Christmas in July!

Well, with all of the Christmas in July challenges this month, I have certainly made a big dent in my Christmas cards! I hope you have been inspired this week by the Beary Scrappy Gals! I bet if you dropped by the Beary Scrap, you could really get a nice Christmas list going too! See, I think that would be a great Christmas in July!

For my card, I used this really cute stamp from Stampavie. My papers are Eskimo Kisses by Basic Grey (another line I loooove!)

You have until 11:59 EST tonight to get your sketch entry in! Then, be sure to check back on tomorrow for our new challenge!

Challenges:
Truly Scrumptious - sketch
Stamptacular Sunday - Christmas in July
Dutch Dare - Anything goes
Paperplay - Anything goes
Stamp Something - Christmas in July

Donkey Smiles for Michelle

Many of you have probably seen the sad news about Michelle Oatman's accident. Many people in the card making community are coming together to show their support for Michelle. There is a "Kickin It for Michelle"card drive until July 27th at A Spoon Full of Sugar.
Here is some information from the Stampavie blog:On Wednesday evening, June 23, Michelle Oatman had an accident while tending her beloved donkeys which left her blind in her right eye. She has shared the news of her accident in her blog post here (http://donkeysmiles.blogspot.com/2010/06/i-will-be-out-for-awhile-i-have-had.html) Michelle is an amazing stamper and is eager to be able to start crafting again. But she also has a lot of healing that needs to occur and she needs our support.

There are some wonderful donkey digi images popping up in blogland. I used one designed by Tina Wenke for Stampavie. You can pick up one too, by making a paypal donation for Michelle's fund of at least $3 (more is always welcomed!) to info@stampavie.com.
Also there is a great freebie from Karen's Doodles. We would just love to flood Michelle's mailbox with thoughtful handmade cards. It is really nice to inspire someone that has inspired so many of us, with a thoughtful gesture.

Now, onto my card!


I usually have a bit of a time making aperture cards because I like to make 6 x 6 cards, and if I try to put my cardstock through my cuttlebug, it doesn't quite fit, and crunches my sides. Well, problem solved! Today, I used my new circle cutter by Kreaxions. What a great tool this is! You can adjust it to cut any size circle up to 10 inches. Here is a link to a video for it. If you order one, be sure to say that I sent you for some "extra" special attention!


I wanted to show you some of the details of my card. I of course used copics to color this sweet little donkey, but I really wanted to add some texture, so I hand-stitched with angora thread his mane and tail. I love how this turned out! Also, I made another flower with my Cuttlebug quilling dies. The leaves are ribbon from Really Reasonable Ribbon.




Here is the inside. The sentiment stamp is from CTMH.



Challenges:
Pixie Cottage: sketch/aperture
Cuttlebug Spot - use a 2x2 embossing folder (I used the butterfly medallion)
One Stitch at a Time - lace, ribbons, bows
Practical Scrapers - digi
Stamptacular Sunday - aperture
Alota - Inside out
Crafty Angels - circles and squares
Shabby Tea Room - embossing
Think Ink - sewing
Spoon Full of Sugar - Donkey Smiles
Cuttlebug Challenge - doilies and lace
Craftilicious - cute
Stamp and Create - stitching
Bunny Zoe - Nice and Girly
Stampavie - Dotty

Going Rustic with Really Reasonable Ribbons!

I have a lovely project to share with you today using a really cool ribbon from Really Reasonable Ribbons. Often times, I think of ribbons as being formal or cute - but not usually rustic. This new jute ribbon comes in different widths and colors, and is just perfect to use with a country type image such as this one from Stampavie.

To keep the ribbon from unraveling, I wrapped Scor-tape to the back of my cardstock, and placed the ribbon down before cutting it. It works perfectly!

I colored my cutie girl with copics, but then used some ultra fine Flower Soft in toffee to ground the image. The edges were highly distressed with distress inks in Frayed Burlap.

Did you notice that gorgeous corner punch that I used to frame my stamp? It is a 4-in-1 punch from Kreaxions. You will hear me talking about these punches alot! Not just because I am on their DT, but because these are very versatile punches that have plates that you slide in to change the punch. They are so cool! If you want to see them in action, check out this video.

Speaking of videos, last week I posted a video on Really Reasonable Ribbon Ramblings on how to use the Bow Easy. I never ended up posting it on my blog (duh!), so here it is now!



Challenges:

Create4Fun - sketch
Crafty Pad - Animal Fun
Quirky Crafts - ribbon
Design Dollies Color Challenge - orange, green, yellow, white
Design Dollies Element challenge - inspired by song - Wide Open Spaces by the Dixie Chicks
Incy Wincy - punches
Think Ink - Sewing
Wild Flower Wednesday - grunge

Card for Today

I really wanted to make a card using the sketch from Card Patterns this week. The deadline is in an hour and fifteen minutes, so I was kind of cutting it close! But, I am really happy with the results.

This cute little dragon stamp is by Nancy Hain for Stampavie. I always have a hard time coming up with masculine birthday cards, and this stamp was perfect!

Here are my challenges for this card:
Card Patterns - sketch
SAV Challenge #27- Dots
Paper Sundaes - Birthday
Practical Scrappers - Border punches
Lexi's Creations - Layers/ 3-D Decopauge
Stamp with Fun- Birthday
Simon Says - checks, plaid, gingham

Adele and Fresh Apples

The challenge at Copic Creations was "other paper." I must admit, I kind of turned up my nose and thought I did not want to color on other paper - I love my Gina K. paper too much. Well, I decided to go ahead and give it a go, and I love the results! I used some Bazzill kraft cardstock and colored with my copics. It turned out so vintage and yummy, perfect for this Stampavie stamp and for the Graphic 45 papers. I will definitely be using this technique again.

Challenges:
Copic Creations: other papers
I {heart}2stamp - sketch
ABC -"X" eXtra dimension
Crafty Creations -Shine
YNS- patterned ribbon
Stamp Something - Vintage with flowers
Oh Alice - twinkle
Bunny Zoe's - Nice and Girly
Pile it On - Fold it, bake it, something fancy
Corrosive - Flowers. flowers, flowers
Stampin Sisters in Christ - Stripes

Summer Fun!

Summer is here and so is the fun! I hope you have enjoyed the seasonal inspiration with the Beary Scrap Gals this week. I have one last card to share with you before we move onto a new theme on Monday. I am continuing my love affair with My Mind's Eye papers. I have been using these on everything! They are so me.

Also, you only have until June the 30th to play in our current color challenge - lime, navy and turquoise. You could win some of our new mulberry flowers. Trust me, once you try some of these beauties, you will be hooked!

Card Recipe:
Papers: My Mind's Eye Laundry Line
Stamp: Stampavie
Medium: copics, Flower Soft - Christmas green
Accessories: vintage buttons, ribbon

Challenges:
Friday Sketchers - sketch
Paper Sundaes - Pretty as a Princess
Practical Scrappers - flowers
Stamptacular Sunday - Cute as a Bug
Cupcake Craft- Strawberries and Cream
Lexi's Creations - Something Old (buttons)
All That Scraps - Caribbean, celery, pink
Crafty Creations - Shine (sparkly)
Crafty Calendar - bugs and beasties
Bunny Zoe's - Nice and Girly