With Deepest Sympathy and GIU Winners

Coffee of the Day - Bourbon Pecan

I hope all of you had a most joyous holiday, whether you were celebrating Christmas or Hanukkah. for a few short hours, all of my sons were home and it was absolute bliss for this mom! :)

but you didn't stop by for that. all each of you wants to know about is who won the Unity Stamps. ;) it's okay. I'm the same way when it comes to free stamps and prizes.

I do want to share a card with all of you very quickly though. in the midst of preparing for the holiday, we had some sad news come our way. David's aunt suddenly passed away last week. he, Tyler, and Ryan made a fast trip to Pittsburgh for the viewing. Dave's sister from San Antonio was able to fly up, too, so they all had a nice visit with Dave's dad and family.

I made a sympathy card using the Unity set, "You are Important."  I thought this flower was just gorgeous and so perfect to convey our feelings. the sentiment stamp is by Memory Box. I don't have any yet from Unity that would go with it.

paper is from the Basic Grey Kioshi collection. shimmer ribbon and pretty purple twine are from Really Reasonable Ribbon, and buttons are from my vintage stash.

the flower was stamped onto watercolor paper with Versamark, embossed with white ep, and then watercolored with multiple shades of SU! inks. I love the look this gave. :) edges were distressed and inked. I went back over it all with the SU! ink squirty tool.

and now the winners of the Unity Stamps from my GIU week are:

KENNETH SIMMONS

(just so you know, your various numbers actually came up 3 times!!!

you were really meant to win this prize! grins!)

DEBRA DAVISON

Please send your mailing address to me at jenscull (at) yahoo (dot) com. You have until the end of the week to contact me or you will forfeit your prize.

Thanks to everyone for leaving such kind and thoughtful comments on my GIU week projects! :) and a very special thank you to those of you who were so VERY amazing and left comments on each one of my posts!!! y'all rock! :)
Jennifer

Pretty Breyer Horses in Pink

Winner at Creative Knockouts

Coffee of the Day - Bourbon Pecan (yes, I'm drinking a lot of it this fall. it is so very tasty!)

Hello all of you lovely Digi Bell fans! I'm  here to share a bit of crafty inspiration with all of you today from Elisabeth Bell's archives.

By now all of you are probably aware that I am a HUGE fan of her weekly newsletter. I urge each of you to sign up if you haven't already. Elisabeth so very kindly sends out a free image to her subscribers every weekend. can you believe that?! free!!! and they are adorable!!!

the digi I am sharing today is probably the one that got me hooked on her cuteys to begin with. it's called "Breyer Horses" and was once a rubber stamp. isn't it precious? although I am certain I say that about each and every image that lands in my mailbox. giggles!

papers are from the Basic Grey Sun Kissed collection, flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts, and buttons are from my vintage stash. the main image die and the matting one are both by Spellbinders while the banner die is from SU!. the gorgeous horse die is a new to me one from Memory Box. isn't it great?! I sprayed the doily with granite glimmer mist. little distressed seam binding and ric rack snippets were attached with the Tim Holtz tiny stapler. sure do love that thing! :)

don't forget there is a great challenge going on over at Elisabeth's fun challenge blog. the theme is Autumn or Halloween. you could win some digis from the store!

I hope you have a most amazing weekend! now go get your craft on. ;)

Challenges:
Craft Rocket - pretty pinks
Crafting with an Attitude - anything goes
Creative Knock-outs - doily delights
In the Pink - lots of layers
Through the Purple Haze - add embellies
Fab 'n Funky - animals
Crafty Boots - in the pink (as a fighter of breast cancer myself, I appreciate your challenge theme!)
Dream Valley - for the girls (the young daughter of a pastor friend of ours saw my card posted on Facebook and fell in love with it. my oldest son will be delivering it to her over Thanksgiving as a surprise!)

Final Guest Post at Bugaboo - 2 Hot, BBQ

Coffee of the Day - Cinnamon Hazelnut

Well today is my last post as a guest designer with Bugaboo. I sure have had a lot of fun! and the team has just been as nice as can be to me. :) thank you to everyone for having me!

I end with a post for the new challenge on the inspiration & challenge blog, 'Recipe: 3 Strips of paper, distressed edges and a tag.'

I've used 'A Kid's View - BBQing' for a card I'm going to give our oldest son. one of the things he has done out at Camp all summer is cook burgers and hot dogs on the grill each week. this image immediately made me think of him when I saw it. :) I thought it would be fun to give him a gift card tucked inside to a restaurant that DOESN'T serve burgers so he and his girlfriend could go out for a fun dinner once Camp season is over. it's also a way to say thanks for all the time he put in behind that huge grill.

papers are from the Photoplay Summer Day Dreams collection, main die is by Spellbinders and bbq grill die is from Memory Box. sentiment is by Create with TLC. dew drops are from Double Click Skittles and orange seam binding is from Really Reasonable Ribbon. orange twine is from my great 30 cent find at Michael's.

hope you have a most amazing weekend! :)

Challenges:
TTCRD - anything goes
Brown Sugar - anything goes
Craft for the Craic - summer breeze (can you smell those burgers cooking as the breeze comes by? yum yum!)
Crafting with Friends - anything goes
Jo's Scrap Shack - anything goes
Craft Your Passion - anything goes
Ooh La La - add some texture

Wooden Deer Hanging

Coffee of the Day - Creamy Chestnuts

Hey there, ribbon fans! :)

I have a different kind of altered project to share with all of you today. Back in January, some friends invited my husband & I to their cabin in the woods of Pennsylvania for a weekend getaway. we had such a lovely time, walking in the snow and watching the deer come right up to the house.

As we were putting wood into the stove one evening, I saw this cute little piece that I knew would make 'something' special one day and asked if I could have it. our friend handed it right over.

I decided it would be the perfect 'thank you' gift for our friends when a few little doo dads were added here and there.

Really Reasonable Ribbon to the rescue!

here is that piece of wood, all gussied up and pretty-fied!

the deer tag image from Polly's Paper Studio was mod podged to the base, topped with a small piece of 2 1/2" plain cotton ribbon, die cuts added, and then decorated with Wild Orchid Crafts mulberry open roses & Chrysanthemums. the same cotton ribbon was used as a hanging loop and tied with hand dyed silk.

die cuts are from Memory Box and Cheery Lynn.

try something new and try an altered project! it's so much fun! :) and I do apologize for the shine on the deer tag image. I was trying a different photo editing software, and frankly am not too impressed with it. will be using my regular one again.

be sure to enter the current challenge at Really Reasonable Ribbon, too!

Challenges:
Craft for the Craic - anything but a card
Morgan's Art World - for the men (it was the gentleman of the couple who gave the wood to me)
Creative Card Crew - die cut (Cheery Lynn and Memory Box)
Digi Choosday - anything goes
TTCRD - anything goes
2 Creative Chicks - anything goes
Altered Eclectics - anything goes
Classic DT Open Ch - anything goes
Sweet Stamps - anything but a card
Fresh Brewed Designs - ribbon or twine
Paper Sweeties - photo inspiration

Irish Coffee for the Day

Coffee of the Day - Irish Creme

It's another lovely Saturday, and I'm here to share a St. Patrick's Day card with all of you for my Paper Temptress post.

I started with a base of BASIS olive cs, inking the edges. being me, you have come to expect that SOMEWHERE I am going to use the Desert Storm Kraft cs, aren't you?! c'mon..... you know it wouldn't be the same if I posted a card without it! ;) so I made a fun banner using my fave kraft, adding little shamrocks cut with a Memory Box die from the same olive cs as the base.

 when it came time to add some ribbon, I was stumped because I didn't have any green from the Paper Temptress store. hmmmmm..... what to do? the 5/8" rainbow opulence ribbon to the rescue! I cut a snippet that was in the orange/yellow/green range, and it was perfect! :) you  never know what will happen when you need to improvise!

papers are from the Authentique Charmed collection, sentiment is by Create with TLC, and the Irish coffee cup image is by Jennifer Nilsson/Doodle Garden, although she no longer sells her digis. flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts and buttons are from my vintage stash. the froth on the coffee was covered in rock candy stickles, and I forget every time that it causes the inks to run. so please forgive the smoodges....

 Have a great weekend! :)  Jennifer

Challenges:
Outlawz Greeting - add a little green
Brown Sugar - green & gold
Pattie's Creations - anything goes with green

Happy Valentine's Day, Deer! ;)

Coffee of the Day - French Vanilla

yes, why it HAS been ages since I last posted! I have still been doing a wee bit of crafty stuff, just haven't really had a way to get decent photos to upload to my blog. and y'all really don't want to know about my every day, hum drum life, so I save you the agony of those boring tidbits. that goes on Facebook! ha!

I am finding that I can get tolerable pix with the camera on my phone. if Dave is around, he actually takes pretty good ones since he doesn't have the 'shaky hands' problem I do.

so I will try to post some craft things a bit more often from here on out. :)
some will still be of sub-standard photo quality if I take them, so please be patient with me. thanks!

Today's card is going to one of my sons for Valentine's Day. I don't want to give away toooooo much info on the off chance he stops by. none of my family normally does, so I am not too worried. ;)

the deer image comes from A Day for Daisies. I needed it to be a buck rather than the fawn (which is how the image comes) so I could hang the heart sequins from the antlers. handy dandy antler die from Memory Box to the rescue! :)

papers are from the Basic Grey Persimmon collection, brown satin ribbon is May Arts, leaf sprig die is also Memory Box. buttons, heart doily, and ticket are from my stash. little heart stamp is from a MFT set that has been retired. (sorry)

Thanks so much for hanging in there with me.....it means a lot!

Challenges:
ADFD - Valentine
Add a Little Dazzle - Matters of the Heart (colors - I used the dark brown or anything goes)
Meonheadz - hearts/love
Crafts 4 Eternity - with love
Sweet Stampin' - add a heart
Simply Create Too - Valentine's Day or use hearts
Crafter's Cafe - hearts
WAW - anything encouraging goes
Cards Galore Encore - stamp or digi ( both)
Cuttin' and Stampin' - masculine
Eureka - All is Love
Kraft Journal - kraft cs plus pick 3: doily, hearts, top fold card (also have ribbon & twine)
Ooh La La - Love
Stamp and Create - All You Need is Love
Come and Get It - Love is in the Air
Great Impressions - love, love, love
Allsorts - Love is All Around
Natalie and Amy's - All About the Love

A Little Christmas Joy!

Coffee of the Day - Eggnog, to get in the mood! :)

It's been way too long since I've been able to play along in the fun progressive challenges over at From the Heart, so I wanted to do all I could to be sure I participated this month. Just look at this adorable image everyone is to use, "Faithful Friends - Angel Joy."  oh my goodness! sweetness overload! :)

papers are from the Basic Grey Evergreen collection, oval dies are Spellbinders, leafy branch die is Memory Box, and flourish die is Tim Holtz for Sizzix. flowers are all by Petaloo. a bit of paper piecing, and then sparkles added by way of shimmerz paint and glitter gel pens. a few touches with my spica white gel pen, too. sequins, a button, and some pretty vintage lace finish the card.

I used a gate fold technique on this card, as a sketch I came across seemed absolutely perfect to go along with it. the flourish die is cut from a piece of plastic packaging. you know how I love to re-purpose things when I can. :)

sorry I have not been as consistent with my craft posts as I would like. just have been having a doozy of a time with my icky tum. I know y'all get weary of my health yuck posts, so I try not to mention it too often on here. but man oh man, cancer and its side effects just plain ol' stink.

hope you have a most wonderful weekend! we are having a few little snow flurries here. I do so love this season! love to all of you!

Challenges:
From the Heart - sketch and/or twist: gate fold or window (gate fold)
Seems A Little Sketchy - sketch
Alphabet Ch - T is for Traditional Christmas
Christmas Stampin' All Year Long - anything goes
Creative Corner - Christmas
QKR Stampede - Let's Talk Christmas
Party Time Tues - anything goes
Sister Act - any card goes
Delightful Ch - patterned paper
Milk Coffee - hand color image
Add a Little Dazzle - photo/color inspiration
Crafting By Designs - anything goes
Creative Moments - anything goes/celebrations
Digi Stamps 4 Joy - anything goes
Scrapper's Delight - anything goes/paper piecing
WAW - anything goes
Crafty Sentiments - make it sparkle (sequins, glitter pens, shimmerz paints)
Going Grey with Scrap Creations - make it sparkle (sequins, glitter pens, shimmerz paints)
Papertake Weekly - anything goes with sparkle
TTCRD - anything goes
Card Mania - use your dies (Spellbinders, Sizzix, Memory Box)
Dream Valley - Christmas
One Stitch at a Time - anything goes w/distressing
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Extra - anything Christmas goes
Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper - anything goes w/patterned paper
Die Cut Divas - Holidays w/die cuts (Spellbinders, Sizzix, Memory Box)
A Gem of a Challenge - paper piecing

Celebrate Christmas with Jellypark! Blog Candy Winners, too!

Coffee of the Day - Hazelnut

Today begins a new challenge over at Jellypark, and Mel was kind enough to invite me to be a guest designer! it was truly a delight to be back playing with the fun images found at Jellypark, so thank you for the invitation, Mel!

the theme for the month of November is Christmas. I do hope you will play along! my former teamie, Lisa Sumpter, so do stop by to see the great cards she has made. :)

I made 2 projects, both using papers from the My Mind's Eye Winter Wonderland collection.

for my holiday tag, I used the cutey image 'Skater Girl' and fussy cut her once I had finished painting. shimmerz paint adds shine to her skates while stickles add a bit of texture and sparkle to her hat.

the tag base was embossed using the Cuttlebug Snowflakes folder. several shades of ink were watercolored for the bg, and then white craft ink was applied to the snowflakes. blue glimmer mist was lightly sprayed over the top.

snow mounds were cut from lyrics I printed of the song, 'Let it Snow.' shimmery Mr. Huey's spray was added and stickles was applied to the borders. same treatment for ice skating pond oval.

pom pom trim, button, baker's twine, silver cord, tag, sequins, and vintage holly leaves complete the tag. can't wait to add this to a gift at Christmas! :)

my next project is a card implementing the popular chalkboard look. I used the 'Christmas Window' image by Jellypark. lots of sparkle and shine on the main image thanks to shimmerz paint and stickles!

I created the chalkboard tag by drawing lines with a white gel pen and then lightly sponging white craft ink over the entire tag. embellishments include baker's twine, gorgeous wide, white ribbon, buttons, a Petaloo poinsettia, and holiday lights created with dies by Memory Box and matching paper. I added crystal effects to the lights to give them extra gloss.

thanks so much for stopping by! it was wonderful to be crafting again! hopefully it won't be so long between times in my craft room.....

I also now have the winners of my Pinktober Blog Candy. it took me a bit to figure out how to get piccys of the random.org generator, but finally have them! I need the following 3 people to get in touch with me at (jenscull at yahoo dot com) please:
3. Terriavidreader
7. stef h
4. Mel H :)

Thank you to everyone who entered! I wish I could give all of you a prize for being so fabulous!!!

Challenges
Tag:
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Extra - anything Christmas goes
Emerald Faeries - non-traditional Christmas colors
Mema's Crafts - anything goes
The Crafting Cafe - not a card
Pile it On - feeling cool
Christmas at Sweet Stamping - snowflakes
Crafts 4 Eternity - tags & tickets
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas - sparkle (shimmerz paint, glimmer mist, stickles, sequins)
Crafty Calendar - all about Christmas
Little Claire's - Christmas
Catch the Bug - anything goes
Brown Sugar - anything goes
Delicious Doodles - Baby, It's Cold Outside
MAWTT - winter
Paper Shelter - Christmas
Crafting for All Seasons - Tag It
Digi Stamps 4 Joy - anything goes
Divas by Design - anything goes
Simon Says Stamp Wed - anything goes
Word Art Wed - anything encouraging goes
Creative Card Crew - bows
Craft-Dee BowZ - anything goes w/handmade bow
Crafty Boots - music
Eureka - buttons and bows
Incy Wincy - buttons and bling (sequins)

Card:
Papertake Weekly - sketch (turned on its side)
Animal Fiends - It's Cold with an animal (kitty)
Bearly Mine - Christmas Cards
Emerald Faeries - non-traditional Christmas colors
Really Reasonable Ribbon - anything goes w/ribbon
Pile it On - feeling cool
Crafty Ribbons - tag w/ribbon
Crafts 4 Eternity - tags & tickets
Crafty Calendar - all about Christmas
Little Claire's - Christmas
Brown Sugar - anything goes
QKR Stampede - 3 of a kind (buttons)
Sister Act - any card goes
Aud Sentiments - 2 or 3 words sentiments
MAWTT - winter
Crafting for All Seasons - Tag It
Crafty Creations - brads, buttons, or bows
Divas By Design - anything goes
Penny's Paper-Crafty - anything goes
Simon Says Stamp Wed - anything goes
Word Art Wed - anything encouraging goes
Creative Card Crew - bows
Craft-Dee BowZ - anything goes w/handmade bow
Eureka - buttons and bows

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