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Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Thinking of You and Pears

Coffee of the Day - Coconut Marshmallow (this is the end of it. insert sad face)


The last of my cards as a guest at Inky Antics is on their blog today. it was so much fun this month! one other card I made wasn't shown, so I'll post that one in a day or two....


I used Nancy Baier's set, 'Holy Spirit's Fruit' for my card. Papers are Kaiserkraft Pickled Pear, which are actually embossed. they are really pretty if you haven't seen this collection before. The pears were embossed with copper ep, then watercolored as usual. the flourish is a piece of clear packaging that was die cut, painted with white acrylic paint, and then sprinkled with glitter glass while still wet. May Arts burlap and silk ribbons were added with a Prima flower and buttons. a little Webster's Pages pale green sparkler adds teh finishing touch.

don't forget to stop by the Inky Antics blog for your chance to win a 'Coffee Time' stamp set!

Challenges:
365 Cards - grunge (or maybe I'm more shabby....)
Card Mania - ribbon
Tammy's Scrappin' Corner - anything goes
Whoopsi Daisy - more than 1 image
Great Impressions - square cards
QKR - anything goes
Sister Act - anything goes
Crafty Ribbons - anything goes with ribbon
Happy Campers - use a stamp
Paper Crafting Journey - anything goes
Crafty Creations - shabby chic
Little Red Wagon - layers
Penny's Paper Crafty - dies and/or punches (I have used 2 dies)
Pollycraft - buttons and bows
WAW - anything goes w/encouraging verse
Flourishes - in distress
Oldie but a Goodie - embossing (heat): oldies are dies, ep, glitter glass, and buttons

Sunday, August 25, 2013

100% Premium Coffee

Coffee of the Day - Moon Pie


Well today  marks my last official day as a guest over at Inky Antics. I have another few cards that will appear on the blog, but this is my last big hoorah. it has been so much fun, and I can't thank Jackie enough for being so kind as to have me along for this grand & glorious ride! everyone has been so nice! :)

It just seems fitting that my last official post also be a coffee card. I've been wanting to try out the chalkboard technique for the longest time and Nancy's wonderful set, 'Coffee Time,' seemed the ideal opportunity to finally be brave and go for it.


I found some free chalkboard digital paper online and embossed the coffee label image in white onto it. I then used a Spellbinders die to cut it out. while the image was still in the die, but had already been cut, I took my white gel pen and drew around the inner portion of the die. this created the solid line you see. papers come from the Basic Grey Paper Cottage collection.


the coffee pot top was covered in crystal effects. crochet border die is from MFT, and doily was sprayed with glimmer mist. if you look closely in the upper left hand corner behind that fabulous flower, you will see a piece of clear packaging that was cut with a SU! die. it is so subtle, but it really gives a cool hint irl. I added a matching line with the white gel pen across the red horizontal strip. again, it's subtle, but it makes a big difference. you'll just have to trust me on that one! ;) the little bit of linen thread wrapped around adds more texture without taking away from the focus of the card. some buttons and a rhinestone flourish add the finishing touches!

This week's stamp set giveaway is back over on the Inky Antics blog. thank you for stopping by and leaving such kind comments both here and over on their blog. you make me smile. :)

Challenges:
A Gem of a Challenge - anything with a 'b' (bow, buttons, beige, black, border)
Allsorts - use acetate (see closeup for die cut)
QKR Stampede - anything goes
Sister Act - anything goes
Stuck on U Sketches - die cut border (MFT die)
ART - anything goes
Happy Campers - use a stamp
Crafter's Cafe - bling and sparkle
Crafty Creations - shabby chic
Divas by Design - twine
Little Red Wagon - layers
Penny's Paper Crafty - dies and/or punches
Craft Room - something new (stamps, technique)
Flourishes - dainty doilies
613 Avenue Create - create your own challenge: image, patterned paper, solid paper, die cut, glimmer mist, bling, buttons, flower, twine
Addicted to Stamps - shabby/vintage
Digi Stamps 4 Joy - anything goes

Saturday, August 24, 2013

Weekend Tidbits....

Coffee of the Day - Pumpkin Spice

Well Tyler announced as he walked down the stairs this morning that he is moving to his house today. I knew it would be this weekend sometime, but sure didn't think it would be today. trying to keep from letting the tears flow as I finish a few loads of laundry for him and type this up..... Mick moved over there a few days ago. didn't really say goodbye - just didn't come back here one night. yep, my baby birds have flown away. Ryan moves to Indiana next weekend. still not sure if I am healthy enough for the trip. my heart wants to go, but my body isn't co-operating. David wants to stop in Chicago on our way back for a weekend getaway. we haven't done anything like that in years. it's our 27th anniversary next weekend so it would be a lovely way to celebrate. I have always wanted to visit Chicago. crossing fingers I will be up for the trip.


Not sure if you've ever noticed the Blitsy badge on my sidebar, but they have some great stuff on sale right now. The new Tim Holtz seasonal distress marker set is on sale for $27.99. it's a great deal for 12 markers! also some Basic Grey, Petaloo, Prima, and other goodies. it's well worth a looksie if you want to save money on things you were going to pick up anyhow. if we weren't buying school supplies and helping the guys with their house, you bet your sweet bippy I'd be picking up a few things, too.


also, My Favorite Things has an amazing virtual sidewalk sale going on. you can get some of their amazing dies and stamps for 50-75% off! again, if the sale were happening next month instead of this month, I'd be all over it!

my printer has gone haywire at the moment. little gremlins must have gotten inside, because they are so messing with the rollers. I have taken this thing apart several times and still can't find the problem. every time I think I have it solved, nope. paper still jams. arg!!!! I've finally gotten it to where I can cut my cs in half lengthwise and print that way, but I have several projects that need full size sheets printed. of course! ;)
so I will press on and not let this piece of machinery beat me!

have a great weekend! see you tomorrow with another Inky Antics guestie post. :)

Thursday, August 22, 2013

My Take on a Vintage Picnic Basket, Boo Boo!

Coffee of the Day - Vanilla Nut

First of all, I am so very late announcing the winner of the Christmas Tags stamp set. thankfully our little blue froggy friend sends out an automatic email to the winner, so RHONDA MILLER knew first thing this morning that she would have new stamps coming her way! I'm so behind since I'm not feeling well right now. have I told you before how much cancer stinks?! yeah, you've heard it.....

I never did get my showcase project done for Milk Coffee either, so please pop on over to the blog to see the gorgeous projects done by the team. it might just be worth your while to do so. :) hint, hint, hint....

I'm telling you ahead of time that I also don't have a project for Jellypark. tomorrow is both a new challenge and new releases, so you will most certainly want to go to both the blog and the store to see what is up. yeah, I know I am such the loser. tattoo a big ol' L on my forehead these days.....

but what I DO have to show you is something else entirely....

I made this project several weeks ago for a team I thought I was going to be  part of. plans have changed, but I still wanted to show it here on my blog. I really like the way it turned out, and Tyler & Mick have asked for it for their new home. I thought that was pretty cool! :)

found on Etsy - metal vintage picnic basket

I found this great template over at My Time Made Easy. it's called 'Grammy's Sewing Kit', but it works well for a picnic basket, too. I confess that this is my first time using one of their templates. even though I don't have a fancy electronic die cut machine, the pieces are not that hard to cut by hand. some stores' templates are just too complex for my shaky hands and wonky head. these are just right! :) I was inspired by vintage picnic baskets that I used to see at garage sales and antique stores when I was growing up. some day I WILL have a real one of these for my very own! grins!


The gorgeous Authentique Carefree 'Relaxed' paper was perfect to mimic the 50's style I wanted. precious images from A Day for Daisies helped add to the picnic theme. (sorry, the site is down right now so I can't link each of the images. will try to come back to do that once it's back up) some May Arts ruffle ribbon, a Prima burlap flower that was sprayed with glimmer mist, and vintage buttons complete the basket. oh yes, I did add some twill ribbon to the handle, too. I did lots of distressing with my inks to help add to the vintage feel.


please pardon my icky photos. Dave has my camera at work, so everything was taken with my phone. add into the equation my shaky hands, and it's not a good combo for magazine quality pix! this is why I scan everything I possibly can. ;)


I hope to be back to crafting this weekend. crossing fingers. y'all take care and know you are loved! :)

Challenges:
Crafty Ribbons - anything goes with ribbon
DL Art - anything goes
Paper Crafting Journey - anything goes
Digi Stamps 4 Joy - anything goes
Pollycraft - buttons and bows
Rhedd and Rosie's - red
Papercraft Star - inspiration photo (and I still eat my watermelon just like the little one here - face first! grins!)
Ribbon Carousel - summertime fun
Shopping Our Stash - oldest hardware (I had the hardest time tracking down these brads. they were REALLY buried...)
Cheerful Stamp Pad - your choice
Crafty Bloggers- favorite things: A Day for Daisies images, buttons, Prima flowers
My Craft Spot - 3D items
Tammy's Scrappin' Corner - image containing food
The Pink Elephant - anything but a card
Ribbon Girl - red
Challenges and Candies - colors, tastes, and smells of summer
Heck of a Challenge - summer holidays
Lia Stampz - summer
Ruby's Rainbow - food or drink

Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Q is for Quick Christmas

Coffee of the Day - Chocolate Peppermint

Sorry folks, this is going to be a quick post. I'm really not doing too well. spent most of yesterday in bed, and plan to head back there as soon as I type this up.


guess quick is the name of the game for today, as that is the new challenge theme over at ABC Christmas Challenges. We want to see your quick projects. The fabulous Shape EZ templates are our sponsors.


I went for a super quick set up with my project today, using pre-colored images and card fronts from the Doodle Pantry. they have so many beautiful images and designs to choose from! The 'Holly Stag' set comes with papers, images, tags, sentiments, and card fronts. perfect for a quick project! I combined this with the Shape EZ poinsettia. the petals were outlined with candy cane stickles. some Spellbinders dies, buttons, & vintage trim make the project come together fairly fast. cutting out the flowers and waiting on the stickles to dry took most of the time! ;)

Challenges:
Doodle Pantry - anything goes with DP image
WAW - anything goes
TTCRD - anything goes
Twist of Faith - animals
C is for Challenge - animals
Crafty Boots - Christmas
Lexi's Creations - sparkle and shine
Crazy Challenge - animals
All That Stickles - great outdoors (I really don't want a reindeer in my house! ha! candy cane stickles)
Sister Act - anything goes
Stampin' with the Dragon - Christmas
CRAFT - Christmas

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Time To Relax

Here comes post #2 for the day...... do you need a topper on your coffee? I'll run get the pot.... this pumpkin spice coffee is soooooooooo yummy! :)


Imagine my surprise when I saw that another of the cards I made for Inky Antics appeared on their blog this morning. This particular card was one I really had fun making. I love it when I can get good and inky on a project, and this card most certainly fits that bill!


My dear, sweet friend, Nancy Baier, designed this gorgeous stamp set, 'Home Sweet Home.' it is one of the latest releases over at Inky Antics this fall. My card uses papers from the Sweet Threads collection by Basic Grey, a fab embossing folder by Tim Holtz, one of my 'go to' dies by Cheery Lynn, and some pretty eyelet ribbon trim by May Arts that I dyed.

There is a LOT of inking on both the card base and the image itself. I wanted to create the look of aged brick, as well as a clay plant holder that has a bit of moss growing on it.

Don't forget to enter the blog candy found on this post for your chance to win a 'Christmas Tag' stamp set. You have until Wed. night to enter!

Thanks for stopping by! :)

Challenges:
Craft Your Passion - summer flowers
Card Mania - fave embellishment: buttons
Bunny Zoe - bingo: ribbon, buttons, flowers
Creative Creations - bingo: flowers, image, distressing
Penny Black - in the garden
Pattie's Creations - embossing
Emma's Cards - floral
CCEE - brick wall card ( can't believe my timing on this one!)
Sisterhood of Crafters - oh scrap (all of the dsp is scrap)
Oldie but Goodie - embossing (papers are old)
Papertake Weekly - flower power
LEJ Designs - nature inspired
Tuesday Throwdown - use your scraps (all of the dsp is scrap)

Here I Come To Save the Day!

Coffee of the Day - Pumpkin Spice (hubby had it made piping hot for me when I woke up! what a sweetie!)

Hold onto your seats everyone, today is going to have several posts. you had better top off that coffee before we get started.... just sayin'......


Being that it's Tuesday, you can guess that we have a new challenge over at Top Tip Tuesdays. it's a really fun one, and quite the challenge if you are someone like me. We want to see you use items starting with your initials on your projects. :) isn't that a great challenge idea? really makes ya think for a few.....

Since my initials are J and S, it made things a bit on the interesting side..... but then as I was browsing through the Saturated Canary store, one of our sponsors, inspiration struck! what you see in my card is the result. I hope you like it. :)


I've used the image, 'The Force Boy' and papers from the Archaic collection by Basic Grey. sentiment is by  Create with TLC. his light saber is covered in shimmerz paint because it has to have that special glow. stars were punched from corrugated cardboard. sticker is one made with lined school paper and a little label.

so here are my lettered items: Jedi Knight, light saber, stars, squares, shimmerz paint, sponging, jute trim, Spellbinders die, and sticker.

Challenges:
Craftin' Desert Divas - anything goes linky party
Kaboodle Doodles - song or quote (this is actually from the Mighty Mouse theme song. I used to sing it all the time as a kid. I've told you what a geeky little nerd I am! grins!)
Love to Scrap - bingo: die cut, sentiment, buttons
A Gem of a Challenge - punch it out
Creative Corner - anything goes
Jo's Scrap Shack - anything goes
Creatalicious - for the boys
Lady Anne's - anything goes
Allsorts - use your new stash (new image & a new shade of brown SU! ink)
TTCRD - anything goes

Monday, August 19, 2013

Skating By....

Coffee of the Day - Pumpkin Spice

Well it is Monday. and boy howdy, has it ever been a Monday. feel like Garfield the cat and pulling a 'bah humbug, send the lasagna' to this day in proper Monday fashion, but hopefully it will pull itself out of the dumpster soon. ever have days like that? I would venture to say we all do from time to time. I had to go into my craft room and crank on the Puddle Of Mudd CDs. you know it's a rough one when I feel the need for some heavy head banger music! ha!


anyhow, my lovely friend Tracey, who is the artist behind The Stamping Boutique as well as one of the stamp designers over at Unity, has very kindly invited me and some fabulous people to join her with an upcoming magazine publication this Christmas. I am so excited about it! :)  she also needed a quick project made with one of her cute new stamps at Unity, the Snow Peeps. I told her I would be happy to help out, so the following card is what I came up with.


I have used Snow Peep Kurt and one of his cutey sayings. I thought to keep it fairly generic so that it could be sent to anyone during the winter, not just at Christmas. it also could just as easily go to a guy as to a girl. Papers are from the Basic Grey Aspen Frost collection. his skates are painted with shimmerz, snow dots are accented with Viva Decor cream pearl pen, and stickles covers the snow, snow ball, and little bits of our Snow Peep friend. the kraft snow flakes are sprayed with glimmer mist for a sparkle. Corduroy brad is SU!, as is the linen thread. a touch of faux stitching with my white gel pen accents the horizontal layer.

Don't forget to enter the blog candy contest to win a set of 'Christmas Tag' stamps. click here for the post.
Thanks for stopping by! See you tomorrow! :)

Challenges:
Sunday Sketch and Stamp - sketch
Basic Grey - weather
Cutie Pie - anything goes
Ooh La La - inspired by a song: 'Let it Snow'
Stamp and Create - glitter (stickles)
That Craft Place - stitching
Squirrel and the Fox - whimsical
All That Stickles - great outdoors (star dust)
One Stop Craft - add stripes
Creative Corner - anything goes
Perfect Sentiment - great outdoors
Pollycraft - buttons and bows
WAW - anything goes

Sunday, August 18, 2013

Happy Birthday and Merry Christmas Joy, too!

Coffee of the Day - Caramelized Chipotle

Today is my hunny bunny's birthday! Happy Birthday, dear one! I made him some whole wheat bacon, Irish cheddar, and chive scones to start off his day Just Right before he headed out to work! :) oh my, are they ever tasty!


I have another card appearing over on the Inky Antics blog today. We are celebrating Christmas, and YOU might just be opening the present! yep, more wonderful blog candy, thanks to Jackie, our special Inky Antics friend.  Read down a little further for instructions on how to enter the blog candy.

I found this gorgeous present template over at Bird's Cards. (it's about a quarter of the way down the page). it just seemed the perfect card base to go with these wonderful stamps designed by Trudy Sjolander, 'Christmas Tag.' Believe me when I say that I have lots of things I want to do with this set other than just make holiday gift tags. you will most certainly see more of it in upcoming posts! :)


Papers for the card are from one of my fave ever Basic Grey collections - Wassail. the pretty bow at the top is a die from MFT. little berries in the bow are vintage, as is the trim on the middle present. poinsettia is Prima and centered with distress stickles. little rhinestones edge the scallop border of the lower tier gift. the tag is distressed along the edges, although it doesn't show so clearly in the scan. holly berries are dotted with stickles. a strip of solid red washi tape down the center of the bottom gift mimics a big piece of ribbon.

Now for the blog candy - you will enter here on my blog this week. I would like you to stop by the Inky Antics blog and tell Jackie hello! she really is such a nice person, and I appreciate so much all she has done in having me as a guest this month. then stop over at the Inky Antics store and look through the holiday stamps. pick one or two that appeal to you and come back here to tell me your faves in the comment section. then just link up with our little blue froggy friend! you do not have to be a follower to play along. just spend about 5 minutes hopping to a few places.

you will have until the end of the day on Wed., Aug. 21 to enter. I will announce the winner on Thurs., Aug. 22. Thanks for stopping by! :)

*Inlinkz tool removed per new privacy laws since all prizes have been claimed. thank you for your understanding. :)

Challenges:
One Stop Craft - stripes
Hobby House - Christmas (rhinestones & stickles)
Totally Gorjuss - dies and punches (both used here)
52 Christmas Card Throwdown - photo inspiration (holly)
Delicious Doodles - Christmas in August
Jingle Belles - bingo: flowers, red or green, ribbon
Stampin' with the Dragon - Christmas in August
Winter Wonderland - red and green
Christmas Cards All Year 'Round - fussy and fancy
Crafty Ribbons - 3 of something (3 gifts!)
Divas by Design - Christmas in August

Thursday, August 15, 2013

Friends Make Life Bloom, but CAS stinks! ;)

Coffee of the Day - Cinnamon Vanilla Nut


Okay, the title of this blog post should tell you that something is up.....and something that I just flat out don't do well..... yep, CAS. it's the new challenge over at Scribbles Designs. so please be kind to my poor little card and don't mock it too terribly. just giggle quietly to yourself then go FAST to the challenge blog so you can see what professional crafters do with the CAS theme. there you will be amazed and wowed and moved to tears by beauty.


My card uses the image, 'Sunflowers 1'. I think the frame around them is so neat. we actually have a few sunflowers in our herb garden right now. they are so majestic!  I swiped several shades of Tim Holtz distress stains across my cs after printing the image. edges were distressed and then distress stickles were added to the flower centers & petals to help them stand out a bit. sentiment is from Create with TLC and papers are from the Basic Grey Shine On collection. a few little dots with my white gel pen and some linen thread complete the card. might not be 'standard' CAS, but it sure is for me!

I also want to announce the winner of the 'BBQ Time' stamp set by Inky Antics. EDWINA BROWN, please send me an email (jenscull at yahoo dot com) with your mailing information. I will forward it to Jackie so she can get your stamp set mailed out to you! congratulations! thank you to everyone who played along! we'll have another blog candy this weekend! :)

Challenges:
All That Stickles - any stickles
Ladybug Crafts - something floral
Lady Anne's - anything goes
Whimsy Inspiration - CAS ( this really IS CAS for me....)
WAW - anything goes
Can You Digi It - lift someone up/encouragement
Crafty Sentiments - dies and punches
Creative Card Crew - banners or pennants
Flourishes - autumn colors
TTCRD - anything goes
Eureka - blooms and blossoms
Pink Elephant - orange
Stamp Sun - anything goes

Wednesday, August 14, 2013

You're the Bee's Knees!

Coffee of the Day - Pumpkin Spice

It's a touch on the cool side here today. that is okay by me, but I did get up in the middle of the night to keep adding layers to warm me up! Spent yesterday on our annual shopping trip to Grove City, PA to the big outlet mall there. it was my first time out of my house in over 6 weeks. quite the big adventure! of course I am whooooped from the excursion, but it was nice to spend the day school shopping with everyone. I'm supposed to go on the trip to Indiana to take Ryan to school, but we'll see how I've recovered in the next week. oh, the joys of being icky sicky.


Imagine my surprise when I popped by the Inky Antics blog this morning and found another one of my cards shown with several from their wonderful DT. Jackie is featuring the oh, so cute stamp set, 'Bumbly Bees.' the first time I saw these stamps, they made me smile! :)


I used Basic Grey Urban Prairie papers, a great crocheted flower from Prima, little bag from Whisker Graphics, buttons from my stash (one I scuffed up a bit with sandpaper), a doily, and finally an itty bitty clothespin that I lightly inked. stitching is done with the 'Sew Many Stitches' stamp set. I've told you how much I love that stamp set! I'm sorry I don't know the mfg. of the rose. it was part of a blog candy I won. I added some shimmerz paint to the bee's wings for a bit of sparkly shine. black acrylic paint was added to the edges of the main image.

you still have until tonight to link up for a chance to win the cute 'BBQ Time' stamp set. check out the post here for all of the information.

Challenges:
Bearly Mine - anything goes
Crafty Sentiments - dies and punches
TTCRD - anything goes
Card Mania - fave embellishment (buttons)
C is for Challenge - fresh and bright
Eureka - blooms and blossoms
Melonheadz - flowers everywhere
Inky Impressions - anything with wings
Whoopsi Daisy - stitching
Bunny Zoe - bingo: flowers, sparkle, tag or die cuts, sparkle, stitching
Penny Black - in the garden
Squirrel and the Fox - whimsical
Allsorts - stitching
Di's Digi Designs - stitching
Cut It Up - what's bugging you
Ladybug Crafts - say it with flowers
Crafting by Design - anything goes

Monday, August 12, 2013

Happy Birthday, 70's Girl!

Coffee of the Day - Pumpkin Spice

My guys are all in the midst of either packing to move to school or actually in the process of moving. to stay out of their way today, I headed into my craft room. it also gave me a bit of quiet time to cry a little where they wouldn't see me. it doesn't matter how old they get, I still get sad when they head out of the house. and it doesn't make much sense because I've only seen them a handful of times all summer, but that's just the mom in me.

I'm still a bajillion projects behind, I think. I've had a bit of a setback in my cancer battle. it's making it tough to do my crafting stuff. just don't always have the enthusiasm to get to my craft room like I should. sure do hate this beastie......

so I made this birthday card loosely based on the sketch over at Die Cut Divas (so loosely that I'm not even gonna link it!) as well as a few other challenges. it may seem busy, but when it comes down to it, there aren't many embellies on the card. it was nice to get a bit funky though! ;)


The image is 'Disco Diva 2' from Sassy Studio Designs, sentiment is from Create with TLC, papers are Basic Grey Lauderdale, metal charms are Making Memories, and coolio leather flowers are Prima. whoooooops - great squares die is MFT. lots of dies and punches used. I added some touches with my spica clear glitter gel pen, too. this girl most certainly needs her bling!

don't forget that you only have until Wed. evening to enter this week's contest to win the Inky Antics 'BBQ Time' stamp set. another set will be up for grabs on Sunday. LOTS of blog candy this month! :) go to the post here to enter.

Challenges:
Corrosive Challenges - it's only a number
Brown Sugar - anything goes
Sassy Studio - get krafty
One Crazy Stamper - birthday
Crafty Ribbons - anything goes with ribbons
Southern Girls - things that begin with 'f' : flowers, fabric (leather flowers), frilled or flared pants, funky colors & design!, fluffy hair
Crafting by Design - celebrate women
Charisma Cardz - stitching (on the flowers)
Allsorts - stitching (on the flowers)

Sunday, August 11, 2013

Happy Birthday, Hot Stuff! & Giveaway!!!

Coffee of the Day - Red Velvet Cake

Welcome to another chapter in my Guest stint at Inky Antics! I am still bubbling over with excitement that I am a part of this fabulous company all  month long! :)


As I had mentioned last Sunday, every week we will be giving away a stamp set used on one of my projects, either here or over on the Inky Antics blog. Last week the giveaway was at Inky Antics. this week the giveaway will be HERE!!!! thank you very much to Jackie at Inky Antics for her kindness and generosity! just because you are leaving comments and entering the contest here, don't let that keep you from stopping by the blog to let Jackie know how much we appreciate all she is doing. plus, she takes MUCH better photos than I! grins!

My dear hunny bunny happens to have a bit of a milestone birthday coming up this next weekend. nope, I won't tell you which one it is, because I didn't ask him first, but I'm quickly coming up behind him and will hit the same one next year! I knew as soon as I saw this super fun stamp set by Ronnie, 'BBQ Time,' that it was the perfect thing for Dave's card. he and the boys all love to cook on the grill.


Digital papers are Webster's Pages Citrus Squeeze. all of the elements are digital downloads, too. I love that I could download this wonderful new collection from their store! the baker's twine is Webster's Pages as well. the bbq grill die is Memory Box. isn't it perfect for this card? I chalked the smoke coming from the grill for a little extra effect. the hat and apron were paper pieced. Flowers are Prima and the wood veneer arrow is Studio Calico that I inked. I painted in the grass so our fella has something to stand on. :) other stamps from the set were stamped with Versamark along the borders for some extra ooomph, in a subtle way! that's me - the oxymoron!

now, I am going to make you work a little bit for your chance to win this set...... I would like you to not only leave a comment over on the Inky Antics blog to say 'hello' to Jackie, but I want you to pop on over to the Inky Antics Store and look through their stamps. find one or two that you think would best make a project for a special someone in your life. then come back here to this post and tell me which ones you've found. I can't wait to hear about your faves!

after you do that, then link up your name with our little blue froggy friend! you don't have to be a follower to play along. I'll give you until end of the day on Wed., Aug. 14 to do all of this. The winner will be announced here on my blog on Thurs., Aug. 15.

thanks so much for stopping by! I can't wait to hear from you! :)

*Inlinkz tool removed per new privacy laws since all prizes have been claimed. thank you for your understanding. :)

Challenges:
A Gem of a Challenge - summer
Sweet Stampin' - kraft
Glitter 'n Sparkle - summer/summer holiday
Challenges & Sweets - colors, smells, and tastes of summer
Crafts Too Challenge You - fun in the sun
Creative Corner - food and drink
Docerela - ribbon and button
Totally Paper Crafts - summer fun
A Little Bit Crafty - summer sun
One Crazy Stamper - birthday
Crafty Ribbons - anything goes with ribbon
Happy Campers - summer
Sassy Studio - get krafty
Creative Belli - summer (buttons, flowers, and ribbon are old stash)
Little Red Wagon - paper piecing
Male Room - anything goes masculine
Paper Pretties - 2 or more dp
Pollycraft - fun in the sun
Oldie but a Goodie - male/boy card (buttons, flowers, and ribbon are old stash)
Ribbon Carousel - summertime fun
Whoopsi Daisy - paper piecing
Great Impressions - square cards
Quirky Crafts - picnic/bbq
613 Avenue Create - anything goes with school supply twist (paper clip, staple)
Digitally Sweet - layers

Saturday, August 10, 2013

Today's Special...

Coffee of the Day - Texas Turtle (caramel, chocolate, and pecan)

I try to play along in the Crafty Secrets linky party every month. it's a great deal really, because everyone who enters receives a $6 gift certificate to their store. one winner will receive a $50 gift certificate! not only that, but there is almost always a free digi product of some sort each month at the store. you just can't beat that with a stick!


My card for this month uses images from 2 different sets: 'Little Chef' and 'Keys to Life.' one of the beauty things about png files is that they layer so nicely with one another. voila! my card! I could take the various sentiments from the 'Keys to Life' set and add them to the placard the Little Chef is holding. no pulling out what little hair I have going into an editing system to fix those white overlaps you get with a jpg file. hooray for that! ;)

papers are from the Basic Grey Nook and Pantry collection, itty bitty flower is Prima, enamel dots are Teresa Collins, linen thread is SU!, and buttons are from my stash. sorry I don't have any info about the stick pin. I took all of my pins out of their packages, if they were in any, and put them into a very pretty vintage pincushion I found in my antique shopping journeys. they look so nice in there, but I have no clue who made any of them. sorry.

hope your weekend is off to a grand start! Please be sure to stop back tomorrow for my next installment in the Inky Antics Guestie posts. :)

Challenges:
Crafty Secrets - linky party
Brown Sugar - anything goes
Creative Corner - eat, drink, and be merry
Sister Act - anything goes
Sparkles - autumn colors
Tok Bobok - vintage
As You Like It - fave twine or ribbon (I use this SU! linen thread a LOT! it's natural shade goes with anything - masculine, vintage, whimsical - just whatever I want to use. and it's ideal for all button sizes. it's not really thread, but twine, just not as heavy as what you usually find.)
Paper Crafting Journey - distressed/vintage
Shelly's - oh scrap (all 3 banners are made with scrap pieces)
Ruby's Rainbow - vintage
Creative Craft - tic tac toe: twine, ivory, distress
Cheerful Stamp Pad - vintage children
Sugar Creek Hollow - a child's life
Word Play Saturday - childhood (I so remember these Campbell's soup kids from when I was growing up!)

Friday, August 9, 2013

But What I Prayed For...

Coffee of the Day - Vanilla Nut

Happy Friday! boy, it couldn't get here fast enough this week. my days were all out of whack for some reason. I had the hardest time remembering what day it was all week long. weird head, I guess.


so anyhow, I'm happy to finally be able to say with ACCURACY, Happy Friday!
Today is a fun day over at Jellypark Friends, because it's not only a new challenge, but it's new release day as well. Our new challenge is all about the cuddlly wuddly. How much fun will THAT be when you sit down at your crafting table?! you know you want to play along! and just wait until you see the cute images Claire has drawn to go along with this theme. fantastic!


My card uses the oh so adorable new image, 'Boy with Dog.' the sentiment is from Create with TLC, and I couldn't resist putting these 2 together! papers are from the Basic Grey Max 'n Whiskers collection. I actually painted in highlights with my brush and white craft paint rather than using my white gel pen on this card. sometimes it's fun to mix things up a bit! the zipper trim and staples seemed so perfect with this 'boy' card.

hope you have a most wonderful weekend!

Challenges:
Art Impressions - for the dogs and cats
Sketchy Colors - sketch turned on its side
The Male Room - anything goes
Crafty Sentiments - animals
Oldie but a Goodie - boy/male cards (have had both papers and border punch for a long time!)
365 Cards - smiles
Cards for Men - heavy metal (zipper & staples)
Digi Sketch - anything goes (sketch from Sketchy Colors)
Great Impressions - square card
Sentimental Sundays - child's play

Thursday, August 8, 2013

A Card to Lift You...

Coffee of the Day - Pumpkin Spice

It is hot here. poo on that. I was really enjoying the break of summer heat we were having for a bit... hopefully cooler temps are just around the corner.... time to put the juice in the freezer for slushy drinks! ahhhhh, so refreshing on a hot, humid day! what do you do to stay cool in the summer heat?

The showcase team over at Milk Coffee has some fun Beach/Water/Travel inspired projects to share with you today. lots of fun cards to see on the blog!


I was given the image, 'Charlotte in Paper Airplane' to use for my card. I paired her with papers from the Authentique Pride collection, and pretty Prima flower, some May Arts burlap ribbon, and clouds cut from corrugated cardboard with a MFT die. the sentiment is from Create with TLC. I tried to color her fairly close to the actual US Air Force uniform as I could. her aviator goggles, as well as those of her chicky friend, are covered in crystal effects. a spica clear glitter gel pen and white gel pen give some highlight touches.


We finally found a new for us vehicle last night. David has been traveling all over the Cleveland/Akron area trying to track down a used SUV type vehicle in our price range (cheap!) with as little rust and as low mileage as possible. The rust is pretty important since most of our time up here is spent covered in snow. we were hoping to get 4 wheel drive if possible, too. well my hero pulled the rabbit out of the hat, and Gandalf the Grey is now ours! yes, we name our cars. it's silly, but I have from my very first beloved, Beau. he was my baby blue Camaro, and the love of my life for many years. So now to get it ready to move everyone to school in the next few weeks..... sigh......

btw - this was taken in our driveway this morning with my phone while I was letting the dogs out in the backyard.... the door to the right is our back door going into the kitchen. the door to the left goes into my craft room! it used to be a porch room, so it sits off of the kitchen and is all windows. just a little peeky peeky into where I spend my crafty time! :) our barn/garage is right behind me as I'm taking the photo.

Challenges:
Stamps & Crafts - show us your country (USA)
Crafty Creations - texture
Paper Shelter - punches and dies
WAW - anything goes encouraging
Going Grey - anything goes
Papertake Weekly - anything goes
TTCRD - anything goes
613 Avenue Create - anything goes with sentiment
Glitter and Sparkle - add some red
2 Sisters - anything goes
Hiding in My Craft Room - color inspiration (marina is the sky color)
PTT - friendship (badge is about halfway down on sidebar)
Cute Card Thursday - dieing to punch

Wednesday, August 7, 2013

P is for Presents and Poinsettias and PINK! :)

Coffee of the Day - Eggnog (had to go with the holiday feel!)


A fun new challenge begins today at ABC Christmas Challenges - 'P is for......'  You create the papercraft project and tell us what your 'p' items are. Our sponsors this challenge are Stamp and Create as well as Lili of the Valley stamps. you KNOW you would love to win either of these prizes! ;)


I used the cute Ansley's Surprise digi by Wags 'n Whiskers for my card. it already had 2 of the 'p' items right in the image - puppy and a present. all I had to do was add some pink wings and polka dots to the present to match the gifts in the MME Winter Wonderland papers.  a pretty poinsettia, some peppermint stripe baker's twine to match the bg paper and we are all set! sentiment comes from Flonz stamps.

I hope you will play along with us!

Challenges:
Can You Digi It - holiday hullabaloo
City Crafter - polka dots
Crafty Sentiments - animals
Deep Ocean - Christmas in July
Loves Rubberstamps - anything goes
Paper Minutes - gifts/presents
Bearly Mine - bingo: digi, sentiment, flowers
Crafty Bloggers - fave things: PINK, buttons, flowers, polka dots, twine, & puppies! :)
Glitter and Sparkle - add some red
Hobby House - Christmas (white acrylic paint for card base edge & Spellbinder die)
Crafter's Cafe - furry friends and/or friendship
Christmas Stampin' All Year Long - Christmas Flowers
Creative Corner - polka dots
Totally PaperCrafts - inspired by a song: 'How Much is that Doggy in the Window?'
Paper Pretties - designer papers
Flutter By Wed. - any winged creature

Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Through Thick and Thin...well, more thick these days!

Coffee of the Day - Mocha


Today begins a new challenge over at Top Tip Tuesdays and we want to see embossing on your projects. it can be either dry embossing with folders or embossing using powders you heat set. or maybe you want to go really really wild and do BOTH! ;) just have fun with it! We are sponsored by the ever fun Stamp Fairy, so you know you want to win a few of those great digi images!


For my card, I chose to use the Stamp Fairy image, 'Barry Diet 5'. he just looks exactly like I feel any time I have to get on a scale these days! sentiment is from Create with TLC, papers are Basic Grey Fiction, embossing folder is Tim Holtz, little spinner is SU!, and everything else is from my crafty stash.

don't forget to head over to the Inky Antics blog to leave a comment for a chance to win the cute stamp set I used on my card here. Today is the last day to get your comments in....

Challenges:
Kraft Journal - layers
Crazy Challenge - anything goes
Artistic Inspiration - bingo: lace (crochet), digi, embossing or layers, digi, buttons
613 Avenue Create - anything goes with a sentiment
2 Sisters - anything goes
Ready, Teddy, Go - die cuts and punches
Sweet Pea - embossing
365 Cards - bg texture (embossing and then inking embossed areas)
Sarah Hurley - texture and dimension (main image is also popped up on foam tape)

Monday, August 5, 2013

A Few Fun Tidbits for ya.....

Coffee of the Day - Red Velvet Cake

Happy Monday! yeah, not always what you are used to hearing on a Monday morning.... are you more like Garfield the cat and would prefer to just pull the covers up over your head and sleep until Tuesday? well maybe my post today can change your opinion.....


I have a few fun little things I want to share with you. for starters, a new challenge blog has started up BRAND NEW today! you can win all kinds of goodies from The Paper Parade store. it's called Parade Your Crafts and we're starting out with a Down by the Sea theme. you can submit any kind of papercraft projects. The prize will be a $25 gift certificate to The Paper Parade store! pretty cool! I am on Krewe 2, so my projects will post in 2 weeks.

Next I have found a fun new designer of digis and stamps, by Miss Rach. she has the cutest whimsical style! you can find her rubber stamps at Whimsy and her digis at her own personal Etsy shop. pop by her blog and you'll find several freebies! tell her I said hello! I've got a few of her images printed out, just have to finish several 'must do' projects before I can play. ;)

Have a great day!
------>  oh yes, don't forget to head over to the Inky Antics blog and leave a comment for your chance to win a free stamp set! I wanna see one of my fab followers be the winnah! :)

Sunday, August 4, 2013

Keep Me Caffeinated and some WAY cool news!

Coffee of the Day - Coconut Marshmallow

Well today is the day I have been sooooo very excited to tell all of you about! I am the most blessed person in the crafty world, I tell ya! I was asked by fabulous Jackie of Inky Antics to be their Guest Designer for the month of August! whoa nelly! you bet your sweet bippy I was typing back a big ol' "YES" as quick as I could in case she changed her mind!


and here's a cool part for YOU, dear readers - you will have a chance to win loads of blog candy! can we get a big "whoop whoop" to that?!?!? each week a stamp set I have used will be given away - either here or over on the Inky Antics blog. I'll be sure to let you know where to go in my posts. at the end of the month, I'll have a big blog candy giveaway as a thank you. super fun for everyone! :)

so let's start this party!


it will come as no surprise that I was super excited to use one of Inky Antics' wonderful coffee stamps! and of course it gave me the giggles that Jackie decided to begin the month with this one. I mailed all of my cards to her so she could take better photos than I could scan. if you go to the blog, you will see what I mean.

I used the stamp set 'My Friend Ronnie Coffee #2' for my card. (This stamp set is the one you can win if you leave a comment on the Inky Antics blog this week.) papers are Basic Grey Green at Heart, gorgey flower is Prima, buttons and trim are from my stash, and coffee sleeve is obviously from my beloved Starbuck's. sorry about the crooked scan. I used my white gel pen to add some accents to the coffee cups. I stamped the image on SU! natural white cs, so my watercoloring took a bit differently than it usually does on the whisper white I typically use. that is part of the fun of using different card stocks though....

thanks for dropping by! and thank you for sharing this exciting time with me! :)

Challenges:
613 Avenue Create - anything goes with a sentiment
Basic Grey - make a tag (mine was punched from cs)
2 Sisters - anything goes
Crafty Calendar - anything goes
Oozak - anything goes funny
Sister Act - anything goes
365 Cards - at the cafe
Craftin' Boutique - anything goes
Addicted to Stamps - anything goes
By Lori Designs - designer paper