I'm Beary Lucky!

Coffee of the Day - Tiramisu

Happy Friday! I am back from a most amazing trip to Washington DC, Philadelphia, and then quick stop in Pittsburgh. whew..... I am one whooped puppy! ;)  so I have lots of crafting to do to get caught up on things. isn't that always the way it is when you go out of town?! ;)

I have used the cutie "Teddy Heart" image from Morgan's Art World on my card as well as a fun little bear template and then a sentiment by Create with TLC.  papers are from Michael's as is the gorgeous burlap and lace ribbon trim. satin ribbon is from Really Reasonable Ribbon.

a few vintage buttons, doily, shabby bark heart, and pretty flowers from Wild Orchid Crafts complete the card. will soon put it in the mail for Valentine's Day, which is so very quickly approaching!

have a fabulous weekend! :)
Jennifer

A Special Delivery For YOU! :)

Coffee of the Day - absolutely no idea because I am in Washington DC right now. ;)

Hello everyone! I hope you are having a great week so far. Today starts a new challenge over at Elisabeth Bell's Challenge World.  Our theme for this go 'round is Hearts & Lace or Anything Goes - your choice. :)

I opted to go with the Hearts & Lace theme, using the adorable 'Bella Sole, Special Delivery' stamp from Whimsy Stamps.

papers are from the Designs by Dani Lucky in Love digital collection, main image dies are from Spellbinders, border die is from Whimsy Stamps, and flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts. a few pieces of wood veneer and pretty heart doily were added for fun. of course I had to include some lovely vintage buttons! :)

oh yes, the red lace tied in a bow is a bit of vintage, and the little piece of white peeking out beside the flowers is some that I won. :)

thanks so much for stopping by and I do hope you will play along in our new challenge! :)

Tugging on Your Heart Strings with a Candy Bar! :)

Coffee of the Day - no idea because I am on a train to Washington DC for the Women's March as this posts !!!! :)

Hello and Happy Friday!  I am crossing my fingers that our friend, Blogger, does right by me and posts this as it is scheduled..... oh please, oh please, oh please! :)

I am headed to the Women's March and am so very excited! will tell all about it when I get back. but until then, I leave you with some fun for The Digi Bells blog hop. if you are hopping along, then you will have arrived here from LINDA's absolutely gorgeous blog. :) if at any point you ever get lost along the hop, just head over to The Digi Bell's blog for the complete list.

The cutey image we are all featuring is called "Heart Strings" and will soon be available in the store. I decided to make a cover for a candy bar and a matching card.

at Christmas the guys all received various Oreo cookie treats. Ryan happened to get this Oreo crunch bar, which was new on the market this year. it was a huge hit. well I received a text a few weeks letting me know that he had searched and searched all over the town where he goes to school looking for them, but couldn't find one anywhere. so I took to the internet in search of.... of course Mom came to the rescue!

I found a few for Ryan and also decided to decorate one for Tyler's fiance for Valentine's Day. she love love loves chocolate!

the red polka dot paper is from Michael's. the other papers are from the Prima Coquette digital collection. some vintage lace and buttons were used in addition to distressed seam binding from Zipper Stop. flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts.

a heart doily and cute little pearlized bauble add some fun touches.

now off you go to the beautiful blog of KARINA! thanks so much for stopping by! :)

I'll be back on the 25th with my project for Elisabeth Bell's challenge world! another fabulous image of hers will be used, and you know you don't want to miss that. ;)

Go Ahead.... Mess With Me! ;)

Coffee of the Day - Bourbon Pecan

Happy Monday and MLK Day! What a wonderful day today as we celebrate the life of this amazing man and his journey of peace & unity!

I guess my card is in a bit of contrast to his message though, when it comes down to it. ;)  but Ms. Betty over at Simply B Stamps had a fun progressive challenge going on that I could NOT resist with this fun coffee image & sentiment!

my card uses papers from several Basic Grey collections, a re-purposed Starbuck's coffee cozy, vintage buttons from my stash, and Wild Orchid Crafts flowers. dies are from Spellbinders. the sentiment was accented with a wink of stella glitter pen. seam binding was distressed with several shades of ink and tied with a smidgen of ric rack.  little wooden veneer coffee cup is from Latina Crafter.

I'm sending this card off to some friends who were SO nice and gifted me with several pounds of Starbuck's coffee. they sure know the way to this coffee addict's, I mean lover's, hear! tee hee!!!

I hope you have an amazing week!

A Pen Friend Thanks

Coffee of the Day - Sleepy Time Tea with extra Valerian (no coffee for the past few days. I've been really sick and tea just tastes better.)

The weekend is almost upon us, thank goodness! :)
I'm here with a bit of pink springtime inspiration to brighten even the gloomiest of winter days.

I have used the adorable "A Pen Friend" image to create a thank you card to send off to a special friend. you can find images similar to this one in Elisabeth Bell's store! some cute digital papers by Adrienne Looman, a little tag, pretty paper flowers, and other fun embellies all combine to create a card that tell my friend how very much I appreciate her kindness. :)

main image die is by Spellbinders, flowers & leaves are from Wild Orchid Crafts, sentiment is from SRM Stickers, buttons are from my vintage stash, pink crochet trim is from Live & Love Crafts, distressed pink seam binding is from Zipper Stop, and little denim tag is re-purposed from a pair of jeans.

have a most amazing day! :)
Jennifer

Challenges:
Crafting By Designs - inspired by a movie (You've Got Mail or Pretty in Pink)
Crafty Creations - anything goes
DL Art - winter with an optional 'thanks'
Crafty Sentiments - anything goes
Inky Chicks - anything goes

Holiday Die Exchange Cards

Coffee of the Day - Bourbon Pecan with Eggnog

Woooo Hoooo! It's Saturday!

So have all of you recovered from holiday and new year festivities? has life gotten back to whatever form of normal is at your house? hopefully it will at our home in the next few days. we have had company in and out ever since before Christmas. it's been wonderful seeing so many people, but I do confess it will be nice to have a bit less stressful environment again. ;)

The Digi Bells Design Team had a fun card and gift exchange over the holidays. Each of us created a card for one team member and then also sent a collection of dies. it was a wonderful treat to receive such a beautiful handmade card from one of our teammates and know that they had spent so much time creating it just for us. :)

I'm sharing with you both the card I made as well as the fabulous gift package I received. I sent my card to Alethea along with some fun dies I found from Whimsy Stamps. I also included one of Elisabeth's lovely rubber stamps, because at the time, Alethea had been having trouble with her printer. this way she would have a back-up anytime she wanted to use one of Elisabeth's wonderful images! :)

First up is the card I made. I used 'Sweet Country Christmas' and lots of fun holiday embellies. papers are from a pack I found at Hobby Lobby, buttons and holly sprigs are from my vintage stash, and distressed seam binding is from Zipper Stop. 'Believe' wood veneer is from Michael's, poinsettia is by Petaloo, and other flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts. main image and matting dies are by Spellbinders. banner die is from SU!

This is the GORGEOUS card and die assortment I received from the VERY talented, Lynda! isn't it fabulous??!!!? and I know that I will use these dies quite a bit on projects. :) she used the cutey 'Meadow Magic' image on the card she made for me.

Enjoy your weekend! :)

Challenges:
Crafty Friends - anything goes
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Ch - anything Christmas goes
Creative Corner - anything goes
Creative Fingers - anything goes
Jingle Belles - no time like the presents
Fab 'n Funky - little girls

Belated Happy New Year!

Coffee of the Day - Pumpkin Spice with Eggnog (this might be my new fave way to drink it!!!)

So if I use the excuse that the TARDIS came to take me away, am I allowed to be late with my  Happy New Year wishes?! ;)

I am so sorry for my tardiness here..... our house has been filled with people since the week before Christmas. I have been a wreck since the start of December with everything I was trying to get done, so my head hasn't been screwed on straight. yep, just me being my usual goober self.

any hope of the new year making a difference? nope. not a bit! ;) y'all are stuck with me and my sassy ol' self.

but I do convey my most heartfelt wishes for 2017 to overflow with blessings in abundance for each and every one of you!!!!!

see you later with some craftiness. until then I'm visiting with my company! :)
love ya! Jennifer

Tea Time with Typeset

Coffee of the Day - Starbucks Christmas Blend and Eggnog

whew.... the holidays are OVER! are all of you as whooped as I am?! ;) I have been so tired this week, trying to get over the mad rush of the past few weeks.... the good news is that yesterday I was in my craft room for FUNSIES! :) that is always a good thing!!!!

a coffee and tea loving friend of mine was interested in some tea bags that I had sent to another friend. I told her I'd get some in the mail to her, but you know us crafters - we can't just toss something in an envelope! we have to make a fancy shmancy card to go with!!!

so I grabbed some fun stamps sets I had won a little bit ago from Dare 2 B Artzy. I stamped the tea pot and steam from the Tea 4 Two set in Versamark and then embossed with copper ep. the image was then watercolored with SU! inks. the sentiment comes from the Serenity Tea set. there is a matching die set that goes with both of these sets that I hope to pick up eventually. I love when one set of dies works with several stamp sets, don't you?!

papers are from the Basic Grey Typeset collection. the main image die is by Spellbinders and the cool peek-a-boo die for the bg is by Tim Holtz. isn't it fun?! I added a little tea tag to the baker's twine bow. vintage buttons are from my stash and little flower is by Wild Orchid Crafts. a tiny snippet of mini ric rack at the bottom adds a touch of fun and whimsy.

thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope you have a most amazing weekend and enjoy your New Year's Eve celebrations, whether it's a quiet evening at home or a huge blowout with friends!

I also want to thank you for so faithfully stopping by and leaving me such wonderful, inspiring, and encouraging comments throughout the year! you make my heart so full!
Jennifer

Challenges:
Mod Squad - warm and toasty
Paper Girls - anything goes
Robyn's Fetish - anything goes
Creative Knockouts - anything goes

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

Merry Christmas, Little Elf!

Winner at Glitter 'N Sparkle

Coffee of the Day - Bourbon Pecan

Merry Christmas! the day we've all been waiting for is here! :) I hope and pray you are surrounded by people who love you and appreciate the fabulous person you are!!!!!

I am sharing the last of my Christmas creations with all of you today. this one was made for a very special young lady, and I am told she really liked it. :)

I used the adorable "Elf 3" image from Bugaboo and the current sketch for their Stella Says Sketch challenge. stickles, shimmerz paint, Viva Decor pearl pen, and a clear wink of stella glitter pen were used to accent the main image.

papers are from the Authentique Retro Christmas collection. sentiment above the image is by Create with TLC and the stamped sentiment is from Unity Stamps. main die is by Spellbinders and holly flourish die is by Cheery Lynn. little poinsettias are from Petaloo. lace trim and buttons are vintage. tiny jingle bell is by SU!

after my crazy, crazy past few weeks, I am taking several days off to recuperate! I will be back on Tuesday to post the winners of my GIU week though. see you then! :)

Challenges:
Stella Says Sketch - blast from the past
Creative Knockouts - Christmas Delight
Come and Get It - Christmas
Glitter 'N Sparkle - Christmas with glitter
Crafty Friends - sparkle
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas - add a sentiment

A Joyous Season Non-Traditional Christmas Card

Coffee of the Day - Eggnog

Christmas Eve is upon us and the mice are certainly stirring at my house! we are busy busy busy getting ready for the big day! :)

I had so much fun with my Growing in Unity week that I thought I would give all of you a bonus day! :)

The card I am sharing with you is one that Tyler gave to his future in-laws. they are big nature buffs like we are, so it might be a bit non-traditional, but it fit them to a T!

I first created the base by mixing up a modge podge of colors using gelatos and SU! ink refills on watercolor paper. this was sprayed very lightly with water.

once it dried, I stamped the trees from "A Joyous Season" stamp set. the deer were fussy cut from SU! natural vanilla cs. 

little smidgens of moss and flowers by Petaloo were added. a bow made from natural ribbon that I picked up last year at World Market wraps around the upper portion of the card. red tinsel trim holds a few rusty bells.

I'll have a post tomorrow, but completely understand if you are too busy with your family to stop by. Merry Christmas to all of you! may your day overflow with happiness and joy! :)

Jennifer

An Altered Bottle for GIU, but you have to keep it a secret!!! shhhh.......

Coffee of the Day - Black Nutty Fudge

oh so sad...... today is my final Growing in Unity (GIU) day..... I have had a wonderful time both making and sharing my projects with all of you! I hope you have enjoyed stopping by for your daily coffee and inspiration! :)

I've saved the biggest of my projects for last, but you have to keep it a secret. you see, this is a present for my husband and he can't see it before Christmas! ;) I tell ya, keeping him from seeing it as I was making it was a doozy! all of the layers took a while to dry, so keeping this in different places he wouldn't come across it was quite the challenge!

I started with an empty bottle of his favorite Rye whiskey. after first painting with a layer of gesso, I added at least 8 different layers of various colors of acrylic paint. I then lightly sanded the bottle to reveal the assorted layers underneath, at times sanding all the way down to the bare glass.

I then stamped leaves from the Layers of Life "Love Never Leaves" set all over the bottle with Prima chalk ink. I used the SU! ink squirty tool to spray ink droplets.

one side of the bottle is stamped with the "What the Buck" stamp. the other side is stamped with trees and the deer from the "...A Joyous Season" sentiment set.

seed pods and moss, in addition to mulberry flowers, decorate the bottle.

I also made clay leaves by stamping the leaves from the same Layers of Life "Love Never Leaves" set right into clay and then baking. small holes for hanging were made prior to baking.

distress crackle paint was applied once all of the other elements were added. I just love the way this ages and distresses any project! it is great on these altered bottles! :)

Thank you again for all of your lovely, encouraging comments this week! you have brought such joy into my heart, that is for certain!

be sure to leave a comment on any of my GIU posts for a chance to win your very own Unity grab bag of stamps!

I hope for you and yours a most blessed Christmas and Happy New Year! I'll be seeing you in 2017! may your days overflow with peace and joy! :)
Jennifer

Challenges:
Crafty Gals Corner - anything goes
Sunny Day - anything goes
Li'l Patch of Crafty Friends - anything goes
We Love to Create - anything mixed media goes
Crafting with an Attitude - anything goes

Hello Winter Hot Cocoa Canister for GIU

Coffee of the Day - Bourbon Pecan

Well we are in the final stretch for my Growing in Unity posts this week. y'all have been so nice to me and left such kind comments on my projects! thank you so very much! :)

Here in northeast Ohio, especially the area of the state where we live, it gets downright COLD in the winter. currently our temps are in the single digits or teens. lots of beautiful snow is on the ground, with quite a bit of ice mixed in.

that means in order to keep warm, you need a big cup of coffee or hot cocoa! for our wonderful neighbors, I made a canister of homemade hot cocoa mix using a fun assortment of Unity Stamps.

I started with a re-purposed Nestle Quick container (it's actually part of the cocoa recipe) and added digital papers from the Design by Dani Woodland Spring collection. it's funny that the papers aren't a Christmas collection at all, but rather a spring one. I just loved the colors, though, to match the canister lid. ;)

images from the "Hello Winter" stamp set by Susan Weckesser were stamped on Stampin' Up! natural white.

the cutey girl was stamped and then cut with a Tim Holtz stitched die. I also stamped the doily from the Layers of Life "Magical Bliss and Wonder" set after masking. the trees were added and then several little snowflakes from the same LoL set in kraft ink. more snow flakes were made with Viva Decor pearl drops. the flower center is dotted with distress stickles and the snow on the ground is created with stickles as well.

more snowflakes from the LoL set, also stamped on the same natural white cs, with dual shades of blue ink, were fussy cut and added to the canister.

gorgeous burlap and lace ribbon from Michael's wraps around the canister and ties in a bow.

a beautiful glitter snowflake, also from Michael's, acts as a lovely little backdrop to the precious girl image by Susan.

a doily sprayed with glimmer mist and tree cut with a Tim Holtz die help accent the canister. a few snowflake stickers, also from Michael's give the final decoration. normally I would have added buttons, but our neighbors have 2 adorable little girls under the age of 3 and I didn't want to chance a button coming off and presenting a choking hazard to either one of them.

tickets were cut from the "Ticket to Christmas" set and lightly painted. I love the way the inks ran together to create a vintage look! distress markers were used to accent.

the top is decorated with a beautiful velvet poinsettia, gold glitter dusted berries, a pretty bow made with ribbons from Really Reasonable Ribbon, snippet of same burlap and lace, and a little pinecone.

that does it for today's post! if you would like the recipe for my hot cocoa mix, head over to this post. the mix used in this canister uses hazelnut flavored creamer. you can use all different flavors for fun!

thanks so much for stopping by! don't forget to leave a comment on any of my GIU posts for your chance to win a Unity Stamps grab bag! :)

check back tomorrow for my final post.
Jennifer

p.s. a reminder that you can enlarge any photo on my blog simply by clicking on it. the picture will open in another window for you. :)

Challenges:
Sweet Stampers - anything goes
Scrap 'n Challenge - Christmas in white and blue
The Crazy Challenge - everything goes
Simon Says Stamp Wed - make it sparkle (lots of glitter and rhinestones in addition to the pearl drops)
Shopping Our Stash - Winter Wonderland
Kraftin' Kimmi's Wonderful Wed - anything goes
The Crafty Addicts - anything goes or Let it Snow
Craft-Dee Bow-Z - anything goes with a handmade bow

A Vintage Merry Christmas for GIU

Coffee of the Day - Butter Rum

We're to my mid week project for Growing in Unity (GIU) and I am going to show all of you what my typical card style is really like....  :)

As I was browsing through the Unity store one day looking for stamps for this week, I came across this gorgeous stamp by Susan Weckesser called "World of Christmas." I instantly fell in love!

oh good golly, look at all of that vintage glory!!! doesn't it just make you swoon right in your computer chair?! into my shopping cart it went!

I stamped the image onto natural vanilla cs from Stampin' Up! and only used a q-tip to shade it. this helps give such an ethereal, shabby look to the piece.

papers are from the Basic Grey Evergreen collection, flowers are an assortment from Wild Orchid Crafts, Petaloo, and Hobby Lobby, and lace & buttons are from my vintage stash.

corner snowflake die is by Creative Expressions and large rectangular die is by Spellbinders. a gold doily, distressed seam binding snippet tied with linen thread, and rusty jingle bell finish the card. a wink of stella glitter pen was brushed over the 'Merry Christmas' to give it a light sparkle.

thank you so much for stopping by today for my coffee of the day! I hope you have enjoyed the things I've created for you so far! :)

be sure to leave a comment on any of my GIU posts for a chance to win a Unity grab bag of stamps!

see you tomorrow! :)
Jennifer

Challenges:
Fussy and Fancy - angels and fairies or winter
Morgan's Art World - anything goes
QKR - Christmas cards
Holly Jolly Christmas - Christmas card or abc
Inky Chicks - Christmas in traditional colors

Holiday Gift Ideas with GIU

Coffee of the Day - Eggnog

Welcome back for my second Growing in Unity (GIU) gal post. How's your holiday shopping going? have you finished? started? ;) my husband used to have a tradition of waiting until Christmas Eve to actually BEGIN his shopping! thankfully after 30 years of marriage, I can happily say that is no longer a tradition of his! grins! he likes to start in October or so like the most of us....

today I want to share with you a few somewhat 'quick' little ideas for gifts using Unity stamps. now bear in mind that quick for me might not be quick for you, I am a VERY slow crafter. I kinda like it that way, as it gives me plenty of time to think about the people I am making things for. once upon a time I could whip up a card in less than 10 minutes, but these days it takes me several hours just to paint my images. but it is sooooooooo relaxing! my cat, Moon Pie loves to come into my craft room with me, so it's really a special time. :)

now on to my gift ideas ~

first up is a tag I made to go on a candle that was sent to my Mother-in-law. if you have a Michael's craft store nearby, these jar candles are fabulous! every once in a while they go on sale 4/$10. otherwise I'll use my 40% off coupons on them. the fragrances are quite nice and even when I burn the candles all day long, they'll still last almost a week.

when my MIL came for a visit this spring, I hooked her on them, too. so I found one in a scent I knew she would like and added it along with some other goodies for her for Christmas.

the tag is made using the pretty "Peace Dove" image, stamped in versamark on one of the freebie tags that came along in the 'thank you' gift Unity sent in my last order. I then embossed it in copper ep, once that dried, I added some frantage powders and spritzes of a few shades of glimmer mist. touches of distressing to the tag's edges, a vintage holly sprig, and pretty ribbons turn this into a fabulous gift!

Next up are some cutey little gift bags that I also found at Michael's. These use a combination of stamp sets that might cause you to scratch your head at first, but they really look great together!

I stamped various snowflakes from the Layers of Life Magical Bliss and Wonder set in Prima chalk inks on the muslin bags as well as the little wooden tags my husband made. I then stamped the snowman from Susan Weckesser's "One of a Kind Winter" set using Staz-on. Tim Holtz distress markers were used to color it in, and the snow drops were made with a Viva Decor pearl pen.

several shades of glimmer mist was sprayed to add a bit of sparkly shine.  poinsettias are from Hobby Lobby. finally, the 'joy' is from a sentiment from the "Joy to Go" set.

Thank you so much for stopping by for a cuppa with me! be sure to leave a comment on any one of my GIU posts this week for a chance to win a Unity grab bag of stamps! :)

Jennifer

Challenges:
Crafty Boots - Winter Wonderland (gift bags)
Love to Scrap - anything goes
Melonheadz - time for Christmas
Marker Pop - winter (gift bags, colored with Tim Holtz distress markers)
Use Your Stuff - Merry Christmas ( buttons, ribbons, twine, and Viva Decor pearl pen are all from my older stash)
Simon Says Stamp Wed Ch - gift it

A Cup of Joy Fold-a-Long cards for GIU

Coffee of the Day - Maple Fudge

Hip Hip Hooray! the long awaited day is finally here! Today begins my stint as a Growing in Unity gal, or GIU gal for short! to say I've been a Nervous Nelly is putting it MILDLY! my lawsie, do you have any idea how humbling it is to be chosen, but then to be assigned the week prior to Christmas?! ack!!! ;) no pressure..... nah..... NOT!

okay, so here we go....
I am a coffee lover. alright. some MIGHT say I'm an addict. of course I don't, but then I do drink out of a cup that can hold 30 oz. of the beverage of my choice! tee hee!

so to start off my GIU week, yep, I had to go with coffee projects!
now I'm going to warn you. all of my projects this week are going to be all mixy matchy. I've used stamps from various sets, so I will link them all in the body of my posts. I'm not very conventional. and my projects are about as far from CAS as you can get. that's just how I roll. :)

yeah, I also tend to 'talk' a lot! you should hear me irl! (insert my hubby's eye roll here....)

I came across this way cool card die from Sizzix and knew it would be great fun to use at some point this week. the die is called the Ornate Label Fold-a-long. papers are from Basic Grey, sniff sniff sniff..... okay, no more lamenting my fave paper company closing it's doors.....

I decorated the outsides with vintage button cards and distressed seam binding. each was stamped with a sentiment from the "Joy to Go" set. poinsettias from Hobby Lobby were then added.

inside I added images from the "Hello Love" and "Joy to Go" sets. the sentiment is also from "Joy to Go" and accented with vintage holly sprigs & pearl-ex drops. each image has accents of white gel pen stickles, shimmerz paint, and/or Viva Decor pearl paint.

thank you so much for stopping by! if you would like a chance to win a Unity grab bag of stamps, just leave a comment on this or any of my GIU posts this week. see you tomorrow! :)

Jennifer

Challenges:
613 Avenue Create - holiday happiness (coffee is my happiness every day & season!)
Come and Get it - Christmas
The Stamping Boutique - fancy folds
52 Christmas Card Throwdown - any previous challenge (May dies/punches combined with August watercoloring, since that is how I color all of my images)
Kraftin' Kimmie's Wonderful Wed - anything goes
Pattie's Creations - anything goes that's Christmas or winter
Color Inspiration Monday link up - anything goes as long as it's hand colored (water colored with SU! inks)

A Holiday Cookie Swap Blog Hop with The Digi Bells! :)

Coffee of the Day - Chocolate Peppermint, just the thing to go with an assortment of cookies! :)

Hello to all of you on this bright and beautiful Sunday morning! :) I am so not ready for Christmas to arrive, but I know by the time it gets here, my house will have been tinseled and hollied and bedecked in ribbons gallore! you see, I've been so very busy working on holiday projects for everyone that not one decoration has been put up yet. that changes as of next week! I am almost finished with projects in the craft room! hooray! :)

but you are here today because you want to taste a yummy cookie, don't you? you have arrived here from LYNDA's absolutely gorgeous blog if you are on our hop with The Digi Bells. if you are just starting out, please stop by The Digi Bells blog for the complete list. you don't want to miss even one stop of the fun, since everyone is sharing cookie recipe cards and this adorable new digi stamp, "Home Baked Christmas," that is making it's way into the store today. :)

every year for Christmas, each of my sons gets to choose at least one Christmas cookie that I will bake, plus we have several favorites that are always on the list. the recipe that follows is one of the 'always' cookies! if you follow my blog, you know that our oldest son, Tyler, became engaged just this past week. I decided to make this card for his fiance, Danielle, so she could have one of Tyler's favorite cookie recipes for her collection. :) we all know that Santa's favorite cookies are Daddy's favorite cookies! :)

Because the recipe is a bit long, I wasn't sure how I was going to fit it into a standard card format. that is when I came up with the idea of making a 'Z fold' card.

papers are from a pretty vintage pad I picked up at Hobby Lobby.

all of the dies are by Spellbinders.

flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts with the exception of the poinsettia on the frosting page. that one is by Making Memories.

buttons and lace are from my vintage stash. accents were made with shimmerz paint and crystal effects.

digital images on the recipe pages are some of the free ones Elisabeth so kindly sends out each week to her newsletter subscribers. you can sign up here if you aren't already on the list. you'll receive a free image every week in your mailbox! :)

If you would like to see any of the photos larger, just click on them and they will open in another window for you.

I'm the last hop on the stop, so thank you very much for popping over! head to The Digi Bells blog and leave a lovely comment for Elisabeth!

Merry Christmas to you and yours!
Jennifer

p.s. to my regular blog followers, tomorrow begins my Growing in Unity week. I am so VERY excited to share all of my projects with you! I hope you check back each day, not only to see what I have created, but for a chance to win some fun stamps!

Challenges:
The Stamping Boutique - fancy folds (Z fold)
Dragonfly Dreams - Christmas
Pile it On - any holiday/celebration
The Ribbon Girl - any image with ribbons/lace/trim
A Gem of a Challenge - anything Christmas
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas - cute Christmas
Di's Digi's - winter holiday
Kraftin' Kimmie's Wonderful Wed - anything goes
Morgan's Art World - anything goes
Little Miss Muffet - anything goes