Penny Black Blog Candy!

Kathy (at the Daily Marker) is having a Penny Black Stamp Giveaway !!!

See Kathy's post by clicking the link above!

I love Penny Black stamps, and always am thrilled at the possibility of winning some!  Good luck! I know I'm crossing my fingers!

Wishing...

To keep up with the Some Odd Girl Anniversary challenges, I made this card for a good friend to whom I wish a very happy future! 

The sketch that inspired me this week was from

Pixie Cottage.

I used  SOG's "Kiss a Prince Tia" image, but removed his crown. Wanted him to be less Prince and more your average "bewildered" frog! LOL! The challenge was to use the colors blue, green, and yellow.  I colored it with my Copics and popped up Tia, and then popped up the frog again. It meant printing out additional images and I think my ink cartridge is about to run dry!  My own challenge was to get better at making those cotton-pickin' bows!  Practice, practice, practice....
the grid background and the flower border is Sassafras, and the circle was cut out using the Spellbinders "Blossom" die and embossed with Cuttlebug's "Birds and Swirls".  Yellow bow and a vintage button were applied, along with a few rhinestones from Studio 18.
I'm really happy with my bow, so it's time to STOP!

This card will hopefully be entered in the following challenges:
Fab N Funky (Animal Magic)
Easy Craft Projects (Old stash)
I Did It! (Blue)
Moxie Fab (Jewel Tones)
Paper Sundaes (Favorite Challenge from 2010, #49, "Cut it Out")
Simon Says Stamp Challenge (Bingo!) Die cut/Embossing/Ribbon
Paper Take Weekly (Ribbon)
Pixie Dust (Button Up)
The Crazy Challenge (Buttons)
Karber Weekly Challenge (Ribbon) Because our names are so close!
Card makin' Mamas (Girls Just Wanna Have Fun)

Big Day!

The 24th of January is an especially big day in our family.  That birth date is shared by both my only sister and my only son! It was so exciting having her visiting me where I was living 800 miles away from our hometown when my son was born, and on HER birthday! My son is all grown now and we all live within an hour of each other. Hopefully, we can continue to spend that day together for a long, long time!

I must explain that although my son is not particularly a couch potato, he IS a computer freak. He is either sitting at his desk or recording movies when he has any "down" time. Relaxing and watching TV is something he gets less time to do now than before, so here's to "laying low" on his birthday!

The digital image is Digi Shack's "Dad's Remote", colored with Copics. I paper-pieced the armchair and ottoman, which I thought was really fun!  The Co-ordinations cardstock is also a favorite of mine, so I embossed it using the Cuttlebug, "Numbers" folder and sanded it. The TODAY stamp is a Soloz from Studio G.

Thank you for looking!

I plan to enter this card in the challenges at:

Paper Sundaes (your favorite challenge, mine was "For the Boys"  #42)

Penny's Paper-Crafty Challenge (Anything Goes) and a chance to be a Guest DT on the team!
Catch The Bug (Birthday)

Celebrate!

It is difficult to make cards for some members of our families...that much has become obvious to me over the past few years. But perhaps the most difficult is my sister, my one and only sibling.  She's not a big lover of flowery things, doesn't swoon over the pinks and purples, and for the most part, has nothing to do with girly decor at all!  I agree with her that a little bling goes a long way, but I can appreciate a pretty bow or row of pearls and rhinestones most days.

So this is the card I made for her.  Neither of us are "spring chickens" so the nostaligic print and distressed edges will appeal to her sense of

TIMELESS AGE...LOL! 

Happy 50+(something), Sis! 

I used a Cosmo Cricket journaling card cut from the "Love Notes" collection, paired with the matching "Wonderland" paper as background. The flower was a punch-out from one of the Chemistry lines, and the edges distressed with my Zutter Distress-It-All. 

I hope to have this card considered for entry in:
Easy Crafts (Old Stash)

SOME ODD GIRL WEEK!

I know those of you who read my posts (yea, there are a few!) realize that I do go on about how much I LOVE the images at Some Odd Girl.  Even my DH knows some of the little characters by name!
Well, this week, SOG is having a First Anniversary Celebration! Go to their website at http://someoddgirl.blogspot.com/2011/01/welcome-to-anniversary-week.html to find out how you can win a really great prize, or help me to win. (which would be way cool!) 
See the Cosmo Cricket prize package below!

and they  also have a $50 gift certificate to




Please leave a comment and mention my name for me to have a second chance at winning! I don't "Tweet", so I can't take advantage of that!

Just Tossin' Ideas Around....

I wanted to make a card but couldn't decide what I wanted to make it FOR....I am not in the Valentine mood. At least not yet...mid-January....maybe eventually.

So, I went through some old paper packs that I haven't looked at in months and played with the idea of popping up a characters head just like on the Some Odd Girl School Boy card. Sadly, I picked a cow...yea, a cow. It's a cute cow, but a cow none the less,

The only message I could imagine a cow delivering is that we've Mooooved.... clever, eh?  LOL! Hey, it's been a long week...

The paper used was Apple Cider by Imaginesce. I've had the 6 x 6 paper pack in my drawer for months without opening it. I may even add some matching ribbon to it before it goes anywhere.  I just really like the "bobblehead" effect on the cards! Makes me laugh! I know my grandson liked his, too!   The image is a ClickArt Free Image off the web.  Cute, eh?  Liking the gold cow bell?
I will enter this card in the challenge at:
 Easy Crafts, (Using Old Stash)
Kaboodle Doodle (Digital image)

Surf's Up!

2nd post for January 10th!

(Please scroll down to see My Mind's Eye Card Challenge and

my first Some Odd Girl "My Tiny Challenge" entry!

My second post was just as much fun! It was for the layout challenge at
My Mind's Eye!
I decided if one entry at Some Odd Girl is good, two would be even better!
I absolutely adore their images and could use them all day!
This layout allowed me to really practice my "less is more" resolution I have put into place! I actually like all results of having more white space and using a larger photo.

All three papers are from the "Complete Boy" collection at My Mind's Eye (even the arrows on the chipboard circles), along with the sentiment which is Bohemia Transfer Title (also MME) ; shirt label, Karen Foster; and wave edge; Bazzill; brads from MME,  "I Believe" collection (darkened to match surfboard and paper dots!).



School Time

I LOVE a challenge!  Yes, I like it when I make a card and am able to enter it on a fantastic blogsite where the possibilty is I could win a prize, or better yet, have my project be seen by others!  But what I really LOVE is to find a blog with a truly inspiring and different challenge (one that forces you to think WAAAAY outside our usual comfort zone!)

Well, Some Odd Girl has found a way to do just that. And when paired with the great new card AND the layout challenge at My Mind's Eye, I was really working the ol' creativeness overtime.

                                         Inside reads:

Using an image from Some Odd Girl, I made a card for my grandson.  He (and by that I mean probably ME!) misplaced a stylus for his LeapFrog last time he spent the weekend. I promised I would mail it to him if I recovered it.  Of course, it was exactly where I had left it!  He loves when "Grandma" sends a card, even though they live a mere 40 minutes away. The real fun came when the challenge was to color an image to resemble someone in your own life!   When I enter this card at SOG, it will be shown side-by-side with my 5 year old grandson's

"First Day of School" picture, taken this past August here in Phoenix, Arizona.   How cute is he!

It was easy to follow the requirements for the My Mind's Eye card challenge!

Papers were from the "Complete Boy" and "Simply Delightful" My Mind's Eye paper packs, and two out of the three buttons from "Lost and Found".  Colored "Tobie"  with my Copics markers, popped up his little head, and done!

I also was able to enter these challenges :

Digi Doodle Shop (Buttons)
Delightful Challenges (Buttons)

and a brand new challenge out there...

Do You Stack Up? (Buttons)

One More #*!#% Candle....

I have a very dear "old" friend who is celebrating her birthday soon and I couldn't resist this wonderful image I just purchased from Bugaboo Stamps during their great New Year's sale! Actually, she and I are about the same age, with me being a few months older! LOL!

Inside reads, "What's one more friggin' candle?"

This was my first card using baker's twine. I've admired it all Christmas, seeing it on everyone's cards. Finally, a scrap buddy gave me some so I can join in the fun! Thanks, Kim! 
I had a very old birthday paper kit and a brand new die cut I just bought from Nestabilities that needed to be broken in, too!
With a little incentive and a card sketch challenge from Polka Doodles, I whipped this up in no time!

This card will also be entered in:
 I Did It- Robyn's Fetish challenge (favorite technique).  In this case, I have to say using my die cut frames has ranked first!
KaboodleDoodle (Anything Goes)
FabnFunky Challenges (Anything Goes) But it IS DT member Andrea's B'day!!!
Woodware USA (Something new)

And for those of you who know me, I  ATTEMPTED to post this for my first time on Splitcoaststampers for the 12 Days Flourish challenge...hey, half the challenge is just learning how to post to these things!

Top 3 for 2010!

My Favorite Project for 2010!

It's sometimes difficult for me to look at my own projects and think they are anything but average. However, once in a while, I step back and say, "Wow, that's really some of my best work!" So, when The StampMan issued this challenge for the New Year, I thought I'd look back at the last year and see how I still felt about several of those projects.
All of these were made during my term as a DT member at Thoughts2Paper. Thanks to Liz, I went out of the box (literally) and found what really makes me happy!
1 My absolute favorite is the Kaiser Craft Advent Calendar I painstakingly assembled (and any of you who have done this know what I mean) and distress painted, then decorated with a majority of Webster's Pages products! I love the papers and wanted to do something different with the box. This is my "Resolution for the New Year"- GROW.

2   My second favorite project was this Graphic45 Mini-album that I made for my 5 year old grandson to enjoy for years to come. It contains pockets and pop-ups of songs and poems about Halloween. Everything from kindergarten favorites to Edgar Allen Poe...It also contains a photo I took that I am so proud of, "The Raven". I tweaked and inked it on Co'ordinations cardstock.

  

   

 3  The third is this adorable little Sassafras mini I made to put pictures in from the Summer of 2008 with my grandson. We had such a great time!

It's been a great year, and I hope to continue being creative and just having fun in

2011!  



Happy New Year!

This is probably my first and my only New Year's card.  Kind of a short window of opportunity there between Christmas and January 2nd!  The challenges are quick and few.
I was fortunate enough to receive my contest prize from the My Mind's Eye Blog Hop from several weeks ago Monday in the mail! I love their products and the Lost and Found, Portabello Road collection is no exception!  It is breathtaking.

The papers worked perfectly into the color challenge (silver and blue) this week over at the Hodge Podge Shop!
I am getting more comfortable using the glitters and bling, too! Yes, Liz, I am a convert!
Papers used:  MME, Portabello Road; Making Memories Glitter stickers; trim from MME collection; and stitched!  As they say, easy as pie!

Easy Craft Projects Sketch

I would like to enter this card in challenges at:
Easy Craft Projects (sketch challenge)
I Did It! (New Year's)
PaperCutz (New Year's Banner)
Totally Papercrafts (Time to Party!)
Your Next Stamp (Party)
Pixie Dust Studios (Happy New Year- Silver)
Simon Says Stamps (Happy New Year)
The Crazy Challenge (All things new)

LOVE IS IN THE AIR!

The holidays are done!  I say that and many of you are probably thinking, "Why, she sounds almost glad!" Well, in all honstey, I am. This has been a most difficult Christmas for me.  Nothing DEVESTAING happend, rather minimal in the realm of things. But the loss of our house (even though it was an intelleigent, well-thought-out financial decision) took a toll on me emotionally and the move physically over the past few months. BUT, I'm trying really hard to get back in to the swing of things. I look at my life and I realize that a house is only a "thing".  My family members are all fairly healthy, I'm not suffering from any long-term illness (unless you consider menopause and that's gone on longer than I would choose!), and financially we are in a much better place than many folks I know. I just need to get out of this funk.
SOOO, Happy New Years, and let's move on!
Valentine's Day is our next big card making holiday.  I wanted to start right in again on challenges, so picked this one from Skipping Stones, since they are one of my favorite stamp makers and blog spots! Plus, the prize this week is the new stamp set "Heartsong". To say I WANT it would be an understatement!  This is just another of their fantastic stamp sets that I absolutely adore! 

  Flipped it sideways, and used my two favorite colors...red and black.

The pattern paper comes pre-cut from the Making Memories "Black Tie" mat stack, the cute fabric covered brads are Sandy Lion (grabbed them for $1 at Big Lots); the red glitter cardstock is American Crafts; Cupid stamp is Recollections; and and the others are various "love" stamps I have in my stash.    I love the ready-made black cards from Recollections! I use them even more than I had originally planned!  Can't wait for another sale at my LSS!

This card also qualifies for the NO DIGI IMAGES< STAMPS ONLY challenge at City Crafters. They have the most beautiful stickpins up for grabs! I have never used them on a card or layout, but am dying to try!  And these are to die for!!!
Also entered in the ANYTHING GOES challenge at The Digi Doodle Shop!
and at :
If The Shoe Fits where the challenge is RED
Paper Sundaes (Something Nwe - I just picked up my little Cupid dude stamp the other day!)


I am so glad to have my scrapping friends out there who continuously encourage me and support me!  THIS is what gets us through the rough times! 
Best wishes to all for this next year!

2 Sisters Challenge and a little Thanks!

There is a fabulous challenge going on over at 2 Sisters this week! Check this out!

From Stacy Walker:
This week's challenge is a very special one for me. Thirteen years ago I was diagnosed with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia and two years ago this coming February 6th I had a bone marrow transplant and had to be away from home for a month. What we would like to do is collect cards for the patients at the Brigham & Women's Hospital in Boston MA (this is where I had my bone marrow transplant).


To enter this challenge we are asking you to create a card that has a theme of THINKING OF YOU. You can also use HELLO, JUST FOR YOU, & JUST A NOTE as sentiments on your cards. We are asking that you refrain from using the sentiment of get well. Once you have your card(s) made and posted to the challenge we are asking that you write an encouraging note in the card and address the envelope to "ANY PATIENT" and then place the card(s) in a package addressed to me.
(The rest of the details are on Stacy's blog at http://2sisterschallengeblog.blogspot.com/.)
Please, those of you who are routinely making challenge cards, use them for a great cause!!!  Whether it be a cancer center, a children's hospital, or any that tug at your heart! Thanks!
These are the cards I am sending to Stacy today.

Jeweled Bird Card is entered in:
Woodware Stamps (Anything Goes)
City Crafter (Stamped Image)

Thanks, gotta run to the mail box and get these out to Stacy!

ALSO:

Finished up this card this morning for a little challenge at PapertakeWeekly!
Such a nice switch from the usual holiday cards!  The last fairy "Thanks" I used my Copics ona nd made her a beautiful red-headed Irish gal. Can you tell I am practicing my hair and skin tones with my markers?

The stickles on her wings show up so much better in person!

Thanks for looking!

Mad Hatter Christmas

I really wanted to find an appropriate "Alice" image for this card, but I think this guy makes a good replacement.

"Oh, Alice" is having a card challenge, and I wanted to include a Wonderland image!  Perhaps I'll win some images on their blog!  Anyone who knows me, knows I love everything from "Alice in Wonderland" !
For this quick card, I fussy-cut the Mad Hatter from my Graphic45 paper. I changed the Hallowe'en label on his hat to Christmas, and set him in front of a Christmas tree. He looked so darn surprised, that I thought the sentiment appropriate.  The white background was run through my Cuttlebug with the Mistletoe embossing folder.

Season's Greetings!

This weekend was a long, exhausting one. But I think I'm ready for Christmas! Found a drum set for the grandson (ha ha, won't his mother be pleased?) And have everything purchased for my Dad's fruit cake. Yes, my dad loves fruitcake!  He's the only person I know who actually looks forward to it!
I wanted to make a project this morning, but knew I wouldn't have time to do anything too time-consuming. So, I opted for a tag. MY GRAFICO is sponsoring a ChristmasChallenge at http://mygraficocrafts.blogspot.com/p/christmas-challenge.html


I printed the bird image and then stamped the sentiment and the cage (which is faint and is difficult to see in the photo).  Wish I'd had some smaller pearls. Note to self: add that to wish list.

Bazzill cardstock base; MY GRAFICO freebie bird image; Paper Studio, pearls; bird cage stamp, Jillibean Soup; Flower brad, Creative Imaginations; sentiment, Paper Company; stock gold and black ribbon; and red netting from produce wrapper!
Also, this tag is entered in the challenge at:
2 Sisters Challenge (Christmas)
City Crafter (Vintage Christmas)
Critter Sketch Challenge (Christmas)
PaperPlay Challenge (Anything but a card!)
I Did It! (Anything Goes)
Lexi's Creations (Glitter and Pearls)
Penny's Paper Creations (Merry Christmas)
Papertake Weekly (Anything Goes)

Wish me luck this week!

All I need...

I'm the first to admit I have a rather strange sense of humor.  And I am a product of the 70's. (Very dangerous combination!) When I saw this digi stamp from Sassy Studios Stamps, I immediately thought of how serene and calm this gal looks.  I pictured myself sitting in that big, overstuffed, comfy chair, and thought of Steve Martin's quote from his movie "The Jerk", "All I need is this chair...." and I thought, that's it!

Inside reads, "AND YOU!"

(Well, his exact quote was slightly different)
"Well I'm gonna to go then! And I don't need any of this. I don't need this stuff, and I don't need *you*. I don't need anything. Except this.

[picks up an ashtray]
And that's the only thing I need is *this*. I don't need this or this. Just this ashtray... And this paddle game. - The ashtray and the paddle game and that's all I need... And this remote control. - The ashtray, the paddle game, and the remote control, and that's all I need... And these matches. - The ashtray, and these matches, and the remote control, and the paddle ball... And this lamp. - The ashtray, this paddle game, and the remote control, and the lamp, and that's all *I* need. And that's *all* I need too. I don't need one other thing, not one... I need this. - The paddle game and the chair, and the remote control, and the matches for sure."

Well, anyway, I got a bit sidetracked there and digressed..
Ok, so I think Steve Martin was one of the funniest comics around. It's one of the side effects of growing up in the 70's with Saturday Night Live. I have no other excuses...

This slightly insane card will be entered in the challenge for:
FELT at The Shabby Tea Room
FOOD/DRINK at Flourishes
Quick and Easy at Fab & Funky Challenges
and I'm throwing it on
Card Makin' Mama's  and
Crafty Ann's
(ANYTHING GOES Challenges) just because I think they'll appreciate the humor!
                    
Pattern background paper is from DCWV, Citrus Collection; the chair is paper pieced using a scrap I found in my stash; and the felt flowers were cut from trim that included butterflies (I didn't like it the way it was). Again, I ramble....
I hope those of you that are old enough to recall "The Jerk" can relate, or at least forgive me, for going on and on....
And for those who are too young, rent the movie! It's dumb, it's stupid, and you'll laugh!

Winter Wishes!

Outside the box...  anything NOT a square or rectangle. (Paper Sundae's challenge this week!) Ok, with a snow globe image that makes it pretty easy.  But I wanted my card to stand up and do it differently than just a regular one.  My card is folded at the bottom and is a stand-up card.

This is being sent to a friend with a young child, so I think she'll like this. They live in Florida, so they are about as likely to get snow as we are here in Phoenix!  Lots of sparkle and shine, though it's hard to see it in the picture. I also had originally put clear mylar over the globe and it looked even more real. But the plastic reflected the camera flash, so I removed it for this picture.  Happy Wednesday everyone!  Halfway through another week!
Challenges:
PaperCutz (Snowman/Snowflakes)
WoodWare Stamps(WINTER)
Scrapbookaholic-Gaby Abby SEI (Snowman)

Never enough cards for men!

I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm always caught off-guard when it comes to having a card for a "guy-friend" whether it be for birthday or any occasion.  So when the challenge at Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps called for "manly colors", I took it as a sign that perhaps it was time to add a few to my stash.
I used the sketch over at Waltzing Mouse as my inspiration, and made it quick and simple.

And so I made "Enjoy the Journey".

I pulled out the Tim Holtz stamps because these always make the perfect masculine project. I stamped the clock faces lightly with Distress Ink to make a sublte background. The chain, the key, and the black corner brad are all metal, so I will include Paper Romance in this week's list of challenges.  I also love the fact that the blank card is already black, so it makes a great base for a basic card!



Products used: Recollections Black Card; Bazzill cardstock; Tim Holtz, "The Journey"; metal keychain, brad, and the key were in my stash box; and pattern strip is SEI, En Route.

Thanks for looking at tonight's card! Time to call it quits and get some shut-eye!

"Fairy" Christmas

I wanted to really grasp at the non-traditional color palette and decided to choose orange! Now, what to color orange?  I think this little Irish fairy says "Happy Holidays" wonderfully! 

And the Magical Monday Challenge was the perfect inspiration!   Use something magical!  I think I will include some green "fairy dust" inside when I go to send this Chirstmas card!

I pulled a piece of scrap paper out of my old stash for the polka dot background. I ran the white cardstock through the Cuttlebug with the Devine Swirl embossing folder, and colored the cute little image with Copics. Her wings are made extra special with Lime Green Stickles and clear coated. A dab of baby ribbon and pearls from Simon Says Stamps, and she's ready for the holidays!
I also entered the little cutie in the challenge over at Papertake Weekly, Kaboodle Doodles, Incy Wincy Designs,  Lexi's Creations, Stamptacular,and Pixie Dust Studios!

Let it Snow!

Looks like these guys are having a great time in the snow! Living here in Phoenix, it's been a few years since I've had the opportunity (and I'll confess, the urge) to play in the snow. But this brings back memories of what it was like to slide down hills, and roll 'round in the cold, wet stuff!

You can't tell in the picture, (hence the reason for the odd angle) but there are tons of glitter and sparkle on this card! The SEI paper has glitter added to each snowflake, plus I added Stickles to each plastic snowflake! The sentiment is heat embossed in silver sparkle also.
Paper, SEI, Glitzmas;  image is Cat's Pajamas, "Sledding" colored with Copics markers; Stickles, Lace Frost; sentiment stamp, The Paper Company, Snowflake.

Challenges:
Simon Says Stamps (No Red or Green)
Dancing in Pajamas (Holiday)
Shirley's2Girls (Lots of Sparkle)
There She Goes (Use Your Stash)
Penny's Paper (Merry Christmas)
StampsRUs (Anything Goes)
Catch a Bug (Winter Wonderland)
City Crafter (Let it Snow)
Stamptacular Sunday Challenge (Winter Scene)
Digi Doodle Shop's Best (Animals/Insects)