Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge #12

Before I put my things away from my day of stamping, I thought I would use them to create a card for Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge. This one was so fun because I rarely make square cards and it was nice to do something different.

My card features the Baroque Motifs set, Tres Chic and Linen Backgrounds, Autumn Leaves paper, Very Vanilla, Cranberry Crisp, Basic Black and Basic Gray Cardstock, Basic Gray and Baroque Burgundy Ink, the new Basic Gray Taffeta ribbon, a black brad from Making Memories and a bit of Fruit Punch Stickles.

It may be hard to tell from the photo, but I used my Cuttlebug Textile Texture embossing folder on the Autumn Leaves paper and brushed over it with black Stampin' Pastel. I love the look of embossing on the patterned paper. It adds such a nice touch.

Beautiful Baroque Motifs

As promised, here's another card design from my day of stamping. This card is inspired by a Becky Fleck card map and Julie's Open House Baroque Motifs card at Paper Pleasing Ideas. I just love the colors she chose!! Thanks for the inspiration Becky and Renee!

My card also features Baroque Motifs. I used SU! Very Vanilla, Basic Black and Basic Gray cardtock, Autumn Leaves patterned paper, Basic Black, Basic Gray and Baroque Burgundy Ink, Basic Gray Taffeta ribbon, a black brad and Dimensionals.

Hope you're inspired too! Now, go stamp! :)

Meet Justin

I was right, the drum corp show last night was a blast. I think I've mentioned that my son Justin is a percussionist. He's taking a liking to the Rockford based Phantom Regiment. They placed 2nd in last night's show, which featured 5 Division 1 corp teams.

Justin's sleeping in this morning. It's his birthday...he's fourteen today! Incredible!

Before I get all emotional about my babies growing up way too fast, let me tell you more about Justin. He's our second oldest son and we are so proud of the young man he's grown to be. Justin is an honor student, a fantastic percussionist, a track star, an avid reader and an all around great guy.

Justin's also a major Harry Potter fan , so we're off to see The Order of the Phoenix, for the second time, this afternoon. Have you seen it? Justin thinks it's the best one yet!

Stamping the Day Away!

I really enjoyed stamping with my friends Theresa, Amy, Sherry and Susan today. It's been several days since I've felt like stamping. The weather has been humid and rainy here in Illinois and I'd been fighting a migraine. It was nice to get out of the house and visit with friends. Thanks again for hosting Theresa!

Since I didn't want to rent a U-haul to take my stamping supplies to Theresa's, I decided to limit myself to a couple of paper packs, some matching cardstock and embellishments and a few stamp sets.

This little Flowahbella card features Basic Grey Blush paper and SU! Whisper White and Rose Red cardstock. Flowahbella is colored with SU! Markers and embellished with SU! Frilly Ribbon Originals.

I used my Basic Grey Blush paper with SU! Big Blooms for the card below. The wave in the paper was created using my Bo Bunny Flex Ruler. Such a fun tool! You can get yours from Joy and Daisy at eP.

The blooms are stamped in Baroque Burgundy, Taken with Teal and Regal Rose and layered using Dimensionals. The little flowers were made with a small flower punch from EK Success, my Fiskars 1/4" hole punch and brads.

I finally broke in my new Priceless stamp set today! I hope I find some more time to play with it this weekend. It's a fabulous set! With my last SU! order, I also purchased some of the small Open Ended Envelopes. I had received several swap cards from downline using the 6 1/2" x 3 1/4" card design and really liked it.

So, today I made this quick card using...you got it, Basic Grey Blush paper. It also features SU! Whisper White, Cool Carribean and Cranberry Crisp cardstock. I used my Marvy Mega and Giga Scalloped Oval Punches, Regal Rose Grossgrain, Prima flowers, Fruit Punch Stickles and K&Company rhinstones to finish it off.

I've got one more card to show off, but I think I'll save it for later this weekend. I'm off to visit with my hubby and son...they just got home from a drum corp show. They're pretty hyped up, so I'm guessing it was lots of fun. (wink)

Meet Sarah

Wanted to take some time today to introduce you to Sarah. Sarah is nine and the youngest of our four children. She's also the only girl and thus, she's the Princess. Of course, she's no ordinary Princess. You won't find Sarah wearing a tiara or dress. She would much rather throw on a tank top, a pair of her brothers hand-me-down shorts and her baseball cap and take off for a bike ride or shoot some hoops.

Sarah's a bit of a tomboy and free spirit. Which is why it's no suprise that she has a passion for horses. Ever since she knew what a horse was, she has loved them. She's been riding now for 15 months. Seeing Sarah atop a 16 hand high horse, controlling him with the sound of her voice and the push of her leg...it's amazing! One of my greatest joys is seeing my children pursue the things that they enjoy.

Sarah tells me that someday she will have her own farm and several horses, that her father and I will come live with her, and that she will teach me how to ride. Sounds wonderful!!!

For a Friend

Ever have one of the those days where you just have too much on your plate and way too many decisions to make? One of my friends called yesterday morning and she sounded like she was having one of those days. She is such a super sweet person. Even when she's having a difficult time, she remains positive and is always looking for the silver lining.

I wanted my friend to know I was thinking of her, so I'm dropping this card in the mail for her. I used SU!'s Polka Dot & Paisley and Sincere Salutations sets. All the cardstock, ink and paper is also from SU! I added a bit of Fruit Punch Stickles to the flowers and some paper piercing along the top. Hope it brightens her day!

Another Weekend Sketch Challenge

Happy Weekend! It is absolutely beautiful here in Illinois. We haven't even had the AC on for the past several days. That rarely happens here in July.

Yesterday was a wonderful start to my weekend. My husband, Chris, had taken the day off and we enjoyed a lunch date, shopping and hanging out with our children and some of their friends. It was just what we all needed.

My Stampin' Up! order also arrived yesterday. (Yippee!) and I managed a few minutes to stamp a card for Beate's weekend Sketch Challenge.

This card features some beautiful new SU! product, including Baroque Motifs, Tres Chic and Le Jardin DP. I also used the Linen background, corner punch (for the scallops), Marvy oval punches, Prima flowers and some chocolate ribbon. The colors are Very Vanilla, So Safron and Always Artichoke.

I have really enjoyed participating in Beate's weekend Sketch Challenge. If you have some time, I encourage you to give it a try.

Birthday Bella

My first Bella card...for a dear friend's birthday. The Bella stamps are so fun! I had to giggle about the hair on this one. It's about how mine looked in the 80's. You know what I'm talking about...all teased up and loaded with Aquanet hairspray. lol Those days are gone, but now it's all about hiding the gray hair. Oi!

Don't you just love this Chatterbox paper? I paired it up with SU! Whisper White and Chocolate Chip cardstock. I used Night of Navy for the photo corner. The ribbon is a SU! Ribbon Originals and the saying is from the SU! Curvy Verses set. Birthday Bella is colored in with SU! markers and her apron is cut from the same Chatterbox paper.

It's a beautiful, sunny day here in Illinois, and my hubby surprised me by taking the day off, so I am going to make the most of it. You have wonderful day as well!

Thanksgiving in July

A stamping friend of mine recently asked me to help her come up with a design for her Thanksgiving card. I love working on projects for fall, as it's my favorite time of year, so I couldn't resist. She gave me an envelope with Really Rust, More Mustard, Mellow Moss and Confetti Cream cardstock from Stampin' Up! and a beautiful Wreath stamp from Northwood Stamps and told me to have at it.

I knew as soon as I saw the Wreath that it had to go on a door, so I went with a door fold for the Really Rust cardstock. I stamped it with the leaves from the SU! Lovely as a Tree set using Versamark ink. Then I stamped the Wreath in Basic Brown ink and watercolored it with my Earth Element Watercolor Crayons and an aquapainter. I had so much fun coloring with all of those warm fall colors! The Wreath is layered on Mellow Moss cardstock and then placed on a band of More Mustard that slides off the main card.

The card opens to reveal a layer of Confetti Cream cardstock on the inside with a large Really Rust leaf cluster stamped in the middle. A perfect spot to stamp a sentiment. I so enjoyed working on this project. It makes me want to get all of my autumn stamps out!

Weekend Sketch Challenge

After a whirlwind of a weekend, we all needed a bit of time to unwind this afternoon. While most of my family was napping, I took a few minutes to create a card for Beate's weekend Sketch Challenge. It's the first time I've participated in one of her challenges. Beate's so creative and always has something fun to share on her blog.

My middle son, Justin is turning 14 in a couple of weeks, so I thought I'd see what I could come up with for his card, using the sketch. I always find it challenging to create masculine cards, especially for teenage guys, but Justin is a percussionist and I knew I had to use my drumset stamp from A Muse. On a recent trip to Mike's, I came across this patterned paper. It's very cool...called One of a Kind, from Creating Keepsakes. It matches the new Blue Bayou cardstock from SU! and goes great with Chocolate Chip too. I used Stamp of Authenticity, Genuine Article, It's your Birthday and Linen background stamp sets from SU! I kept feeling like there was a bare spot in the lower left corner, so I threw on a flourish from Autumn Leaves. I did some paper piercing on the Chocolate Chip mat and sponged everything with a bit of Close to Cocoa ink.

I really enjoyed playing around with this sketch. Time permitting, I will definately be checking out the sketch for next weekend. Thanks for the inspiration Beate!

New A Muse!

It's been a busy week in our household. I'm so glad I've managed some time to stamp, as it has helped me relax.

Here's another A Muse design with the new penguin cutie and "you are one of a kind!" saying. This one features SU!'s On the Spot background, Whisper White, Basic Black and Tempting Turquoise cardstock, Basic Black, Tempting Turquoise and Summer Sun ink, a touch of Frosted Lace Stickles and some May Arts Ribbon. The ribbon is awesome...it is sooo soft.

My hubby is off all weekend and his brother is in town from Ohio, so I think I'll take a break from my blog and enjoy hanging out with my family. Hope you find time to do the same. Happy weekend!

Penguin Cutie

My daughter, Sarah and I fell in love with this little Penguin when we went to check out the new A Muse stamps at the Cottage Stamper. He's so adorable!!! I couldn't wait to use him. Here he is stamped in SU! Basic Black ink with his feet and beak colored in Only Orange. I also used the A Muse Small Oval and "you're cool" saying. The snowflakes from the SU! Snowflakes set and are stamped with Bliss Blue ink. Because I can't seem to make anything without it, I added Stickles (Waterfall) to the oval to make it look more like ice. The corners are punched with my SU! ticket punch and crystal gems finish it off.

Another A Muse ATC

I had so much fun participating in the last A Muse ATC swap with Taylor, I just couldn't resist joining again.

I love this little tire swing tree from A Muse. It's so cute! I watercolored it using SU! Classic ink and an aquapainter. I don't know if you can tell from the photo, but I punched out the inside of the tire. I used the SU! Weathered and Linen backgrounds and the sentiment is from Anna Griffin. The striped ribbon is Dots and Dashes from Mike's. It's folded and secured with black staples. All the cardstock is SU!

There's a bit of a story behind this swap design. My friend, Amy, and I were working on her wedding invitations. We were supposed to be punching out white scalloped circles and celery circles for the design and instead were punching out the reverse. Oi!!! We only had about half of them done when we realized we had made a mistake. We had a good giggle, got back on track and later split up the mistaken goods. At first, I wasn't sure what I was going to do with all of the celery scalloped circles, but as it turns out...they were perfect for my ATCs.

Monogram Gifts

Sarah has been invited to a girlfriend's birthday party on Saturday. She is such a social butterfly. Most of her friends are at the age where they prefer to receive gift cards, but a gift card alone always seems so ... blah. This year, I've been making monogram gifts to accompany the gift cards.

The letter "E" is from Mike's. I used matte finish mod podge to cover it with SU! Loves Me Designer Paper. Then I embellished it with some ribbon, flowers, a button, "sweet" from the SU! Sweet on You set and a bit of Fruit Punch Stickles.

The card features all SU! product including Sweet on You, Dots and Daisies and Small Script stamp sets. I used Regal Rose, Cool Carribbean, Taken with Teal and Winter White cardstock, along with Regal Rose, Pretty in Pink and Basic Black Ink. The scalloping is done with my corner punch with the guard removed. A little bit of paper piercing and some Fruit Punch Stickles and it was complete.

The monogram notebook also came from Mike's. It was in their dollar goodies. What a find! I simply covered a chipboard "e" with patterned paper, a flower and Turquoise Stickles and then added lots of ribbon to the binding. I so enjoy making monogram gifts. They're always quick and easy and oh so personalized.

What's On Your SU! Order?

Now that I've had a couple of weeks to enjoy the new Stampin' Up! Fall & Winter Idea Book, I've finally made up my mind on my first order. Like many of you, there's a lot that I want, but I'm starting with a mix of stamps, tools, colors, paper and embellishments.

Here's my First order:

Priceless (this one was love at first sight)
Tres Chic background (so many options)
River Rock Cardstock (a new staple)
Basic Gray Cardstock (ditto)
Basic Gray Classic Ink (ditto, again)
Le Jardin Designer Paper (gorgeous!)
Basic Gray Taffetta Ribbon (ooh la-la)
Blue Bayou Double-Stitched Ribbon (finally, something to match Not Quite Navy!)
On Board Lots of Letters (so many monograms, so little time)
Scallop Circle Punch (a must have)

What else is on my Wishlist? Just a few "essentials". (wink) Here's a peek:

Define your Life
Happpiness
Sweet Thing
It's All Good
Wanted
Batty for You
Sporting
Big Flowers
Art By Deisgn
Outlaw DSP
Creepy Crawly DSP
Cutie Pie DSP
Cerise DSP
On Board Clipboards
Theater Ribbon

Looking forward to hearing what's on your SU! Order!

Celebrating Amuseapalooza!

Today marked the beginning of a week long Amuseapalooza celebration and the unveiling of the new A Muse stamps! This morning, my daughter, Sarah and I went to visit our friends at the Cottage Stamper and to have a look at the new selection of stamps. We quickly fell in love with many of them and brought a "few" home with us. We've been playing and later in the week, I'll show you the ATC's I've been working on for my new round of swaps.

In the meantime, here's a card that I designed for today's A muse Mini-Challenge. The challenge was to use 9 stamps in a card design. As soon as I saw it, I knew I had to use my new Tall House, Fence and Grass stamps, along with two new sayings: "from our house to yours" and "May your house always be too small to hold all your friends." The tree is also from A Muse (it's the one with the tire swing) and the dog, circle (sun) and heart are all from Stampin' Up! All cardstock and ink are SU! and the ribbon is Dots and Dashes from Mike's. I so enjoyed creating this little scene. Hope it brings a smile to your day as well!

A Muse Swaps!

Friday was a great mail day! Not only did my eP order arrive, but I also received my A Muse ATC Swaps from Taylor! I'm such a lucky girl! I just have to share them with you. I'm not very techno savvy, so a photo will have to do, but I'm sure you'll agree that they are the cutest! There's so much variety and attention to detail in these little works of art. Thanks to all who participated!

Inspired by Infuse

The new Basic Grey Infuse paper is so beautiful! Mine arrived Friday, along with several other goodies I had ordered from eP.

Finally had some time to play with it yesterday evening. Here's what I came up with. Enjoy!

The top card features SU! Chocolate Chip and Old Olive cardstock, Chocolate Chip ink, Small Script stamp set, Vintage Brads, an assortment of Prima flowers, an assortment of SU! ribbon and the new Infuse paper.

The card on the bottom features the Cherry Blossoms stamp from Rubberstampede, "I love you" from Anna Griffin, SU! Chocolate Chip cardstock, Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip and Basic Black ink, Watercolor Pencils, Blender Pens, Narrow Olive Organdy, Hodgepodge Harware, Frosted Lace Stickles and Infuse paper.

Meet Jack

Good Morning! I hope you enjoyed a wonderful Independence Day with your family! Ours was very relaxing.

I thought I would take a few minutes today to begin introducing you to my family. So, without further adeu, this is "the best dog in the world", Jack. Jack's a 3 year old Black Lab-Norwiegan Elkhound mix. We adopted him from Tails, our local humane society.

Actually, Jack was at our local Farm & Fleet the day we went to see him and his three brothers. We had just moved into a new home and I had seen an ad about their Tails event. We seriously needed a break from unpacking, cleaning, painting... so we went to have a look at the puppies. On the way, I told the kids that we were "just going to look" and I very matter-of-factly stated "we will not be getting a black dog". (Too much shedding black hair to clean up.) Well, our visit with the puppies was like much needed therapy and after two hours of playing with them, Jack came home with us.

Jack stole our hearts as he instantly became the center of attention in our home. He's the first one to greet each of us in the morning and each night as my husband and I tuck our children in, he makes the rounds to see that they are safe and sound and to ensure that he gets one last hug or pat on the head. He's a playmate, a confidant, a friend, a snuggle buddy and therapy at the end of a rough day.

The shedding black dog hair? It's a never ending battle...but it's worth it when you have "the best dog in the world". And Jack is!

Many Thanks!

During my recent sinus surgery, several friends thoughtfully provided meals for my family. I am so thankful for their kindness, as it really helped ease the burden on my husband. In addition, my mother had our two youngest stay with her for several days so that the house would be a little quieter. (God Bless you, mom.) Since I'm feeling better, I thought it was time to get busy and make thank you cards. We are truly blessed to have such wonderful family and friends.

The card above features the new Baroque Motif stamp set, Brocade Background paper, River Rock cardstock and Ice circle rhinestone brads from Stampin' Up! I so appreciate how easy SU! makes it to design a card that coordinates so nicely. By the way, have you seen SU!'s new Fall & Winter Collection? I'd love to hear what you think about all of their new offerings. Me? I'm totally wowed. SU! is a wonderful company to be connected with. They continue to impress me as they stay on top of the latest papercrafting trends.

This one's for mom. Hope she likes it! It features the retired Stampin' Up! Stipple Butterfly, which is watercolored with Certainly Celery and Taken with Teal ink using an aquapainter, and embellished with Crystal Stickles. I used Certainly Celery and Taken with Teal Cardstock also from SU! and my corner punch to create the scallops. The designer paper is K&Company's Amy Butler Sola mat pack and I've also used the coordinating ribbon. The bling is Brenda Walton rhinestones, another K&Company product.

The card below is for my dear friend, Carol. Carol and I met when two of our boys were entering first grade. (8 years ago) We both volunteered our husbands to be Tiger Cub Den Leaders. lol From then on it's been Scouts and PTA events, play dates with our children, tea and Bible study, margaritas at Rosita's, lots of laughter, a few tears, some serious prayer and simply the most treasured adult friendship I've ever shared. (I love you dear friend!)

This card features SU! Regal Rose and Cool Caribbean cardstock, Basic Grey's Blush paper (you can get your's at Eclectic Papier), adhesive pearls from K&Company, Fruit Punch Stickles, SU! Ribbon Originals, flowers (the darker one is a Heidi Swapp) and the "I Treasure your Friendship" stamp from Stampabilites.