Amazing Card

Hello and Welcome!

Happy New Year everyone! And it is the 2016 celebration that inspired this card:

I used Great Impressions' sunflower stamp, coloring it with Zig Clean Brush markers like a poinsettia on watercolor paper, and heat embossed it. The sentiment is the large Amazing die by Cheery Lynn, which I cut out of DCWV silver glitter paper and black (to act as a shadow, outline and depth). The background is Ellen Hutson's Bokeh Dots stamp set, which was stamped with Versamark and heat embossed with Ranger silver embossing powder.

This card is entered in the following challenges:

• The Customer Gallery at Great Impressions

• Cheery Lynn Designs Challenge #217 "Anything Goes"

• Ellen Hutson's December Pin-Sights Challenge

Hope you have fun and stay safe tonight. See you next year!
-june

December Tim Tag

Hello and Welcome.

Thought I'd try to do Tim Holtz' December tag today. I had most of the Tim Holtz products and found the step-by-step instructions very easy to follow. It was very relaxing and I learned many great techniques. It's a lot of fun to play with so many different products and really get my hands dirty. I can see why so many people love to create these tags. Here is my take on the tag:

I stayed pretty close to the original example, just switching up the stencil, star and sentiment. Most of the products are by Tim Holtz and Ranger. For a list of the supplies, follow the link below to Tim Holtz' blog and give this fun project a try. You will be glad you did. I was.

This tag is entered in the following contests:

• Tim Holtz' 12 Tags of 2015 - December challenge
• Winter Wonderland at Simon Says Stamps Monday Challenge
• Owl I Want For Christmas at Paper Issues Linky Party

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UPDATE: WOW, Happy New Year indeed! This tag was chosen as a winner on Mr. Tim Holtz blog! I'm still recovering from the shock and joy! Guess, I am most creative at night, as I was up until 5am working on it. Thank you all who have left comments (so kind) and come to take a peek.

-june

Celebrate Jeff Layout

Hello and Welcome!

Love the Scrappy Friends layout challenge. 3 challenges, 4 prizes and 1 layout. If you scrapbook check it out!!!! The link is below. Here is my take on The Grand Diva's (gotta love her title) sketch:

I used Kelly's colors, as this collection of Close To My Heart's papers matched well. I followed Rochelle's first row with Stickles (on the stars and dots)-trinkets-tags. The rub-ons are by Fancy Pants and the trinkets are by Making Memories.

This layout is entered in the following contests:

• The December Sketch Challenge at GrandDiva's Creative Corner

• Rochelle Spears' December Tic-Tac-Toe Challenge

• The December Color Challenge at Creating With Paper & More

• The "Make It Sparkle" Wednesday challenge at Simon Says Stamp

Cheers Card

Hello and welcome!

Hope you enjoyed your holiday. Now that all the gifts are open, it's time for Thank you's (insert kids groaning here). Great news for me though, as I get to make more cards! So here is one inspired by several challenges going on today:

I was inspired by Papertrey's fun mood board and used their Delightful Dahlias stamp set for the embossed leaves & tag. The layout is based on a sketch at My Favorite Things and I used MFT's Celebrate Big for the sentiment. Plus the Add a Flourish and Sunflower dies are by Cheery Lynn. The shiny gold foil and pattern papers are by DCWV, the embossing powders are by Zing & Stampendous, and the leaves are colored in with a green Souffle pen.

This card is entered in the following challenges:

• Cheery Lynn Designs Challenge #216 "Thank You Theme"

• The December 2015 Blog Hop at Papertrey Ink

• Wednesday Sketch Challenge 260 at MFT Card Challenges 

• The "Make It Sparkle" Wednesday challenge at Simon Says Stamp

• The "Owl I Want for Christmas" link party at Paper Issues

Well it is time to start digging out the house from the chaos (more groans from the kids) and enjoying the fun, new gifts.
-june

Forever, Always flower card

Hello and welcome.

Here is the second card mentioned in yesterday's post using the stamp layering technique:

This is an unique way to layer stamps using only ONE stamp to create the flowers. By using the the BACK side of the rose stamp, from Waffle Flower's DT Mix set, I was able to get the background colors. Then flipping the rose stamp over, I stamped  with the FRONT side to get the flower outlines. I added the leaves and heat embossed the sentiment all of which come from the same Waffle Flower stamp set. I finished this beautiful bouquet off with Pretty Pink Posh sequins and added a stitched frame using Simon Says Stamps Bundle of Stitched Shapes.

This card is entered in the following challenges:

• The December "Stamp Layering" technique challenge at Waffle Flower

• The "Make It Sparkle" Wednesday challenge at Simon Says Stamp

Hope you have the happiest of holidays. Thanks for stopping by.
-june

Waffle Flower Hearts

Hello and Welcome!

I have to admit, I am a technique junkie. And technique-based challenges make me tingle. So I am excited to participate in

I came up with two different ideas using stamp layering with my Waffle Flower's DT Mix Stamp set. Here is my first card:

I used the WF large heart stamp in yellow, pink & blue, layering them to create different colors. I think this goes wonderfully with the beautiful WF sentiment. Also, before stamping I "kissed" off some of the ink with the small rose stamp. You can really see it in the blue. Tesse Wise has a great video on this technique on the WF blog - you can see it here. I also layered the sentiment on top of the hearts. The stamped panel was die cut with Simon Says Stamps stitched rectangle from their Bundle of Stitched Shape set, and layered on DCWV gold foil & black papers. I finished this card with gold Maya ribbon and Pretty Pink Posh sequins.

This card is entered in the following challenges: 

•  The December "Stamp Layering" technique challenge at Waffle Flower

• The "Time to Rewind" challenge at Power Poppy (based off of "Go for the Gold")

Stop by tomorrow, as I have a second card featuring the same technique and stamp set, used in an entirely different way!  You will not believe these 2 cards came from the same set.

Happy Holidays,

-june

Home Grown Layout

Hello and Welcome!

This layout has been sitting on my table for weeks, so today was the day to do it! I wanted a break from all things Christmas and winter, so here is my fall themed layout, which is based on a wonderful sketch at Stuck?! Sketches:

I decided to use stuff I had been hoarding for probably ten years now, and it felt so good to get it on a page. The papers are a mix of Graphic 45, Moxxie and Webster's Pages. There is some Dreamweaver's gold texture paste with a Mr. Huey stencil in the background. The embellishments include Essentials by Sandylion and Jolee's by EK Success. The pretty vines are a die by Cheery Lynn. The chipboard is by Scrapmatts.

This page is entered in the following challenges:

• The December 15th Sketch Challenge at Stuck?! Sketches

• The December Stash Challenge #33 at Scrap Our Stash
• D - diecuts, Dreamweavers gold paste
• I - Icons (gems)
• E - Essentials, EK Success
• C - chipboard, Cheery Lynn
• U - up-cycled mini-clothespin clip
• T - tags
• S - Scrapmatts, stitching 

• The "Die Crazy" Wednesday challenge at Simon Says Stamp

Hope you are enjoying your day and thanks for stopping by.
-june

Warm Heart Card

Hello and Welcome!

I had so much fun making this card! The Quadrangle frame die by Simon Says Stamps and the adorable Lawn Fawn Snow Day stamp set somehow jump start my creativity every time. I just love the little scarf that fits the heart. Here is my card:

I was inspired to make the birdie a cardinal. The critters were colored with Zig Clean Color pens. I also used Lawn Fawn lobster and freshly cut grass inks for stamping the heart and trees. Plus the red stitched circle with the sentiment is part of Lawn Fawn's Stitched Circle Stackables die set. Versamark and Stampendous white embossing powder were used to create the Lawn Fawn sentiment. And Simon Says Bundle of Stitched Shapes was used for the outer stitched rectangle. The background paper is also by Lawn Fawn.

This card is entered in the following challenges:

• The Lawnscaping "Merry Christmas" challenge

• The "Winter Wonderland" Monday challenge at Simon Says Stamp

Thanks again for stopping by,
-june

Thanks A Latte Card

Hello and Welcome!

I decided to break away from the Christmas theme for a minute and do something bursting with color. This meant bringing out my Zig Clean Color Brush markers and using them in full color. So here it is:

I love the look of bright colors with gold embossing powder (Zing). And I used a pinch of DCWV gold glitter paper to highlight the heart. The flower stamps are by Verve Stamps. I partial die cut the Sizzix "Thanks". The cup die is by Simon Says Stamp. I also added clear Pretty Pink Posh sequins.

This card is entered in the following challenges:

• The Coffee Lovers Holiday Blog Hop at Coffee Loving Cardmakers

• The "Just a Pinch" Monday challenge and "Die Crazy" Wednesday challenge at Simon Says Stamp

•  Marker Pop challenge #84 "Anything Goes"

• The December Inspiration Challenge at Verve Stamps

Got my Christmas cards out in the mail today. Yay.  Now it's gift shopping, wrapping, and cookie baking.

-june

Christmas Cheer card

Hello and Welcome!

Busy time of the year, but I do squeeze in some creative time to maintain some sanity. Hope you getting some fun time too.

I usually do CAS cards, but about once a month I need to do a Shabby Chic creation. So here is my December one:

I used primarily Kaisercraft papers, embellishments and dies. This card is based on their December sketch. I really like how the layers and gold foil bring a Victorian feel to this card. The cup is a die by Simon Says Stamp.

This card is entered in the following challenges:

• The December Card Challenge at Kaisercraft

• CCC06 "Snowflakes" at CAS-ual Chic

• The Holiday Coffee Lovers Bloghop at Coffee Loving Cardmakers

• The Just a Pinch Monday challenge at Simon Says Stamp

Jingling Santa

Hello and Welcome.

It is so much fun making Christmas cards. Here is another one:

I was inspired by the card sketch at My Favorite Things and used their Santa from Jingle All The Way, which I colored with Zig Clean Color Brush Pens, and the sentiment, which I heat embossed with Stampendous' white powder. I also used Simon Says Quadrangle frame die (love this die, it really highlights the images). I used DCWV foil papers, which adds so much shimmer in real life. I finished this card off with a gold string that I strung mini bells on.

This card is entered in the following challenges:

• Wednesday Sketch Challenge 258 at MFT Card Challenges

• The December Anything Goes challenge at Great Impressions

Thanks for stopping in today. Happy holidays,

-june

New Year Card

Hello and Welcome!

The challenge at Marker Pop is to make a New Years card, which is a real challenge as I am still trying to get my Christmas cards done. I also do not have many New Year's stamps, but, I did find this one by Stampendous. Love the stained glass look. And a New Year's card just has to be a shaker, so here it is:

I masked in the My Favorite Things tree from Jingle All The Way with the sentiment. I colored everything with Zig Clear Brush Markers. I was inspired by the color combination at My Favorite Things, although I did add a little gold for contrast. The sequins are by Pretty Pink Posh. The shaker is the Madison Large Window by Memory Box. The card design is based on a sketch at Mojo Monday.

This card is entered in the following challenges:

• MarkerPop Challenge #83 "Happy New Year"

• Mojo Monday 427

• Color Challenge 35 at MFT Card Challenges

• Memory Box Challenge #7 "Season's Greetings"

Thanks again for joining me today!
-june

Hello Santa

Hello and Welcome!

When I saw the First Christmas stamp set by The Cat's Pajamas I knew a card for Aunt June and Uncle Tom, who adore their pups Trixie & Fritzy, was in order. Here it is:

The Poochie images, colored with Zig watercolor markers, fussy cut & glossy accents added to the eyes, along with the sentiment, are from The Cat's Pajamas First Christmas stamp set. The "Hello" is a Winnie & Walter die cut out of Doodlebug glitter paper. The stitched frames are by Simon Says Stamps. I stamped the foliage from The Cat's Pajamas Wreath Building Kit which was also colored it with Zigs and red Stickles. The gold foil paper is by DCWV.

This card is entered in the following challenges:

• The Winter Blog Hop at The Cat's Pajamas

• The Holly Jolly Stamping Monday challenge at Simon Says Stamp
 

Jingle All the Way card

Hello and Welcome!

Today's card was inspired by the great tutorial by Andrea Walford on the Simon Says Stamp blog. I loved her background and design followed her ideas, but added a lot of twists of my own. Here is my card:

The background is created with Broken China, Chipped Sapphire, and Seedless Preserve distress inks.  I added the stars using Simon Says Stamp Falling Star stencil with embossing paste and Zing gold embossing powder. But instead of masking, like Andrea, I just cut a circle from another piece of cardstock and glued it on top. I added the Memory Box Snow Tree Landscape, which was die cut and stenciled with green Maya spray mist. The snowman is from The Cat's Pajamas Snowman Accessory kit. I colored him with Copic markers. The sentiment is from My Favorite Things "Jingle All The Way" stamp set. I finished it off with a few snowflake sequins, pink twine, and mini jingle bells.

 I am sending this card to Pia, who was kind enough to offer this tree die/stencil as a give away on the Simon Say Stamp Flickr challenge site. Thanks again Pia!

This card is entered in the following challenges:

• Color Challenge 34 at MFT Card Challenges

• TCP Tuesday 304 at The Cat's Pajamas

• The Work It Wednesday "Holiday Card" challenge at Simon Says Stamp

Wonderful Time tag

Hello and Welcome!

If you are looking to make tags for your gifts this year there are 2 great sites. One is Tracey McNeely's 25 Days for Christmas Tags and the Ellen Hutson's 12 Christmas Tags with a Feminine Twist. Both have amazing ideas from truly talent artists. Nichole Heady's blog also offers great technique ideas every Monday. (See links for all of these sites below.)  I took inspiration from all these sites to create this tag:

I layered several colors of distress inks with a waterbrush. And added splatter of each color on the white watercolor paper background (it looks like colored snow falling). I stamped Papertrey Ink's Delightful Dahlia's leaves with versamark and Stampendeous white embossing powder. I used Northwood's stamp for the sentiment with Ranger gold embossing powder. I used The Cat's Pajamas Stitched Bow die with DCWV silver glitter paper.


This tag is entered in the following challenges:

• The 25 Days of Christmas Tags challenge at In My Creative Opinion. I was inspired by Tacey on Day 5 with the colors and the white embossing with watercolor.

• The 12 Tags of Christmas challenge at Ellen Hutson's Classroom. I was inspired by Carolyn on Day 1 with her technique and design.

• Make It Monday #233 at Papertrey Ink. I was inspired to add the paint splatters.

• The Time to Rewind challenge at Power Poppy. I used several challenges - Go For Gold, Pop of Pastel, Shabby & Chic, and Gifts from the Heart.

Merry & Bright tag

Hello and Welcome!

There is a lot of great inspiration for Christmas tags out there right now. I'm thinking of wrapping everything in plain paper, just to showoff the tags; they are so beautiful and fun to make. Here is my first tag today:

I created this tag using Memory Box Snowy Tree Landscape die, which I used as a die and a stencil with Maya glitter green spray. The background snow is Ellen Hutson's Bokeh Dots stamps with versamark and Stampendous white embossing powder. The sentiment is by Hero Arts and is heat embossed with Zing red embossing powder. I hand cut the snowy hill and edged them with distress inks. I finished off the tree with Simon Says Stamps sequins and a red gel pen around the edge.

This tag is entered in the following challenges:

• The 25 Days of Christmas Tags challenge at In My Creative Opinion. I was inspired by Lindsey M-p on Day 24 with her red sentiment and tree ornaments.
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• The Creative Color Challenge #7 at Sugar Pea Designs.

• The "Gentlemen" Monday challenge at Simon Says Stamp. This tag is going on my husband's gift.

• The "Let It Snow" Wednesday challenge at Simon Says Stamp 

• The 12 Tags of Christmas and Mix It Up challenges at Ellen Hutson's Classroom. I was inspired by Laurel Beard on Day 3 with the colors, red stitching and ribbon cluster.

• Memory Box Challenge #7 "Season's Greetings" 

We Love Christmas Stories

Hello and Welcome. (This is my second entry today, if you are looking for my layout please scroll down.)

I wanted to make a Christmas tag with my Neat and Tangled stamps, but currently I only have the "Stories" stamp. So this is what I came up with:

 I was inspired by the colors from Taylored Expressions challenge. I plan to give this tag to my son, who is an avid reader. The N&T books & santa are colored with copic markers. The N&T sentiment was masked to use only "we" and "stories" then heat embossed with Stampendous clear embossing powder. The heart is Large Christmas shapes die by Simon Says Stamp.

This tag is entered in the following contests:

•  The 25 Days of Christmas Tags at In My Creative Opinion (http://inmycreativeopinion.blogspot.ca/2015/11/25-days-of-christmas-tags-main-post-and.html). I was inspired by Judy Marino's tag on Day 21

• Challenge #63 "Create a Tag" at Little Tangles  
  

• The "Gentlemen" Monday challenge at Simon Says Stamp (http://www.simonsaysstampblog.com/mondaychallenge/?p=3299 

• Taylored Expressions Share Joy Challenge 13 (http://sharejoychallenge.blogspot.com/2015/12/share-joy-challenge-13-sketch-color.html)

Write Your Own Story

Hello and Welcome.

This layout is made of mostly Bobunny products. The thing I love about Bobunny is that you can mix and match different collections and they all go together and look great. Here I used 3 different lines and they all flow together so nicely. I did turn the sketch sideways for a more vertical look.

This layout is entered in the following contest:

• The November Sketch Challenge at Bo Bunny (http://bobunny.blogspot.com/2015/11/november-blog-sketch-challenge.html) 

• The "Anything But a Card" challenge at Sweet Stamps (http://sweetstampsblog.blogspot.com/2015/11/monthly-anything-but-card-challenge.html)