Life with You is Charming

Welcome to Thursday, and my day to share with you some inspiration using Really Reasonable Ribbons. I love all of the creative things you can do with this leaf ribbon. When I started looking at my stamps, I envisioned a flower vine twirling through the castle window. I stamped, colored and cut out my window, and added some dimensional dots behind it to raise it up, and wrapped the ribbon around the window frame. I added just a little Flower Soft along my vine, and voila! the perfect flower vine.




For the inside of the card I printed a sentiment from the computer, "Life with you is Charming", and cut it out using a Spellbinders ribbon tag.I then used the same regal light blue organza ribbon with gold accents that I used on the front of the card, to add some interest on the inside.



Do you want in on some really exciting news? RRR is going to be starting challenges with awesome prizes on June 1st! Please be sure to head to the RRR blog for details on how you could win some wonderful prizes!

Challenges:
Kraftin Kimmie - How Charming
Paper Sundaes - Favorite book or fairytale - Camelot or anything to do with King Arthur
Crafty Cardmakers - Inside out
Cupcake Craft Challenges- black, grey + 1 (blue)

Sunshine and Apples

Today, I am so happy to share with you a card made using Sunshine and Apples from Belles N Whistles. I live in the mountains of North Carolina, and apples are one of our main products. We have an Apple Festival every year at Labor Day - so this stamp just makes me smile!

I think I distressed this card every way possible - tearing, shredding, inking with distress inks, glimmer mist. I even distressed my ribbon that I used to make the flower, with ink and glimmer mist, to make it match my DP papers a little better. Don't forget to enter our DIY flower challenge at the BnW blog. You could win a $25 gift certificate to Belles N Whistles! How is that for a sweet prize?

Challenges:
Midnight Madness: Sketch
Stampin Sisters in Christ - Distressing
Sketchy Colors - Earth Colors
Stamptacular Sunday - Pearls and Swirls
Shabby Tea Room - Polka Dot Tea Party
Charisma Cardz - 3D
Pixie Dust - Add a pearl
Clearly I stamp - flowers
Create 4 Fun - vintage card
Flourishes - DIY flowers
Color Throwdown - color challenge
Creative Inspirations - distressed
Wild Flower Wednesday - distressed
ABC- "v" Vintage
Totally Gorjuss - Bling it on

Say So Long, Farewell to Cavities!

I'm a dental hygienist, so I may think this is funnier than you do! But the challenge at House Mouse this week was So Long, Farewell....what's a girl to do but use the stamps in her stash? So farewell to cavities! I have been wanting to use this stamp for quite awhile, and this just seemed like a funny way to use it. I colored the image with distress inks (this is the very first time I've tried that!)

The inside of the card says "Have a Toad-aly Terrific Day."

Challenges:
House Mouse - So Long, Farewell
Artful Inkables - recipe - 1 circle, 2 ribbons, 3 buttons
Sketch Saturday - sketch
Card Drive for Lisa Cook's sister Jayme
One Stitch at a Time- furry friends
Crafty Cardmakers - Inside Out
Design Dollies color challenge - blue, green, brown, white
Incy Wincy - button up
Crafty Creations - Encouragement
Colour Create - Soft green, light aqua

Stitch it up with Karen's Doodles

Welcome to another fun challenge from Karen's Doodles. We are asking you to use one of my favorite techniques - stitching. Feel free to hand, machine or faux stitch anywhere on your project. Just be sure to use one of Karen's images, so you can be in the running for some free digis!

For those of you that don't know, my husband is a high school choir teacher. On Wednesday night, he came in my studio and said, "Honey, could you make some graduation cards for me to give to my Seniors tomorrow night at our spring concert?" Luckily, he only had two Seniors singing in the concert, and I got them done. I used You've Come a Long Way Baby Girl. The cards are pretty much the same, although I tried to personalize the hair/eye colors for the girls - and tried different fancy stitches. If you need to make any graduation cards this year, there is also a boy version of this image available.

Challenges:
Posh - Sketch
Crafty Creations - Celebration
Creative Inspirations - Card for a Child
Charisma Cards - 3-D

Belles N Whistles Flower Fun!

I am so excited today! To begin with, I get to share with you my first card as a DT member for Belles N Whistles! I love these stamps designed by Elisabeth Bell and am just tickled pink to have been named as a member of their awesome team! The other excited news is that we are now holding a Belles N Whistles Challenge every other week - and it starts today. Our inaugural challenge is DIY flowers. Don't you just love it?




For my card, I used the Watering image. This cute stamp is from the spring collection. I made my flowers using a Spellbinders flower die and grungeboard. I was really going for a polka-dotted yellow, but they turned out more like wild leopard flowers, but hey, they're fun! If you would like to play along, just make sure to use a BnW stamp and make any kind of flower for your project. Then be sure to upload your picture to the challenge folder in our gallery. If you need some inspiration, be sure to check out all of the wonderful creations from my team members - These ladies really know how to rock a challenge!

Details:
Stamp: Belles N Whistles - Watering
Medium: copics,Glimmer Mist, stickles, Distress Inks, CTMH ink pads
Papers: CTMH, Bazzill
Accessories: Organza ribbon (Really Reasonable Ribbon), Chipboard - CTMH,
Pearl Flourish - BG
Tools: Spellbinders, MS branch punch

Challenges:
Creative Card Crew: Sketch
Sir Stampalot - Blooms and Butterflies
Flourishes - Chipboard
Stamptacular Sunday - Pearls and Swirls
Crafty Pad - Over the Edge
Totally Gojuss- Bling it on

Eskimo Kisses - It's not just for Christmas anymore!

Welcome to the last day of Fancy Fold inspirations from the Beary Scrap Gals! Hasn't this been a great week? Have you entered our Fancy Folds challenge yet? You have until May 31st to get your entry in - and you could win a Scor-Pal! I love my Scor-Pal and must admit, I use it everyday, and would be lost without it. (And it's on sale this week!)

I really enjoy making Fancy Fold cards - but I think my very favorite is an easel card. So, that's what I have to share with you today.

I loved the Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses when it came out for Christmas, but somehow, I didn't get any of it then. Kimm has it on sale now, and it is really a versatile paper. Don't let the fact that it was a holiday paper scare you away. I love all of the colors, and just chose to use the side that didn't have snowflakes!

Did you notice my flower bouquet? Those are the fabulous mulberry flowers from the Beary Scrap! I love them, and can't wait for Kimm to get those babies posted - I need more! They were white, and a sprayed them with Glimmer Mist to color them - yummy! Also, I know everyone loves using the MS branch punch for leaves with their flowers, but I added some of the ultra-fine Flower Soft in sage - and it's pure magic!

We hope you have been inspired and that you will join us in our challenge!

Card details:
Stamp: Kraftin Kimmie - Giselle
Paper: Bazzill, BG Eskimo Kisses
Medium: Copics, Glimmer Mist, Ultrafine Flower Soft
Embellishments: TBS Mulberry Flowers, Misc Ribbons/Lace, Swarovski crystals
Tools: Scor-Pal, MS branch punch

Challenges:
Paper Sundaes- Easel Card
The Town Scrapper - Flowers and Lace
Papertake Weekly - Say it with Flowers
Tuesday Morning Sketches - Favorite Color combo and glitter
Crafty Creations - Encouragement
Charisma Cardz - 3D
Clearly I stamp - May Flowers
Friday Sketchers - sketch
Fussy and Fancy - recipe (3pp, 3 images, 3 kinds of embellishments - ribbons, flowers, crystals)
Stampin for the Weekend - Cheer Someone up

Really Reasonable Ribbon Thursday

I have another fun project to share with you today, highlighting some of my favorite ribbons from Really Reasonable Ribbon. This is a slider card, so the belly dancer from Whiff of Joy's Scheherazade (1001 Nights), moves across the card, and looks like she is belly dancing! How fun is that? (WoJ is also holding a guest DT call right now - go check it out!) It might be a little hard to read in the picture, but the sentiment under the slider says "Have a Royal Celebration" (also from the WoJ set).

(Can you see how she dances across the card?)

I used Spellbinders scalloped edge frame and wove burgundy silk ribbon through the holes. To me, this looks like some of the wonderful silk saris you might associate with belly dancers. I tied a large bow at the top, and added a velvet vintage poppy with pearl center over the middle of the knot. I love adding flowers, buttons or other embellishments over a large bow for more drama. I also colored my pearl with an orange copic to match my color scheme a little better.



Finally, I thought it would be fun to sew gold belly dancing coins on the edge of my punch.

Hope you enjoyed my card - it was so much fun to make!

Challenges:
Whiff of Joy GDT call - red, orange, and one more color (purple)
Midnight Madness - sketch
Clearly I Stamp-flowers
By the Cute and Girly - Celebrations

Join My Close To My Heart Online Party and WIN!

I want my online friends to help me out and have some fun. My sister (Lori) is a Close To My Heart consultant and she is trying to reach a personal goal this month with her business so I offered to host a gathering for her…but a little different....online. I want one of my computer friends to be the hostess and earn all the free goodies. Close To My Heart has just released a brand new idea book this month and it’s adorable with tons of great products ( CLICK HERE TO SEE NEW IDEA BOOK) so I know I should be able to enable you with something. Here’s how the online party will work, you can email my sister Lori ( lorileng@bellsouth.net) saying it’s for my show and give her your order, she’ll send you out a pay pal invoice or an email where you can place an order online direct but still give the party the credit…then the show will close out on the 28th of May. Just like any home show party depending on the sales there will be free products that a hostess would earn. Everyone that places an order of any amount will be entered in the drawing and then somebody will be to be the hostess and earn all the free products for themselves... best part is you don't have to clean your house to have your own home show and everything will be shipped right to your door. I’ll post who is the lucky winner is for the hostess rewards and how much they won on the 29th.

Really everybody can win because this month is National Scrapbooking month and there is an awesome kit that is available for sale for a limited time. You can get the Miracle kit for only $10 with a $40 purchase or spend $60 and you'll get it for only $5..... Click here to check out the online idea book or go to Lori's website http://lorileng.myctmh.com/ to see beautiful papers, stamps, inks and more. Send Lori an email lorileng@bellsouth.net to join my online party. So help me out, help my sister out, get some adorable scrapbook supplies, and you could be the winner.

My first Sweet Pea card

I was very blessed to have won a shopping spree at Sweet Pea stamps a few weeks ago - and this is the first card I've made from my new goodies.

Challenges:
The TownScrapper - Sketch
Pile it On - photo inspiration
Creative Inspirations -punches
Crazy Challenge - Something New
Pollycraft- Summer blooms
Copics Colour Challenge - G00, BG23, BV02
Creative Inspirations Wednesday - fairies
Pixie Cottage - vintage/distress
Your Next Stamp - Cut it out and pop it up
Cute Card Thursday - for someone special
Pixie Dust - cut it out
Clearly I Stamp - flowers
Basic Grey - Punch it
Oh Alice - Mushroom

Sketch time with Karen's Doodles

We have a great sketch for you this week at Karen's Doodles! I think I will use this one again.




I used the beautiful image Maggie and Me Now. There is just nothing like a big hug from man's best friend. This image really reminded me of the dog that I had as a teenager - Liza Jane. She was an Old English Sheepdog - and the best dog ever! I still miss curling up with her.

Why don't you play along with us this week? It's a great sketch and Karen's images are always so fun to color!

Card Details:
Paper - DP Veranda by CTMH
Ribbons: Brown Crocheted lace, double ruffled gingham ribbon-Really Reasonable Ribbon

Challenges:
Colour Create - khaki, aqua, brown, cream
Cute Card Thursday - Someone Special
Paper Play - Brown and...
S2G - Ribbon
Clearly I Stamp - Flowers
Crafty Calendar - The Great Outdoors
Alota - bugs (butterflies)