Thursday, March 24, 2011

SCIC45: Simple Elegance

Hi All! Is this photo full of inspiration or what? I was asked to be a guest designer over at Stampin Celebration and upon seeing it, I was immediately drawn to the colors, those beautiful polka dots on the cupcakes and the punched heart images.

I decided to work with the color combo, as I LOVE Crumb Cake and Basic Black together. I tried to work in some Very Vanilla, but decided against it. I wanted to keep the card simple with clean lines and the Fifth Avenue Floral set immediately popped to mind.


The flower images on the left came to me naturally, but I really struggled with the right half of the card. One flower in the bottom corner didn't see like enough to balance it, so I improvised and added a flower in between. The line is a bit straight to me, but I think it works.

Do you see the flowers peeking out from the back panel on the card? I popped up the front panel and added these to give the card a bit more dimension. Love the effect!

If you've found inspiration in this photo, I hope you'll join us in sharing your creation. I would love to see what you do. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Fifth Avenue Floral (113734) & Because I Care (118384 or 120118)
Paper: Crumb Cake (120953) & Basic Black (121045) Cardstock

Ink: Basic Black Classic Pad (101179)
Accessories: Modern Label Punch (119849), Movers & Shapers-Punch Windows (115953), 5/8" Black Satin Ribbon (117285), Rhinestones (119246) and Dimensionals/Pop Dots (104430)

Friday, March 18, 2011

Visions of Spring

From the first day that I received my Occassions Mini in the mail, I have wanted to recreate this card. My card is a CASE of the card on the front cover. I fell in love with the bright colors and of course, this stamp set: Nature Walk.

I had to be patient, as I knew I wouldn't be ordering these goodies until the end of February. Yes, I do plan ;) So, when I finally got to play with them this week, this is the first card I made.

If you are currently comparing my card to the SU card, you may see some differences. I kept the Melon Mambo, but swapped out Pear Pizzazz for the Orange/Pink they used. I switched up the First Edition DSP and alternated it with my torn cardstock at the bottom. My favorite addition...the Yellow Tulle that I added to the card. I would have never even thought of it, but this is one of the few Yellow ribbons that I have and I thought the shear look would be perfect. I think it was the final detail to bring everything together.

This card just yells spring to me and I absolutely love it! I hope you do too ;)

Click here to order any of these Fabulous products.

Stamps: Nature Walk (121925 or 121997) & You're a Gem (122268 or 122270)
Paper: So Saffron (105118), Pear Pizzazz (119795), Melon Mambo (115320) & Very Vanilla (101650) Cardstock; First Edition DSP (121878)
Ink: Pear Pizzazz (119784), Melon Mambo (115656) & Basic Black (101179) Classic Pads
Accessories: Lots of Tags Sizzlet Dies (114508), Paper Piercer (116631), Mat Pack (105826), Yellow Tulle and Dimensionals/Pop Dots (104430)

Framed For You

This card is a CASE of Deb's beautiful card seen here. I loved everything about it.

The pretty antique frame around this card is embossed from the Framed Tulips Embossing Folder. It's hard to see here, but it is sponged with some Crumb Cake ink to age it up a bit.

The frame is paired up with this raspberry twig image from the Clearly for You stamp set. I was lucky enough to grow up around blackberry bushes as a child and this reminds me of them.

For my card, I switched out the butterfly image and used Rik Rak instead of ribbon. I love the simplicity of this card!

Stamps: Clearly for You (121911 or 121976)
Paper: Cherry Cobbler (119685), Old Olive (100702) and Very Vanilla (101650) Cardstock
Ink: Early Espresso (119670) & Crumb Cake (121030) Classic Pads
Accessories: Framed Tulips Embossing Folder (121809), Beautiful Wings Embosslits Die (118138), Cherry Cobbler Stampin Marker (119681), Pear Pizzazz Stampin Marker (119801), Stamping Sponges (101610), Oval Nestabilities, Vanilla Rik Rak and Dimensionals/Pop Dots (104430)

Click here to order any of these Fabulous products.

Rich Razzleberry Bliss

I saw these fabulous cards on Splitcoaststampers and just had to recreate them. Thank you dbarry for the inspiration!

I love the simple color combination and design that she used. Her Pear Pizzazz version is my favorite, but I went with Rich Razzleberry on mine. We made these in my last workshop and I had already used Pear Pizzazz on a card, so I needed to switch it up. I also had the Rich Razzleberry ribbon on hand to use.

The original designer created these in all the current In Colors and gave them as a gift. What a great idea! I love Crumb Cake and can't wait to pair it up with all these different colors.

Stamps: Bliss (121851 or 123217) & Warmest Regards (Retired)
Paper: Rich Razzleberry (115316), Early Espresso (119686) and Crumb Cake (120953) Cardstock; First Edition DSP (121878)
Ink: Crumb Cake (121030) & Early Espresso (119670) Classic Pads
Accessories: Rich Razzleberry Grosgrain Ribbon (119957), Scallop Trim Border Punch (118402), Rhinestones (119246), Embossing Buddy (103083), Clear Embossing Powder (109130), Sponges (101610) and Dimensionals/Pop Dots (104430)


Click here to order any of these Fabulous products.

Monday, March 14, 2011

Liebster Award

To say that I'm in the company of some fabulous ladies is an understatement. Last month, I got three different awards from three very talented ladies. I am truly flattered to be recognized by each of them.

Miss Lesley Croghan awarded me the second of my three awards. Her wonderfully creative work can be seen here at her Always Playing with Paper Blog. Lesley, thanks so much for sharing this with me. I am more than happy to pass
it on!

The Liebster Blog Award is given to bring newer blogs to light and originated in Germany. It's a great way to share blogs that might not otherwise be seen or ones you want to share with others. They should have less than 150 followers.

As a recipient of this award, I must share the love and
pay it forward by:
1. Creating a post where I blog about the Liebster award & reveal my 3 blog picks
2. Let the honorees know that I selected them
3. Copy and past the blog award on my blog

My picks are full of inspiration. Be sure to stop by and check them out!

1. Tara at Tara Bee Ink - I actually just discovered Tara's blog very recently. I saw her beautiful quilled flowers and I was sold. As I spent more time on her blog, I fell in love with her soft subtle use of color.

2. Jackie at Jackie's Blog - Jackie's Blog is also a
newer blog to me. Her approach to card making is very simple, but her cards are full of style. The way she brings together different textures is true perfection.

3. Deb at Artfelt Impressions - I was drawn to Deb's blog because of the wonderfully clean lines that her cards have. She takes simple images and makes them big. She is also great at showing you different looks for different set
s. Her creativity is endless.

Ladies, be sure to grab the award for your
blog. Thanks for being an inspiration for us all!

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Many Lucky Shamrocks

The rainbow colors of this card remind me of my last day of work on Friday with a class of 1st Graders. They had propped up a little box in the back of the room with a note on it: 'Pot of Gold Inside'. This little trap was to help catch a Leprechaun over break. How cute is that???

Well, this card would surely attract a Little Leprechaun looking for his pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. I was inspired by this super cute card made by Erica Cerwin. She does rainbow colors so perfectly.

Since you never see this much color popping up on my blog, you know it was a bit out of my comfort zone...but, I enjoyed creating it and I love the colors!

Stamps: So Happy for You (121853 or 123220) & Afterthoughts (118388 or 120121)
Paper: Daffodil Delight (119683), Cherry Cobbler (119685), Peach Parfait (119794), Pear Pizzazz (119795), Marina Mist (119682) Concord Crush (119792) and Whisper White (100730) Cardstock
Ink: Cherry Cobbler (119669), Peach Parfait (119783), Daffodil Delight (119667), Pear Pizzazz (119784), Marina Mist (119668) and Concord Crush (119785) Classic Pads
Accessories: Scallop Edge Border Punch (119882), Curly Label Punch (119851), 3/4" Circle Punch (119873), Paper Piercer (116631) and Mat Pack (105826), Dimensionals/Pop Dots (104430) and Green Rhinestones

Click here to order any of these Fabulous products now.

Got Green?

Since hearts seem to make the most perfect little shamrocks, I pulled out my I {Heart} Hearts Set. With so many options, it was hard to choose, but I settled on this dotted heart image. It's also cute if you stamp another heart inside of these ones, but that's not the route that I took.

I needed something to tie everything together and this Fabric Brad does the job perfectly. I love these brads and they are a must
have from the Occasions Mini. They would also be fabulous for flower centers as well.

I had already made a card w
ith a ribbon bow, so I wanted something different. I had seen where someone had broken down the 'Got Green' sentiment and punched both images with the Jewelry Tag Punch. I tied those with my next go-to accessory: Linen Thread. I love the darker green color of this card and the simple design. Sometimes less is more ;)


This card also works perfectly for the challenge over at Stampin' Celebration. They are celebrating St Patty's Day, so if you need some last minute inspiration, check them out here. Thanks for stopping by!





Stamps: I {Heart} Hearts (117010 or 118571) & Got Treats (119114 or 120627)
Paper: Garden Green (102584), Early Espresso (119686), Crumb Cake (120953) and Very Vanilla (101650) Cardstock
Ink: Pear Pizzazz (119784) & Garden Green (102272) Classic Pads
Accessories: Paper Piercer (116631), Sweet Stitches Fabric Designer Brads (121880), Jewelry Tag Punch (117190) and Linen Thread (104199)

Click here to order any of these fabulous products now.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

3 Lucky Shamrocks

This card was inspired by one of the hundreds that I have saved in my files. It was made by Julie Smith here at Paper and Such. First, I loved the colors...Secondly, the Rik Rak. This was before I had my own stash of Rik Rak and I was drooling over everyone else's.

The colors were perfect for a St Patty's Day card and the challenge over at Hand Stamped Sentiments. There were some elements I just couldn't make work, so I switched it up a bit. For instance, I loved her little green banner at the bottom, but I opted for just a stamped image. I think my card was already busy with ribbons and buttons, that it was just too much for me.

These shamrocks are from the Got Treats set. I was actually amazed when I looked through all my products to see so many options I could use for this holiday. Check out your stash and see what you have hiding out ;)

Stamps: Got Treats & Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Crumb Cake & Whisper White Cardstock
Ink: Pear Pizzazz & Chocolate Chip Classic Pads
Accessories: Corner Rounder, Green Rik Rak and Stitched Ribbon, Designer Buttons-Subtles and Linen Thread

So Lucky

Ahhhh...it feels so good to be posting...it's been too long!!! I just haven't had the time to squeeze in any creative time for myself. Luckily, with this being the week before Spring Break...there's no homework...which means I'm not tutoring after school....Yay!!

A friend of mine requested some Saint Patty's Day cards. I think these are the first St Patty's cards I've ever made. I've seen different ideas over the years, so I at least had some starting points.

This card is actually very simple. I pulled out some Old Olive prints from the Autumn Spice DSP and punched out (3) hearts with the Full Heart Punch. Put together, they make the cutest little shamrock. The 'Lucky' image is from the Lucky You, Lucky Me for Knowing You stamp from the Afterthoughts Hostess Set. I just used a Stampin Marker and colored that part of the image. The font just works perfectly...love it!

Hope you like it. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Apple Blossoms & Afterthoughts
Paper: Very Vanilla and Old Olive Cardstock; Autumn Spice DSP
Ink: Old Olive Classic Pad
Accessories: Full Heart Punch, Old Olive Satin Ribbon and Paper Piercer & Mat Pack