S&S Holiday Vacation Challenge #7

I was very excited to see that todays challenge is to make a card using a "new toy" received for Christmas!  Not that I needed an excuse, of course!  The image I used on this card was just purchased this morning (by me) from JoAnn's using a gift card that I received for Christmas.  

I have been looking for a bee stamp/digi to go with these words a friend gave me a few years back and since I have been working on Valentines for OWH I have been looking with even more dedication.  So, imagine my excitement when I saw today's challenge!  Here is my card:

Aren't the bees fabulous?  I just love them!  I especially love how easy they are to color (insert big grin here.)  The bit of dp is from JoAnn's, the card stock is SU and I put it through my Cuttlebug using the swirls embossing folder.  I only made 1 card so I could get it posted quickly but I am ready to go duplicate this by at least 6 for my next OWH shipment (Valentine deadline is January 7th!)

Thanks for stopping by.  I would love to visit your blog if you would leave me a comment and include your URL.   Happy stamping!
 

S&S Midweek Throwdown Challenge - Be My Valentine

How exciting for me to be selected to inspire my fellow OWH stampers on the S&S Midweek Throwdown Challenge! I am thrilled and even more motivated to crank out some last minute Valentines.  How about you?

As you know the deadline for Valentine cards, January 7th, is quickly approaching and with the great success of the Archway Challenge (thanks again Archway!) I am afraid that many of us have already mentally moved on to other themes.  However, the need for Valentine's Day cards has not diminished.  Many of our hero contacts are still on waiting lists for their next card boxes and time is getting short to get Valentine themed cards out to them.  So, hopefully this throwdown will give us all one last boost to turn out some sweet cards for our heroes.

My first card features the giraffe from Melanie Muenchinger's "Just So Hippy" stamp set - one of my personal favorites - which is available with Gina K Designs.  I stamped the image onto white cs with Stampin' Up! (SU) Pretty in Pink ink, colored the heart spots with the same ink and then used my blender pen to give it a soft look.  The dp is also from SU, one of the 6X6 packs that I earned as a hostess gift awhile back.  I cut the circle and shadow scallop with Spellbinders Nestabilities and my Cuttlebug.  The embossed background was also created using my Cuttlebug and an embossing folder.  Did you notice the partial image "tease" on the front of the envelope?  I just LOVE the over the shoulder look stance and the look on his face!  too cute!

For this second card I took inspiration from the Mojo Monday Sketch Blog  for October 5, 2010 Sketch #107 and cased a card made by Deborah Southard for Our Daily Bread Designs.  The sentiment is from Verve Stamps "Just for You" and the image is from SU "Garden Silhouettes." All cardstock, ink, brads, and the dp are also SU.   Once again, I cut the circle and scallop with Spellbinders Nestabilities and my Cuttlebug.  The embossed background was also created using my Cuttlebug and an embossing folder.

I would like to point out here that neither of these cards use the phrase "Happy Valentine's Day" but both are completely suitable to be used as Valentine's Day cards.  On the other hand, they could also be used even after the February 14th celebration is over...thus extending the useful life of the card.  Clever, eh?  Not an original idea but a great tip for OHW stampers like us, isn't it?

Thanks for stopping by my relatively new blog.  I love to hear your comments and enjoy visiting others blogs so leave me your URL and I'll stop by and leave you some love too!

Happy Stamping & Merry Christmas!

SC311 Sketch Challenge

I can hardly believe that Christmas is just a week away!  Time sure does fly when we keep focused and busy.  The funny thing is that I have been focused and busy with Valentines Day cards so I feel as if I have totally blown past Christmas and spring should be right around the corner...it is, right?

I spent the morning sorting, tucking, counting and packing the cards I have been creating for Operation Write Home over the past few weeks.  I was pretty tickled to find that I had stamped exactly 100 Valentines (I thought it was ironic, anyway.)  In total I will be shipping out 153 cards on Monday morning, several of which you can see by scrolling through my recent posts.

I was able to put together 18 Valentines last night and thought I would share them on my blog.  The first one here was inspired by Splitcoast Stampers weekly sketch challenge (aka SC311.)  Unfortunately I am unable to upload my photos directly to their site - something to do with the number of pixels my camera takes or some such craziness (being electronically challenged I just accept that I can't do it and haven't pursued fixing it. lol )

Here is the sketch and link:  SC311   

And here is my card:  

The sentiment was cased from OWH's Stars and Stamps Blog free digi's (for OWH cards only) as were the sentiments on these other cards to follow.  I typed the words in Microsoft Word then printed them on white cardstock.  My goal was to use these lovely sentiments paired with last of the hearts DP I wanted to use up with this card shipment.  Here are the others:

These are all pretty simple cards and could easily have been turned into kits for a card making event as well.  

If you like what you see, of if you have any questions, please take a minute and leave me a comment and a link to your blog.  Thanks for stopping by!

S&S Midweek Throwdown - Ribbon

Hey friends!  The S&S Midweek Throwdown challenge this week is to "get creative with ribbon."  I thought it was just to add ribbon to a card so I have failed on the "get creative" part - oops!  lol  I think I will post it anyway.

So, this card definitely falls under the CAS category which I enjoy doing but have a hard time with because I always think it is missing something.  In this case the size of the card basically eliminated that compulsion!  I deviated from my norm and made a square card that is 4.25' so it will still fit into a A2 envelope so it can be sent to our troops via OWH - I made 12 total.  Most of the products used are Stampin' Up!  The card stock is Blush Blossom and Night of Navy.  The ink, Night of Navy.  I ran the top layer through my Cuttlebug which really added an elegant touch in combination with the organdy ribbon. 


I have to admit Blush Blossom is not a favorite color of mine and I basically challenged myself to use it today because I am wanting to use up my rather large inventory of discontinued Stampin' Up! card stock.  I have to give credit for the color combo to the SU Color Coach, I never would have found a match without it!  Too funny, I know.


Thanks for stopping by, I love to read your comments so please take a minute and let me know what you think.


Happy stamping!

S&S Sketch #46

S&S Sketch #46 turned out to be pretty fun!  I am actually posting this before the next sketch has been issued - a first for me!  I am still working on Valentine cards for OWH and this sketch looked simple enough.  Here is my card:

I am excited about this card because I have finally found a technique for this wonderful image that eliminates the need for coloring....which I dread like a root canal!  The image is from the 2004 Stampin' Up! set named "Toucan of my Love."  The DSP is also from SU.  For the "special effects" I used a white gel pen on the eyes, colored pencil for the ears and blush, and Crystal Effects to highlight the heart.  I also ran the white card base through my Cuttlebug using the Swiss Dot folder.  

Since this card is for OWH I made several duplicates (12 total) and then realized that they are just a bit too girly to be sent to a boy so I continued on in the same thought process and came up with a boyish version of this Valentine.  I duplicated this too (8 total.)  Here is a picture of it:

Thanks for visiting my blog today!  I love to read your comments and will greatly appreciate your feedback.

Happy Stamping!

S&S Sketch #45

S&S Sketch Challenge #45 looks much easier than it actually was...for me at least!  I pondered it for several days before I actually set it aside "for another day."  Then an idea finally hit me...a week later than I hoped but better late than never, right?  So, here is what I came up with:

There are several things that I really like about this card.  First, the DP.  I have had this Stampin' Up! DP for at least a year and although I love the colors I have never found just the right design or image to use it with.  It may be difficult to tell but I ran the DP though my Cuttlebug with the Hounds-tooth embossing folder and it really added some texture and interest.  Second, I have tried and tried to pair up these words with an appropriate image and I finally put two and two together and wha-la a pretty good match I think.  Third, I was able to use two Stampin' Up! colors that have been discontinued...which I will miss but they need to go to make room for some new colors (I am all about justification!)

If you have any questions about the products (all Stampin' Up!) or techniques used I will be happy to give out the details.

Please leave me a comment and make my day brighter!

Happy Stamping!

Color Throwdown #121

This is my first entry in The Color Throwdown and I am very excited to have found another resource for challenges because I find them very motivating.  This card is one of many that will be sent to our troops via Operation Write Home.  All of the products used are Stampin' Up! except for the designer paper which was purchased at The Hobby Lobby.

If you would like more information about the products or techniques used please leave a comment and I will reply as quickly as possible.

Please leave a comment and a link to YOUR blog and I will be happy to do the same for you!

S&S Midweek Throwdown Challenge: Animal(s)

Hey there, thanks for visiting my blog!  The latest S&S Midweek Challenge is to make a card for our troops that features an animal or animals.  When I saw this I knew immediately what stamp I wanted to use...because I have been trying to come up with something for this particular image for several weeks!

So, what's been the big deal?  Why is this just now coming about?  Because I have a secret fear that paralyzes me every time I even consider using a certain technique.  What could fascinate me so much and scare me to death at the same time?  You are never going to believe this but....coloring.  Yes, I know....lame-o.  The thing is...I hate to destroy a beautiful image with poor coloring.  However!  I have been making myself practice....but alas this image was water colored by my husband Dave.  He has more artistic talent, especially in the drawing/painting arena, than I will ever hope to have.  Thankfully I can coax him into participating in my card making once in a while. 

For the card:  the image is from the Suzy's Zoo collection (no wonder I love him!) but everything else is from Stampin' Up! Words: Friend to Friend Set (2004)  Card stock: Whisper White, Watercolor paper, Bashful Blue, Green Galore, and Gable Green Ink:  Garden Green (words) and Bashful Blue (sponged around the words)  Ribbon: Bashful Blue Grosgrain Stripe.  I used my Cuttlebug to cut out the ovals and to emboss the Gable Green.  

I have loved this little piggy for as long as I have been stamping.  He used to belong to a friend who passed him on to me when she was downsizing her stamp collection.  I really really want to use him with the words "Hogs & Kisses" for Valentines Day but it just hasn't come together for me yet.  I'll try again soon.

Thanks for visiting and happy stamping!
 

The Gratitude Campaign

This video has touched my heart and will change my personal response to current and former service men and women for the rest of my life.  They are willing to sacrifice their lives to sustain my way of life the least I can do is overcome my shyness and give them the respect and thanks they deserve. 

Another great way to thank our american hereos can be found at http://www.dearamericanhero.com/

May God bless our troops and their families.