gettin my embell-ope on!

hey there!
i made this card/envelope last week with two challenges in mind...and then forgot to take picturs and blog about it, until today! lol! oops! that hasn't happened to me in a while! ha ha!! i missed one of the challenges, but the challenge at a blog named hero is still open (barely! ha ha!)! the challenge is all about decorating the envelope! i think that is such a NEAT idea!! i love it! and it's something that i never do. so i was excited to actually do it! :)

i used two hero arts stamps - the main city image is from the silly scape wood block (still one my all time favorite stamps!!) and the sentiment is from everyday sayings, which is such an awesome set! perfect for literally, any occasion! :)

well, here they are:

 

i made the card first, and it was a blast to coordinate the envelope!

i stamped, fussy cut and popped up the city scene. then i added some glossy accents to a few windows, roofs, etc for a little added interest! 

the background was created by blending two distress inks to make the prettiest sunset ever! lol!

for the envelope, i stamped the city scene, and then masked it off so i could splatter some pink and gold! 

to finish it off, i added the tiniest bit of glitter my wink of stella glitter pen to the city windows, etc (just like the i did with the glossy accents on the card). 

so that's it! like i said, super fun, and totally out of my comfort zone! :) 
enjoy!

inky paws sketch challenge #4

yahoo! it's time for another inky paws challenge over at the newton's nook blog! the sketch this time is SO fun and absolutely fun to work with!!

for my card i had an idea to turn that circle into a snowglobe! hello! seems obvious, now doesn't it! ha ha!
then all i had to decide on was which newton's nook image to use! all of the new release images would have been super fun!! (i'm looking at you sea-son's greetings octopus, whale and boat!! ha ha!) but in the end, i settled on the warm and cuddly newton in a scarf (from newton's holiday mischief)! he just looked so bundled up and ready to be in a snowglobe! :) ha!

i paper pieced the cat image and then, using some circle dies and strip of paper, i created the snowglobe! easy peasy! 

i also decided to go a little abstract with the light green rectangle in the sketch and i used some maya road snowflakes that i colored white with my ink pad! :)
a simple bow with some twine and that's another really easy christmas card in the bag! it would actually be a fun card to reproduce with different images from newton's nook (seriously! can't you just see a cute puppy in there, too! eek! so cute!)

so anyway, that's it! now it's your turn to get your creative juices flowing and enter the inky paws challenge! you could win some newton's nook!! 
enjoy!

naughty or nice, this christmas

well, the latest use what you have challenge is up at the sweet stamp shop blog! :) this time, nicole challenged everyone to also try to use their stamps in a new way! challenge accepted!

first of all, i used my stash of paper scraps! (confession alert: i have stashes of paper scraps all over my scrap room! ha ha! most recently, i organized my main scraps by color...yeah, i'm that girl! ha ha! looooooove organizing by color - my closet is the same way! all organized by color! ha ha! ...i'm a nerd...)

moving on! for my card, i used 5 stamp sets!!! oh yeah! below is the list of stamps i used:

calendar
gnomies
holiday sentiments
scootin' by
geek chic

oh yeah! here's my fun (and funny?!) christmas card:

all of the images were colored with copics and some of them were popped up for dimension! yay! i turned that cute little gnome into santa (easily done with an enamel dot and some white enamel for the trim of the hat!)! i just love that it looks like mr claus is asking you, 'have you been naughty or nice?' ha ha! and for a little more fun, i even added some presents (for the nice kids!) and some coal for the...not so nice kids!! (at least it's supposed to be coal! does it look like coal to you?) the coal is actually the 'puffs' of smoke from the exhaust on the 'scootin by' stamp set! :)

the background of the card was created by heat embossing the calendar (for the month of december, of course!) and then spraying some studio calico shine for some extra festive fun! i like that it's still a little CAS, but also has lots of interest! :)
(and see that blue/red/white striped base? that's my scrap! check!) :)

so that's it! i would say i used my stamps in an unconventional way! lots of transformation here people (santa, the coal, oh yeah!).
now it's your turn! get your thinking caps on, and use up your stash at the same time! win-win! :)
enjoy!

a very merry layout

hey there!

today i'm on the newton's nook blog showcasing a few of the new holiday release stamps one more time! :)

this time, i created a layout! 
at christmas last year i took some pictures of my little menn at the fireplace looking up for santa with some cookies on a plate! i love the pictures and the memories they invoke! and when i saw this image from on 'newton's holiday mischief' stmap set i KNEW it was finally time to scrap the pictures! 

(i paper pieced and popped up newtion and those cookies and i think it's so cute!!)

so here's my layout:

i kept it simple and just added some pops of color. i colored the stockings, cut them out and popped them up in the corner. then added a few clothes pins to the whisps of line. both the stockings and the stamped title are from newton's holiday wishes stamp set! such a fun set with mixed fonts to create your own custom sentiments! :)

then i added a soom wood veneer stars to add to the 'magic' of the scene in the pictures. you can't tell - but i added a wink of stella glitter to all of the stars. in real life it adds such a subtle effect and again, ups the 'magic' of the season feel! :)

the main title was created with thickers and some alpha stickers and i love it! i'm so glad to have this memory officially documented! :)
have you ordered your holiday newton's nook stamps yet? ha ha! if so, get them inky and participate the latest inky paws challenge coming your way on october 25th!! you could win newtons nook stamps!

enjoy!

lawnscaping challenge - pinterest inspired

get ready! it's time for a new lawnscaping challenge! 
and this is a FANTASTIC challenge! all you have to do is be inspired by something on pinterest! hello!!

don't have pinterest, but still want to play along! great!!! all you have to do is be inspired by anything you see online! easy, peasy! :)
i saw this super adorable print in pinterest here and was instantly inspired to put my twist on it! :)

i used a bunch of lawn fawn stamps for my card: plus one, harold's abc's, critters ever after, and bannerific! :)

fun, right?! i LOVE it!! it's not your average baby card, that's for sure!! hello - flames on the baby stroller?! i couldn't love it more!!

everything was colored with copics and then all fussy cut out. the stroller and banner were popped up for dimension. and i added some glossy accents to the flames! :) i love that little strip of washi tape over the woodgrain white cardstock too! 

so that's it! i was laughing and loving this card as i was making it! so not it's your turn!

for even more inspiration (if you can stand it!), check out the lawnscaping facebook page! we're dedicated to keeping your creative juices flowing! :)

so, while you're pinning your heart out, save a few and be inspired to create something from what you see!! you could win a stamp set of  your choice from lawn fawn!  hello!!

patterned paper layout at the lawnscaping blog

hey there!!
hope your weekend is off to a good start! 

just in case you were up for some fun, holiday layout inspiration, i'm over on the lawnscaping blog today! the last challenge was all about patterned paper! and i loooooooooooove my patterned paper! 

i keep ALL of my scraps! 
(even the tiny border pieces from all of those 6x6 pads i have!)

my layout there was even created using only the patterned paper borders i keep from my 6x6 pads! lol! here's a sneak peak!!

so check it out and then get ready, we have another amazing challenge coming for you on monday!! :)
enjoy!

Newton's Nook Designs Holiday Release - SEA-son's Greetings

today is last day showing off newton's nook holiday release!

and this set it so cool!! it's nautical and christmas and FUN!
i think this first card may be my favorite of all my cards this week! 

i created that background by heat embossing a woodgrain pattern onto white cardstock and then distressing it with peacock feathers! then i used my border punch to create the waves! SO fun! and the perfect compliment to that cute little whale!!

i colored the whale with copics and then popped him up for some extra fun! the sentiment was stamped with staz-on ink onto the wood veneer speech bubble! then i added a few wood veneer snowflakes too! love this card!!

my last card for this release features my favorite sentiment from this set!! it's so FUN!! ha ha!!

i thought it would be fun to stamp the boat and present images onto some washi tape - trying out some new uses, what do you think? i think it needs work, but i like it!

i added some twine to connect down to that fun little anchor! the whole panel was popped up and then i added some peppermint striped washi tape to the sides! i also added some wink of stella glitter to the ribbons of the presents!

Would you like to win SEA-son's Greetings?
This set will be given away to Two lucky winners! 

Here's how to win: 

1. Comment on Newton's Nook Design blog: http://www.newtonsnookblog.com. One Winner will be randomly chosen from the comments on the Holiday release posts.

2. Comment on the Design Team Member and Guest blogs (see list below)! One winner will be chosen at random from the collective blogs in the Holiday release blog hop. Make sure to check out each of their blogs and comment for your chance to win. You will not know which blog has been chosen so the more you comment on the better your chances are of winning! You have until Thursday, October 17th at 9 pm Central Standard Time to comment  -- winners will be announced on the blog post on Friday, October 18th.

Make sure you check out all the blogs participating in the Launch Party below to enter:

Tessa Wise

Jocelyn Olson 

Samantha Mann  (that's me!)

Jennifer Ingle

Alice Wertz (october guest!)

Danielle Pandeline (october guest!)

thanks so much for visiting, and don't forget to comment for your chance to win! :)

enjoy!