Am I A Grownup Yet?

I sometimes feel like I'm yet to grow up - then I realize I have four kids and another on the way, and I think it's time I face the fact I AM a grownup! The birthday season is upon me, and I have two more boys with birthdays in the month to come. I love birthdays!

Anyways, here's another one of my challenge cards - this one for TCPTUES51. I used some fun designer paper from The Sweet Stack from DCWV, yo-yo yellow, and tempting turquoise. The sketch was challenging as there wasn't a real good place to put my image. However, thanks to my friend I've gotten a couple of The Cat's Pajamas stamp sets and now I can play in these challenges! I think it worked out pretty well!

Thanks for looking!

Wew - what a weekend!

I can't believe my Hannah Bee is 6! What a fun weekend - her ballet and jazz pictures are going to be precious and her pony party was a huge success. Entertaining 22 kids isn't the easiest, but they had a blast! I'll post some pictures soon!

Anyways...I was a little lost without my dear friend this weekend, but Friday night I sat down and got productive on my own. I printed out a bunch of challenges and went to work. By the way, on Saturday my friend had posted links to the various challenges out there so check it out - www.in2stamping.blogspot.com. Thanks Gretchen!

This is for the Bella Sketch Challenge on Splitcoast, BSC73. I was spending a birthday gift certificate on Stampin Bella (which is oh so hard to do!), and although I don't have any of the Stellas, I just had to have this one. The sentiment is what made me laugh for so many reasons. I need that reminder when I'm whining and not wanting to do what I need to do, and when the kiddos destroy the house and I'm feeling like I'm endlessly cleaning - I just need to suck it up! Don't you love it!!!

Thanks for looking.

A busy weekend

Tomorrow is Hannah's birthday (can't believe she'll be 6!!!) and her pony party is on Sunday. She also has her dance pictures for both ballet and jazz on Saturday. It's going to be a busy weekend...but fun! I love birthdays! Today I get to bring a couple cookie cakes in for her class, and bring in some lunch for her. She's excited!

So in honor of Hannah, here's a card I made using Jen Del Muro's sketch from last Saturday (http://www.iheart2stamp.com/). The stamp is from CC Designs "It's My Birthday" - the image alone doesn't seem too great but once it's colored, I love it!

Thanks for looking!

My Favorite Things Challenge

This "My Favorite Things" set was one I had to have but had yet to ink it up. With some advice from a good friend, I came up with this card using the Going Places stamp set from MFT, along with Apple Cider paper from Stampin Up. I am happy with the way it turned out!

My stampin buddy went on a short little vacation so I'm without my dear friend to stamp with this weekend. We are taking a little break to see if our mojo will revamp - but I'm expecting some birthday goodies in the mail that I'll have to break open before she returns!

Just a sentiment

Taylored Expressions (http://www.tayloredexpressions.blogspot.com/) has a weekly challenge. A couple weeks ago she had a sketch challenged that I loved the sketch but didn't have any of her cupcakes to use for the image...so I wanted to play, even though I wasn't using one of her stamps. I decided to ink up one of these adorable sayings that I bought months ago but have yet to use! The sketch is TECC59, although minus cupcakes!

I just love this saying...how true and if we could all just remember that simple advice! Thanks for looking - maybe I'll share a couple quilting projects this week!

Love you much...

The card for today is using the splitcoast sketch challenge, SC219. I love the sketch but it's hard to find just the right image for it. But this one from Stampin Up's "love you much" set was perfect. I used the Candy Lane DP, Riding Hood Red and Pink Pirouette. I think it turned out perfect for that sketch!

Speaking of love - I have am so lucky to have such great friends out there! A couple in particular made my birthday wonder (and you know who you are!)...so a HUGE thank you to them! It really helps to have those good "gals" in your life! I got some wonderful gifts for my crafting needs - my Copics!!!!!!, some new stamps from the Cat's Pajamas, ribbon, an all-handsewn quilt, and two beautiful wonderfully fun purse/bags!!!! Those are among my favorites - and I'll be sharing them soon!

Thanks for looking!

A Piratey Monday

It's another Monday, and the kids are back in school. I enjoyed having them all home but at the same time, they can fight like pirates as well!

I just love this stamp from Hanna Stamps (www.hannastamps.com). Who can go wrong with a pirate Riley? I made two different cards but wanted to share both. The first is from the Sketch Challenge on Splitcoast - SC218. The other is a simple way to show off some fun paper. The paper is from an All About Boys paper stack from DCWV. I also played with my copics to see what color I liked best for Riley - what one do you think - the lighter or darker???

Thanks for looking!

Another year older...

Happy Birthday to me! That's right - I'm 34 today - I keep thinking I'm still in my twenties but I guess it's about time I snap out of that : ). Anyways, my dear friend Gretchen came over with yellow tulips and donuts this morning and told me I have to blog today...so thanks to her, here's a Saturday post. By the way, check out her blog - she just got on as a guest designer for Pez-A-Doodle Designs - http://www.in2stamping.blogspot.com/. I'm so excited for her (and thanks for the morning surprise!).

I went to her house last night - it ended up being late due to the husband's schedule...and just could not get any mojo going. I was going to do the color challenge (summer sun, riding hood red, and kraft with black being optional) and sketch challenge over on Splitcoast, and instead of doing two different cards, I made it a two-in-one. I have to admit, the colors were very outside my comfort zone, but I am happy with the result. What do you think?

Thanks for looking - eat some cake or ice cream for me!!!!

Another week

Another week has come and gone and I managed to post everyday! It's been a goal of mine to post more frequently, and thanks to my good friend Gretchen, we've been able to make that happen! Speaking of - check out her blog http://www.in2stamping.blogspot.com/ - she just got on her first design team as a guest designer...I'm so happy for her!!!

I thought I better share the card I made from Jen Del Muro's Sketch http://www.iheart2stamp.com/ from last weekend (since tomorrow there is a new sketch that'll come out!). I had a hard time coming up with something to fit the oval...but I do love this Upsy Daisy set from Stampin Up. I pulled out some old DP called Paper Enchante, also from SU, and love the softness of this card. Purple is becoming a favorite color lately, it seems!

I also used Perfect Plum, Pale Plum, Old Olive, and Dazzling Diamonds. I like the end result!

Waiting...

I'm waiting for my second half of Copics to arrive by FedEx today - a birthday present from my parents and I'm thrilled...can't wait to see what another 72 colors will do to my collection :)

Anyways, I did the Bella challenge this week and I had a little difficulty deciding how to do it considering a lot of the "paper work" on the bottom was covered up. So I just went for it, picked some fun patterned coordinating paper, and made it. I think it's sweet. I used my Huggybella stamp (aren't these girlfriends cute!)...and Stampin Up's Bella Rose paper on one card, Cutie Pie on another. I think they are very bright cheery cards and a great way to spice up those "larger" stamps.

Still working on matching my copics with my paper - my friend Gretchen and I have been talking about how we need to practice blending together the colors to make that perfect shade...check out her blog as she's been doing some awesome work as well (http://www.in2stamping.blogspot.com/). I'm hoping we can get together on Friday night so we can make even more creations to share!!! This is so much fun!!!!!!!!

Thanks for looking!

A Pleasant Surprise

Yesterday, I was "webbing" around, and came across a blog that is dedicated to Stamping Bella challenges (of which my friend and I are trying to do more challenges like theirs). I noticed the card looked familiar - and it hit me that it was mine! My card was selected as the "card of the week" for Stamping Bella. I was excited to see my work liked by others out there - check it out at http://www.bellachallenges.blogspot.com/. YEAH!!!

I thought I'd share today a card I made used the Hanna Challenge of making something with diamonds (http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=425529) It's a stretch as far as a diamond goes, but I like the layout nonetheless. The colors on the Riley match that paper perfectly. Such a sweet image of Riley - love him!!!

Thanks for looking!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Happy St. Patrick's Day to you all! My what I wouldn't do for a pint of Guinness right about now...

The card I'm going to show you today is such a sweet little girl card...although I wouldn't mind if a fairy came around me and sprinkled some magic :)

The paper is Papertrey Ink's 6x6 Guidelines patterned paper pack. Love the purple and pink combo. I used the Bella sketch off of splitcoast, and love love love the end result! My good friend let me use some of her special flower button brads - it's always hard to use them but I'm trying to convince her that we are going to use what we have so we can justify buying more! We've already come to the conclusion that you really can't STOP buying as you need to freshen up your inventory with all those challenges out there.

So...here's the card - enjoy and have a great day!

Another week's worth?

It's Monday again (my favorite day of the week). It is also Spring Break for the kiddos so I have all of the kids home, full time this week. I'm hoping to enjoy it and hoping it doesn't get to be too long of a week : ) I am also going to start potty training Jacob - wish me patience on that one!

I figured I better share my card using The Cat's Pajamas challenge from last Tuesday (since a new one will be coming out tomorrow). Check out Jen Del Muro's blog for all the details (http://www.iheart2stamp.com/). I am not a huge fan of the color scheme of pink, blue and yellow - but I will admit that by the time I was done with the card, I loved it. And isn't the sentiment perfect (yep - my birthday is Saturday so any reason to eat cake!).

Enjoy and thanks for stopping by!

A Full Week of Posting

I've made it to Friday and have posted every day this week!!! I'm hoping to get to a lot of cards tonight with my friend Gretchen so hopefully next week I'll have lots to share again.

Today's card is beautiful! It took me awhile to get it to work just right, but I finally got it where I was pleased with the end result. The stamp is from Verve and I've been wanting to ink it up for some time now! The paper was a DCWV pack from Joanne's - I seem to be drawn to the color purple lately!

Have a great weekend!

Spring?

It's two days in a row where it's cold and rainy (there I go again, talking about the weather). So I vow not to do it for at least a week...maybe.

I thought that I'd share a cute little Easter/spring card to brighten the day. It isn't real detailed, and I wish I had matted each of the layers, but it's cute nonetheless. At times, I really hate being a perfectionist - I should just like it and move on. Simple is ok too! Isn't the bunny sweet though? The papers are from a paperpack from Michaels.

Thanks for looking!

A Pony Party

I can't believe I've gotten to the age where I talk about weather - but I do!!!! Yikes - I have a birthday in a week so who knows what I'll talk about then! Anyways...it is cold and raining here in Texas. By cold I mean upper 30s (from upper 70s yesterday), and by rain - heavy rain since 5am...we do need it though.

I thought I'd share Hannah's pony party invitations. Most of her friends should have received them so I figured it was ok to post this today! The template was in a Cardmaker magazine - sooo cute. She's really into ponies lately and will have two ponies at her party, along with the whole "farm" theme. She's excited!Thanks for looking!

What every girl dreams of...

I've wanted this Riley stamp ever since it came out - and I finally got it! Sophie is just so sweet! I used stickles on her tu-tu. (It reminds me of Hannah's costume for this year's ballet recital - what every girl wants and dreams about - the big puffy pink tu-tu with flowers....). And one of my favorite color combos (pink and brown)...isn't the paper pretty? I'm not sure what paper it is - I'll edit this post once I find out :)
The card itself is a little simple, but I don't think it needs more. I used Jen Del Muro's sketch from last week (www.iheart2stamp.com). I decided not to put any sentiment on the front...first off, I didn't really have anything that was appropriate, and secondly, I thought I could do something on the inside if it ends up being a birthday card, friendship, etc.

Thanks for looking!

Paper Airplanes

Happy Monday to everyone (did I ever tell you that Monday is my favorite day of the week - I know, I'm odd that way!).

Anyways, this card today uses Taylored Expressions sketch (TECC58) - http://www.tayloredexpressions.blogspot.com/ I bought this stamp at a stamp show recently and thought this would be perfect for that set! Aren't the paper airplanes cute?! I used some paper from an "All About Boys" DCWV paper pack...and of course, my copics! I've noticed that Kraft paper is "in" so I used that as well...I do like that paper!

Check out my friend Gretchen's card using this same sketch - http://www.in2stamping.blogspot.com/ I'll be sending you over to see her this week a lot as we did a handful of challenges together this weekend.

I'm also experimenting with my picture taking...it really is difficult to get a picture of a card that captures the details. Leave a comment if you have any suggestions...

Thanks for looking!

What fun!

I went over to my friend's house last night and we were creating machines. I feel like we work well together as we can both help each other out when losing that mo-jo. Anyways, I have a bunch of cards made to share...so I'm hoping to post every day this week!!!

This one is actually one I did last week, but I wanted to show off my coloring with the Copics. I took a Copics class from Jen Del Muro (http://www.iheart2stamp.com/) the other weekend, and it really helped to see how to use the Copics to their fullest (I'm hoping for an advanced class soon!). Anyways, the card itself is simple, but I really thought I did a good job on the coloring! Both cards are different sketch challenges over on Splitcoast but I've lost my sheets so I'm not sure on the numbers!

More later! Thanks for stopping by!

Help!

Once again, I totally cased a card (changing up the papers, and some embellishments) but why try to change something you already love? This card was on the cover of the March 2009 issue of CardMaker magazine. Love this stamp! There are lots of cute Easter stamps out there but I'm trying to resist any urge to buy...and use what I have! That's so much harder to do than say!

I just finished up some birthday invites for Hannah that I'll show soon! They are adorable! And I'm playing with my coloring so hopefully I will have some new cards for you as well! Right now, I'm really trying hard to get good pictures of my work. Any ideas, suggestions, etc., please let me know!!!

Totally Cased!

Two days in a row - what's wrong, I know! Anyways, I saw this card somewhere on splitcoast and loved the way the creator used two embossing folders. I think it's the dandelion folder, along with the diamonds in the rough (tough to see in this picture!). The simple look is so elegant and beautiful! Of course, I can't find it again but I am putting my disclaimer on that I did totally case this card (except for the colors and sentiment!). In some way, all cards are copied, but this really had none of my interpretations to it since I thought it was perfect the way it was! But isn't it elegant?!

Thanks for looking!

Coloring fun

Isn't this just the cutest bella!? This is Peony Bittybloom - the purple is so vivid and beautiful in person! I also used a sketch challenge to get the layout done right - SC211 over on http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/. I've got a few cards made and am ready to share, so hopefully I'll do good this week and update close to daily!

Last night I spent hours practicing coloring some images with the copics. These markers are awesome!!! I'm hoping to get the second set for my birthday - if not, I'll splurge, I think, on myself! My friend just got all 144 with her husband's permission - what a lucky gal! I'm completing the first set of 72...anyone who is a crafter knows you really do need all the colors as you may always need that one you don't have!