful. 

 

Another place I frequent at Palladio is the Whole Foods Market. Time for another story! Since the center is close to our house, it's my go-to place for gift shopping. It's so easy to pop in to Whole Foods and buy a gorgeous bouquet of flowers and a bottle of wine - if you're going over to someone's house. They have cards too - in case you're going to a party. Makes it so easy to accomplish your errands. See's is next to Whole Foods too. Palladio is my gift destination! I can always find a special present here at one of the stores.  

 

 

 

On our day trip, we definitely had to stop for a yummy lunch! We chose Panera as our lunch spot. They also just switched over to their Fall menu items. This Panera is huge! It has a fireplace and a pretty outdoor patio. Plenty of seating and fast service. Park in the adjoining parking lot and you're right there! I meet my friends and work clients here often. 

 

I had the Vegetarian Squash soup and the awesome Ancient Grain Salad. YUM. Mark had a delicious turkey sandwich. They also now have Mac and Cheese with Bacon! I'm going to get that next time. YUMMMY! 

 

We continued our shopping spree at the beautiful Rod Works Store. This place is another of my favorites... Pretty, on trend, cheerful home decor sure to make you smile. This photo below...sigh... I want everything in this entire display!!! They have cool Halloween decorations out right now too. I bought a cute pumpkin spice coffee mug and a wooden tray for our living room. I could have bought the entire store! I can't wait to come back at Christmas time. 

 

 

 

 

 

We finished shopping by taking a peek into Chico's. They always have the most unique and special accessories. (Another place I like to buy gifts)... This Chico's is very large and so nicely merchandised. It's a treat to stop in here. 

By this time it was around 4pm and we decided it was time to catch a movie in the cool theaters. So we walked over to the Luxe Cinemas and finished out our date day. This post was sponsored by Palladio Shopping Center and I was compensated. All of my opinions and views are my own and my honest take on a place that I love!  I hope that you will plan a day or evening trip over to Palladio and explore for yourself. I know you're going to love it here too! Maybe we can meet up? Many thanks to Palladio for this fun opportunity to be the guest blogger for September!

LINKS:

PALLADIO SHOPPING CENTER

PALLADIO SPECIAL EVENTS

PALLADIO DINING

KIRKLAND'S

SEE'S

WHOLE FOODS

ROD WORKS

BARNES AND NOBLE

PANERA

PAINTED STUDIOS

CHICO'S

PALLADIO LUXE CINEMAS

 

Wishing you pumpkin spice and everything nice! Fun Coffee cards for Fall!

Hi crafty people! How are you?? What's new? Are you enjoying the beauty of the changing seasons? We are! I am totally loving the change over to Fall. And you know I've been Fall crafting up a storm! Pumpkins, apples, leaves, and coffee! It's the best time of year! Mark and I are going on vacation in a couple of weeks and hoping to see lots of Fall color up north in Oregon and Washington. Can't wait. 

A couple weeks ago I got this awesome new stamp set from Pink and Main called Pumpkin Spice! OH MY! It's all kinds of pumpkin coffees and treats. You know that's right up my alley! I had so much fun coloring these images! And now, I finally made them into a couple of cheerful cards to show you! I loooooove teal/aqua/blue with the warm oranges of Fall. It just pops! So I used kraft, orange and dark aqua for my color palette. Lots of glitter too! 

 

 

This card started with a kraft A2 card base. Then I layered the aqua paper. My top white layer was die cut with the circles trio from Sunny Studio (link below). This die makes three circles at once and it's cool for featuring small images like these. I attached the white layer onto the top of the card using foam tape. 

 

I stamped and cut out the images and colored them with Copic Markers. I added Diamond Stickles accents to make them shimmery and sweet! I placed the coffees and the cupcake onto the circle openings using foam tape also. The circle trio die comes with stitched hearts and I die cut those out of orange paper. CUTE!

 

I stamped the sentiment in black ink over on the right side of the card. And, added orange and white enamel dots as accents and shine!

 

Happy Pumpkin Spice Season! 

 

Here's a close up of my coloring with the Copics.

 

 

 

The next card is very clean and simple with a graphic design. I started with a white A2 card base and layered orange and another sheet of white.... I wrapped pretty orange striped paper and twine around the top third of the layers. I die cut a circle from woodgrain paper...

 

 

The three images were attached to the circle with foam tape. I stamped the sentiment in black at the bottom and splattered some black ink!

 

 

 

 

If you're a pumpkin spice lover like me - you need this stamp set! It also has a donut!!! LOVE! I hope you have a great day, and a wonderful week! See you soon friends! XOXO

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Reverse Confetti New Release Blog Hop! September 2018!

Hi my crafty friends! Happy Saturday! I'm back today with another fun blog hop! Today we're hopping to launch the brand new September product release from Reverse Confetti! Gorgeous new stamps and dies release today! The September release has a little bit of Fall, a little bit of Halloween and a little bit of Christmas! Truly something for everyone! CLICK HERE to SHOP the entire new release! Full blog hop list and shopping links are at the bottom of my post. Enjoy the hop! You should have arrived here from Laurie Schmidlin's fantastic blog!

I made two cards to share and both were done with my favorite new Polychromos Colored Pencils. I am really loving the different effects I can get with these lovely supplies. One card is soft and subtle, colored on kraft, and the other is bright and bold! I used the brand new Fall Foliage Stamps and Dies and the brand new Cotton & Thistle Stamps and Dies! Yeah! 

 

You know how much I love Fall, and leaves! When I saw this new stamp set I was thrilled! The leaves are so beautiful, and the dies make a perfect, crisp cut. Perfect for any and all Fall craft projects. I had a lot of fun coloring all these leaves! I started with an A2 horizontal card base with paper from my stash. I layered watercolor paper die cut into a rectangle... and then LEAVES! Bright, bold, pretty leaves. I stamped and die cut a bunch of leaves and then colored them with my pencils. I love to put on some relaxing music and color...ahhhhh. 

 

The sentiment was heat embossed with white embossing powder onto a midnight black cardstock strip. I put the sentiment across the paper first and then arranged the leaves by tucking them into the black strip. Everything is attached with foam tape. The leaves were splattered with Copic Opaque White and then I added some Diamond Stickles. More is MORE! LOL. 

 

 

 

The Polychromos pencils are very soft and waxy and blend easily. I did not use gamsol or anything to blend the colors - just kept going over it with more and more color. 

 

 

 

This next card was made with the sweet and pretty Cotton & Thistle Stamps and Dies. Such a pretty set. I am in LOVE with the sentiments and that pretty font. So feminine and beautiful. This is a very clean and simple design. I started with a kraft A2 card base and then layered more kraft and then white paper. I inked the white paper background with Broken China Distress Ink to ground the image.  

 

I stamped the image onto kraft cardstock and cut it out with the matching die. I used a soft wash of colored pencils to color the cotton and thistles. I used twine to wrap around the stems like a fresh bouquet and then attached the little tag from the Floral Wrap die set. 

 

I stamped the pretty sentiment in black ink directly onto the top layer. 

 

 

 

 

Thank you SO much for joining me today on my stop on this awesome blog hop! YEAH for the new Reverse Confetti September Release! LOVE IT! The entire new release is available for shopping now! Woot! What are you most excited about? Enjoy the hop! Next up is the talented and fabulous Heather Hoffman! Full Hop list below!

 

BLOG HOP LIST FOR TODAY! ENJOY!

Reverse Confetti Blog
Amy Kolling
Laurie Willison
Crystal Thompson
Melissa Phillips
Amy Sheffer
Lydia Fiedler
Tricia Barber
Kelly Lunceford
Lisa Henke
Yana Smakula
Amy Rohl
Lea Lawson
Laurie Schmidlin
Wanda Guess
Heather Hoffman
Amy Tsuruta
Kathy Schweinfurth
Michelle Short
Audrey Tokach
Jeanne Jachna
Therese Calvird
Olga Moss
Maria Sabina

 

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY!

(Affiliate Links Used)

Taylored Expressions 10th Birthday Bash Mega Party! Happy Unicorns!

Hey everyone! I'm very excited today to share this card and share about one of my favorite companies - Taylored Expressions! TE is celebrating TEN YEARS of crafting awesomeness. And, they are celebrating in style today with a giant (mega) birthday bash blog hop! Over forty designers are participating in this awesome hop - we are all former or current design team members who have a special place in our hearts for Taylor. I was on the TE Design Team for four great years and it was a wonderful experience to work with Taylor and Jon and all the other designers. Truly a sweet and kind group of creative people. So - here's wishing TE a HAPPY BIRTHDAY! And here's to many many more years of business! Congratulations! XOXO

Please CLICK HERE to go to the Taylored Expressions Blog to see all the details and the list of blog hoppers! Also, there are some brand spanking new birthday products that are being released today just for the celebration! CLICK HERE to see the new stamp sets! 

For my card to share today I'm featuring some already released birthday theme products from TE. For my card I used the Dreamer stamp set (with matching dies), the Rolling Clouds Dies, and the Sprinkles Embossing Folder. I combined these items with bright and cheerful colors of lime, aqua and purple! SO fun! I am wishing you a very magical day! Enjoy the Blog Hop today!  

 

 

My card started with an A2 card base in bright white cardstock. The Rolling Clouds dies are three different cloud borders. I used the dies to cut out a bunch of clouds from lime, aqua and purple paper and also vellum. Then I just played around with them until I got the combination of clouds that I liked. I trimmed them all the size - one step down from the A2 size card. I used foam tape to attach them together to give dimension in between the layers. The vellum layer was wrapped around the bottom. 

 

I stamped the sentiment with Stazon ink - works the best on vellum! I added a few rhinestones at the end of the process because it just seemed like this card needed sparkles! 

 

I stamped and die cut out those adorable unicorns and colored them with Copic Markers to match the papers I used. I added bits of glitter glue to the wings, tails and horn! EEEP. The layer underneath the clouds was embossed with the beautiful Sprinkles embossing folder. Such a nice touch of texture instead of flat white paper.

 

 

 

 

 

I want to take a minute to talk about something that is really important to the TE family - The SHARE JOY CAMPAIGN! At the heart of Taylored Expressions is a mission to share joy through the gift of handmade cards. As part of their 10th birthday TE is continuing that mission with the launch of a special Share Joy campaign focused on providing birthday cards to those in nursing homes and assisted-living facilities across the U.S. To make as deep an impact as possible TE is inviting card makers everywhere to join the campaign. Will you join us? Find out how to participate by viewing their Share Joy page here: https://www.tayloredexpressions.com/share-joy-birthday-2018

THANK YOU for coming by today and for hopping with us in celebration of Taylored Expressions 10th Birthday Bash! CLICK HERE to see the entire hop list and all the fun details over on the TE Blog! Enjoy your day! See you soon! XOXO 

Happy September! Celebrating Autumn with Watercolor Apples!

Hi friends! This past week went by in like five minutes! Wow! But, I'm so happy, because here we are at September! And I'm officially calling it Fall here on my blog! I LOVE FALL and live for it all year long! I am so happy to celebrate the next few months with pumpkins, coffee, apples, football, leaves....All that good stuff. Yeah! College football starts today too. And the weather has been perfect - cool nights and dark mornings.... Okay, yeah I'm excited! I've been Fall crafting for a couple of weeks already and that's going to continue. I hope everything is going great in your neck of the woods! Sending you some good wishes today. 

I went back and pulled out some of my favorite dies from Taylored Expressions to create my apple cards to share today. These apple dies are PERFECT for Autumn cards and I chose to watercolor them with my favorite watercolor paints. This project started out with some water color playing... I just die cut some apples and enjoyed painting. Then later I turned them into two cards. Sometimes I begin with a card design already formed in my head, and sometimes I just color pieces and see what happens later. So, let's take a look at the cards! How do you like these apples??!! LOL. 

 

No stamping on either of these cards today. Only die cuts and watercolors! I used a wet on wet watercolor technique to color the apples. Some red and one green one. I added in some deep golden yellow accents to the painting. The leaves were painted with three or four shades of greens. Apple leaves have that gorgeous deep green color. I colored the stems brown and then generously splattered gold paint over all of them. 

This first card started with a white A2 card base. Then I chose some woodgrain paper from my stash and splattered it with gold Finetec paint. I LOOOOVE GOLD SPLATTERS! Lol. Can you tell? I die cut out the AUTUMN letters from a Taylored Expressions alphabet set. I painted those deep golden yellow. The rest of the card came together fast. I used foam tape to attach the apples to the card and clear glue to attach the letters. A piece of pretty twine at the top finished it off. Oh, and a few gold Doodlebug Sprinkles too! Simple and pretty. 

 

Here's a close up of the leaves and painting!

 

I staggered the letters this way because they wouldn't fit across the card. It's kind of playful and fun this way though! Happy accident!

 

 

 

 

 

I turned the card for this photo so you can see all that yummy gold paint!! MMMMM.

 

Next up is another clean and simple design I made with the last apple die cut. I just bought the brand new Lawn Fawn Reverse Scalloped Circle Dies and wanted to use those! This is an A2 white card base layered with gingham from my stash. Then a pretty deep red layer die cut with the circle die. It creates the perfect frame for the apple! The 'hello' die cut is from Simon Says Stamp and I die cut it from watercolor paper (The same paper I used for the apples). 

 

 

 

 

The red paper layer was attached to the card with foam tape - and the apple was also. I added some glitter sprinkles in red and gold. Because I like sparkly things!! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Near where I live we have an apple growing region called Apple Hill. It's only about 25 miles from our house and in the Fall it's so fun to go up and see the orchards, get apple donuts, see the arts and crafts and generally hang out in the fresh air. CLICK HERE to read about Apple Hill! The weather was sooooo fresh and nice when I woke up yesterday I got the idea to drive up to Apple Hill for a photo shoot and some donuts! This is the last few days before the crowds and craziness starts. I went up super early and guess what? I was the ONLY person there! Gosh, it was magic! I got the first batch of hot donuts (am I mentioning the donuts a lot?? LOL) and I had the whole place to myself. Up amongst the pine trees and the orchards. Here are some of the photos I took! Hope you enjoy them! 

 

 

 

 

When you take pictures of things like fruit and flowers you really notice how many individual colors there are in them. I like to save this type of photo for reference when I'm using my Copic Markers or my watercolors. God is the master artist and no one paints like Him! I can try though! These apples were so pretty and you can actually smell them on the trees in the cool air. MMMM. 

 

 

 

 

 

As a photographer, I am a life long student of light. Photographs are all about light... Not your camera or your photo editing software. LIGHT. Pure and simple, taking a picture is using the light to create something beautiful. The light changes with the seasons. Summer and Winter light is very strong and harsh and bright - with hard shadows. As we turn into Autumn, the light becomes warmer and a bit softer. I felt that yesterday - the coming of the light of Fall. AND I LOVE IT!  

 

That's it for today! Have a super wonderful weekend! Labor Day Weekend! YAHOO! Are you doing something fun this weekend?? Tell me about it! I will be back on Wednesday as part of a fun celebratory blog hop! See you then! XOXO

 

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY!

(Affiliate Links Used)

Rubeena’s Crafting Anniversary Blog Hop! Watercoloring with Waffle Flower and lots of prizes too!

Hi there! Welcome to a super fun two day blog hop event! Our crafty friend Ruby is celebration her blog anniversary with a blow out blog hop of crafty friends! WOWZA! I'm happy to be included. The theme of the hop is friendship and support. Perfect for the occasion! This hop is huge - with more than 60 guests and over $600 in sponsored prizes! Not only are we celebrating four years since Ruby first discovered card making but also crafting in general. This industry is made up of wonderful individuals who are creative, inspirational, kind, and incredibly supportive! Hop along so you can learn about why we create and how much joy it brings us! Ruby is a very special and talented lady and I am wishing her lots of continued success in her crafting journey! Grab a cuppa coffee and settle in.

If you're following along the hop line up, you should have arrived here from Darnell Knauss' blog!  CLICK HERE to go to Ruby's blog to start at the beginning of the hop and read allll the details. If you're new to my blog because of the hop - I'm so happy to have you! I like to create projects with lots of layers and lots of color! 

My project for today was made with a GORGEOUS stamp set from Waffle Flower. It's called Always.... I loved it the minute I saw it, and I finally bought it a couple weeks ago. Couldn't wait to get inky with it. I have seen so many beautiful projects made with this stamp set. SO, I really wanted to think of a way to make it my own and not like anyone else's card... Hmmmmm. Then a spark came to me! I'll create with this stamp set, with an Autumn theme! And watercolors! YES! So this beautiful girl got combined with leaves, mushrooms and flowers and she became an Autumn Princess! (Like me LOL) I'm so pleased with how it all came together. It took me a long time to watercolor all the pieces but it was relaxing and fun to create and I truly enjoyed the journey.  

 

 

My card base is made with Kraft cardstock in an A2 size. I layered some pretty brown gingham for the next layer. The top layer, and all the pieces, are all watercolor paper. I used a beautiful background die from Reverse Confetti to make the rays on that top paper layer. I did a light wash of aqua watercolor paint for my background for all that color. I used my favorite Mijello Mission Gold watercolors for this project. (supply links are at the bottom of my post). 

 

After I had my background set aside to dry, I stamped and die cut out lots of elements for this card... The girl, an extra birdie, leaves, floral stems, mushrooms...and on and on. I should have counted all the pieces! I use Versafine Onyx Ink since it is waterproof. I used a pretty warm color palette of red, orange, gold and olive green to color everything. I gave her pretty brown hair and one little leaf in her headband. This stamp is everything. Truly. 

 

Here's a close up of my coloring/painting and the elements. I layered a second bird on top of the one in the main stamp - for extra oomph. Everything is attached to the card with foam tape, in layers. Tip: I lay all my pieces out first and play around until I get them exactly how I want them. Then I snap a quick photo with my phone so I can remember - and attach it all. I used the cute mushroom stamps from another Waffle Flower stamp set. 

 

Side view to show the layers.... The sentiment is from My Favorite Things and it was heat embossed with white embossing powder onto a strip of rich black cardstock.

 

 

 

 

Thank you so very much for stopping by today! ENJOY this amazing hop! Plus there are more blogs on Tuesday! Woot! Next up in the line up is the blog of TIffany Au! See you soon! XOXO

 

PRIZES! YEAH!

In celebration of Ruby's anniversary, there are several amazing prize sponsors. Winners will be randomly selected from comments left on all the blogs. The winners will be announced by Wednesday, September 5 on Ruby's Blog! Make sure you remember to check back in with Ruby to see if you won something! Good Luck!

Studio Katia - $50 gift card

Hello Bluebird - $50 gift card

Altenew - $50 Gift card

Pinkfresh Studio - $30 gift card

Gina K. Designs - $50 gift card

Clearly Besotted - $35 gift card

Simon Says Stamp - $25 gift card

Spellbinders - Card Kit

winnie & walter - $40 gift card

Mama Elephant - $25 gift card

Hero Arts - $25 gift card

Nichol Spohr - Rainbow pencil case with new Spellbinders dies

Jennifer McGuire - $50 Simon Says Stamp gift card

Danielle Flynn - $25 Simon Says Stamp gift card

Picket Fence Studios - four $25 gift cards

 

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY!

(Affiliate Links Used)

Hero Arts Season of Wonder New Release Blog Hop!

Hi everyone! Thanks for stopping by today! It's an exciting day because today we are having a blog hop to introduce and feature the new Winter 2018 products from Hero Arts! The new catalog is called Season of Wonder and it is full of stamps and dies for Fall, Winter, and Christmas! Lots of goodies inside - that's for sure. We're having a super fab blog hop today to provide you a peek at the new items and give you some inspirations for creating. Also - there are two gift certificates for $50 each up for grabs! Woot! To be eligible for winning the prizes, simply leave a comment on the blogs in the hop. Two random winners will be chosen on 8/27 and announced on the Hero Arts Blog. Enjoy the hop! CLICK HERE to shop the new items!

I'm sharing two Autumn/Fall themed cards. I am not ready for Christmas crafting yet so I chose some of the pretty products in the catalog that evoke Autumn and late summer. Lacy leaves and bright yellow sunflowers... First up is this Fall Leaves Thank You card made (almost) from only die cuts! The Autumn Icons Leaves are sooooo beautiful! 

 

I started with an A2 white card base and layered bright turquoise and woodgrain cardstocks from my stash. Then I used the leaves dies and die cut shades of red, yellow, orange, red and tuquoise. I used the Thank You die and die cut it out of brown textured cardstock. I used a strip of vellum to add the "very much" underneath the Thank you. 

 

I played around with the leaves dies until I got a color/shape pattern that I liked. Then I glued them on to the card using liquid glue and my tweezers. I layered the Thank You over the leaves - after attaching the vellum strip. Always use Stazon ink to stamp on vellum!! 

 

Vellum is always a nice touch!!!

 

I glued on a few clear droplets to add a bit of shine to the card and add a different texture. This is a fun and easy card layout that is nice and flat for mailing. 

 

My second card is made with the brand new Sunflower Stem wood mounted stamp as the feature. I colored the pretty stamped image with Copic Markers and cut it out by hand. This is also an A2 size card. I layered pretty gingham paper and a beautiful background die cut. 

 

 

I die cut the Bold Graphic Confetti Die out of Kraft cardstock and then trimmed a piece to layer with the gingham and green papers to make the background for the sunflowers. 

 

The sunflower stem is attached to the card using foam tape. I added a few matte gold sequins as accents. I love this cheerful color combination!

 

Here are my Copic Marker choices for this card...

 

 

 

 

That's it for me today! I hope you enjoy the hop, and find something along the way to spark your creativity!! It's time to really start thinking about Fall and Winter crafts. I've sort of been in denial, but it's time... LOL. Thanks for joining me today! XOXO

 

CLICK HERE TO SHOP THE NEW CATALOG!

 

BLOG HOP LIST FOR TODAY! 

The Hero Arts Blog

Yana Smakula

Wanda Guess

Nichol Spohr

Michelle Short

Megan Hoeppner

May Sukyong Park

Lydia Fiedler

Libby Hickson

Laurie Willison

Kelly Latevola

Jessica Frost-Ballas

Jennifer McGuire

Jenn Shurkus

Janette Kausen

Ilina Crouse

Emily Midgett

Clare Prezzia

Amy Tsuruta

Amy Kolling

 

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY!

(Affiliate Links Used)

Some Llama Love! Fun with Flora & Fauna Clear Stamps and Dies!

NOTE: Wow! What an overwhelming response to my last blog post. I already knew it, but you guys confirmed it! YOU ARE THE VERY BEST blog followers out there. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your responses. I have read every single one. I got tons of heartfelt, lengthy emails. Made me laugh, think, and cry too! Lots of comments and tons of support and love. I will try to write back to everyone, but it might take me some time. Just know that I read every word and I have a much clearer picture of what is going on in blog-land. I have been so immersed in it from this end that I didn't see all the changes happening. You have given me a lot to think about. I didn't want to give the impression that I am thinking of NOT blogging. I LOVE to write blog posts and share. LOVE IT. LOVE IT. So I'm just trying to make the best use of my time and resources. It's been nine years, so it might be time to change things up. I do not particularly enjoy the whole product linking thing. I did that because I thought people wanted or expected it. But then, I had come to count on that income. It seems that opportunity may have come and gone. Which is okay too. I'll give it a few more months to see if things pick up! You all have provided me so much good information!! I knew you would come through for me and you did. THANK YOU again. I appreciate the honest conversation. Now on to our blog post for today! 

Happy Monday! I'm super excited to announce that I am the guest designer for the Flora & Fauna Stamps Blog today! WOOT! Don't you adore their cute, happy and quirky designs? I love them ALL! I am always in a good mood when I stamp with Flora & Fauna! LOVE. These stamps are what happy crafting is all about. I love that all the images are the same style and scale so it's super easy to mix and match stamp sets to create your card. Today I'm using a bunch of Flora & Fauna goodies to share some LLAMAZING cards! LOL. Llamas are on trend and all the rage right now - and I am totally on board. Those cute critters are everywhere, and they make us smile, right? I llama love them! Let's get started! 

For this first card, I used some of the super cool background texture stamps with white ink on kraft - to create a neat backdrop for my watercolored llama and florals. I used some different colors for me. I hardly ever use purple, hot pink or magenta. But, I love how this magenta mixture came out! I mixed a few shades of red and pink water colors together to create this magenta color. I think it's super festive!! I'm happy that there are matching dies for those pretty floral sprays too. Score!  

 

I started with a white A2 card base and layered pretty patterned paper in magenta. Then another layer of white, then kraft for my top layer. I stamped the background textures with white ink and also splattered some white paint. I set that aside to dry. Next I stamped and die cut out the llama and flowers from watercolor paper. I used my Mijello Mission Gold water color paints to color the images. 

 

I stamped the llama love sentiment three times onto the kraft, using black ink. Then I wrapped some pretty twine around the top two layers before attaching them to the card with foam tape. The images are also attached with more foam tape. Some magenta sequins complete the look!

 

 

 

 

 

Next up is my second llama card! This one is for a sweet sweet friend who is about to have a baby! I wanted to make her a mama llama card to make her smile! She is llamazing for sure! I used shades of pink and white since it's a baby card. SOOOO adorbs!! I started with a white A2 card base and layered pink cardstock and then gingham from my stash. The top white layer was die cut with the awesome clouds die from Lawn Fawn. I used the Flora & Fauna Llama die set, which comes with the balloon. Easy to die cut out and a perfect cut!  

 

I stamped the sentiment in black ink onto a banner and attached it in the upper right corner. I used a white gel pen to add highlights to the cardstock balloons.

 

 

 

Okay, so I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that I am a genius - for this next idea! LOL. You know when you think of an idea and then it works perfectly??? That happened. High five me! I needed a cute and sweet blanket for the llama.... Then it clicked! The little Doodlebug Rainbows Sprinkles!!!!! ACK. I turned it upside down and it fit like a glove! Rainbows are always a good idea!! 

 

 

Thank you so much for visiting my blog today! You are are totally llamazing! I hope these cards inspired you and made you smile. I'll be back soon! Be sure to visit the Flora & Fauna Blog to see more ideas. BIG thanks to Cindi, Lara and the crew for inviting me to be a guest designer this week. Yeah! XOXO

 

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY!

(Affiliate Links Used)

Hi Crafty Tribe! I need your feedback!

Hey everyone! Happy weekend! I have some things that I've been thinking about and I need your help and feedback. I was hesitant to write this post, but I ran it by a few of my friends and they encouraged me to speak from my heart, as I always do. First of all, if you're reading this, you are my tribe. I consider you my crafty and creative friends and my girl gang. I'm super grateful for everyone who subscribes to my blogging content. There are about 2500 of you. THANK YOU! Some of you have been with me from the very beginning - nine years ago. I'm so glad to have this community of people who support me and encourage me. What a complete blessing it is to have that support from you. I wouldn't blog if I didn't feel like I was somehow making a difference. You guys make me laugh, inspire me, and lift me up when I need it. THANK YOU! 

There are many reasons to have a blog and I've been re-evaluating, and thinking about what I'm doing creatively in general,  and here at the blog. I blog to inspire others to create. That's my bottom line. I want A Blog Called Wanda to be a happy place of encouragement and creativity. I want to show others that they can make something beautiful. I want to share beautiful images and share my life. When I'm blogging I think of the three E's... Educate, Encourage, and Engage. That's what guides me. 

I do however,  have to think of what I want to get from my blog in return for my time and energy. Some facts that you may not know if you're not a fellow blogger: It takes me about 6-8 hours to produce a blog post. That includes making the project, photographing the project, editing the photos, creating link lists, linking/labeling photos, and writing the blog post. It's truly done with love always. It never feels like work! It also costs me money to run my blog. Each facet of things has a monthly fee: My Website ownership, Typepad Blogging platform fee, Mailing List app fee, Link Deli Linking list fee, Photo editing website fee, and of course, supplies. 

The things that I get in return are comments of encouragement and kindness, others sharing their successes with me, and just plain old love and community. When you comment on a post you are letting me know "Hey girl we like what you're doing. Thanks!" When you email me and show me your projects it makes me so happy! Those are the emotional things I get from blogging. I get a lot of satisfaction from that. As of a few years ago when I became a full time creative professional I started making earnest income from my blog as well. The income I receive from blogging comes in the form of Affiliate Sales. I'll talk more about that in a minute.  

As with anything and everything, blogging has changed. When I started blogging I got lots of comments and a lot of feedback from my readers. Over the years that has gone down quite a bit. Possibly because people are following on Instagram or Facebook now instead of just on the blogs. Now I get very few comments unless there is a contest. I would say comments are down about 75% from three years ago. So I'm left feeling like - is anyone out there reading this thing?? Is this thing on?? LOL. 

My Affiliate Sales income has decreased about 90% lately. Whoa. That's a lot. It is making a difference in my household's bottom line and in whether or not I can continue to be self employed. I'm trying to figure out why/what/how this is happening. A little background about Affiliate Sales and crafty blogs might help. When you see the supplies listed out at the bottom of my blog posts those boxes, when you click them, take you directly to the product in one of the craft stores. If you click to that store via my blog I will receive a commission from your sale. It is seamless to you and does not cost you anything. It's a small percentage, but over time it adds up! Something that happens frequently is that if a customer clicks on another blogger's link to that same store, my link is over-ridden and now that person will get the commission on the entire sale. It took me a long time to realize this! Last click wins. Maybe people are just buying less crafty supplies? I am sort of out of touch with that since I'm in the industry. You have to let me know! 

Because of the amount of time it takes me to build the link lists and the monetary cost involved, I'm at the point of wondering if it's important to keep doing it! I'm really happy to do it, if you all want it and use it. But if you don't necessarily care... 

Okay, so all of this information leads me to ask for your assistance and feedback! I would be extremely grateful if you could take the time to leave a comment on this post, or reply to the email newsletter or send me a private email (stampcatwg@aol.com) and let me know what you think! My goal is to be a better blogger for my tribe and to keep on moving forward in this endeavor! THANK YOU again for your time in reading this! 

 

FEEDBACK QUESTIONS: 

DO YOU STILL READ CRAFT BLOGS? MORE OR LESS THAN BEFORE?

ARE YOU GOING TO THE ACTUAL BLOG SITE OR READING THE CONTENT VIA EMAIL NEWSLETTER?

WHEN ARE YOU LIKELY TO LEAVE A COMMENT? OR NOT LEAVE ONE?

IS THERE SOMETHING YOU'D LIKE TO SEE DONE DIFFERENTLY ON MY BLOG?

DO YOU FOLLOW CRAFTERS ON INSTAGRAM MORE THAN ON THEIR BLOGS?

DO YOU WANT/NEED ME TO DO PRODUCT LINKING?

DO YOU USE PRODUCT LINKS?

ANYTHING ELSE?

 

 

Below are some of the shops that I am an Affiliate for - because I shop there, and will stand by their products and service.

I receive commission from your purchases at these shops if you click on the links. 

 

SCRAPBOOK.COM

SIMON SAYS STAMP

ELLEN HUTSON

PAPERTREY INK 

HERO ARTS

CONCORD & 9TH

QUEEN & COMPANY

WAFFLE FLOWER

BLICK ART SUPPLIES

SIZZIX

NEAT & TANGLED STAMPS

SPELLBINDERS

HONEY BEE STAMPS

REVERSE CONFETTI

 

Pear Orchards and Autumn Wreaths!

Greetings friends! How are you? Hope all is well in your neck of the woods. I have some fun photographs and a card to share with you today. I love to share about where I live and my California adventures! This weekend the hubs and I went on a Sunday drive to the Delta to see what we could see, have some yummy lunch, and take pictures. As you know, there are many wildfires burning in Northern California. As a result, we, in Sacramento, haven't seen actual blue sky in over two weeks. Every morning I look out the window to see how bad it is. Well, Sunday morning, alas, there was blue sky! I was giddy with excitement about it. So we packed up the ice chest, and the camera gear and headed out towards the river and Delta regions. I live in a veritable fruit basket of farming. There is so much to see and do and so much yummy produce all year long. We are so lucky! Right now is the end of pear season so I wanted to get some fresh pears and also snap some photos too! We drove out to Steamboat Acres and all around Courtland and Hood. It was at least five degrees cooler down by the Sacramento River too...an added bonus. It's such a pretty and quiet drive. Just a few miles from downtown but you feel like you left the city far far behind. A slower pace entirely. Beautiful God's country. We found some pears and got our photos. Then we stopped into a hidden gem place to have lunch - delicious burgers and fries. It was the perfect day. It felt like a one day vacation. Sometimes you need a change of scenery. These are the things that creatively inspire me!! 

I was inspired by the beautiful pears and the colors of late Summer. (I can almost barely feel Autumn coming) So I came home and rummaged around in my studio and found all the pear stamps. I had quite a few!! I decided to use the beautiful pear wreath stamp from PSX for my card today. It's from 1995!! OH MAN how I miss that wonderful stamp company. Most of my first stamps were from Hero Arts and PSX. No matter how many times I declutter and purge my studio, I will never get rid of my gorgeous wood mount PSX stamps. Do you have any?? Even after almost 25 years, that red rubber stamps like a dream.

For this card I used a simple, classic card layout...just one layer on a 5.25 x 5.25 square card. The top layer is watercolor paper. I used my favorite Mijello Mission Gold Watercolors as my coloring medium. No sentiment.... Added some gold and white paint splatters as a finishing touch. Hope you like it! The green layer is my very favorite green cardstock - and it's called JUICY PEAR! How perfect is that?? Supplies are linked at the bottom of my post. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These are all the pear stamps I found in my stash! Makes me want to make more pear cards!! 

 

And here are my favorite pear photos from Sunday in the orchards. If you want to visit yourself, these orchards are right along the Sacramento River, mostly in the towns of Hood, and Courtland. Courtland even has a pear festival each year!  

 

 

 

 

 

 

That's what I have for today friends! Thanks for coming by my blog! Have a fabulous day! I'll be back soon... Until then, happy crafting! XOXO

 

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY!

(Affiliate Links Used)

Start Each Day With a Song - Watercolors with Pink Fresh Studio Stamps!

Hi guys! Happy Friday! (FRI-YAY!) How was your week? Thank you so much for alllll the comments on my last three posts! Wowza! That was a lot - three blog hops three days in a row. I'm still recovering! LOL. But it's all good - I loved every one of them and I'm always honored to be in a blog hop for my favorite companies. Hopefully you found some new things to inspire you and get you creating. I had a nice week. I went to a fun Blogging event Wednesday night and that always rejuvenates me. Lots of wonderful bloggers here in Sacramento and I always learn something, and my cheeks always hurt from laughing so hard. Lucky is getting SO big. He's five months old already and growing like a weed. He's a curious guy and I run around him trying to keep him out of things. Thank goodness he sleeps a lot too! I've trained him to sleep on his blanket on my studio desk and he is a good boy while I'm crafting. He's learning!! 

Today I'm sharing a card I made a week or so ago when I had some free play time in my studio. I am kind of obsessed with Pink Fresh Studio stamps. They are so beautiful and feminine and artsy all in the best way. I used two Pink Fresh stamp sets (with matching dies) and my Daniel Smith Watercolor Dots. All the links are at the bottom of my post. I used a free, flowy water color technique and lots of splatters. I think I've finally found my favorite combination for splatters (more later in the post).  

 

I started with a white A2 card base and layered kraft cardstock and jade green cardstock from my stash. The top layer is watercolor paper die cut with a Memory Box Rectangle Die for a pretty border. Next I stamped and die cut out the bird cage, the birdie, and all the flowers and leaves. I always use Versafine Ink for my watercolor projects. It's a nice deep black that takes the water without smudging. Here is a close up of my watercoloring. Really free form - didn't even worry about staying inside the lines. NO STRESS!!

 

The background is a light water color wash of a pretty light aqua blue. I splattered everything with both black ink and white ink. The trick is to make sure that all the underlying water colors are DRY. Completely dry. I use my heat tool to dry everything before I go to the next step. I found a wonderful deep black ink that I use for the black splatters. I use Copic Opaque White for the white splatters. Again, be sure to dry one color of splatters before doing the next color. I use a paint brush and splash it on. The smaller/bigger the paint brush will determine how dense the splatters are. 

 

For this project I used my super cool Daniel Smith Watercolor Dots! These are AWESOME for quick coloring of small areas. They are also my go-to when I want to travel with water colors. The concept is that these are 'cards' with globs of watercolors on them. They are dry until you wet them with a water brush or a paint brush and water. EASY PEASY. And, you get a LOT of colors for a small price. CLICK HERE for where I got mine. They are fun and simple to use. I chose bright colors for this project. 

 

The sentiment is from the Aviary stamp set and is perfect with that cute little bird stamp! I stamped the sentiment right onto the watercolor paper. all the colored pieces were attached to the card using foam tape. I played around with the layout until I liked how it flowed. 

 

 

 

 

That's it for today! Thank you for stopping by to see me! I hope you have a happy, fun and fabulous weekend! XOXO

 

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY!

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My Monthly Hero - August 2018 Card Kit - Coffee or Tea?!

Welcome to the Hero Arts "My Monthly Hero - August 2018 Blog Hop!" Happy August! In my world August is just one month away from Autumn! Yippeee! I hope you're enjoying the lazy days of Summer and having fun. The new kit this month has a theme that is very near and dear to my heart...coffee! (and tea too!) Yummy stamps, dies, embossing powder and more! Do you love coffee as much as I do? You're gonna love this kit!   

I'm happy to be here with you today launching the latest edition of the My Monthly Hero Kit. I hope you find some (many) things to inspire you. I have two cards to share today! One was made with the main kit, and the other one I made with some of the fun add-ons. 

You may have arrived here from Nichol's Blog!  If you want to start at the beginning of the hop CLICK HERE to go to the Hero Arts Blog! As always, lots of fun and inspiration for you today from my awesome fellow bloggers! I'm always grateful to be included in the Hero Arts lineup! If you're new to my blog today - welcome. Enjoy the hop today! I will always warn you, THESE KITS SELL OUT VERY FAST (usually the first day) so if you like it, don't hesitate! I know I say that every time, but it's true! Get it while you can! They are such a great value! Each kit is $34.99 and the value is double that, at least. Enjoy the hop today! Get your kit while they last! 

My first card for today features the stamps and dies from the main kit... I love fall and I love Pumpkin Spice Lattes so I made a Fall card! I adore the sentiments that come in the main stamp set. They're so on point! Lots of different coffee mugs to mix and match together. It's practically perfect!  

 

I started with an A2 card base in white cardstock. Then I layered kraft cardstock and some new patterned papers. The focal point are the cute coffee cuts and the sentiment. I stamped and die cut the two coffee cups and the whip cream and straw, and die cut them out. I colored them with my Copic Markers! NOTE: The tiny pumpkin stamp is from another Hero Arts stamp set!! (It's in my supplies at the bottom of my post)

 

I attached the cups to the card using foam tape for added dimension. I used aqua and orange, which are complementary colors so they look good together! I tried to match the papers too.

 

For my accents I used a bit of twine and some Nuvo Jewel Drops!

 

 

 

We're the PERFECT blend!! :-)

 

My next card was made using some of the beautiful add-ons for this month's theme! I made a watercolor tea pot card! This card was inspired by my own kitchen! Our kitchen has a French Country theme with blue, red, yellow...and roosters! I love that look! So I tried to re-create that in my next card. I used the awesome new Tea Pot Nesting Dies along with the brand new Spill The Tea stamps and dies. I watercolored everything and used my trademark gingham check to complete the look!

 

 

I chose to use bright red paper with crisp white embossing for the sentiment this time around! I kind of like this look! I'm going to try some different colors now! I used heat embossing and Hero Arts White Embossing Powder. 

 

This card is an A2 horizontal card made with a Kraft card base. I layered gingham and white paper and then vellum as my foundation for the card. I die cut out the pretty tea pot die twice. (I used the second one to cut out the lid). I used Daniel Smith Watercolor Dots to color in my stamped images. I wanted it to look like a pretty teapot that would be in the kitchen! I stamped the lemons and flowers randomly onto the tea pot die cut (which was watercolor paper). I then stamped and die cut out the little chicken and colored her with the same watercolor dots palette! The Dot palettes are great for quick coloring or coloring on the go!! (supplies are listed at the bottom of my post)

 

I used one giant red enamel dot to be the top of the tea pot lid. I then added pretty twine to complete the look. I love these colors together!

 

My water coloring isn't fussy at all here. I used a water brush and quickly put the color on without analyzing it too much. SO easy - and fun!

 

The new kit is available NOW! Yippeeeee! Below is a photo of THE ENTIRE MAIN KIT CONTENTS! This is a great value for $34.99! Hero Arts is VERY generous with their beautiful kits! The other supplies I used are listed below in my links!  

MAIN CARD KIT CONTENTS!

PRIZE ALERT!! Hero Arts is giving away one kit as a prize to one blog reader – selected from the comments across all of the blogs in the hop. Giveaway closes August 12th at midnight, and the winner will be announced the following week on the Hero Arts Blog. If you've already purchased your kit, and you win, you will be reimbursed. So be sure to leave a comment at each stop on the hop!

 

This kit is available for a limited time only! Once it's gone, it's gone! Kits begin shipping from Hero Arts on Friday, August 10th. These kits have a habit of selling out fast! So don't wait if you like this one. I have a sneaking suspicion this one will sell out! 

 

Next up on the blog hop is the awesome Yana Smakula! The full hop list is at the bottom of my post. Have fun hopping and have a happy, creative day! XOXO When you make something with your new card kit, be sure to use the hashtag #mymonthlyhero on your social media! TO START AT THE BEGINNING OF THE HOP - CLICK HERE! Thanks for stopping by today!

 

 

 

 SUPPLY LINKS FOR TODAY!

 

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Waffle Flower August 2018 New Release Blog Hop!

Hi everyone! Thanks for coming by today for the amazing Waffle Flower August Release Blog Hop! I have been so anxious to share these cool, creative and innovative products with you! I made three projects! That should tell you my excitement level! It's been hard to keep this one under wraps. Waffle Flower is one of my very favorite companies and the ideas that Nina comes up with are always awesome. I'm very honored to be part of this blog hop today introducing everything to you. Did you arrive here from the blog of my super talented friend CHANNIN?? To start at the beginning of the hop CLICK HERE to go to the Waffle Flower Blog! 

The new items include cool stamps and dies to create your own color wheels, and paint/marker swatches. Like I said earlier - genius! Perfect for those of us that love to have our supplies organized! Also, a beautiful new Lacy Flower XL die and some cute stamps for coloring. The new products for August are geared towards the artistic side of all of us crafters. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced artist, you will find Waffle Flower’s newest release a great investment for yourself. This is a back to basics release that focuses on the function of stamps and dies and our preferences on coloring mediums. The goal is to help beginners gain confidence with coloring mediums, and to help experienced colorists learn more about their different mediums. There are some cool combos and packages available (CLICK HERE to see everything). A professionally printed guide will be included in the Color Swatches Combo. All combos come in beautiful Cloud Storage Pockets. CLICK HERE to check out the Waffle Flower videos with detailed instructions and background! Nina reviews everything in her professional video. 

I have some color swatches to share with you today, and two cards made with the new stamps and dies. I had a really good time creating these projects - truly an artistic endeavor. I feel like taking the time to swatch my colors really made me think about the textures of my watercolor paints, and when I made the color wheel card I learned a lot about mixing my colors together. Like a self taught art lesson! Okay....let's get started! 

 

 

I used the Swatch Stamp and matching dies to create swatches of my very favorite watercolor paints! These have been my go-to watercolors ever since I got them! I have a small palette swatch of these paints but now I have them on a beautiful ring I can hang on my bulletin board. I die cut the swatch die and the circles to go at the top. I used watercolor paper and black cardstock. After they were die cut I glued the black enforcers on. Then I used Versafine Onyx Black Ink (the only ink I use for watercoloring) to stamp the swatch image. I gave them a quick shot with my heat tool to dry the ink. Then I had FUN coloring in the swatch sections!! Aren't they pretty!!!??

 

Here is an overview of some of the new products - in the gorgeous rainbow packaging! Swatches, color wheels and shapes OH MY!

 

Here are my swatches before I added the colors.... This makes my OCD happy. 

 

Masstone is the SOLID version of any color. I used my MIjello Mission Gold watercolors.... For the masstone portion, I used the tiniest amount of water to wet the paint enough to swatch it. For the larger swatch area I wet it first and then added the color, slowly getting lighter as it moves from left to right. This is great practice for coloring!!! I learned how to be more patient and slower to get the right gradation...

 

 

 

I literally cannot get enough of this!!! I used these for watercolors, but you could just as easily swatch your Copics or Colored pencils!!! Use them in whatever way makes it useful for you in your studio!

 

 

 

 

Next up are the two cards I created for the blog hop and release! I used the fabulous Color Wheels Stamps to make a card perfect for one of my creative friends! I used a couple of other Waffle Flower Stamp sets for the sentiment and paint brush and it all came together in a fun way! I will use the Color Wheel Stamps and Dies later to make color wheels of my Polychromos pencils! Can't wait to do that project. 

My card is an A2 card base out of paper from my stash (in my fav color). I cut out a watercolor paper layer and stamped two color wheels in the opposite corners. I made sure to put different colors for each one. Then I stamped a few of the circles around them to balance out the white space. 

 

Here is that cute little paint brush stamp/die from the Little Painters Stamp Set! I watercolored it too. The sentiment was heat embossed with white embossing powder onto black cardstock.

 

It was really fun to mix and match the colors to get fill in the color wheels. I have never done that before! It made me pay attention to each color and how it works with other colors mixed. I put on some music in the studio and enjoyed this process. 

 

I added some black enamel dots to the centers of the color wheels and then some Pretty Pink Posh Droplets to look like water drops... I also added paint splatters (you know I love that!)

 

 

 

 

 

I attached the paint brush on the card and then layered the sentiment banner over it. I like the graphic look of that black and white banner. I tried to think outside the box and come up with a cool way to incorporate the color wheel into something else! A card! 

 

 

Next up is a card featuring the GORGEOUS new Lacy Flower XL die! OOH LA LA! It's so pretty, especially since I colored it in bright vivid GOLD! YUM. This card is an A2 purple card base. Again I layered with watercolor paper on top. I used lots of water and some shades of blue and violet to create a loose watercolor background. Once it was dry, I splattered gold paint and white paint over the color for more visual interest. (My paints/supplies are listed at the bottom of my post)...

 

I used clear glue to attach the gold die cut on top of the colored background. Then I trimmed off the edges. Next I stamped the Waffle Flower Hugs and Prayers sentiment onto vellum using Stazon ink. I layered the vellum around the bottom of the card before attaching the card front to the base with foam tape. I added a few purple gems from my stash. 

 

This is what that beautiful die cut looks like! I used these paints for the gold!

 

 

 

 

PRIZE ALERT! PRIZE ALERT! PRIZE ALERT! 

To celebrate the blog hop, Waffle Flower is giving away $25 gift certificates to THREE lucky winners. You can leave comment on my blog and all along the hop by 11:59pm ET on 8/12/18 for your chances to win. Winners will be chosen at random from the comments left on any of the posts on this blog hop and will be announced on the Waffle Flower blog on 8/15/2018. As a bonus, all orders placed by 11:59pm ET on 8/15/18 will receive an Adhesive Eraser from our friends at Xyron! No code required; Limited 1 per customer; While Supplies last.

 

If you're a new visitor to my blog today because of the blog hop - welcome! I'd love to have you sign up to receive my post emails! CLICK HERE to subscribe! Or, Follow along with me on Instagram! 

 

Next up on the hop is the awesome and talented Nichol Spohr! 

 

 

CLICK HERE TO SHOP THE ENTIRE NEW RELEASE!

 

FULL BLOG HOP LIST!

Waffle Flower Blog

Kathy Racoosin

Laura Bassen

Amy Rysavy

Channin Pelletier

Wanda Guess

Nichol Spohr

Debby Hughes

Emily Midgett

Yana Smakula

Lydia Fiedler

Mariko Brown

Kristina Werner

 

 

 

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY!

 

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Honey Bee Stamps Bee Bold Blog Hop!

Hi everyone! Nice to see you! Welcome to Day Two of the awesome Bee Bold Blog Hop for Honey Bee Stamps! The beautiful, fun, creative, fabulous new BEE BOLD Release is live now for purchase. We are doing a two day blog hop to bring you tons of inspiration and ideas for using the new stamps and dies. I hope you're enjoying all the stops on the hop! If you're new to my blog - thank you! Thanks for stopping by today.

To start at the beginning of the hop CLICK HERE to go to the Honey Bee Stamps Blog. To shop the new release CLICK HERE! Did you arrive here from the blog of Nichol Spohr?? Isn't she amazing?? There are prizes today too! BEE sure to leave a comment on everyone's blog posts for a chance to win a $50 gift certificate! There are two certificates for prizes! Woot!! 

Are you on board the llama trend? Lately, these cute critters are popping up everywhere! In crafting, in home decor, in silly fashions, and even at the State Fair! I think they are so funny and adorable. Soooo, my favorite thing from the new release is the stamps and dies set called No Probllama! This stamp set is perfect for lots of occasions! I combined it with some other fun Honey Bee stamp sets and created a fiesta on a card! 

 

Since I knew I was creating a big scene with this card, I made it a big square card. My finished card is 5.25 x 5.25 inches. I made the card base from white paper and then completely covered the front with Sunny Studio yellow gingham paper. Next I layered a big scalloped circle die. Next I stamped and die cut out the llama and his blanket and hat, the balloons, and the cacti... I colored everything with Copic Markers in a vivid bright color palette. I looooove orange, yellow and aqua together. So fresh! These images are so much fun to color. 

 

The "HOLA" dies are part of the llama die set and I cut it from black cardstock. I heat embossed the sentiment with white embossing powder onto black paper also. Doesn't he look like a party animal?? This would be a great birthday card!!

 

Here's a side view to see how I layered all the pieces. Everything is attached with foam tape onto the card.

 

 

 

 

That's my party on a card for today! So happy you stopped by! You're llamazing! LOL! Next up on the hop is the amazing Leanne West! I always love her cards! Enjoy the rest of the hop and make sure to leave comments for a chance to win the prizes. Have a wonderful day! I have two more blog hops the next two days...so you'll be seeing a lot of me! Yay! XOXO

 

SUPPLIES FOR TODAY!

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Cheerful Summer Cards! Ice Cream and Butterflies!

Hi friends! Happy Monday! How are you? I hope you have a great week. Last week I went down hard with a cold! YUCK. Summer colds are the absolute worst. Over 100 degrees outside every day and I'm hacking up a lung. It wasn't pretty... And I was pretty...crabby. UGH. Much better today - feeling human again and the morning was cool when I woke up. I'm in the studio trying to get some stuff done. I'm way behind now. I have good hopes though. It's still early and I've already checked off about six things from my to do list. Lucky is curled up on his blanket on my desk snoozing and my favorite podcast is on my phone. Bam...let's do Monday. 

Since I didn't make anything last week I'm sharing a couple of cheerful Summer cards I made the week before. I've already shared these on Instagram, but not here on my blog yet. Sometimes I'm doing that from time to time...making a card and taking some pix and posting to Instagram first. Then I can circle around and blog later with the supplies, etc. Pretty soon it will be time to switch to Autumn/Indian Summer cards (yay) so I wanted to share Summer today! 

First up is a pretty butterfly card combining lots of textures and colors. I love to mix papers!! Here I've used textured cardstock, vellum and metallic silver cardstock. I love the play and contrast of the mediums. I kept it simple - no stamping! Just a beautiful die cut from Pretty Pink Posh to finish it off... 

 

I used a SUPER fun technique to make the background stripes!! If you look closely, you can see that I made that striped paper!! I took a sheet of white cardstock and covered it with sticky tape. Then I used several colors of AC Textured Cardstock and cut it into 1/4 inch strips. I laid the strips down onto the adhesive tape making sure to push them snugly against each other. Once I had enough stripes, I used a rectangle stitched die to cut it into a panel. SO easy! I can't wait to use different colors and different widths of strips of paper for different looks!! That served as the pop of color for the card, so everything else is pretty neutral. I die cut a butterfly from silver cardstock and the branches from vellum...then the sentiment from black cardstock (supplies at the end of my post). I used white ink to make splatters on everything! Glued it together and done! 

 

Here's my lovely photo assistant! He has to be right where I am at all times! It's the absolutely sweetest thing ever. I don't mind one bit. 

 

Next up is ICE CREAM! I made this card for National Ice Cream Day! I loooooove these stamps from Sunny Studio Stamps. They are my favorite ice cream stamps. You stamp them in three layers and the results are amazing. You can make such fun cards with this set. I used a beautiful background plate from Lil Inkers too....and Doodlebug papers....

 

I started with an A2 card base and layered pretty pink gingham (Doodlebug) and then a strip of plaid (also Doodlebug)... I used the cover plate to make the background on the white circle part...then die cut it into a circle. Love it as a background for ice creams!! I stamped the sentiment and some sprinkles onto a smaller circle. I stamped the cones, ice cream and cherry and added a few clear sparklies to finish. Another fun and easy card layout. 

Thank you for coming by to see me! This week will be kind of quiet until Friday...then I have THREE new release blog hops that I'm in! SUPER stoked for those! I love the excitement of new releases and fun blog hops. Don't you? I hope your week is full of blessings and joy. XOXO 

 

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Let's Chill! Fun Palm Tree Shaker Card!

Hi friends! Just popping in today quickly to share a card I made last week! I came down with a cold on Tuesday (BOOOO) and have been feeling yucky. It's worse because every day here has been over 100 degrees outside! I'm starting to feel better and it's just a cold. But I am being a total baby about it! LOL. Mr. Lucky has been a great nurse companion - sleeping and snuggling by my side all day. What a sweetie. Hopefully I'll be good as new in a few.... Hope you're having a great week!

I love working with Queen & Company! Both the awesome people, and the fantastic products! Everything about Queen & Company is pure bright color, and pure fun! Such a joy to make a quick shaker card and stamp the perfect sentiment. Their kits are the bomb. If you are intimidated by making shaker cards I would encourage you to try one of their shaker kits. It makes it so easy to put it all together. The foam is cut, the acetate is cut for you and all you have to do is assemble everything! CLICK HERE to shop their store.  CLICK HERE to see videos on how to put the items together.

I made a super fun Summer shaker with a palm tree! I used rainbow paper for the background from Doodlebug. The perfect match! Take a look!  

 

I started with a kraft A2 card base and layered rainbow paper. Then I die cut two white stitched rectangles and layered those. My palm tree shaker is adhered directly to that top layer of white paper. The sentiment was stamping onto an oval of white in dark black ink! Let's chilllll....

 

I added some gems and bling inside - all in clear and green tones. You could add whatever you like! There are so many choices! I used Doodlebug Enamel dots in brown to look like coconuts! Every palm needs some coconuts right??

 

The shaker kits come with matching dies to use to cut out your patterned/solid papers. I used Doodlebug papers in brown and green. 

 

 

 

Wonder why I feel like a trip to the beach right now!? 

Thanks for popping by today! I hope you have a beautiful day and a fun Summer weekend coming up! XOXO See you soon!

 

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Autumn cards with Concord & 9th!

Hi everyone! Happy Monday! I hope you have a great week ahead of you. I had a super fun weekend with a trip to San Francisco to the farmers market and a foggy ferry ride. It's one of our favorite ways to escape the heat here in Sacramento. We are so lucky that we can go about 75 miles away and it's 40 degrees colder! We love going to the ferry building and hanging out for the day. My favorite photos from the day are on my Instagram! I really enjoy taking photos of flowers and gorgeous produce... I find all that color and natural beauty so inspiring. God truly is the master artist! 

Lots of my crafting friends are already knee deep in Christmas crafting! I am so grateful that I can wait on that this year and enjoy the natural flow of the seasons in my art and creating. I can feel the light changing ever so slightly in the evenings signaling the first glimpse of fall... And that has me super excited and anxious for Fall cards. Because Fall is my favorite time of year. I'm sharing two cards today with Fall colors and themes. I couldn't help myself- couldn't wait! LOL. 

There were two amazingly awesome new stamp sets that caught my eye from Concord & 9th recently. Angie and Greg were kind enough to send them to me so I could play! (they literally are the nicest people and I'm so glad they are my friends). I've seen lots of projects with both of theses sets (City Stacks and Furry Friends)... But I wanted to put my own twist on them - I made them Fall themed!  

First up is a card using the beautiful and innovative City Stacks Stamps and Dies. One of the things at the very top of my life bucket list is to visit Central Park in New York in Autumn. I soooo want to do this one day. Until then, I've created a card to look like Central Park might look in October! I stamped and die cut and layered and water colored and had the best time making this! 

 

I tried out some new watercolor paper for this project - for the city pieces and the trees/ground pieces. It has a nice linen texture to it, instead of the typical bumpy texture. It colored very nicely! Coloring the city was easy with my MIjello Mission watercolors. I mixed black with indigo blue to create a steely blue grey color like buildings. I did a wet on wet technique and really didn't fuss over it too much. I die cut them out with the matching dies. The dies include a pretty cloud border that I used at the top of my layers. 

***One note about my watercolors... I got this set of watercolors about a year ago. They have been so 'life changing' to my crafting. Yes, they are expensive! But I have not regretted spending the extra money on them. The tubes are still about 80% full and I've been painting with them all year. So I figure that they will last me at least 6-7 years. They are creamy and vivid and beautiful. I never thought I would be able to see the difference but I can!! Just wanted to put that out there for some of you who are on the fence about the Mijellos. I like the set I bought because it comes with a palette and everything. XO

This finished card is a slightly modified A2. My card measures 5.5 x 4.5 inches. 

 

The stamp and die with the ground and trees has three trees on it. I stamped and die cut out three of these pieces so I could have extra trees to put in my scene. I water colored the ground with a few shades of green and water colored the trees using vivid yellow, orange and a touch of red. This is how my brain sees Fall trees! LOL. The welcome die comes with the set. The stamped and heat embossed sentiment is from an old set that I don't know the name of! 

 

Here's a close up of the trees/coloring. The biggest tree stamp has a tire swing on it, so I just trimmed that part off.  

 

This is how the city scene looks when stamped and die cut.

 

This photo shows how I layered everything.... You know I love layers!!! More is more!

 

If you look closely at the ground pieces you can see where I trimmed off the trees. Then I used foam tape to attach them where I wanted them! Never be afraid to play and change things up!

 

For this second card I used the awesome Furry Friends stamps and dies. This stamp set is SO GREAT!!! It has a deer, a bear, a fox and a horse and matching accessories. I love a good woodland creature stamp set, yes I do! I immediately wanted to make a deer with a flower crown! I mean, right?? I had just gotten some new Fall paper pads too, and I used two of them for the paper layout of this card. I combined it with my favorite wood grain paper too. Yes! 

 

 

This finished card is A2 size. I started by layering my paper pieces. I used cream paper instead of bright white for this one. I used a bit of brown twine to add texture and softness to the overall feel of the piece. And, as I am known to do, I got some gingham in there. 

 

 

 

I stamped and die cut out the deer, the antlers and the flowers/leaves. I colored them with inks and also with Copics. For the sentiment and the circle, I used Distress Ink and a sponge to ink the edges and make it look more vintage. I finished with a few enamel dots from my stash, picking up that pretty blue color from the paper pad. 

 

 

That's it for my first Fall projects of 2018. I'll be back to making Summer projects later in the week! LOL. But I literally could not wait to stamp these stamps and bring these ideas to life. Thank you for stopping by my blog today! CLICK HERE TO shop Concord & 9th! I hope you have a great week. See you soon! XOXO

 

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Inspired by Sunflowers! You brighten my day!

Happy Friday! The summer is rolling right along.... It was HOT this week here. The only thing is...I can smell August coming... And then FALL! LOL. I'm not really a hot weather person so Summer for me is just a prelude to Autumn. Let's get on with it! Hope you've had a great week. I've been crafting a lot and busy in the studio too. Lucky is growing like a weed (wish he would slow down and stay little!) He had his first doctor appointment check up and he's doing great. He keeps me smiling all day with his crazy kitten antics.

A couple of weeks ago my husband and I went out for a beautiful Sunday drive to see the gorgeous sunflower fields here in Northern California. It really is a sight to behold. Miles and miles of the brightest yellow you've ever seen. They're everywhere. About 30 minutes west of us and a bit north is Yolo County. And it's A+ sunflower viewing. They've peeked now and are starting to wilt and turn brown. I think we caught them at the right time for some photographs. I put some of my favorite photos in this post to share with you!

I was so inspired by the pretty sunflowers that I decided I had to make a sunflower card! I used awesome stamps and dies from Honey Bee Stamps, and my Copic Markers, to create a sunflower scene. I had to put some bees on the card too, because there were tons of bees buzzing around the sunflowers we saw. 

 

 

Here is one of my favorite sunflower photos from our day out!

 

I started with a white A2 card base and then layered pretty blue gingham paper. I was totally inspired by the golden yellow of the sunflowers and the bees against the beautiful blue summer sky. That's what I tried to re-create on a card! I stamped and die cut out a bunch of sunflowers, leaves and bees. Then I colored them all in with my Copic Markers. I used a white gel pen to add dots and highlights after I was done coloring. The cute little fence die and all the stamps/dies are from Honey Bee. I used deeper shades of yellow and brown to make the sunflowers golden instead of bright lemon yellow. 

 

The sentiment was heat embossed with white embossing powder onto black paper. I hand cut the banner with my scissors. There are bits of Diamond Stickles on the bee wings and the leaves and flowers. This mimics the sun hitting the flowers!

 

 

 

I loooooove these little tiny bees!!!

 

 The images and the sentiment banner were attached to the card using foam tape. I layered everything until I liked the way the composition looked. 

 

 

 

 

Here are some of my sunflower photos! To see a map of where to find them go to VISITYOLO.COM website!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Have an amazing weekend! Thank you for stopping by my blog today! Lots of hugs! XOXO

 

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Hero Arts Summer Party Suite!

Hellllooooooo! I hope this day finds you happy and smiling! What are you up to this week? I don't really have a lot going on right now! It's been a quite couple of weeks which is fine with me. It's super hot here (over 100 every day) and that totally zaps my energy. I'm thoroughly enjoying spending lots of time with my sweet kitten. He makes me so happy and we have fun together all day in the studio. He alternates between Mach Five energy, and completely asleep! LOL. There is no in between with him! He is developing his little personality and I love him lots. He's a happy guy and very loving - follows me from room to room. I kind of feel bad because even if he is sound asleep, if I leave the room, he will wake up and come see me! It's so cute. He is already four months old! I don't want him to grow up!!! How come they grow so fast!!?? 

Today I'm sharing a neat project -- a pretty party invitation suite. An invitation, a thank you card, and a favor box! All made with matching beautiful florals from Hero Arts! A few months ago Hero Arts commissioned me to make this set of projects for them to use in some advertising, etc and I was so happy for the assignment! I used some wood stamps, some clear stamps and some dies....all coordinating florals from the Hero Arts collections. This set of projects would be great for a Summer Tea Party, a Bridal Shower, or a Birthday Party. So feminine and classic. I hope you like it!  

 

The favor box is from the big box crafting store and was inexpensive to buy. I like starting with a blank kraft canvas and then adding color! I coordinated everything with the beautiful Hero Arts Liquid Watercolors and bright pink and crisp white. For the box I stamped and die cut out the large peony and some leaves. I wrapped paper and vellum around the box and "sealed it" with the florals. You could put a small cake inside, or a present, or a note!

 

The thank you note is a flat card easy to mail and easy to write a note on the front. It coordinates with the invitation to carry the theme even after the party is over. I think sending thank you notes is such a lost art - and means so much to the recipient! The Thank You sentiment is heat embossed with Hero Arts Gold Embossing Powder. 

 

I used gold embossing on all three projects - this really ties it all together nicely! Gold embossing is so classy and timeless. Everyone appreciates this look!

 

Here is a close up of the invite! The Hero Arts Invitation stamp set allows you to choose which things you want on your invite.... Date, time, place, etc. Totally customizable and in a pretty font. I use this set a lot actually. 

 

I added a few pretty gold sequins to my projects for just a touch of shimmer, and to make them feel special!

 

I used Liquid Watercolors to make a soft wash on all the flowers and leaves. I also used them to splatter some extra paint around on the pieces. Looks artsy and cool I think!

Do you enjoy making your own invitations? I love to do that! I believe that the invitation sets the tone and mood for the entire event. Don't you just get so excited when you get a gorgeous invitation in the mail? You just already know someone put a lot of care into the party! The ones I've shared today can be made in any color palette to match your theme or party colors. Super easy to mass produce and no extra postage needed. I hope I've inspired you to plan a party! CLICK HERE to shop at Hero Arts! Have a wonderful week, until we meet again! XOXO

 

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Create Rainbows! Waffle Flower Little Painters Stamp Set!

Hi friends! Happy weekend! Happy Saturday! I'm going to a super fabulous and fun event today in the bay area! The awesome peeps from Queen & Company are having an all day crafting event and I'm heading down to help out and take pictures, etc. Looking forward to an AWESOME day of fellowship, laughter and great projects! I'll be on the road early....Keep an eye on my Instagram Stories for behind the scenes from the party! I hope that you have a wonderful and happy weekend. 

Today I'm sharing a COOOOOOL, bright, and artsy card made with supplies from Waffle Flower Crafts! YES! You guys know I love Waffle Flower! One of their newer stamp sets spoke to me right away. It's called Little Painters. It has paint tubes, paint brushes, a palette, and cute critters too. I made a rainbow of brushes and tubes and then used some other Waffle Flower stamps and dies to create my own sentiment. I originally colored in these images with my Copics during the 30 Day Coloring Challenge. I finally made them into a card!

 

My card base is bright yellow Buttercup cardstock in A2 size. (My very favorite yellow cardstock!) I layered a white layer and splattered it with black craft ink and set that aside to dry. I had already colored my images with Copic Markers. I stamped and die cut out everything first and then had fun choosing a rainbow of bright colors including hot pink and lime green! A non traditional rainbow!

 

I used the Rainbows word die and the Rainbows stamp set to make my sentiment in the upper left corner. I used black to contrast with all the bright colors.

 

Here is the image of the stamp set! SO CUTE, right? The little animals can peek out from behind the paint brushes!! EEPS. I love all those brushes!!! 

 

I cut and colored bunches of brushes and paint tubes so I just had fun rearranging them into a funky rainbow on the front of my card. All of the elements are attached using foam tape. I added some clear droplets to look like water splashing around. I also used a Gelly Roll Clear Glaze Pen to add clear dimension to the paint tubes, brush handles and paint. 

 

 

 

I put the paint palette on the inside of the card since I had already colored it in!

 

 

 

 

 

I hope you're inspired by this card to create something today! Best wishes for a fabulous summer weekend! Can I just say that I ordered a WHOLE bunch of Fall papers and things the other day! I'm all about Fall and I'm anticipating Fall crafting already! For the past eight years I have had to do Christmas in July for my design team commitments. I am so happy to have a small break from that this year. I feel like I create better when it's the season at hand. There is plenty of time to do our Christmas crafting right? Have a blessed day! XOXO

 

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Fiesta! Pinata! Fun party card with My Favorite Things!

Helllloooooo! Let's have a fiesta today! I've got a card with LOTS of color, fun dies, and a Pinata! What could be better than that?? Not much if you ask me! LOL. I can hear party music in the background as I'm typing this right now. These dies are so cool and fabulous. I've been wanting to make something with them for a few weeks now. All the stamps, dies and stencils today are from My Favorite Things Stamps. YESSSS! Let's party!

I started with a bright white A2 card base. Then I layered hot pink...then I stenciled some vivid yellow sun rays... THEN I made a pinata! This card has a lot going on, but it's all fun. I popped the sentiment in rich black for contrast with all those bright colors. This card has it all: stamping, die cutting, stenciling...

 

 

I really like the font on this fiesta die. It's really pretty, but festive at the same time. It's going to get used a lot. I added a stamped sentiment underneath the die to make this a birthday card. I stenciled the radiating rays using Squeezed Lemonade Distress Ink and a sponge. 

 

Here is a side shot so you can see how I layered everything...

 

 

 

This pinata die set is the cutest, most creative thing I've seen in a long time! It's so easy to make. There is a large background die and then you layer all the other pieces on top of that solid piece. It is very user friendly and easy to figure out which piece goes where. Genius! I used three shades of bright hot colors. You could make a rainbow too! Or any color combination that you love. I used some Lawn Fawn Cord to make a bow and tie up my pinata. I also added a few gems at the end. Ya know...it needed....MORE! Hahaha. 

 

This shot shows the layering of the pinata die pieces. I used thin foam dots to put the pieces together. I gently lifted up some of the fringe with my fingers. Careful not to bend the paper and crease it. 

 

 

Thanks for joining me on this fiesta today! AY CARUMBA! We stamping girls know how to have fun, don't we??? I hope your week is a party and that it's awesome. Take care - see you soon! XOXO

 

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Reverse Confetti New Release Blog Hop! July 2018!

Hi my crafty friends! Happy weekend! I hope you had a great 4th of July! I'm here today to share something really fun! I'm going to be joining in with the Reverse Confetti team every other month to help launch the new releases! YAHOOOO! Jen is a friend of mine, and any time she wants my support I try to give it! Plus....cutest stamps ever! I'm delighted to join a big fabulous blog hop today showing the new July 2018 release. I made two cards to share! CLICK HERE to SHOP the entire new release! Full blog hop list and specific shopping links are at the bottom of my post. Enjoy! 

First up is a FUN and sweet camping card with adorable little animals having some s'mores by the fire. Reverse Confetti has the cutest critters in their stamp sets. I also love the tent and the funky trees! I used lots of stamps and dies and built a scene. Even the sentiment is super cute! The new set I'm featuring is called Greatest Adventure!

 

I started with a White A2 card base and layered some blue and white gingham from my stash. I used large oval dies to die cut two green hills to layer at the bottom of the card. I used a very very old wood stamp and some versamark ink to stamp the splotches onto the green cardstock. Then it was a matter of stamping and coloring the images! I used Copic Markers and then added some Diamond Stickles to the clouds and the fire. The clouds are from another, previously released Reverse Confetti Stamp Set. Everything works great together!

 

I stamped and die cut out all the pieces and colored them in with natural, outdoorsy shades. Everything is attached to the card using foam tape. I stamped the sentiment in the corner. CUTEST font ever, right? 

 

 

 

 

 

Next up is a bright and funky floral card using the brand new Mod Floral stamps and dies. I thought this new stamp set was a perfect match for the already released Eyelet Cover Plate (which I LOVE). I used some 70's shades: aqua, green and orange, and popped it against dark grey and white. I really like how this card came out! I started with a white A2 card base and then die cut the cover plate and layered that over the white using foam tape. 

 

 

I wrapped a strip of vellum around the entire front of the card. I used beautiful cardstock and stamped the patterned flower sections onto the cardstock using Versamark Ink. It's a very subtle and pretty look. I used the matching dies to cut the florals out. 

 

 

 

I stamped and heat embossed the sentiment onto black cardstock with bright white embossing powder! Looks pretty with the other colors I think! The final touch was to use a few enamel dots from my stash.

 

 

 

 

Thank you SO much for joining me today on my stop on this awesome blog hop! YEAH for the new Reverse Confetti July Release! LOVE IT! The entire new release is available for shopping now! Woot! What are you most excited about? Enjoy the hop! Next up is the talented and lovely Lisa Henke! Full Hop list at the bottom of this post! 

 

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 FULL BLOG HOP LIST FOR TODAY!

Reverse Confetti Blog

Amy Kolling

Ali Farmer

Melissa Phillips

Amy Sheffer

Tricia Barber

Lydia Fiedler

Kelly Lunceford

Wanda Guess

Lisa Henke

Amy Rohl

Laurie Schmidlin

Heather Hoffman

Justine Hovey

Amy Tsuruta

Kathy Schweinfurth

Michelle Short

Audrey Tokach

Deanne Kuntz

Laurie Willison

Jeanne Jachna

Olga Moss

Eloise Blue