sweet, sweet saturday

Hello! I had some time to make a card today for Taylor's Cupcake Challenge - woo hoo!! I loved the sketch this week - very fun, quick, and perfect. I decided to use some retired items on my card - the set is Bold Butterfly and the paper is Fall Flowers. I really like the look of Soft Sky and Basic Black together and the white makes it pop out too.

Well, I can't stay and chat - the kiddos keep trying to climb up in my lap to see what is SO interesting on the computer. This is why I find myself stamping late at night, ha! Have a great day!

Karen

recipe -
stamps: bold butterfly, best yet
ink: soft sky, basic black
paper: stampers select white (papertrey ink), basic black, soft sky cardstock, fall flowers dsp
accessories: birds & swirls embossing folder, clear gemstones (the paper studio), rectangle nestabilities, stampin dimensionals

color inspiration 43

It's Friday - I'm doing the happy dance right now! Kristina has posted a new color inspiration challenge this week and I'm so happy to be able to get the chance to participate again. It's been 4 weeks!! I love her challenges. Lots of colors to use - Chocolate Chip, Pumpkin Pie, Ruby Red, Old Olive, and Brocade Blue (with a splash of white, hehe). I already had my Pumpkin Pie Patterns paper out on the desk, so I just jumped right back into the pack. And eyelets!! Do you know how long it's been since I've used eyelets??? They look so cute with this stamp too. To make the button fit properly on the card, I punched out a little space for it with the 3/4 circle punch. If you look really closely you can see how the button nests right in there.

That's it for now - enjoy your Friday,
Karen



recipe -
stamps: say it with scallops
ink: pumpkin pie
paper: ruby red, pumpkin pie, chocolate chip, whisper white cardstock, pumpkin pie patterns dsp
accessories: latte buttons, fresh favorites II eyelets, old olive 5/ 8" grosgrain ribbon, scallop square punch, 3/4" circle punch, stampin' dimensionals

sweet sunday sketch winner

Happy Thursday! This week's Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge winner (picked by Random.org) is #1, Kim! Kim made a beautiful sympathy card this week - the blues and greens are simply devine and perfect for her card. Congrats Kim! You can see more of Kim's beautiful creations on her blog, Blogging Along - go by and say hello!

Thanks again to everyone who participated - I LOVE seeing your cards (it makes me want to do a "do-over" sometimes, haha!)

Please stop by again on Sunday for another sketch to try.

Karen

hello

I'm sorry it's been so quiet here at the blog the past couple of days - I just couldn't seem to find time to stamp. It has been almost 70 degrees here the past couple of days and I've been outside enjoying our little spring teaser. I wanted to whip up a quick card for you though and I decided to use this week's sketch challenge over at SplitcoastStampers.

Maybe tomorrow it will rain or snow - then I'll feel the creative juices flowing - haha! Have a good day everyone.

Karen

recipe -
stamps: eastern blooms, sweet shapes
ink: night of navy
paper: kraft, pumpkin pie, bashful blue, whisper white cardstock, pumpkin pie patterns dsp
accessories: soft subtles brads, fresh favorites I buttons, bashful blue striped grosgrain ribbon, stampin' dimensionals

sweet sunday sketch challenge #6

Good morning - It's time for another Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge! Here is the deal: make a card with this layout and use Mr. Linky down at the end of my post to enter your card. On Thursday at 2 PM (Mountain Time), I'll randomly select one card to feature on my blog. So, as long as your card is linked in the Mr. Linky box by 2 PM Thursday, your card will be in the drawing. Be sure to link directly to the blog post or gallery image which features your card. You may post a picture of the sketch on your blog, but please save the image to your computer first. Use the keyword SSSC06 if you plan to post your card at SplitcoastStampers.

I thought I'd dig out one of my favorite sets from last year, Live Your Dream. I haven't used this one in a while and it was crying out from its shelf, poor thing. I ran the Soft Sky/Afternoon Tea layer of the card through my Cuttlebug with the D'vine Swirls embossing folder to give it some dimension. You may need to click on the photo to get a better look at it. I didn't have enough room to tie a knot in the ribbon along the side of the panel, so I used the horizontal slit punch to run the ribbon through the panel instead.

Now it's your turn to try out the sketch - have a great day!
Karen

recipe -

stamps: live your dream

ink: river rock, wild wasabi, soft sky, groovy guava, bayou blue

paper: wild wasabi, soft sky, whisper white cardstock, afternoon tea dsp

accessories: vintage brads, groovy guava double stitched grosgrain ribbon, stampin' dimensionals, horizontal slit punch

birdie silhouettes

I just can't stop using this set! Maybe because it's the only new set I have that isn't full of Valentines, or maybe it's SO stinkin' cute! I picked up some American Crafts Thickers from Hobby Lobby today for only $2.50 (I know!!) and had to use them on a card. Usually I use them in my scrapbooks, but since I haven't made a page in months I needed another outlet for them.

Thanks for stopping by! Enjoy your day -

Karen

recipe -

stamps: cheep talk

ink: chocolate chip

paper: chocolate chip cardstock, maine blueberry dsp, pumpkin pie patterns dsp

accessories: pumpkin pie striped grosgrain ribbon, fresh favorites I buttons, scallop edge punch, daiquiri thickers (american crafts)

sweet sunday sketch winner

Hello everyone! Thanks again for all of your fantastic samples of the Sweet Sunday Sketch - I really do enjoy looking at all of your work. This week's winner is... Anna Sutherland!! I love her thank you card - it's so elegant with its cool gray tones. You can see more of Anna's brilliant work at her blog, Funky, Fresh & Fun.

See you back Sunday!

Karen

on your birthday

I hope you are enjoying your day so far. I'm back with a quick card based on a card I found on the back of Stampin' Success, a Stampin' Up! demonstrator magazine. It came in the mail today and I couldn't resist casing from it this afternoon! I added the 3 little flowers to the side of the image panel because I thought it looked just a little too naked. I love that flower trio punch!!

Well, I'm off to do some neglected cleaning, so enjoy your afternoon and I'll see you back soon.

Karen

recipe -

stamps: flight of the butterfly, on your birthday

ink: so saffron, bravo burgundy, pumpkin pie

paper: so saffron, bravo burgundy, pumpkin pie, old olive, whisper white cardstock, pumpkin pie patterns dsp

accessories: scallop edge punch, flower trio punch, so saffron 5/8" grosgrain ribbon, so saffron brads, paper-piercing tool, stampin' dimensionals, mini glue dots

mojo monday

Julee has another great sketch over at her Mojo Monday blog - go on over and try it out! It was pretty funny when I chose to use Flight of the Butterfly for this card because inside the stamp box, there was a card, all ready to go and believe it or not, all of these little pieces were already cut out and ready to go. The only thing I had to cut out was the circle on the bottom - weird, huh? Sometimes when I'm working on a card and it's just not working out at the moment, I'll pack it all up inside the stamp set box to come back to later and this time, it just happened to match the sketch. Chills!

Oh, a reader had a question on if I use the Big Shot for my Nestabilities - I don't, I use my Cuttlebug. I'm sure you can use Nestabilities in the Big Shot since it's a roller machine though. I don't have a Big Shot just yet, but maybe someday.... someday indeed...

Go on over and try out Julee's sketches, they are always fantastic! See you back soon -

Karen

recipe -

stamps: flight of the butterfly, best yet

ink: close to cocoa (classic & craft), bashful blue

paper: bashful blue, close to cocoa, stampers select white (papertrey, ink) cardstock, banbury dsp

accessories: bashful blue striped grosgrain ribbon, circle/scallop nestabilities, birds & swirls embossing folder, clear embossing powder, stampin dimensionals

hello there

Most of you know I'm a huge fan of sketch challenges and will use a sketch most days to inspire me, so I was extremely excited to try out Taylor's Cupcake Challenge this weekend - it's one of those sketches that lets me use scraps! This is why I hang on to those little pieces that are just too big to toss. I had some Maine Blueberry paper scraps just sitting on my desk, left over from yesterday's card - so now you get to see a familiar stamp set and paper! I'm using Cheep Talk again - love those birdies! Kind of look like my little birdie in my blog header, no?

Thanks so much for stopping by today - see you back soon.

Karen

recipe -

stamps: cheep talk

paper: bashful blue, not quite navy, old olive, stampers select white (papertrey, ink) cardstock, maine blueberry dsp

ink: old olive, bashful blue, not quite navy

accessories: old olive 5/8" grosgrain ribbon, not quite navy stitched grosgrain ribbon, circle/scallop nestabilities, stampin dimensionals

sweet sunday sketch challenge #5

Good morning - It's time for another Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge! Here is the deal: make a card with this layout and use Mr. Linky down at the end of my post to enter your card. On Thursday at 2 PM (Mountain Time), I'll randomly select one card to feature on my blog. So, as long as your card is linked in the Mr. Linky box by 2 PM Thursday, your card will be in the drawing. Be sure to link directly to the blog post or gallery image which features your card. You may post a picture of the sketch on your blog, but please save the image to your computer first. Use the keyword SSSC05 if you plan to post your card at SplitcoastStampers.

recipe -

paper: night of navy, old olive cardstock, maine blueberry dsp

accessories: flower fusion, latte buttons, night of navy stitched grosgrain ribbon, making memories card sayings rub-ons, scallop punch, mini glue dots, stampin' dimensionals

sweet sunday sketch winner

This week's winner is Alanna! I love Alanna's card with the added scallops, ric-rac ribbon and soft colors - it beautiful! You can see more of Alanna's work at her blog, Alanna's Spot in the World.

Thanks again to all of you who participated - you all do such amazing work and I'm so inspired by all of you. See you Sunday!

Karen

cheep talk

I am absolutely in love with this new set, Cheep Talk - isn't the little bird cute? I really like the sentiments that come with it - they all curl under or over the branch, very fun. I used this week's Fall To Layout from Clean & Simple Stamping for this card and added some felt ribbon, tied together around a Latte button. This is the first time I've inked up this new set, so I'm very excited to try out different things with it. Just warning you, you might see this set a few times in the near future, hehe.

Have a wonderful day!
Karen

recipe -
stamps: cheep talk
ink: chocolate chip, sage shadow, really rust
paper: chocolate chip, sage shadow, whisper white, autumn vine dsp
accessories: rectangle/scallop nestabilities, alpine ribbon originals, latte buttons, stampin dimensionals

sweet sunday sketch challenge #4

Good morning - It's time for another Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge! Here is the deal: make a card with this layout and use Mr. Linky down at the end of my post to enter your card. On Thursday at 10 AM (Mountain Time), I'll randomly select one card to feature on my blog. So, as long as your card is linked in the Mr. Linky box by 10 AM Thursday, your card will be in the drawing. Be sure to link directly to the blog post or gallery image which features your card. You may post a picture of the sketch on your blog, but please save the image to your computer first. Use the keyword SSSC04 if you plan to post your card at SplitcoastStampers.

For my sample I added a 4-1/4 x 5-1/2 sheet of the polkadot paper to the card front and then added the Pretty In Pink cardstock on top. In the photo it kind of looks like I just added a tiny strip of the polkadot paper to the top of the card.

Good luck and have fun - I can't wait to see your ideas!
Karen

recipe -

paper: pretty in pink, retired dsp

accessories: 1" circle punch, american crafts satin ribbon, latte designer buttons, making memories rub-ons

another share update (again)

Yes, yes, well, once again I am a big goober and made a mistake in the quantity of some items in my Embellishment Share. You will be getting 3-5 Latte buttons and 10 jumbo 5/16" brads. The numbers were switched - my apologies. I do have all the embellishments in and will be mailing them on Monday.

BUT.... If you order a Paper Lover Paper Pack between now and March 31, you will get a bonus sampling of all 4 sheets of Sale-A-Bration paper, Delicate Dots. How FABULOUS! So anyone who has already ordered the Paper Pack will get these bonus sheets (they are fantastic!). There is one spot available right now before the waiting list will start again.

Ok, that's it for now - I hope to be crafty tomorrow so I can have my sample for you on Sunday for the sketch challenge.

Have a fantastic weekend!
Karen

sweet sunday sketch winner

Another big Thank You to everyone who participated in this week's challenge - you all did such a fantastic job. I love seeing what you all create and it inspires me to try new things each week. This week's big winner is Fonda Dixon! I love the details she put on her card - the faux stitching, the bling, the patterned paper - fantastic! You can see more of Fonda's creations at her blog, Southern Scraps, so hop on over there and check it out.

I'll have another sketch for you on Sunday, so be sure to come back and check it out.

Have a great day!
Karen

paper pack and embellishment share update

Hello! Just a quick little post here - I've added some "Buy Now" buttons on my side banner to make it a bit easier for you to purchase these shares. Right now I have extra shares of both the Paper Pack and Embellishments, so you can just purchase them now and I'll mail them out to you ASAP. Once the shares are full, you'll be prompted back to the blog and you can sign up to be on the waiting list - as soon as there are at least 5 on the list, I'll order supplies and send you an invoice.

Thank you all so much for your interest in these shares! I never thought it would be SO popular and gaining interest too! You all spoil me :)

Karen

more candy lane

Yes, it's more Candy Lane paper for you to feast your eyes on, haha! I am in LOVE with this paper and can't get enough of it. I may just use it all up before Valentine's Day - that would be amazing! I took inspiration from Fall To Layout #26 over at Clean & Simple Stamping - I just loved the sketch. Go on over and check out all of their Fall To Layouts, they are amazing and so quick to assemble. Seriously, like 10 minute cards!

Have a wonderful Monday!
Karen


recipe -

stamps: a happy heart

ink: chocolate chip

paper: close to cocoa cardstock, candy lane dsp

accessories: hearts set sizzlits, neutrals buttons, stampin' dimensionals

sweet sunday sketch challenge #3

Good morning - It's time for another Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge! Here is the deal: make a card with this layout and use Mr. Linky down at the end of my post to enter your card. On Thursday at 10 AM (Mountain Time), I'll randomly select one card to feature on my blog. So, as long as your card is linked in the Mr. Linky box by 10 AM Thursday, your card will be in the drawing. Be sure to link directly to the blog post or gallery image which features your card. You may post a picture of the sketch on your blog, but please save the image to your computer first. Use the keyword SSSC03 if you plan to post your card at SplitcoastStampers.

Good luck and have fun!

Karen

recipe -

stamps: a happy heart

ink: riding hood red

paper: riding hood red, very vanilla, pink pirouette cardstock, candy lane dsp

accessories: hearts set sizzlits, vintage brads, stampin' dimensionals