Sew Nice (Cardabilities #114)

Hi folks!  Happy New Year's Eve!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Can you believe another year has come to an end already?  I think the older I get, the faster time flies.  Wow.  

I'm playing with a Cardabilities sketch (#114) today, and this is what I came up with.  I just pulled out some paper pads and found some coordinating chipboard pieces and put this together.   It's a fun sketch and I can see myself using this one again.  

Here's to a fabulous 2015!!!!!!!!!!

Color Throwdown #323 - Pink Christmas Ornament

Merry Christmas, everyone!  I know I'm a couple days late, but I have a very good excuse.  My computer died a couple weeks ago!!!  Ack!!!!  We had JUST done a backup and then went to reboot my system and it was dead.  Hubby tried several tricks and nothing worked.  So we bought a new hard drive, thinking we could just restore my backup to the new drive and pop it in and it would boot up.  Well, nope.  So after several days of working on it, we went out and bought a new computer.  I've been taking my time with it and looking for my old files and pictures in my backup files, reinstalling several software programs, and trying to make sense of this newfangled stuff.  :-)

Tonight I took a break and did some virtual stamping with my friend, Chrissy.  We decided to challenge each other to do a color challenge and a sketch, so we are using the colors from this week's Color Throwdown #323 and a sketch that I found on Pinterest.  I went with a Christmas themed card because I didn't share anything with you in the days leading up to Christmas.  Hopefully this will make up for my lack of posting!  :-)

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas with your family and friends.  Here's to a fabulous new year in 2015!!!

Big Sale at Verses Rubber Stamps!

Hi stampy friends!  I just wanted to pop in and let y'all know about a fantastic sale over at Verses Rubber Stamps.  From now until 12-12-14, you will get 25% off all wood and cling Christmas stamps!!  That is an awesome deal!  There are lots of wonderful Christmas stamps to choose from - check them out here.  The discount is automatically applied at checkout, so all you have to do is shop!  :-)

Below are a few of my cards that I've created using some Christmas stamps from Verses Rubber Stamps.  Have fun shopping!

Christmas Poinsettia with Luminance pencils

Hi friends!  Today is Thanksgiving for us here in the US, and it is a beautiful sunshine-y day.  I hope you are having a wonderful day!  I have been working on this card for a few days and I wanted to get this posted so I could enter this into the Peep of the Week challenge over on the Power Poppy blog.

The colored poinsettia is actually an experiment for me.  I just bought some Luminance pencils and I wanted to see how they worked.  So I stamped this gorgeous poinsettia image from Power Poppy's Poinsettia Stamp Set and then just picked up some Luminance pencils and started coloring.  After three nights of coloring, I decided to cover it with Microglaze to protect my work.  As I started buffing the glaze, I noticed some of the red color was moving onto the white space.  

I freaked out!  Did I just ruin all that work????  Well.... I can always color another one... right?  So I continued buffing just to see what would happen.  As it turns out, I rather like the soft red "glow" around my image.  It's kind of what you might see if this was in candlelight or moonlight, right?  Then I was inspired to add glitter to the image, so I cut it out with an oval die and then covered the piece with adhesive and Rock Candy Dry Glitter.  

You know what?  I think I like this better with the reddish "glow" and the glitter.  It feels much more festive and Christmassy!  :-)  So, I learned something really neat by doing something new.  Sometimes your mistakes turn out better than your original piece.  

If you have some Power Poppy stamps, why don't you come play along with us?  It's so much fun to be recognized as a Peep of the Week, and you have a chance to win a free stamp set.  We all love free stamps, don't we?  :-)

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!!

Bold Botanicals

Hi friends.  Did you like the Aged Tiles Vintage Daisies card I posted on Saturday?  As promised, here is the other card I made with the Vintage Daisy Collage stamp from Technique Junkies Stamps and it is bright and bold and colorful! I stamped the daisies with black ink and then I sprayed the entire piece with several different colors of Dylusions sprays. Love those pinks and yellows and oranges on this card!

I saw the little bee in the collage, and I wanted to use a sentiment that would be a little "bee"-like, so I pulled out my stamps from the Bee Quotes set (also from Technique Junkies Stamps). "Here's the Buzz" was perfect for this fun and colorful card.

There is a special sale going on right now at Technique Junkies Stamps. From now until December 10, you can save 15% off by using this code - XMAS15 (all caps). Go check out all the fabulous stamps at Technique Junkies Stamps and have fun shopping!

Aged Tiles Vintage Daisies

Howdy again!  I'm back with a monochromatic card to share with you today.  Have you seen the new Palettini stamp line over at Technique Junkies Stamps?  I am in LOVE with these new stamps designed by Sally Lynn MacDonald!!  I want every single one of these Palettini stamps!!

This gorgeous Vintage Daisy Collage stamp was the first one calling my name, so as soon as it was in my hot little hands, I inked it up and played with it.  I wanted to see how it looked with the Aged Tiles technique (from Technique Junkies), and I have to say, I love love love it!  I paired it with a quote from the Einstein Quotes set, also from Technique Junkies Stamps.

Stay tuned this week for another card with this Vintage Daisy Collage stamp - it is the complete opposite of what you see here today.  :-)

Snowy Banner Trees

Hi folks!  Have you seen all the fabulous cards that Pat Huntoon has been posting for her 30 Days of Christmas?  Check them out by visiting her blog here - http://patstamps.blogspot.com/.  I'm a guest blogger today and I've got a fun card to share with you.

I used one of the stamps from the Pennant Set 3 (Technique Junkies Stamps) and turned it around so it is a tree shape instead of a pennant.  How cool is that?  It's fun to find a different way to use you stamps.  There are several pennant sets from Technique Junkies Stamps, and you can see them all here.  Just think of all the different kinds of trees you could make from these pennant stamps!  :-)  You can save some money while shopping because Pat is offering a 15% discount on the entire Technique Junkies stamp site until December 10th!   Use code Xmas15.

Believe in Pink

Audrey Hepburn was such an inspiring and classy lady, and this wonderful quote of hers is a beautiful stamp.  This is a new stamp from Verses Rubber Stamps called I Believe in Pink.  I used some patterned paper for the background and added some leafy flourishes and some flowers in the corner.  Check out all the gorgeous stamps from Verses Rubber Stamps - there are so many quotes and sentiments that are perfect for all your stamped projects.  :-)

Touch the Sky

As promised, I'm sharing another card I made using Verses Rubber Stamps.  On this feminine and girly card, I used the Touch the Sky stamp (found in the Birthday section).  I embossed the top half of the card and then added several layers of lace in the middle with some suede ribbon died around the top of the lace.  Isn't that the sweetest sentiment?  It's just perfect for birthday cards.

If I was going to make this a masculine card, I'd use a different embossing folder (maybe wood bark or stripes) and then use some kind of twill or grosgrain ribbon instead of lace.  I love sentiments that can go with any style of card, and the stamps from Verses Rubber Stamps are perfect!

Fashionably Late

Hi folks!  I've been busy with non-stamping projects and spending time with family that I've plumb forgotten to blog a few things!  I shared this on Facebook a month or two ago, but I haven't posted it here yet.

I pulled out this stamp from Verses Rubber Stamps called Fashionably Late and stamped it on vanilla cardstock.   This is actually one big stamp.  I then cut the two pieces apart so I could split the sentiment across the card.  This stamp can be found in the "New Stamps May 2014" category along with several other new stamps.  I'll be sharing a few more of my Verses Rubber Stamp cards with y'all this week.  :-)

The dress form is a die cut that I purchased from a sweet friend whom I've known for a long time.  Lisa owns Blue Martini Designs and she does all kinds of fabulous die cuts as well as custom pieces for scrapbook pages, drinking glasses, and more.  You can find her on Facebook here:  https://www.facebook.com/BlueMartiniDesigns

Next time you are late sending someone a birthday card, use this stamp on your card and all will be forgiven!  :-)  

Poinsettia Stocking

Hi folks!  Long time, no post!  LOL  I've been busy with lots of different things lately, but I took some time today to color up this adorable stocking from Power Poppy.  I just got the Poinsettia set and I really wanted to color up this stocking, so I sat down and whipped up this card in less than an hour.  The stocking is colored with Copic markers and the sentiment is also from the same set.  I wrapped some ruffled Pool Party ribbon around the card as it was a pretty close match to the ribbons I colored on the stocking image.

Did you know that there is a Peep of the Week challenge over on the Power Poppy blog?  They pick winners every week, so if you have some Power Poppy stamps, come play along!  I'm entering this card into this week's challenge.

It finally turned cooler today - we are in the 60's!!!!!!!!!!  That's after suffering with 90+ degree days for the past several months.  I'm loving this cooler weather - I just hope fall is here to STAY!!!  :-)  Can you believe there's almost two months left before Christmas is here???

Sensational Stencils CD Blog Hop

Welcome to the Sensational Stencils CD blog hop! The Technique Junkies Newsletter design team has another fabulous hop for you! Pat and the talented design team have so many inspirational projects to share with you from the BRAND NEW CD – Sensational Stencils. This newest edition to the Technique Junkies Specialty CD family includes 40 wonderful techniques, so break out your stencils and play along!

Order yours now by clicking here (http://techniquejunkies.com/sensational-stencils-cd.html).  You can see a Table of Contents which shows you what each technique looks like by clicking here (http://techniquejunkies.com/CD_indexes/1Sensational_Stencils_Index.pdf).

You should have arrived here from Hetty’s blog. Hetty always creates some awesome artwork, and today is no exception. Didn't she have some awesome eye candy for you? :-)

For my samples today, I chose to do two of the techniques from the Sensational Stencils CD. The first one is called Frosted Distress Stencil and I have to tell you - I am in LOVE with this technique!!! I love anything shimmery and glittery, so of course I had to try this technique!!! LOL

You can see the shimmer in this close-up photo below.  Isn't that wonderfully shimmery???  I wish you could hold this card in your hands and move it back and forth.  It's so much fun to see the background change!

For my second technique, I decided to do the Gessoed Stencil.  This is a technique that I developed and filmed especially for this CD.  You'll never guess what is underneath all that white gesso paint.  Can you see a hint of "something" under there?  ;-)  Order the CD and read the Gessoed Stencil technique.  If you have a huge pile of "something," you'll LOVE this technique as a way to use all that "something" up!  

I hope you've enjoyed the artwork I've shared with you today.  Please check out what the rest of my fellow designers have created by continuing on through the hop.  Your next stop is Jane’s blog.

Here is a list of all of our designers in case you get lost.

Judy Jackson - http://techniquejunkies.blogspot.com
Tricia O’Bin - http://thepassionatestamper.blogspot.com
Ann Clack - http://createdbyann.blogspot.com
Beth Norman - http://sunflowers-dragonflies.ca/blog
Hetty Sanders - http://craftchaos.blogspot.com
Holly Brown – http://www.glitterstampsandink.blogspot.com
Jane Bosi - http://janembosi.blogspot.com/
Jackie Kalchert – jackiekalchert.blogspot.com
Shelly Schmidt - http://shellymc2.blogspot.com/
Pat Huntoon - http://www.patstamps.blogspot.com

Big Floral Hug

I'm back with another card to share with you today.  I wanted to create a sweet little card for someone who needs a hug, and this is what I came up with.

I started with a Kraft card base and I stamped the sentiment from Stampavie's Happy Birthday set at the bottom of the card. Next, I cut some peach colored paper on an angle and embossed it with the Garden Lattice embossing folder. I used the Raspberry spacer plate with the embossing folder in my Grand Calibur - it works beautifully every time!

I adhered the embossed peach paper to my card and then pulled out some flower dies. I cut some white paper with the Large Rose and the Medium Rose dies and used some yellow brads to assemble the flowers. I also cut out some leaves from the Rose Leaf Strip die and some soft green paper. I then glued down the leaves and affixed the white flowers to each set of leaves.

I love the nontraditional look of this card. I can also visualize this in other color combos and with different flowers - wouldn't that be fun? Just spend a whole day making different cards based on this layout? :-)

All these supplies can be found in the Classy Cards 'n Such store.  Use this code, Holly-10, to save 10% off your entire order.  Yes, you can order dies, paper, stamps, embossing folders, glitter, and much more with this savings code.  Have fun shopping!

Lace Curtain in the Window

Hi friends! I love making cards with my dies from Classy Cards 'n Such, and I was inspired to play with the window die this time after I bought some of the gorgeous Iridescent White Flowers Lace. I knew I wanted this lace to act as a "curtain" inside the window, so I had to see how that would look.

I started by cutting out some Kraft cardstock with the Small Madison Window die. I also cut out the Small Madison Flower Box from Kraft cardstock. I stamped both pieces with the Wood Texture stamp from Impression Obsession and then sponged a little extra brown ink around the edges. I then cut a small piece of the Iridescent White Flowers Lace and taped it to the inside of the stamped window die cut. Isn't that lace gorgeous??

I glued down the window to a white card base and then I cut out some Leaf Clusters and flowers from the Flower Mound die. I arranged some of the Leaves and Flowers near the bottom of the window and then I affixed the Small Madison Flower Box die cut with some Joy Foam Pads over the bottom of the window. I tucked in a few extra Leaves and Flowers here and there to fill in the flower box. The last thing I did was stamp the sentiment from the Hello Daisy stamp set (JustRite) below the window.

I love that Iridescent White Flowers Lace and I think it would look gorgeous with any kind of window card. Can't you just see this with a fall foliage window or a Christmas window? Ohhhhhh the possibilities!!!

Be sure to use this code, Holly-10, when you shop at Classy Cards 'n Such.  You will save 10% off your entire order, so stock up on dies, lace, and stamps!

Pink Glittery Flowers

Have you played with the yummy Distress Glitters yet? They are gorgeous! Don't let the "distress" in the name fool you. These are not dull or drab glitters by any means. They are beautiful and they look almost like glass glitters even though they are not made from glass.






I used the Spun Sugar Distress Glitter on the flowers here. Isn't that a gorgeous pale pink? See how the glitters are more "glassy" instead of silvery/mica-y? Love love love!!

To make this card, I started with this elegant black and white toile paper from the Porcelain Rose paper pad and adhered it to a black card base. I added a strip of pink paper from the same Porcelain Rose paper pad near the bottom and I stamped the sentiment from the Botanical Medallions and Banners set (JustRite) onto the pink paper. Next, I cut out the Zinnia Bouquet die from black cardstock and set it aside.

I used the Zinnia Bouquet Background die and some Scor Tape 6x6 sheets to cut out some sticky flower backgrounds. I peeled the backing away from the tops of each flower head and stuck them behind each of their matching black outlines on the Zinnia Bouquet die cut. With the sticky top side exposed, I covered the flower heads with the Spun Sugar Distress Glitter, burnished the glitter with my fingers, and then tapped off the excess. I then adhered this Zinnia Bouquet to my card next to the sentiment.

I love this color combo of pale pink, black, and white, and that glitter just makes me squeal! It's so pretty! I hope you are inspired to pull out your glitters and have fun!

When you shop at Classy Cards 'n Such, feel free to use this code, Holly-10, to save 10% off your order. Check out all the gorgeous glitters, die cuts, stamps, and 6x6 paper pads. There's always new stuff being added to the store so click on the NEW tab each week to see the fun new additions.

Tiny Matters

Happy Sunday!  I created this card last night and I thought I'd share it with y'all.  There is a Peep of the Week challenge over on the Power Poppy blog, and I'm entering this card into that challenge.  I was so thrilled to be named a Peep of the Week this past Friday, and I hope to be named again!  :-)

This card is a bit unusual for the Power Poppy challenge as there is no coloring and I didn't stamp any flowers on this card.  I used this beautiful sentiment from Power Poppy's Good Thinking: Renewal stamp set with some patterned papers and a handmade flower from my Cheery Lynn Designs dies.  I just love this sentiment and I didn't want to get too fussy with my card.

If you have some Power Poppy stamps, ink them up and play in the challenge with me!  :-)  Enjoy your Sunday!

Sunflower Thanks

I wanted to send someone a thank you card last week, so I pulled out this Sunny Harvest stamp set from Power Poppy and colored it with Copic markers.  I was trying to go for a brown paper wrapper around the flowers, so I kept adding different brown colors until I thought it looked "brown paper-ish."  LOL!  Instead of the normal dark brown shadows underneath, I tried something different and added a blue shadow.  I think the blue really helps the yellow sunflowers pop out.  The sentiment is from the Glads and Gerberas stamp set, also from Power Poppy.

I'm entering this card into the Peep of the Week challenge over on the Power Poppy blog.  All you have to do is use a Power Poppy stamp and enter it into their challenge.  If you love flowers, you definitely need to check out the gorgeous stamps over at Power Poppy!  Enter into their challenges and you could be a Peep of the Week, and you could win a free stamp set as well!  :-)

Happy Gerbera Daisies

Hi friends!  I saw some exciting news the other day - I was picked as one of the Peeps of the Week over on the Power Poppy blog!!!  It's so fun to see your own card up on a stamp company's blog!  

Then the next day, I got some happy mail - some new stamps from Power Poppy!  A dear friend gifted me some Power Poppy stamps (thank you so much, sweetie!!!) and I was so excited, I was squealing!  LOL  I absolutely love gerbera daisies, and I immediately inked up this gerbera daisy stamp from Power Poppy's Glads and Gerberas Stamp Set.  There is one particular color of gerbera daisy that I always look for, a deep reddish/salmony/orange-ish color.  Something about that color just calls my name.  I love the reds and yellows, but that orange-y red flower is the one I crave when shopping for gerbera daisy plants.

So I tried to color these flowers up in that orange-y red color that I love so much.  I think I came close, if a bit more vivid than the real flowers would be.  :-)  I stamped a sentiment from the same set above the flowers and tied some twine around the flowers for a sweet little accent.  I'm keeping this card as flat as possible so I can pop it in the mail to a sweet friend.  

I'm also entering this card into this week's Peep of the Week challenge on the Power Poppy blog.  If you have some Power Poppy stamps, why don't you play along too?  You never know if you might be the next Peep of the Week!!

Amazing Crackled Paint

Hi friends!  Let me tell you a little story about this card.  See that crackled paint background?  That all came about because of two things - a cleaning spree and a Dare to Get Dirty challenge.

Several weeks ago, I got into a cleaning fit in my studio and I came across my old jars of Distress Crackle Paint from Ranger.  Remember when they were brand new?  Yeah, I bought almost every color because I just knew I was gonna use them all the time.  Flash forward to present day, and these 20 or 30 bottles were all dusty.  Some even still had the plastic wrap on them, never been opened.  

So.... I thought I'd open one and just paint a few backgrounds for the heck of it.  The open bottle revealed a solid hard chunk of rock inside.  The paint was completely and totally dried up.  ACK!  NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!  So I pulled out ALLLLL of the bottles and opened them, one by one.  Out of all those bottles, only about 7 were not completely dried out.  

But when I say "not completely dried out," that doesn't mean they were still liquidy and flowy and paintable.  Oh no.  These were more like silly putty or clay, honestly.  So I stuck my finger into a bottle of Old Paper Distress Crackle Paint, dug out the sticky dough, and spread it all over some cardstock.  Hey, might as well try it, huh?  My tester piece seemed to work okay, so I set about using up whatever leftover paints I could before tossing all of them into the trash.

Then the Dare to Get Dirty challenges came around about a week or two after I painted up all these backgrounds.  One of the challenges was an inspiration challenge with a gorgeous inspiration picture showing a door with crackled green paint on it.  Coincidence???  However, none of the paints that I could salvage were green.  Hmmmmmm......  Upon looking through my crackled paint backgrounds, the ones with the Old Paper paint had possibilities.  I pulled out some Sage distress ink and sponged it all over the Old Paper crackled paint background.  Hey, whadaya know, it worked!  

Next, because the inspiration picture had some gorgeous peach-colored flowers in it, I pulled out my Azalea stamp set from Power Poppy and colored the flowers with some pale peach-y Copic markers.  The sentiment on this card is also from the Azalea stamp set, and I finished off the card with a little bit of linen twine.

Did you know that Power Poppy has a fun challenge called Peep of the Week?  Most weeks, it's anything goes and you can enter your cards/projects into the challenge as long as you use a Power Poppy stamp on it.  This week is one of those Anything Goes challenges, and I'm entering this card into their challenge.  I was fortunate to be named one of their Peeps of the Week last month and that was so exciting!!  Here is hoping I am picked again!!  :-)

I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Blue Glitter Peony

Hi friends!  I was in the mood to play with some glitter, and this turned out so soft and pretty, I decided to make it a sympathy card.

I started by cutting a piece of 6x6 double-sided Scor Tape sheet with the Lovely Peony Background die. I then cut out the Lovely Peony Outline die with white cardstock, and then I carefully adhered it to the adhesive peony background die cut. The open parts of the flower were covered with the gorgeous blue Fascination glitter, which I burnished in with my finger and then tapped off. All the excess glitter was returned to the jar and I set the flower aside while I made my card.

The card base is a white cardstock, and then I added a smaller layer of Kraft cardstock. I then cut a piece of the gorgeous soft blue paper from the Bellisima paper pad and adhered it to the Kraft layer. A small strip of Kraft cardstock was glued near the bottom of the blue paper, and then I stamped the sentiment from the With Sympathy set (JustRite) at the top. Finally, I affixed the glittery peony flower to the card.

I'm entering this card into the following challenges:

Sparkle n Sprinkle - glitter, flocking, or embossing powder
Simon Says Stamp - Make it Sparkle
Craft Creations Challenges - Flower
Word Art Wednesday #144 - Anything Goes

Butterfly Fence Hi

I bought this gorgeous Butterfly By Fence stamp (Impression Obsession) and once I started coloring it, I fell more and more in love with it. I decided to keep it rustic and natural for my first card.

I stamped the Butterfly By Fence stamp onto some cream cardstock and then I colored it with Copic markers. I took my time to add some shading and "wood texture" and I love how it turned out. I added a little sparkle by using the Wink of Stella Pen over the butterfly and the two open flowers. Isn't that glitter wonderful?

For my background, I stamped the Wood Texture stamp (Impression Obsession) onto some Kraft cardstock and then I sponged the edges before adhering it to an orange card base. I adhered my butterfly piece to the background and then I sealed the whole thing with some MicroGlaze to prevent smudges and running ink. Lastly, I stamped the "Hi" from the Anytime Sentiments set (Impression Obsession) onto some cream cardstock, cut it out with a circle die, and then adhered it to the bottom of the card.

It's fun to combine glitter with a rustic piece like this. It's that little unexpected touch that brings a smile to people's faces. :-)  Please feel free to use this code, Holly-10, to save 10% off your order when you shop at Classy Cards 'n Such.  You will love the huge variety of dies, stamps, coloring mediums, and papers that are in the store.

Watercolored Twinks

This card has been percolating in my head for several weeks. There's been an explosion of watercoloring on cards lately, and I just had to see how this would turn out.

I actually pulled out my Twinkling H2O's and experimented with my brush strokes until I got a background that I liked. I used the Twinkling H2O's from the Carnivale set - Mandarine Citrine, Orange Peel, Deep Coral, and Mediterranean Blue. I swiped on large swaths of color of the yellow, orange, and coral paints, and then I flicked the blue paint over the whole thing. I love the blue spots! Look at that gorgeous shimmer!!

Once my piece was completely dry, I stamped the sentiment from the Celebrate set (Stampavie). I added a Tall Chloe Stem die cut from black cardstock directly over the painted background. It really stands out against the swaths of paint. Finally, I cut the scallop border from the Blueprints 4 die set and added the border to the left side of the watercolored piece before adhering them to a turquoise card base.

Isn't that a fun piece?? Pull out your Twinkling H2O's and make your own watercolored backgrounds! No two pieces will be alike and you will have tons of shimmery fun!  Don't have any Twinks?  Head on over to Classy Cards 'n Such and stock up.  There are so many gorgeous colors of Twinks, you'll probably need to get them all!  *wink*  Use this code, Holly-10, to save 10% off your entire order.

Soft Suede Christmas

Hi folks!  I was browsing some blogs today and I found a challenge (#125) over on the JustRite blog to create a card with non-traditional Christmas colors.  Ooooohhhhhhhh!  That really got me thinking, so I pulled out the JustRite stamps that I own, and came up with this idea.  I used the following JustRite stamps and dies:

Shabby Music Background stamp
Christmas Inner Thoughts stamp
Vintage Christmas Ornaments stamp
2013 Heirloom Ornament dies

I used vanilla and suede cardstocks and some kraft and suede inks to create this card.  I stamped the music background first with kraft ink, and then I stamped the holly leaves with the suede ink.  The lighter leaves are where the suede ink is just stamped off once and then pressed onto the sheet music.  The ornaments were stamped and then cut out with their matching dies.  I added some gold thread to "hang" the ornaments and then I added some vanilla bows to the ornaments.  The sentiment was cut out with a Petite Oval Large die (Spellbinders) and matted with a suede Petite Oval Small die (Spellbinders).

This was so much fun and I loved the idea of not using red or green or burgundy.  I wonder what other colors I could make this card with??

I'm entering this into the JustRite Challenge #125 - Nontraditional Christmas Colors.  If you have some JustRite stamps, why don't you join me?  :-)

Floral Friend

Sometimes you just need a sweet and pretty card to mail to a dear friend, and this card would be perfect.

I started by adhering some papers from the gorgeous Porcelain Rose paper pad to a black card base. Next, I cut out the black label shape from the Vintage Labels Two die set and adhered it over the black and white paper. I stamped the sentiment from Floral Vintage Labels Two (JustRite) on some white cardstock and then cut it out with an oval die. This sentiment was matted with some pinkish/reddish cardstock cut from the Classic Scallop Oval Small die set, and these were adhered to the black label. My finishing touch was to cut out the beautiful Lavish Branch border die with some black cardstock and I adhered them to the bottom of the card.

I know my friend will love this card because her favorite color is red. This will be a sweet surprise for her! :-)

Please feel free to use this code, Holly-10, to save money when you check out at Classy Cards 'n Such.  The new Memory Box and Poppystamps Christmas dies are in stock, so head on over and check them out!  They are gorgeous!

Leafy Gratitude

I was playing with a new stencil and some shimmery Glimmer Mist, and I love how this card turned out. It has sort of an Asian flair, doesn't it?

I started by placing the new Garden Leafy Branches stencil over some white cardstock. I sprayed some Trunk Bay Glimmer Mist over the stencil and white paper, and then carefully removed the stencil. I repeated this again on a second sheet of white cardstock, and then I set both pieces aside to dry completely. You can see the gorgeous shimmer in the picture below:

One sheet was adhered to black card base, and I stamped the sentiment from You Are Beautiful (Impression Obsession) onto the second stenciled sheet. This stamped piece was then cut out with the Vintage Labels Two die. I cut a larger die cut from the same Vintage Labels Two die set and some black cardstock, and matted this with the stamped piece. These die cuts were adhered to the card. To finish off this card, I cut some of the swirls from the Endless Waves rhinestones and affixed them to opposing corners of the card.

Sometimes when you play with your papercrafting supplies, you'll create something beautiful and unexpected. I love it when that happens!  If you'd like to go shopping at Classy Cards 'n Such, feel free to use this code, Holly-10, to save 10% off your order.  There's all kinds of wonderful papercrafting supplies in stock, so have fun!

Hello Daisy

I have been playing with some of the new stencils and stamps from Classy Cards 'n Such, and I was in the mood to mix the two together. This sweet daisy card turned out better than I imagined!

I started by stamping the daisy and the sentiment from the Hello Daisy set (JustRite) onto white cardstock. I then stamped it again onto some post-it notes and cut them out to make a mask (Masking Technique from Technique Junkies). I placed the cut-out post-it notes over the stamped daisy to cover it while I sponged over the white cardstock with the Texture Mini Dots stencil and the Peacock Feathers ink. I carefully removed the stencil and then removed the post-it notes. The daisy and the leaf were colored with Copic markers, and then I adhered this piece to a black card base.

I wanted a bit of shine on my daisy, so I covered the center of the daisy using the shimmery clear glitter Wink of Stella pen. You can see the shimmer below:

I needed something to go across the top of the card, so I pulled out my Chalk White seam binding. I decided to color it yellow to match the center of the daisy. I smooshed my Squeezed Lemonade Distress Ink inkpad onto my nonstick craft mat, added a teeeensy bit of orange from my Spiced Marmalade Distress Ink Marker, and mixed them together before dragging my Chalk White seam binding through the puddle of ink. I crushed up the ribbon in my hands and then set it aside to dry. Once it was dry, I tied it across the top of the card.

Be sure to use this code, Holly-10, when you shop at Classy Cards 'n Such.  You will love all the wonderful new stencils and stamps and dies and embossing folders in the store.  Stock up and have fun!

Peaceful Azaleas

I decided to play with some new stamps and practice my coloring, so I pulled out this beautiful new set called Azalea from Power Poppy.  I colored the flowers with Copic markers and added some pink dots to the centers of the petals.  The sentiment is from the Good Thinking: Renewal set also from Power Poppy.  I love the wonderful sentiments in this set!  For the background, I stamped the smallest flower with Versamark all over and then dusted them with some shimmery pink chalk.  Fun!!!!!!!  I haven't played with my chalks in a while, so this was a perfect excuse!  You can see the pale pink chalk outlines of the flowers on the background below.

Power Poppy has a fun new challenge on their blog called Peep of the Week, and from what I understand, you can make anything you want as long as it has Power Poppy stamps on it.  So I'm entering this card into their challenge.  They are offering a free stamp set as a prize - who doesn't love free stamps??  :-)

Black Rose Dots

Hi friends!  Have you wondered what the Translucent Embossing Paste looks like? I pulled it out and tried it out to see for myself, and here's what it looks like.

It is white in the jar and while it is still wet, but it dries completely clear. This is a great way to add some interest and texture to a card without changing the color scheme.

I started by smearing some Translucent Embossing Paste through the Texture Dots stencil onto some rose colored paper with a Palette Knife. I immediately took the stencil off and washed it along with the Palette Knife, and I set the pasted rose paper aside to dry completely.

Meanwhile, I cut a black card base, and then I glued down a layer of the gorgeously shimmery Rose Quartz Stardream cardstock. You can see the shimmer in the picture below - isn't that paper gorgeous?

Next, I cut a layer of black cardstock slightly bigger than the pasted rose paper and adhered it to the Rose Quartz Stardream cardstock layer. I stamped the sentiment from Anytime Sentiments above the black layer with black ink. Once my pasted rose paper was completely dry, I glued it down to the black layer. I then cut out the fun new Tall Chloe Stem die with black cardstock and glued it down onto the card.

I hope this helps you "see" how the Translucent Embossing Paste looks after it has dried. Think of all the different things you could add to this paste - glitter, Pearl Ex, even microbeads!

Here's a couple bits of news I want to share with you:

CCNS Challenge #37 - Stickers and Rub Ons

Pull out your stickers and rub ons and show us what you can create.  You could win a fabulous prize!

Design Team Call for Classy Cards 'n Such - if you've ever wanted to be on a design team, give this one a try.  It's been wonderful working for CCNS for the past 2.5 years!!!  

Bouquet on Wood

Have you played in the Background challenge on the Classy Cards 'n Such blog this week? I love stamping with my background stamps, and I pulled out two of them to use on this card today.

I stamped the Wood Texture background onto some Kraft cardstock with a brown ink, and then I sponged the edges with the same brown ink. Next, I stamped a small strip of green paper with the gorgeous Tapestry 2 background. I cut out a white border from the Ankara Lace Border die and glued that under the strip of green paper, and then I glued this piece onto the wooden background.

Next, I cut out the gorgeous Blushing Bouquet die from white paper, and while the die cut was still inside the die, I sponged on some pink ink over the flower petals. There are holes in the steel die that are specially made so you can sponge color onto the flower petals - so cool!! After I pushed the paper out of the die, I could see the gorgeous pink sponging. I then used a Copic marker to color the leaves and stems the same pale green shade as my paper.

I adhered the flower bouquet to my background piece, and then I affixed some Mother of Pearl rhinestones to the centers of the flowers. The colors in these Mother of Pearl rhinestones are a perfect match to the colors I've used on this card. Next I tied some Chalk White seam binding around the background piece, and then I glued this down to a green card base.

Why don't you try mixing up your background stamps and see what you can put together? It's fun to see all the different combinations of background stamps! I hope you play along in the challenge this week!  Feel free to use this code, Holly-10, to save 10% off your order when you shop at Classy Cards 'n Such.  There's a lot of wonderful new stamps and dies and toys for your paper crafting projects!

I'm entering this card into the following challenges:

Fresh Brewed Challenges - Flowers and Lace (I used die cuts for both)

Crafting from the Heart #22 - Anything Goes

Artistic Effects CD Blog Hop

Hi friends!

Thanks for joining the TJ Design Team BLOG HOP celebration for our brand new TJ Newsletter technique CD 'Artistic Effects'. We are so excited to be able to showcase the new techniques on this CD for you.

The CD contains 24 brand new tutorials plus 16 techniques from the TJ archives. The CD contains 40 tutorials using Gelatos, Goosebumps, irRESISTible Sprays, Distress Stains and Gesso -- so many fun mediums to give your projects the artistic touch. All 40 tutorials are in step-by-step pdf format - compatible for Macs and PCs alike. All the tutorials are printable to 8-1/2” x 11” paper.  Want to see what the finished techniques look like?  Here is a link to the Table of Contents for this CD:

http://www.techniquejunkies.com/CD_indexes/1Artistic_Effects_Index.pdf

Now here is how you get your own!!!

The cost of the CD is only $14.95. Get your copy by following this link. http://www.techniquejunkies.com/artistic-effects-cd.html

You should have arrived here from Hetty's blog.  If not, please start at the beginning of the hop by going to the Technique Junkies blog at http://www.techniquejunkies.blogspot.com.

I've created two projects to share with you today.  The first project uses the fun Blended Stains Technique.  The stamps on this project are from Impression Obsession, one of our special vendors at Technique Junkies.  I colored the flowers to match the colors in the background.

My second project uses the Distress Stain Pounce Technique.  I developed this technique a couple of years ago, and I love the shimmer that results from this technique.  The stamp and the gorgeous washi paper in the background are from Art Neko, one of the fabulous vendors in the Technique Junkies Newsletters.  I picked the colors for my stamped piece so they would coordinate with the washi paper in the background.  

Check out that shimmer on the stamped piece.  I love that!  :-)

Thanks so much for stopping by to see me and participating in our HOP. Please hop along to your next stop over on Shelly's blog to see her wonderful projects! 

In case you get lost, here is a list of all our wonderful designers.

Judy Jackson http://techniquejunkies.blogspot.com/
Jackie Kalchert  http://www.jackiekalchert.blogspot.com/
Ann Clack  http://www.createdbyann.blogspot.com

Tricia OBin  http://www.thepassionatestamper.blogspot.com
Beth Norman  http://sunflowers-dragonflies.ca/blog
Hetty Sanders http://craftchaos.blogspot.com
Holly Brown http://www.glitterstampsandink.blogspot.com - YOU ARE HERE
Shelly Schmidt http://shellymc2.blogspot.com/
Pat Huntoon http://www.patstamps.blogspot.com/

Denim Glitter Thoughts

I was in a red, white, and blue mood when I created this card, and I like how it turned out. It's not a "patriotic" card even though I used red, white, and blue. It's more of a "what a great day" kind of card. :-)

I used the following products from Classy Cards 'n Such on this card:

Anytime Sentiments stamp set (Impression Obsession)
Prairie Chic 6x6 paper pad (Bo Bunny)
Gypsy Red velvet glitter
Scor Tape 1/4"
Mini Dimensional Butterflies with Angel Wings (Cheery Lynn Designs)
small butterfly die from Cheery Lynn Designs - SOLD OUT
Kraft cardstock
Joy Foam Pads

I started by adhering some strips of the Scor Tape across the lower right corner of the denim paper, and then I covered the tape with the Gypsy Red glitter. The sentiment was stamped and layered with red cardstock, and I added a braided twine frame (a fun technique from Technique Junkies) around it. The butterflies were cut from Kraft cardstock and placed randomly around the card. I used the Joy Foam pad to adhere the largest butterfly.

I hope you've been inspired to create a fun card using red, white, and blue!  If you'd like to purchase any of these supplies from Classy Cards 'n Such, feel free to use this code, Holly-10, to save 10% off your entire order.  Just think of all the different colors of glitter you can stock up on, or all the dies you can play with!  :-)  I'm entering this card into the following challenges:

Crafty Girls #19 - Anything Goes
DL.ART #133 - Red, White, and Blue
Mod Squad - Red, White, and Blue