Bigsby's Christmas Wish

Note: This is my second post today. Please scroll down for Sketch Saturday. Thanks!

I'm hanging my head in shame for taking so long to post this card for the current challenge at Stampin' Sisters in Christ. As I said on the SSIC blog, I can't figure out where this week went! If anyone finds it, please send it back! I need a do-over!!!

Our hostess this week is Peggysue Turner, who chose the scripture Luke 8:16 "No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a vessel or puts it under a bed, but sets it on a lampstand, that those who enter may see the light." The challenge is to make a votive holder or a card/project depicting a candle. 

My card features the adorable image called Bigsby's Christmas Wish by Karen's Doodles, our challenge sponsor. It's not too late to whip up a votive OR card featuring a candle for a chance to win two images of choice from Karen's Doodles! You have until 11:59 pm Pacific tonight. You can do it!!! You can! You can!

Please be sure to pop over to the Stampin' Sisters in Christ blog to read Peggysue's devotional on her scripture and to see what the design team ladies have created for this very special challenge. You will be blessed!

Have a wonderful day, my friends! May all your wishes come true!

Life is Good at the Beach

Yes, it is!!!

Hello everyone! Happy Saturday! Today is my last post as Guest Designer at Sketch Saturday (*sob*). It's been a true honor and pleasure to be a part of the team this month! Thank you soooo much Jo and Sem!!! You're the BEST!!!

You know how much I love a good sketch, and the ones at Sketch Saturday are among the BEST! I'm having such a blast making summer cards... and since the beach IS my favorite place to be, I used two of the Summer Fun My Kids Emo World digis (Christian and London) from Simply Betty Stamps to make this little beach scene. That's one of the cool things about digis... you can size them and combine them however you wish!

The DP and chipboard are from the Paradise collection by Bo Bunny. I cut the greeting out of a piece of the DP.

I hope you'll come along and play with this week's sketch at Sketch Saturday! There's always a fabby prize up for grabs, and lots of wonderful inspiration from the Design Team.

Have a GOOD day, my friends! I'll be back soon with more to share!

Psssst... by the way... Betty has extended her sale through next Tuesday (August 3rd)! Yay!!!

ENABLER ALERT * ENABLER ALERT*ENABLER ALERT

Where have I been? Living in an alternate universe where time is something other than reality, that's where. You have no idea. Sheesh! I totally whiffed and forget to let y'all know sooner: Simply Betty Stamps is having an AWESOME sale, but it ends tonight (Thursday, July 29th) at 11:59 pm PACIFIC!!!

Right now at Simply Betty Stamps:

My Little Shoe Box papers, stickers, and overlays are 50% off! 

  BoBunny papers, stickers, and embellishments are 40% off!

All Rubber is 30% off!

All Digis are 25% off!  

Hurry!!!

Waltzingmouse Stamps August Release Blog Waltz!!!

Yay, the day is finally here... the Waltzingmouse Stamps August Release! And no, you're not going crazy... today really IS July 27th, not August 1st. {LOL} We're having our release a bit early this time.

Two stamp sets are being released today... Wanda's Pantry and Midnight Feast, both MUST-HAVES for all you Halloween fans. Claire and the Design Team ladies have been previewing both stamp sets for the past three days, and now you can feast your eyes on them in their entirety. Just hop on back to the Waltzingmouse Stamps blog to see them and start the Waltz. There are prizes to be won, so be sure to leave comments on all posts along the way!!!

My card features images from Midnight Feast. Wanda's sister Wendy is wearing an apron as she flies off after cooking up eye of bat, wart of frog, and all those other yummy Halloween treats. I heat embossed the image and greeting with Versamark and ultra fine black embossing powder, which works wonderfully with Waltzingmouse stamps. I then sponged over both with Tim Holtz Wild Honey Distress Ink. I love that Waltzingmouse Stamps images make creating so easy and fun!!!

My blog is the last stop on the Waltz. As Claire would say, I hope everything you've seen has tickled! Now on you go to shop to your heart's delight. Don't forget that FREE SHIPPING is now standard on all orders of £50GBP. And you'll definitely want to add Halloween Party to your cart along with Wanda's Pantry and Midnight Feast. Together, your Halloween projects (especially those for entertaining and gift-giving) will be complete!!!

Happy spooky stamping!

Just Because

Hey y'all! Raise your hand if you've got some sweet Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps! Now raise your hand if you've been using them to enter our challenges! Woo hoo!!! And if you don't have any of these whimsically delicious stamps, now's your chance... Sparkle is having a vacation sale... all eight of the first release stamps are on sale for 10% off through August 1st!! You can get all the deets on the Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps blog.

 We have a fun inspiration challenge this week at Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps... create a card/project inspired by the picture above.

I don't know about you, but the first thing that popped in my mind was DESSERT! Oh, how I love dessert. It's really a weakness, especially ice cream. So I reached for cutie patootie Cupcake Ruby, who just so happens to have the largest cupcake I've ever seen!

For my card, I turned the Friday Sketchers Sketch #112 on its side. The cardstock, DP and button are from the Taylored Expressions Key Ingredients kit I received for FREE for subscribing to the Taylored Expressions Key Ingredients kits for six months. Isn't that cool? I can't tell you who the DP is by, though. If someone recognizes it, please let me know!

That gorgeous crocheted flower is another by my super talented friend Kim Yu. I used a bit of white acrylic paint around the edges of the DP to give it a bit more interest and definition.

I can't wait to see what you create with Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps!!! One lucky participant in this week's challenge will win Turntable Josh, which is one of my faves.

Enjoy!

friends

Happy Monday!!! Time for another fabulous challenge at The Pink Elephant!!!

Woo hoo!!! You know I love a good sketch challenge, and this one is AWESOME!!! Not only that, but we are being sponsored this week by Cocoa Studio Designs, seriously sweet digital graphics! And I do mean Seriously Sweet!!! One lucky player will win the Forest Friends Digital Stamps set that the Design Team had the treat to play with. I'm hooked!!!

My DP is from the Earth Love collection by Cosmo Cricket. Seemed like the perfecting pairing for these sweet images, which are easy to create a scene with since they come in PNG format (as well as JPG).

Why not print out the sketch and join the fun? I can't wait to see what YOU come up with. And don't forget to hop over to The Pink Elephant blog to see the seriously sweet cards the rest of the design girls made.

Happy Days, my friends!!!

Halloween Treats Waltzingmouse Style!

Today is Day 3 of our previews of the two newest additions to the Waltzingmouse Stamps family, Wanda's Pantry and Midnight Feast. Everytime I read through the labels of these sets, I have to smile at how clever they are. Claire has done it again! As you've seen in the previews so far, there's no end to what you can do with these sets, but one thing's for sure... they'll make your treat bags pop!!!

My treat bags were super simple to make, but that's what you want when you're making several. I cut the bag tops from two different dies... one is the Top Note die by Sizzix for Stampin Up, and the other is Spellbinders Labels 5, which I also used to cut the greeting tag. As always, Waltzingmouse Stamps coordinate perfectly with Spellbinders dies. In fact, Waltzingmouse Stamps is a Product Partner with Spellbinders!

Be sure to pop by and see what goulish delights Claire, Julia, Lynn, Anya, Belinda, Mona, Jennifer and Laurie have come up with! We'll see you tomorrow for the New Release Blog Waltz, when the stamp sets will be revealed in full. And, of course, there will be chances for prizes!! Bwwwaaahahaaahaaaa!!!

Waltzingmouse Stamps August Release Previews Day 2

Hello my friends! I'm afraid I don't have anything to preview for you today, but you'll find lots of goodies to drool over when you visit Claire, Julia, Lynn, Anya, Bonnie, Mona, Jennifer and Belinda. I promise to be back tomorrow with another preview of my own!

Have a wonderful day!

Love Potion No. 9

Some folks are celebrating Christmas in July, but we at Waltzingmouse Stamps are celebrating Halloween!!! Surprise!!! Our August release is happening a bit early. Due to Claire's vacation plans, we've moved the release up five days to Tuesday, July 27th, which means previews begin today!!!

 This also happens to be the start of another fabulous sketch challenge at the Waltzingmouse Sketch Challenge blog. I turned the sketch on its side to showcase an image from one of the two stamp sets being released on Tuesday, Wanda's Pantry. Claire has done it again with a stamp set that coordinates perfectly with your favorite Spellbinders dies!!!

The DP is from the Newsprint collection by Stampin Up! The roses are by Prima, and the rhinestone swirl is by Zva. It's a very simple card, but I wanted it to have more of a Halloween feel than a Valentine feel.

Just wait until you see the rest of the images in Wanda's Pantry and those in Midnight Feast! Both are the most unique Halloween stamp sets I've ever seen, done in the quintessential Waltzingmouse Stamps style! For more peeks, be sure to visit Claire, Julia, Lynn, Anya, Bonnie, Mona, Jennifer and Laurie. And did you notice that list includes a new name? Yep! Mona Pendleton has joined us on the Waltzingmouse Stamps Design Team. Yay!!!!!

Happy blog haunting my friends!!! We'll be back tomorrow with more previews. Oh, and don't forget to play in the Waltzingmouse Sketch Challenge! YOU might be our next Top Mouse!!!

P.S. This is my second post for today. Please scroll down for a peek at my Sketch Saturday card.
 

A Sketch Saturday HI!

Happy Saturday everyone! I'm having such a BLAST being a Guest Designer for Sketch Saturday this month!!! The sketches are so much fun the play with, and everyone's so nice!

I turned this week's sketch on its side for my card featuring the adorable Sugar Sticks Girl With Kite by LORi Boyd. This image seems like a match made in heaven paired with DP and stickers from the A Walk In The Park collection by Echo Park. Obviously, this year's summer papers are really singing to my heart. I can't seem to get enough of their bright and cheerful colors!

I'll be anxious to see what you come up with using this sketch! Have a wonderful weekend, my friends. Thank you so much for stopping by!

Smile!

Smile everyone! It's Friday!!!

You all know how much I LOVE a good sketch, and some of the BEST come from 2Sketches4You! Laura and Kazan have a special touch when it comes to sketches... they are artistry in and of themselves, and stretch me creatively.

I absolutely love this week's sketch by Kazan and plan to use it again. As soon as I saw it, the idea for my card popped in my head. I was looking for a way to use my new Die-namics Rolled Flower, and this was perfect! Paired with leaves from Turning a New Leaf and greeting from Say It With Style, both by Papertrey Ink, this card came together very quickly (once I figured out the die!). The DP is from the Thrift Store collection by October Afternoon. The text on that paper is awesome!

Have a wonderful day, my friends!

P.S. Please scroll down for my Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge card. Another AWESOME sketch challenge!!!

Ocean Wave Dancer

Happy Friday!Time for another fin-tastic Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge!!!

I've taken some liberties with this week's sketch... I made it square instead of rectangular to give it more depth so that Ocean Wave Dancer has plenty of room to dive! I'm so glad I finally got a chance to ink up one of these Sweet November cuties. I love them all!

The DP is from the Splash Dance collection by Imaginisce. Of course I had to shimmer up Ocean Wave Dancer's "scales" by adding some Stickles, so I mixed Baby Blue and Eucalyptus together. The "bubbles" are Rain Dots by Cloud 9 Design, and the shell embellishment is by K&Company.

Why not come along and play with us this week? I'd love to see what you come up with using this gorgeous sketch! Be sure to visit the rest of the Sketch Crew to see what they've come up with. It's sure to be a treat!

Alice Wertz: Alice's Little Wonderland 

Jami Sibley: More is More

Melissa Sauls: In Stamping Mode
Monika Davis: M.A.D. Stamper
Rosie Hughes: Love My Craft Room

Sherrie Siemens: Card Creme

and of course Taylor herself: Taylored Expressions

Have a fin-tastic day my friends!

Tiddly Inks Halloween Blog Hop!

When I heard that Tiddly Inks was hosting a Halloween Blog Hop, I had to jump in and play! I had the honor of being a Guest Designer for Tiddly Inks, and my heart still belongs to Christy and her adorable images! One of my faves is the Avenger series. When I saw the new Candy Avenger, I couldn't wait to color her up! Isn't she CUTE?!!!

Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge #83 was PERFECT for creating a little Halloween scene. I pulled out my left-over stash from last year's Eerie collection by Basic Grey (at least, I'm pretty sure what it is!). I also glittered up her dress just for fun.

I can't wait to see what the Tiddly Inkers and other hop participants have come up with for Halloween in July Tiddly Inks style! Why not HOP along with me? You'll find the links on the Tiddly Inks Challenge Blog. See you there!

By the way... ENABLER ALERT ENABLER ALERT ENABLER ALERT...Tiddly Inks is having a sale... 35% off orders of $15 or more, and many images are also on sale. You won't believe how many images you'll get for $15 right now. Woo hoo!!!!

Taylored Expressions Blast From the Past Blog Hop

Woo hoo!!! It's time for the monthly Taylored Expressions Blast from the Past Blog Hop! I'm loving these hops because it's such a great excuse to pull out my "older" TE stamp sets and show them some love!

Today I pulled out Berries & Cherries, one of my all-time favorites. It coordinates perfectly with the Garden Variety collection by Cosmo Cricket, so I also reached for my Udderly Sweet Project Pantry Kit, plus a piece of coordinating chipboard.

The amazing Sankari Wegman designed the sketch for us to play with (which I turned on its side). Thanks Sankari! I love it!

I can't wait to see what the rest of these talented ladies have created, how about you? Enjoy!

Lantern Rin

If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium. Raise your hand if you remember that movie! I think I saw it many many years ago, but it's really the name that has always stuck in my head. In this case, if it's Tuesday, it must be time for another Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamp Challenge!!!

Today we have an awesome sketch for you designed by Mary Giles. You know me... I LOVE a good sketch challenge, and this one's a keeper!

The challenge runs from now until 9:00 pm Pacific time on Sunday, July 25th. One player will be randomly drawn to win a Sparkle Creations stamp!!! You must use a Sparkles Creation stamp to win the prize, but who can resist these adorable images? We love to see you SPARKLE!

My card features Lantern Rin. I love her!!! I dug around in my stash, having thought I remembered buying some Japanese patterned rice paper a long time ago, and lucky me, I found it! I realize it's a bit on the busy side, but that's what caught my eye. hee hee

As you can see, I paper pieced Rin's lantern and kimono. I love how it turned out... even though it was a LOT of cutting between those pieces and the entire image. I also dug up the coin from an old stash. Funny the things you find when you go digging around in your craft room! The cardstock was embossed with the Square Lattice Sizzix embossing folder from Stampin' Up. I love the texture.

Please be sure to click over to the Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps blog to see the cards created by Sparkle and the rest of her design team... and come play with us this week! We'd LOVE to see what you create with your Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps and Mary's sketch! Oh, and did I mention there's a prize involved???

It's a Jungle Out There

Yes it IS a jungle out there... this I know first hand! LOL

Hello everyone! Happy Monday! It's time for another fun challenge at The Pink Elephant!

BROWN

We want to see brown as the predominant color in your card/project this week. 

Our showcase company is My Favorite Things. 

The design team is using images, designer paper and ribbons generously provided by My Favorite Things for our cards. 

Since the color challenge is BROWN, I decided to color the safari animals in a monochromatic fashion using shades of brown that seemed to coordinate well with the brown in the background paper. I followed Our Creative Corner Sketch Challenge 24 turned on its side, which was perfect for setting my "jungle" scene.

I hope you'll come along and strut your stuff using the color brown this week! We love seeing your gorgeous creations! Be sure to stop by The Pink Elephant blog to see what the rest of the Design Team created with these fun images, papers and ribbons!

Have a wonderful day!

I miss you so much...

A blessed Sunday to you! Today is the day that the Lord hath made, let us rejoice and be glad in it!

Our hostess for this week's challenge at Stampin' Sisters In Christ is Grace Nywening. She is as gracious and godly as her name implies. When Grace speaks, I listen! She has written a beautiful devotional on the Stampin' Sisters in Christ blog for today's inspiration scripture. I urge you to read it. I know you will be blessed!

Grace chose as the inspiration scripture Psalm 127:1a "Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it." The challenge is to use an image in your card/project of something that is "built" using a set of plans ... a house, church, school, automobiles, even a bird house...anything that would be built according to a set of plans."

I struggle to stick with God's plans for me rather than my own plans for myself. But the struggle is really what happens when I don't.

Our sponsor this week is Wink Wink Ink!

I was delighted to use images from Grandma's Parlor Collection Set for my card. The different pieces of this set give you endless possibilities! Furniture is certainly something built using plans, so I believe my card meets the challenge!

The little pup looks a lot like our Sadie. She LOVES my husband. When he leaves, she lays up by the front door with her nose near the bottom, waiting for him to come back. That's why I chose the greeting "I miss you so much" from Gina K Designs to finish my card.

There are many people to whom I could send this card. I find myself missing a lot of people lately. I've got to do something about that!

The background DP is by Echo Park. The frame is by K&Company... something I found in my stash. That gorgeous crocheted flower was made for me by my dear friend Kim Yu. Kim is not only the sweetest person, but oh so talented! Lucky me has several more of these beauties to play with. Thank you Kim!!!

I hope you'll come play with us this week at Stampin' Sisters in Christ! Just think of all the things that are built using plans! And you'll have a chance at winning a fabulous prize, too... and perhaps a Shining Star! It's all good!

Have a blessed day my friends!