MFT Teaser-Clearly Sentimental About Time

It's so much fun being able to play along with the MFT team as a guest designer for this release!!! There are so many gorgeous and fun new sets to share over the next 5 days, and the big release is Tuesday, January 4th at 10pm Eastern in the MFT Store. But be sure to mark your calendar for the release party over in the MFT Splitcoast forum from 8-10pm...just before the release on Tuesday...there's always prizes and plenty of chit chat.

Today I'm sharing a card I made with Clearly Sentimental About Time. The quotes in this set are absolutely amazing, and timeless! Sorry...just couldn't resist that one! LOL!!!

I paired the sentiment with one of the frames from Framed Greetings and cut it out with the coordinating framed greetings die. I layered it onto some red that I cut out with the polka dot greetings die. The patterned papers are Circa 1934 by Cosmo Cricket and I thought the piece with numbers on it was perfect for the 'time' theme. I added three light blue scalloped layers, thanks to my jumbo scallop die and finished the card with a heart accent. The hearts were cut out with my hearts a plenty dies and the red one is actually red felt. The layout is my version of MTSC105.

Be sure to hop over to Kim's Blog for a complete list of all the talented MFT gals who are sharing teasers today. Trust me...you won't want to miss a thing!

See you here tomorrow with another fun MFT teaser!
Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Taylored Expressions Release Day!

It's finally shopping time at Taylored Expressions! All the new stamps, dies and impression plates are now available in the TE Store. But before you head off to fill your cart, the Baker's Dozen has a recap of the new sets with more creative ideas to share.

I used one of the super cute new Crafty Petites sets, Kitschy Kitchen, for my card today and I made another 4.25" square card. I stamped the oven with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Buttercream and coloured it with copics. I added just  a smidge of sparkle with my red Spica glitter pen but it's not showing too well in the photo. I {heart} this oven image...it reminds me of the oven at my parents cottage (well, not the colours, just the style) and that brings back all kinds of fond memories!!!

The layout is MTSC102 and I used patterned papers from my October Afternoon Farm Fresh 8x8 pad. I thought the gingham was almost like a picnic table cloth. My lacey square Nestabilities were the perfect frame for this darling oven. For the flower embellishment I used one of the images from Friendship Blooms, stamped it with Colorbox Blue Lagoon, and cut it out with the coordinating Friendship Blooms Dies. A single clear rhinestone adds just the right amount of sparkle.

Here's the die I used today:

Have fun hopping around and checking out the rest of the fabulous projects and then, happy shopping! Don't forget to check out the Fresh Out of the Oven section for all the new release products and more!!

Charmaine Ikach

Danielle Lounds

Donna Baker

Jackie Pedro

Jodi Collins

Karen Giron

Melissa Sauls

Regina Mangum

Sankari Wegman

Taylor VanBruggen

Tori Wild

illustrator, Nancy McKinney

and special guest baker, Mona Pendleton

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Bellarific Polar Bear

This week I had a chance to play along with the Bellarific Friday challenge - Christmas/Holiday!!! If I was smart I would have made a few of these cards while I was at it, but of course I didn't think of it...again.

I used my Polar Bear Circle from Stamping Bella and stamped him onto white, then onto navy. I had this idea of a night sky and I thought he'd really pop on the navy background. So I cut out the bear, present and ground then paper pieced it onto the navy circle. I added some glamour dust to make the snow sparkly. The layout is Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge, MTSC99 and the patterned paper is retired SU.

I'm looking forward to seeing Em's post full of eye candy goodness over on Bloggabella. Hooray for the Holiday season!!!

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Taylored Expressions Sneak Peek Day 1-What's Cookin'

Let the sneak peeks begin!!! The new stamps will be available at Taylored Expressions starting Thursday, November 4th. Today the Baker's Dozen is sharing samples with the fun new set What's Cookin', the newest set in the Whimsical Wishes line.

I used Mercy's sketch challenge, MTSC97 for the layout and let the mixer take center stage on my card. My BFF Dana is here visiting...she loves pumpkin and is a great baker (and tall & skinny too) so I made my mixer orange in her honour.  :-)

I stamped the image with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Snow White and coloured it with copic markers. I added a little sparkle with an orange Spica glitter pen then cut it out with rectangle Nestabilities. The patterned paper is from the Doodlebug Bon Appetit collection. I used my fabulous scalloped eyelet border die on some intense kiwi cardstock then added a little stitching and some fun ribbon from my stash to finish the details on this card.

I can't wait to see what the rest of the Baker's Dozen gals created with What's Cookin' so come hop around with me!!!
Taylor VanBruggen
Charmaine Ikach
Danielle Lounds
Donna Baker
Jackie Pedro
Jodi Collins
Karen Giron
Melissa Sauls
Regina Magnum
Sankari Wegman
Tori Wild
Jami Sibley
Nancy McKinney
Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Wicked Halloween

Happy Wednesday everyone! Only two more days til the weekend...woo hoo!!! Today I have a slightly spooky halloween card to share using Hangin' Out-Wicked Wardrobe from Taylored Expressions. This is such a fun set!!!

I started with Mercy's Tuesday sketch, MTSC92, and pulled out my Fright Night Project Pantry for all the papers and embellishments. I stamped the witch's dress twice with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Snow White and again onto the star patterned paper. I coloured the hem, cuffs and bodice with my orange Spica glitter pen then cut out the patterned dress to reveal those parts. I backed the green oval with a black layer cut out using my big scallop oval Nestabilities. I added lots of texture with two different embossing folders and stitched around the outside edge of the card base. The ribbon, moon brads and bat button from the Fright Night Project Pantry add the perfect finishing touches!

Be sure to check out all the stunning samples using Hangin' Out-Wicked Wardrobe in the TE Gallery.

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

More birthday...

Yes, I have another birthday card to share with you today, using the fabulous new Make a Wish set from Taylored Expressions. This is the current charitable set for the TE Giving Tree so $7 from the sale of each set will be donated to a national charity that grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions.

I used Mercy's Tuesday sketch from a few weeks ago, MTSC87, for the layout. All the supplies on this card are from the Make a Wish Project Pantry, including that delicious Espresso Dimensional Pearls I used as icing! LOVE it!!! The image is stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black and coloured with copic markers. I cut out the image with circle Nestabilities and backed it with a big scallop circle Nestability. In addition to the images from Make a Wish, I also used the Bubbles Big Background stamp on the orange panel. I stamped it with Memento Rich Cocoa then pierced around the inside of the larger circles to add a little more definition.

Have you signed up for the September Blast from the Past Blog Hop with Taylored Expressions? Well you'd better hurry because today is the last day to sign up for the Sep 21st hop. Click the link at the top of my sidebar for all the details.

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Taylored Expressions Release Day!

Today's the day when everything the Baker's Dozen has been sharing is available at Taylored Expressions. As you hop around today you'll see more fabulous creations using all the new stamp sets and products.

I worked with Hangin' Out - Wicked Wardrobe again today, along with the Fright Night Project Pantry. I have to say that I love love LOVE this set and the project pantry...I love colouring with purples and there just isn't enough purple out there in paper land. LOL! I decorated a sweet Mini Pail and put together a coordinating card.

Let's start with the card. I used MTSC88 for the layout. The image is stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Snow White and coloured with copics. I added some sparkle with my purple and pitch black Spica glitter pens then popped the image on foam tape onto the orange background.

I used my scalloped eyelet border Taylored Die along the edge of the lighter purple cardstock and wrapped the gorgeous purple ribbon around the card before adding a fun button from the Fright Night Project Pantry. The green bats in the corner are also from the project pantry.

Next up is the Mini Pail. This little project was a snap to put together and would be such a wonderful little gift for your favourite trick or treaters. I simply wrapped the patterned paper around the pail and attached it with Sticky Tape. I added the purple scalloped eyelet border die cut strip then topped the seam with some green ric rac from the Fright Night Project Pantry. You can see a sampling of the other ribbons in the kit tied to the handle. The hat was coloured exactly the same as I did for the card.

Taylored Expressions has some birthday bash specials which are being offered from now until Monday, September 6th.
1. Purchase ANY 4 full-size stamp sets and receive a free Binder Box.
2. Purchase ANY 8 A la Carte stamps and receive a free set of Stamp Storage Panels.
3. Four orders will be selected at random (one from each day Friday-Monday) to win a $25 TE gift certificate.
4. The first twenty customers to order the Fright Night Project Pantry will receive a free set of orange glittered chipboard letters.

So if the amazing stamp sets weren't enough to get you shopping, these birthday bash specials are definitely a huge incentive!!!

Now let's hop along and see what the rest of the Baker's Dozen is sharing today.

• Barbara Anders-Guest designer for Sep-Oct
• Charmaine Ikach
• Danielle Lounds
• Jackie Pedro
• Jami Sibley
• Jodi Collins
• Karen Giron
• Melissa Sauls
• Nancy McKinney
• Regina Mangum
• Sankari Wegman
• Taylor VanBruggen
• Tori Wild

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

A Little Flower Power

I can't believe it's already Wednesday! Seriously, where has this week gone? I guess the bright side is that the weekend is only 2 days away! LOL!!

For my card today I had flower power on the brain so I pulled out my Feelin' Groovy set from Taylored Expressions, along with my Summertime Project Pantry kit. The layout is Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge, MTSC86.

I had visions of flowers all over the car so I paper pieced it with one of the patterned papers from the Summertime Project Pantry and added a little solid colour with my copic markers. I gave the wheels some sparkle with an orange Spica glitter pen then gave the windows a glassy look with my clear Glaze pen. I used my grass border punch on another patterned paper then paper pieced five more flowers. There are Crystal Twinkles in the center of each flower for a little sparkle. The alphabet stickers included in the Summertime Project Pantry were perfect for a quick custom sentiment. The car and grass are popped on foam tape for dimension, along with the entire focal panel.

Wishing you a flower power Wednesday!

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Taylored Expressions Sneak Peek Day 2-Tweet Hearts

Today the Baker's Dozen is sharing sneak peeks of a very "tweet" new set called Tweet Hearts. All the new products will be available at Taylored Expressions starting tomorrow at 8am PST.

Anything with birds just makes my heart melt and these images are so fun and whimsical with paisley, dots and flowers adorning each of the bold images. This set can definitely make for some quick and simple stamping...no colouring required.

Of course I just couldn't seem to take the quick and simple road...sigh...and I decided to cut out most of the stamped elements. The images are quite simple though and really were a breeze to cut out, and the circle images that I used as my 'flower' work perfectly with circle punches!

My Summertime Project Pantry was still out on my stamp table and I thought the bright colours would work perfectly with Tweet Hearts so I used it again today. The layout is Mercy's Tuesday Sketch, MTSC82, from a few weeks ago. I stamped the branch with Memento Rich Cocoa onto Choice Snow White then cut it out with circle Nestabilities. I left the die in place and sponged a little Memento Summer Sky for the background. The leaves are stamped in Colourbox Olive Pastel onto green cardstock and the two birds are stamped in Colourbox Warm Red and Yellow Ochre. I used Yellow Ochre again for the larger circle element and topped it with an image stamped in Colourbox Deep Lagoon (which really doesn't look very deep at all in my photo...sorry!). I added lots of stitching and popped several of the elements on foam tape for dimension, then finished the card with some Crystal Twinkles for a bit of bling.

Are you ready for more eye candy? Then lets hop over to the rest of the Bakers Dozen blogs to see what they cooked up with Tweet Hearts.

• Alex Maldonado
• Carolina Butching
• Charmaine Ikach
• Donna Baker
• Jackie Pedro
• Jami Sibley
• Jeanie Witmer
• Jodi Collins
• Karen Giron
• Melissa Sauls
• Sankari Wegman
• Taylor VanBruggen

and Nancy McKinney is playing along today too!


Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Taylored Expressions Release Day!!!

The new stamp sets and Project Pantry kits are now available over at Taylored Expressions. But before you head off to fill your cart take a minute to hop through the Baker's Dozen blogs because today we're sharing a recap of the new sets. That means more ideas and ways to use the fun new sets.

I have two cards to share and this first one uses Weigh to Go. When I first saw this set I was drawn to the dress and immediately thought "little black dress". We all have that favourite black dress hanging in the closet (mine seems to have shrunk a little), or maybe it's on your "I want it" list. Whatever the reason, the little black dress seems to be a motivator so I thought it was perfect with this sentiment.

I didn't want just a plain black dress though...it needed to be sparkly! So I stamped the dress with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Snow White and coloured it with my N7 copic marker. Then I covered it with liquid adhesive and sprinkled on some black glitter. The adhesive was thicker in places so the glitter's a little thicker in places but I love the effect. It seems to give the dress an element of movement...a happy accident I'd say!

I wanted the dress to pop so I backed it with one of the bright patterned papers from my Cosmo Cricket Delovely mini deck. The layout is Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge, MTSC81, but I flipped it and added the sentiment panel. I added some hot pink polka dot ribbon (cause there just wasn't enough pink yet) and pleated it for texture, then I used my deco scallop border punch along the edge. A few black Twinkles in the corner and some clear Twinkles along the punched border add even more bling.

For my next card I used Feelin' Groovy and the That 70's Project Pantry kit. Talk about a blast from the past! I love all the groovy patterns in the Project Pantry kit and the retro feel of the images in the stamp set.

I used the scooter and wanted to make it look like it was zooming along the country side. I used my circle Nestabilities to create the blue & green background then stitched a line to help define it.

The scooter is stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Snow White (included in the That 70's Project Pantry) and coloured with copics. I couldn't get just the right shade of pink with just two markers so I mixed in the brighter ones at the end and I love the result. I added some fun orange glitter brad to the tires and wrapped some green ribbon around the base layer. I used my open scallop punch along the edge of the pink strip and sewed a crazy stitch around the perimeter of the card. I seriously want a fun scooter like this one!!!

Now let's go see what the rest of the Baker's Dozen cooked up with the new stamps.

• Alex Maldonado
• Carolina Butching
• Charmaine Ikach
• Donna Baker
• Jackie Pedro
• Jami Sibley
• Jeanie Witmer
• Jodi Collins
• Karen Giron
• Melissa Sauls
• Sankari Wegman
• Stacey Schafer-Guest designer for July-August
• Taylor VanBruggen

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Manly Mercy Sketch

Happy Friday!!! It may not be a Bellarific Friday but I still have a Stamping Bella card to share...let's just say that old habits die hard and it just seemed weird to me not to post a Bella on Friday! LOL!!!

I used Mercy's fun sketch for the layout, MTSC77, and when I saw the sketch I immediately thought of my circle images from Stamping Bella. This little gem has been waiting very patiently to get inky. I stamped the Dotty Tie Circle with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Bella's Bestest Paper and coloured it with copics. I should have stamped it onto cream paper so to fix the problem I simply coloured in the diamonds with my E41 copic. I used my 1 3/4" circle punch to punch out the image and it lined up just inside the black circle edge...perfect! If you wanted the black circle edge to show on these circle images just use a 2" punch instead.

The patterned papers are old ones from my stash by Pebbles Inc. I stitched the plaid paper to some river rock then layered it onto cream. I added a manly grey knotted ribbon to finish the main panel. For the background I ran some green through my argyle Cuttlebug folder then stitched it to black to make it pop. I chose not to add a sentiment so I can use it for either Father's Day or a manly birthday.

Em is travelling to Europe so Bellarific Friday Challenges are on hiatus until June 25th. But here's the sketch for that challenge so you can work ahead and get your submission emailed to Em to be included in the round-up on Bloggabella.

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Bellarific Anabel

T.G.I.F!!!! And even better, T.G.I.B.F. (Thank Goodness It's Bellarific Friday!!!). LOL!!! This week was a colour challenge with pink, green and chocolate...yum! What a delish combination!

I decided to use a new Lulu for my card today...please meet Anabel...she's part of the April release from Stamping Bella. Does she not look absolutely gorgeous with that ball gown!!

I stamped Anabel with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Bella's Bestest Cream Paper then coloured her with copics. I gave her glossy black hair with my black Glaze pen then added sparkle to the icing on the cake by colouring over it with my clear Spica glitter pen. The image is cut out with square Nestabilities and I used Mercy's Tuesday Sketch from a few weeks ago for the layout, MTSC70. I used one of the pink patterned papers from the Quite Contrary collection and layered everything with chocolate. I had a really tough time with colours when I was editing these photos in Photoshop, so you'll have to just trust me when I say I used Pink Pirouette, Certainly Celery, and chocolate. I added plenty of stitching and finished with three cotton candy Bonbons in the bottom right corner.

Next week's Bellarific Friday challenge is a sketch designed by our very own Jeanieabella. Here it is so you can get started on it over the weekend. Just email your submission to Em by next Thursday to be included in the Friday round-up.

Em will be posting this week's round-up on Bloggabella on Monday, so be sure to check back then to see all the pink, green and chocolate eye candy. 

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Bee Happy it's Release Day!!!

Woo Hoo...It's release day at Taylored Expressions!!! Today the Baker's Dozen is sharing two new Father's Day a-la-carte images and a recap of the super sweet sets we shared over the past two days. All the new products are available now in the TE Store and be sure to check out the Fresh Out of the Oven category too for more new things.

The first card I want to share today uses one of the new Father's Day a-la-carte images, Real Classic. This car is amazing and comes with two sentiments too!

I used the In The Kitchen Project Pantry for this card...see, I told you I'd use it for a masculine card! The colours and patterns work well for just about any occasion, not just for Cuppie in the Kitchen! I started by stamping the card with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Buttercream (included in the Project Pantry) then I coloured it with copics. I added some sparkle to the chrome parts with my clear Spica glitter pen then gave the windshield and headlights a glossy shine with my clear Glaze pen. The layout is Mojo137.

I added stitching and piercing for interest and used my copic Multiliner to spell out DAD on the license plate. The sentiment fit perfectly in the largest size of my Spellbinders double ended tags and I added two pewter brads to finish it.

This next card is just buzzing with cuteness, in my humble opinion!!! I used Garden Party Critters and the Garden Party Project Pantry along with a piece of kraft cardstock from the In the Kitchen Project Pantry for the bee hive.

The bees are pretty basic but I added some sparkle to the black parts of their bodies with my pitch black Spica glitter pen then coloured the wings with my clear Spica glitter pen...fun! The real star is the bee hive though. I stamped it with Memento Tuxedo Black onto kraft several times then cut out the different layers a popped them on foam tape for dimension. Then I added some shading with Copic markers. I just love how this hive turned out...doesn't it look like a hive of activity with all those sweet bees buzzing around!

I used Mercy's Tuesday Sketch, MTSC72, for the layout and made the cute bow with my Bow Easy...I still use it all the time even though I may not always mention it! I couldn't resist adding a bee to the center of the bow and of course, no flying bee is complete without a trail of Crystal Twinkles!!!

So there you have it...this month's fabulous release!!! You can see more of the Father's Day a-la-carte images on the rest of the Baker's Dozen blogs along with more projects with the sets we already shared.

• Alex Maldonado
• Carolina Butching
• Charmaine Ikach
• Donna Baker
• Jackie Pedro
• Jami Sibley
• Jeanie Witmer
• Jodi Collins
• Karen Giron
• Melissa Sauls
• Sandra MacLean-Guest designer for May-June
• Sankari Wegman
• Taylor VanBruggen

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen