wheremmsgather

Home is Where...

2012-01-30T10:00:00.000-05:00

...the heart is, for sure!

The Splitcoaststampers' CAS challenge is a beautiful inspiration photo this week. I stamped the trees first, masked them, stamped the clouds, and then sponged the sky and ground. I stamped the house onto kraft cardstock with Cherry Cobbler ink, cut it out, and applied to my scene.

My card is 4 1/4" square. After I cut out the image with a square Nestie, I got the idea to also cut/emboss with a circle Nestie within the square. I used a large square Nestie to help me line up the dotted outline frame with my black marker. And before you get the impression that I can draw those lines perfectly straight, I used a template my friend, Joanne, gave me a year or so ago called Stitch, Doodle, Dot. I love that thing!

Have a great day, friends!

Sisterhood Sunday with Rubbernecker Stamps

2012-01-29T10:00:00.065-05:00

It's time for another Sisterhood Sunday challenge and a chance for you to win one of Rubbernecker's terrific stamps! All of you have to do to play along in our challenge this week is to create a card using your Rubbernecker images and link it to our Stampin' Sisterhood blog for a chance to be randomly drawn as the winner! You can get all the details and see the other designs of my Stampin' Sisters Julia, Jen, Judy, and Kittie there, too!

For our Sisterhood Sunday challenge this week, we were given this beautiful inspiration photo:

Awwww, aren't all those lovely shades of purple so pretty? I chose to use one of my Wildflower, as well as one of my Weeds, images by Rubbernecker. I stamped the Wildflower twice with Versamark and heat embossed the one on the left with Lilac Pastel embossing powder and the one on the right with PEARLustre Amethyst (I know it looks black in my photo, but it truly is a deep, rich purple). The weed image in the center was heat embossed with Peeled Paint Distress embossing powder.

I used a small rectangle Nestability to section off the images, sponging the outer edges with Dusty Concord Distress ink. The sentiment is from Rubbernecker's Friends stamp set, which I cut out with a Fancy Tag die and also sponged with the Dusty Concord ink. I threaded the pretty gingham ribbon through holes at the end of the tag.

Here are all the supplies used:
Stamps: Wildflower (SKU #496-08) and Weed (SKU #497-15) and Beautiful Wishes sentiment (SKU #565-12)
Paper: Pale Plum, White, Black, dotted purple dp
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black; Ranger Dusty Concord
Accessories: Rectangle and Fancy Tag Nestabilities, purple gingham ribbon, sponge dauber, Versamark, Lilac Pastel, PEARLustre Amethyst, and Peeled Paint Distress embossing powders, dimensionals

Can't wait to see what you create!!

Happy Australia Day!

2012-01-26T00:01:00.003-05:00

Frances is the CCEE Stampers' challenge hostess for January 2012. She lives in Australia and informed us that January 26 is Australia Day! She didn't want to let this day go past without having our challenge Aussie related in some way today. She gave us a few options for our challenge today … use the colors green and gold on your card; create a beach scene (we love our beaches); use Australian Animals; Tongs (you wear on your feet btw) or anything else that you think would relate to Australia!.

Before I move on to my card, however, I want to extend a warm welcome to four new members of the CCEE Stampers team!

Brenda O'Rear
Lois Bak
Sabrina Friel
Kathy Bradley

I know you will LOVE their creations!

Okay, so onto my card for today. I used my Beach Bum Cocoa stamp (by Sweet n Sassy Stamps), as well as Australia's colors of green and gold.

I colored this sweet image with Copic markers. I inked up my large polkadots embossing folder with Summer Sun ink for my background paper. I admit that the color wasn't quite as deep of a golden color that I wanted, so I went over the dots with my Summer Sun marker and achieved the hue for which I was looking. I used my scallop punch to take a bite out of the opposing corners.

Check out the designs of my CCEE Stampin' sisters on our CCEE blog and play along with us!
Happy Australian Day, Frances!

Wednesday's Worktable Sneak Peek!

2012-01-25T06:00:00.001-05:00

Swing by the Rubbernecker Stampin' Sisterhood blog for the full view! Thanks!

Tweet Colors

2012-01-23T08:19:00.000-05:00

I had a wonderful birthday yesterday and would like to thank those of you who took the time to send me a Happy Birthday message!

I love the colors of pink, celery, and white together, which is the Clean and Simple (CAS) challenge on Splitcoaststampers. I used punches for everything in my design with the exception of the sentiment and the bird's legs which I drew.

My punch-around-the-page one of many items in my birthday package from my sweet friend, Joanne. Isn't it pretty? I hand cut grass and then embossed it with an embossing folder for additional texture. The birds were made with various circle punches, a bird wing punch, and a heart punch. The "Tweet" sentiment is from a There She Goes Stamp set.

Kittie Kits Blog Hop

2012-01-21T10:00:00.026-05:00

Hello Sister Friends!! How are you? Thank you for joining in on the KITTIE KIT HOP fun!! We are SO excited to share with you! In case you didn’t know, Rubbernecker Stamps has a line of stamps called KITTIE KITS and they include a variety of images; these images can be used together in MANY different ways to create MANY different things!! Just wait, you will see what I mean! The Stampin’ Sisterhood has come together to share some of the ways that THEY use them! There is a HOP ROUTE for you to follow below! You will find it along with MY creation! AND? So you won’t get lost, EACH Sister will have this list for you, to help you on your journey!! Make sure to leave some LOVE at every stop, for you will want to be eligible for our PRIZE!! What fun would it be without a PRIZE!!

(click on photo for larger view)

For my creation, I used the wonderfully detailed trees from the Kittie Kits The Moose is Loose stamp set. I used a painting technique I saw my friend and Stampin' Sister, Judy Rozema, do as a tutorial over in the Teacher's Lounge at Stamp School. I, of course, had to mask my ground and sky to use the different colors of ink. I used Ranger Weathered Wood and Adirondack Cloudy Blue for the sky; I used Ranger Crushed Olive and Forest Moss for the ground; I used Adirondack Butterscotch for the yellow hue between the sky and ground. I hand drew the mountains in the background and watercolored them with Stampin' Up's Basic Gray ink and added white acrylic paint for the snowy sections in the mountains. I love the various size trees in this stamp set. I stamped all of them using Ranger's Forest Moss Distress Ink.

I love how this turned out and want the focus to be solely on the artwork so I did not add any embellishments.

Now, remember the following:

***You could WIN……………….

Your choice of one AWESOME ……

KITTIE KIT stamp set

***The winner will be announced

FRIDAY 1/27

How cool is that? OK, better get HOPPIN’, there is LOTS to see!! Be on the look out for our NEXT HOP coming IN FEBRUARY!! We look forward to bringing you MORE sharing and prizes!! Until then, be sure to check out the daily posts on the STAMPIN’ SISTERHOOD blog!! There is LOTS of inspiration to be found! Thanks again for joining us today and ENJOY!!

Here's your blog hop route:

Year of the Rooster

2012-01-19T00:01:00.007-05:00

Frances has challenged the CCEE Stampers to design a card/project in recognition of the Chinese New Year, which is celebrated on January 23rd this year. It is the Year of the Dragon … so for this week's challenge we are either to use a dragon on our card or find out what animal relates to our birth year in the Chinese Zodiac and create a card using that animal. Since I don't have any dragon stamps, I chose to use the animal related to my birth year, which is the rooster.

I stamped my Rooster in Ranger Vintage Photo ink and then I stamped it again (lining it up with a stamp-a-ma-jig) with Stampin Up Cherry Cobbler to get the reddish brown outline. I used a blender pen to color in the rooster with Vintage Photo, Black Soot, Chocolate Chip, and Cherry Cobbler inks. The white and red checkered panel is another stamp in this stamp set by Anna Griffin (Rooster Sunrise). I thought it was cool that I also happen to have this checkered embossing folder that I used on my Cherry Cobbler cardstock. And what's really cool is this new-to-me notebook paper embossing folder by Paper Studio!

I hope you can find some time to join us in this challenge. You can get all the details on our CCEE Stampers blog, as well as see all the cool creations by my teammates. Speaking of teammates, we've had some additions to our team with the talents of Anne Harmon, Vicky Gould, and Brandi Wiggins! We have a few more new members joining us next week, so be sure to check back to see who they are!

Dirty + Sister = Dirty Sister!

2012-01-15T10:00:00.003-05:00

CAN....YOU.....HEAR.....ME......SCREEEEEEEAMING!!! I can officially tell you now that I've joined the dirt pile with all of the other dirty girls on Splitcoaststampers (SCS)!!! Whew! What a relief to finally let that secret out!! I'm good at keeping secrets, but this one was a real toughie for me.

I am so honored and thrilled to have been asked by Lydia, the SCS Community Manager, this join this team of talented stampers whom I've personally admired for so long. It almost feels surreal for me to be typing this, but the proof is in the puddin', as they say. If you are a Fan Club member on Splitcoaststampers , you'll be able to view the entire Dirty Dozen gallery. I'd also like to congratulate my fellow dirty sister, Jessica Diedrich, on jumping into the dirt pile with me!!!
WAIT, don't leave just yet....because it's also SISTERHOOD SUNDAY for Rubbernecker Stamps!!

and we have a different sketch challenge for you to try!

Here's my design using this sketch:

With all the cold and snow here in Michigan, I needed to use some pretty Spring colors. I stamped the flowers with versamark, clear embossed them, and then sponged the various colors. I used my markers to add a deeper color to the flowers and stems/leaves.

Supplies I used:
Stamps: Wildflower Set (SKU #465) by Rubbernecker
Paper: Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White, Black, Good Neighbor designer paper
Ink: Tempting Turquoise, Rose Red, Certainly Celery, So Saffron
Accessories: versamark, clear embossing powder, sponge daubers, ric rac, Spellbinder's scallop border die, markers

Pop on over to the Stampin Sisterhood blog to see the designs my sisters made, get the challenge details, and find out how you can win a prize!

CCEE1202

2012-01-12T00:01:00.002-05:00

Frances has a terrific sketch challenge for the CCEE Stampers (and you) this week!

I used this pretty, glitter paper from my DCWV All Dressed Up matstack. The silver strips are glitter. The faux brads are glittered cardstock. The cupcake is Stampin' Up's cupcake punch.
Pop on over to the CCEE Stampers' blog to get all the details on how you can play along with us and check out the team's creations! We have two new CCEE members, too!

Have a great day!

Wednesday's Worktable Peek

2012-01-11T06:00:00.001-05:00

Pop on over to the Rubbernecker Stampin Sisterhood blog for the full reveal! Thanks and have a wonderful day!

CAS and Die Cuts

2012-01-09T00:01:00.008-05:00

Jen, challenge hostess of the Clean and Simple Winter Design Team on Splitcoaststampers, challenged the DT members to make a CAS card using die cuts. I used:

1. Flower Pot Nestability (Spellbinders)
2. Flower Die-namics (My Favorite Things)
3. Button Sizzlits Die (Stampin Up)

My colors are Elegant Eggplant, More Mustard, Cherry Cobbler, and Always Artichoke....all from Stampin' Up's designer pack. I popped up the button centers with thick dimensionals.

Come on over and play along!

The Fisherman and His Wife

2012-01-05T12:24:00.001-05:00

The CCEE Stampers are back from their holiday respite and raring to go with Frances' first challenge of 2012! She challenged the team to make a card using one of the Grimm's Fairy Tales as our inspiration.

I chose the fairy tale of The Fisherman and His Wife and got the idea to merge two of the Rubbernecker Old Characters images for my design. Meet cantankerous Ralph and Ethel. They've been married for a very looooooooooong time and have a tendency to get on each other's last nerve. Here's Ethel trying to tell Ralph how to fish.

I colored them with Copic markers, cut them out, and arranged Ethel slightly behind her husband Ralph the Fisherman.

I know of a couple in real life who love each other very much but are kind of like Ralph and Ethel. They'll get a kick out of this card for their anniversary.

Be sure to swing by our CCEE Stampers' blog to see what the rest of the team designed for this challenge. Maybe you'd like to play along with us, too!

Wednesday's Worktable Peek

2012-01-04T06:00:00.001-05:00

If you want to see more, please visit the Rubbernecker Stampin' Sisterhood blog for the full picture and details! Thank YOU!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-02T18:53:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year!!! I hope you had a fabulous time celebrating the new year.

Hubby and I typically stay home watching movies on New Year's Eve. Just a few minutes before midnight, we fill our champagne glasses and set up the video camera on a tripod to videotape ourselves ringing in the new year with the New Year's Eve countdown on TV! It's fun watching the compiled years my husband puts together and seeing the little changes from year to year.

For the Clean and Simple challenge on Splitcoaststampers this week, Jen challenged the design team and you, too, to make some type of project with a beverage theme. Seeing that it's the new year, I went with martinis!!!

I used acetate for the liquid in my martini glasses. I used a red Copic marker to color the pimento on my olives, which are green brads. Here's a closer view of the gold embossed glasses. The swizzle sticks are toothpicks.

Here's a complete list of the supplies I used:
Stamps: Martini glass and Happy New Year sentiment by Rubbernecker
Paper: Whisper White, Cherry Cobbler, Black, acetate
Ink: none
Accessories: gold embossing powder, versamark, olive green brad, red Copic marker, gold cord, embossing folders, dimensionals, toothpick

Here's wishing YOU a happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year! Thanks for stopping by!

Thank You, Roxie!

2011-12-28T15:08:00.000-05:00

Just a short post today....

Here's a peek of what I've posted on the Rubbernecker Stampin' Sisterhood blog today!

I hope you had a terrific Christmas!

Christmas Wishes to You

2011-12-24T10:43:00.000-05:00

I don't have a card to share today, rather this beautiful photo, quote and my wishes that you have a

Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year!

Christmas - that magic blanket that wraps itself about us, that something so intangible that it is like a fragrance. It may weave a spell of nostalgia. Christmas may be a day of feasting, or of prayer, but always it will be a day of remembrance - a day in which we think of everything we have ever loved. - Augusta E. Rundel

Sisterhood Sunday - Silver Bells

2011-12-18T06:00:00.002-05:00

It's time for another Rubbernecker Sisterhood Sunday challenge! You, too, can participate in our challenge and enter a chance to become a Sunday Sister, as well as win a prize. Get all the details on our Stampin' Sisterhood blog.

This week we were given this beautiful photo as our inspiration.

I absolutely love the vibrant blue and silver combo and, therefore, labeled my card Silver Bells (I love the song Silver Bells, too)! Here's how I was inspired for my card design.

I stamped the Bells with Holly image with Versamark and heat embossed it with silver embossing powder. The bells, bow, and berries were colored with Copic markers; the holly with Silver Smooch. I painted glitter over the bow

Here's a complete list of the supplies I used:

Stamps: Bells with Holley (#209-08)

Paper: Brilliant Blue, Whisper White
Accessories: Copic markers, Versamark, silver embossing powder, heat tool, Silver Smooch, glitter, silver brads, Classic and Lacey Squares Nestabilities, Martha Stewart Punch Around The Page Snowflake Punch

Again, please visit our Stampin' Sisterhood blog for the challenge details, as well as to see the designs of my Rubbernecker Sisters!

3D Ornaments and Looking Out the Window

2011-12-15T00:06:00.001-05:00

For the CCEE Stampers' challenge this week, Frances challenged us to use an ornament in our design. I used Stampin' Up's ornament punch to create my 3D ornaments.

I punched four of the ornaments from Debbie Mumm Christmas paper, folded them in half and glued them together for my 3D ornaments. Easy peasy! The ornament also lays flat for ease of mailing.

If you'd like to see what my friends Shirley, Joanne, Frances, and Cindy created and/or play along with us, please check out our CCEE Stampers blog!

I made this card for the Ways To Use It challenge on Splitcoaststampers to case a card of someone's card we have in our Favorites gallery. I love this beautiful window card by jaydekay. Here's my version:

I used these artsy trees from Rubbernecker's Snowflakes and Stardust set for the view outside the window. I used Purely Pomegranate and white cardstock; Purely Pomegranate and Pesto inks. The window and holly diecuts were sent to me by a friend. I believe the window die is by Spellbinders. The bird is a Stampin' Up punch.

Chillin Out

2011-12-11T22:27:00.000-05:00

When I saw these adorable penguins building a snowman image, I knew I needed to add them to my collection of stamps!

Three of my penguins were stamped twice, cut out, and popped up. I added liquid applique to the falling snow. For the snow beneath the penguins, I sprinkled dazzling diamonds onto the wet liquid applique and then heat set it. Added the falling snowflakes from MS Punch Around The Page snowflake punch. Did some doodling and called it good!

Here's a closer view of the popped-up penguins and the liquid applique snow.

Metallics and Glitter!

2011-12-08T00:01:00.002-05:00

Hello, stamping friends! It's Thursday, and today I have not one, but three, designs to share with you.

First up, is our Dolce Stamps and Cards challenge. Fellow design team member, Tara, challenged us to use metallics in our design, and owner, Sandra, indicated she'd like to see some glitter used.

I stamped the poinsettia image with metallic silver ink and then heat set it with silver embossing powder. I watercolored the poinsettias with Razzleberry Twinkling H20 which are a metallic, shiny color. The leaves and pines were colored with green Copic markers. I used a small poinsettia die to die cut the center of the Sookwang ornament and covered that with Elizabeth Crafts Purple Highlights glitter. I centered the poinsettia with a Robin’s Nest purple bead. I used Elizabeth Crafts Lavender glitter for the rest of the ornament.

Please check out the Dolce Stamps and Cards blog to see what my Dolce sisters have designed, as well as to get all the challenge details so you can play along with us and be entered for your chance to win a gift certificate to the Dolce Stamps and Cards store!

Next up is my CCEE Stampers card. Hostess Cindy challenged us to use chipboard in our design.

I used a round circle piece of chipboard and covered it with this beautiful rich, deep green Christmas designer paper by Bo Bunny. The Santa image in the center is a Heartwarming Vintage cut by Crafty Secrets. I used my Sizzix die for the brushed gold flourish behind the image; I used my lacey circle Nestability for the brushed gold background paper. I know my cardstock LOOKS like kraft in this photo, but it is brushed gold by Stampin' Up. I tied a piece of gold cord at the top to hang this as an ornament on my tree for now.

Swing by our CCEE Stampers blog to see what Joanne, Shirley, Frances, Cindy, and Tosha have designed and to get the details to play along with us!

Finally, I made this card for the Pals Paper Arts challenge to put on the ritz in our design. I used lots of glitter cardstock for mine. I used all Stampin' Up products. The star is their small star punch.

Thanks for stopping by! Have a fabulous day!

Getting the Tree

2011-12-07T06:00:00.001-05:00

Please visit the Rubbernecker Stampin' Sisterhood blog for the complete details on my card! Thank you!

Sisterhood Sunday - A Sketch Challenge

2011-12-04T11:15:00.000-05:00

Yes, it's time for another Rubbernecker Sisterhood Sunday! Today's challenge is a sketch challenge.

I pulled out sexy "Carrie" for my holiday card today. I watercolored her dress and wrap with Stampin' Up reinkers using Cherry Cobbler and Always Artichoke. I colored her skin, hair, and shoes with Copic markers. The polkadotted designer paper is from Stampin' Up's designer series pack - Regals Collection.

Please visit our Stampin' Sisterhood blog to see what my sisters Julia, Frances, and Jen created and the challenge details to see how you can join us with an opportunity to win a prize!

I'm also submitting my card to this week's Pals Paper Arts color challenge to use Cherry Cobbler, Always Artichoke, and Very Vanilla.

My supplies:
Stamps: Carrie (Fashion Ladies 2010 - SKU #494-05);
Paper: Very Vanilla, Cherry Cobbler, Always Artichoke, Stampin' Up Regals Designer Series Collection
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Cherry Cobbler, Always Artichoke
Accessories: Long Classic and Scalloped Rectangle Nestabilities, Classic Circle Nestability, Candi gold brads, large polkadotted embossing folder, corner rounder, Copic markers, reinkers, oval punch, green organdy ribbon, marker, dimensionals

Snowflakes!

2011-12-01T00:01:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I took pictures of the snowfall we had (you can scroll down to see them in my post from yesterday, if you're interested) and today I have some more snowflakes to show you! Joanne (aka JoJot) is the CCEE Stampers challenge hostess this week; Jo challenged us---and you---to design something with snowflakes and bling.

While I was working on putting my design together, I decided not to make a card but rather something for this pretty white shabby chic photo frame.

Here's a close up of the smaller snowflakes at the top. I punched snowflakes out of Bordering Blue for the bottom. The white snowflakes on top are brads covered with glitter. I centered them with blue gemstones for Jo's bling requirement.

Here's a closer view of the larger snowflake so you can see the glitter a little better. The large snowflake is a Sizzix die, the Bordering Blue and white snowflakes are from punches.

Why not pop on over to our CCEE Stampers blog to see what Joanne, Shirley, Tosha, Frances, and Cindy made, as well as get all the details to play along with us?

Snow and Gift Card Sets

2011-11-30T10:13:00.002-05:00

Here it is November 30 and we received our first real snow fall last night. I love it when I wake up in the morning and the sun is shining upon the fresh, new snow. I just had to take a few pictures and share them with you.

This is our view from our dining room window looking toward the east. The snow was so heavy the pine tree branches were touching the ground. Typically, we have a good 8-10 foot clearance to walk under this beautiful tree.

This is the same pine tree from a different angle and that is our barn. The snow is quite deep in front of our sliding door!

I took this photo from my stamp room window, which is a view out toward our front yard and the road. The snow built up a bit on the window sill and screen.

Here's another view of the snow in our backyard from my living room window.

Here's another shot of the pine tree branch hanging to the ground.

As I was taking the photos this morning, this doe came walking out of our woods. She's headed toward the apple tree where the deer love to feed.

Okay...so on to a peek of what I have created for my weekly posting on the Rubbernecker Stampin' Sisterhood blog. I'd love it if you popped over there to see my entire project and leave a comment!

It's part of a gift card set. I've actually been working on several sets for a customer.

Update: Here are two other gift sets I made using Stampin' Up's Flight of the Butterfly and A Tree for All Seasons. I'm entering the Butterflies set into the Just Us Girls challenge to create such a gift set.

Thanks for stopping by! I always appreciate your visit and comments! Have a terrific day!

Peace on Earth

2011-11-26T10:35:00.000-05:00

I didn't get a chance yesterday to upload this card I made in honor of one of my friends, Dawn (DawnL on Splitcoaststampers) who was named Queen for the Day this week as we were busy celebrating a second Thanksgiving dinner with my husband's family yesterday. Dawn's creations are always so beautiful. I chose to case her Peace on Earth card you can see here. Below is my case of her original card.

While my cardstock may look like Kraft in my photo, it is not; this is a beautiful brushed Gold cardstock by Stampin' Up. I heat embossed the Peace on Earth sentiment with black embossing powder. Why so much black on a holiday card, you may be asking? That, too, was part of the Free for All challenge on Splitcoaststampers (SCS) to use black for a holiday card. I also took the opportunity to try my hand at spirelli for the first time, using this beautiful gold crochet thread around a lacey circle Nestability. It was so easy to do following this tutorial on SCS! I was going to put a button in the center, but didn't like what I have on hand and then I stumbled upon this jar of little gold jingle bells in my stash. I attached them with Aleene's Tacky Glue.

Dolce Stamps & Cards, CCEE Stampers & Pals Paper Arts Challenges

2011-11-24T00:02:00.004-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving to my American friends! I, like many of you, will be enjoying time with my family today. However, I do have a couple posts to share with you beforehand.

First up, Edna from the Dolce Stamps and Cards Design Team challenged us to make a center step card. You, too, can join us in this challenge and enter your card on the Dolce blog for a chance to win a gift certificate!!

I did mine using this adorable Merry Mouse image by Impression Obsession.

I colored this adorable mouse image with Copic markers. I added lavender glitter to the small stripes on his scarf and dots of champagne glitter on the tree. After I embossed the blue panel with a dotted swiss embossing folder, I went over the raised dots with a sanding block to whiten the dots so they appeared to be falling snow.

Here's a list of the supplies I used:

Stamps: Merry Mouse and May Your Celebrations sentiment by Impression Obsession

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black

Paper: White, We R Memory Keepers dp

Embellishments: lavender and champagne glitters, white snowflake brads

Tools: Copic markers, Big Blossoms and Classic Square Nestabilities, dotted swiss embossing folder, 3D Dots, sanding block

Next is my weekly CCEE Stampers challenge card. Tosha has been doing a 4, 3, 2, 1 countdown for the challenges in November, and we are now on 1. Tosha asked us to make a one-layer card. I kept mine VERY clean and simple with this cutie-patootie snowman image from Close To My Heart, their So Sweet Seasons stamp set.

I heat set the image with white embossing powder. Then I colored the image with light shades of gray on the snowman's body, blue for the sky, red for his scarf, and black for his eyes and buttons. I used my Copic markers which did not resist the white embossing! Cool, huh? I framed the image with the rectangle frame from this same stamp set and then added the little "brrrr" sentiment. Lastly, I put some Star Dust Stickles on the snow on the ground. You can't see the sparkle in my photo, but it's there!

We'd love it if you joined us in our CCEE Stampers challenge. Just go to our blog to get all the details and check out the fabulous one-layer creations from Tosha, Cindy, Frances, Shirley, and Joanne!

Last, but not least, is my submission to this week's Pals Paper Arts challenge to use pearls in our design. I used pearls for the center of my poinsettia. I also made this card for the Ways to Use It challenge on Splitcoaststampers to use ribbon in a fancy way. I did a ribbon weave around very vanilla cardstock.

I used Cherry Cobbler for my poinsettia (Spellbinder's die) and River Rock for the holly leaves and card base.

Thank you for stopping by and blessing me with your cyber friendship and comments!

Lazy, Lazy!

2011-11-21T23:40:00.001-05:00

I must admit to laziness occasionally when it comes to posting my creations to my blog. I'm pretty good about uploading them to my Splitcoaststampers' gallery. Sometimes it's all about lack of time to keep up with both and sometimes I honestly wonder if it's worth all the work to maintain a blog. My days just get away from me with all the things to do, and I just don't get all the time I'd like to visit and comment on the blogs of my stamping friends. If I've missed yours lately, I do apologize. Too bad I don't have a Mini Me who I could assign this task to---ha! ha! Seriously, I know how much I value the input I receive, so I really do try to support my blogging friends as much as possible. Anywhooo, here are three creations I've made in the past couple days. I've also been designing some clean and simple gift sets for a customer that I'll share with you soon.

First up is a very clean and simple (CAS) card I made for submission to the Winter CAS design team. Our challenge was to use designer paper and ribbon. I stamped my butterfly onto this pretty polkadotted designer paper and punched it out with my butterfly punch. I added the 1/8" black/white tafetta ribbon for it's body and silver cord for the antennae. This card is actually one of five that I made for one of the gift sets I referenced above. (Stamp set used is Flight of the Butterfly by Stampin' Up).

I love the challenges at Splitcoaststampers as they help to get my creative juices flowing. My friend, Joan, challenged us technique lovers to make a card using snow. I went with a gray tone card with just the one splash of color for the tree in front. In real life, it sparkles and has a soft glow to it. I stamped the images in Going Gray and sponged Going Gray and Basic Gray for the sky. I used Martha Stewart Tinsel Glitter for the snowy hills, and added red stickles for the ornaments on the green tree. I also used icicle stickles for the roof top and some of the falling snow in the sky. (Stamps used are The Moose is Loose Kittie Kit and Christmas Phrase Set by Rubbernecker).

My third card is one I made as a guest designer for the color challenge on Splitcoaststampers. We were given the colors of Marina Mist, Pear Pizzaz, and Blushing Bride with a dessert option to make a Christmas card. Well, I obviously forgot about the dessert option, but I suppose I could still use this for a non-traditional Christmas card.....maybe???? I had to substitute Blush Blossom for Blushing Bride. I did add just a hint of Pink Pirouette to my Blush Blossom watercoloring because Blushing Bride looks like it has more of a pink cast to it. I also don't have Pear Pizzaz so I used a mixture of Certainly Celery and Old Olive to get as close to Pear as I could. I used Glossy Accents on the Embrace bloom after I was done watercoloring.

You may have noticed that these cards are all pretty clean and flat. I'm trying to be better about not adding too much bulk to my cards because they are easier (and less expensive) to mail that way. (Stamp set is used an oldie, but goodie called Embrace Life by Stampin' Up).

That's it for now as I need to get some beauty sleep. Thanks for visiting and your comments. I really do appreciate them!

Sisterhood Sunday

2011-11-20T06:00:00.001-05:00

Happy Sunday and welcome to Sisterhood Sunday! Today kicks off the first of the weekly Sisterhood Sunday challenges by the Rubbernecker design team members. We were given the following photo as our inspiration piece.

I drew upon the rich colors from the photo seeing Soft Suede, Cherry Cobbler, and Gold for my design. I used this beautiful poinsettia image, coloring it first with Ranger's Fired Brick and then sponging Stampin' Up's rich Cherry Cobbler in the center for depth. I stamped it twice, cut it out, and separated with dimensionals. The center of the poinsettia is a Candi gold embellishment that looks like a brad but isn't (they are cool!) I used brushed gold cardstock for my leaves and then crimped them. I also used the Pine Sprig in the background stamping it first with Soft Suede and then heat embossing it with metallic gold.

I also used a Sizzix Flourish embossing folder on the Soft Suede panel. I topped it off by adding touches of gold with my gold leafing pen and then spritzing champagne shimmer mist over the entire piece of cardstock. I felt my gold organdy ribbon needed a little something extra, so I added what was originally gold cord that I colored with a Cardinal Red Copic marker.

Please visit the Rubbernecker blog to see what my other sisters from the Stampin' Sisterhood have created for your viewing pleasure and also for details on how you can win a prize!

Punchy Die Time with the CCEE Stampers

2011-11-17T00:01:00.002-05:00

Tosha challenged the CCEE Stampers---and you, too---to use two punches or dies in our creations. Since I really need to get moving on my Christmas cards, I made one using Stampin' Up's The Sounding Joy stamp set with this word star. I used my Big Blossoms Square and Classic Circle Nestabilities for my two dies.

I used my Old Olive and Cherry Cobbler markers to color the words on the star and then sponged Old Olive on the star tips and So Saffron on the center of the star. I love this Christmas designer paper from Stampin' Up that I got last year, I believe (I'm sure one of you SU demos can correct me if I am wrong.) I hope Stampin' Up never retires Cherry Cobbler as I just love the richness of this red!

Be sure to swing by our CCEE Stampers' blog to see what Frances, Joanne, Shirley, Cindy, and Tosha made this week and to get the challenge details, if you'd like to play along with us!

Have a grrrrrreat day!

Holiday Hop

2011-11-13T08:00:00.062-05:00

Hello Rubbernecker Sisters!! HOP day has arrived!! The Stampin’ Sisterhood has LOTS to share today!! Thank you for joining us! We all thought it would be a great idea to share some of our holiday images. So, sit back and enjoy. If you leave some LOVE at EVERY stop along the way, you will be entered into a random drawing for your choice of one Rubbernecker Stamps stamp SET!! Yes, you read that right: a SET, not a single image!! Now, how AWESOME is that?! Mr. Rubbernecker wants YOU to be able to choose, so you will LOVE what you get!!

I chose to use this framed holly image for my holiday design. I first watercolored the holly with Garden Green and then went over that with Oregano Twinkling H20. I colored the berries with Red Jasper Twinkling H20 and then went over those with deep red stickles for some sparkle. I used Garden Green to sponge the outer edges of my frame. I really try to keep my holiday cards to a minimum in terms of layering and bulky embellishments to help keep down the mailing costs.

(click on photo for larger view)

Here's a complete list of the supplies I used:
Stamps: Holly Frame (SKU #1596SO)
Paper: Whisper White, Cherry Cobbler, Christmas dp
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Stampin' Up Garden Green, Twinkling H20s in Oregano and Jasper Red
Accessories: red brads, embossing folder, sponge dauber, red velvet ric rac, dimensionals

OK, we know that you are busy, so you will have until THURSDAY 11/17 to HOP! Our WINNER will be announced on the RUBBERNECKER BLOG, on FRIDAY 11/18!! Good luck!

But wait, I have some other exciting news to share, too!! Beginning Sunday, November 20, we will be having weekly Rubbernecker challenges called SISTERHOOD SUNDAYS! We hope you'll join us as we are going to have a blast! Who knows? You could win a prize on SUNDAYS too!!!

Here's the blog list of all the Rubbernecker Stampin' Sisters for ease of your hopping!

Happy hopping!

Pals Paper Arts Inspiration Challenge

2011-11-12T15:27:00.000-05:00

This photo is the inspiration challenge hosted by Pals Paper Arts this week:

Her bodice made me think of velvet. Therefore, I used this Flocked Accent Poinsettia designer paper for my punched ornament, as well as for the background on my Christmas card. I punched the ornament three times out of this beautiful paper and stacked them together with dimensionals.

The sentiment circle is also popped up on dimensionals. The cord is actually silver, but I colored it with a Copic marker to fit in with my color scheme.

Supplies I used include:
Stamps: Delightful Decorations
Paper: Crumb Cake, Black, Little Yellow Bicycle designer paper
Ink: Bravo Burgundy, Old Olive
Accessories: Stampin' Up ornament punch, zig zag border punch, 3/4" circle punch, dimensionals, silver cord, Cardinal Red Copic marker

Dolce Stamps & Cards and CCEE Challenges!

2011-11-10T07:12:00.000-05:00

It's time for yet another Dolce Stamps & Cards challenge! I am the challenge hostess for this challenge, and I challenged the team to make their own designer paper by using all or a portion of their main image.

For my card, I used this beautiful poinsettia image by Stampendous. I stamped the poinsettia image twice; first on white cardstock with black ink and then on vellum cardstock with gold ink. I heat embossed the image on the vellum with gold and colored the image from behind and in front. I cut out the vellum poinsettias and layered them on top of the white cardstock with dimensionals. I also gold embossed this same image on the background white cardstock. I used my "Joy" sentiment Sizzix die on gold glitter cardstock and looped it over these fun Candi brads.

I hope you'll join us in this challenge! You can get all the challenge details at the Dolce Stamps and Cards blog, as well as see the creations the design team made! The winner of the challenge will receive a $10.00 gift certificate to the Dolce Stamps and Cards online store which is full of all kinds of awesome stamping goodies. In addition, any order over $40.00 from a challenge winner will be credited back shipping fees! Be sure to read all the challenge rules on the left sidebar on the Dolce Stamps and Cards blog so that you're eligible to win the prize!

Next up is my weekly CCEE Stampers challenge. Tosha challenged us to use three different shapes on our card. I used my classic circle, lacey circle, big scalloped square Nestabilities and Stampin' Up's Peekaboo die. I used this week's MoJo sketch for my layout, and I used Verve's Petals & Stems stamp set.

Here's a closer view of the cute little peekaboo window. I made the little door handles by stamping the smallest dotted circle from Verve's Petals & Stems set three times, gluing them together, and then covering them with Glossy Accents.

Here's yet another closer view with the doors of the window open so you can see the sentiment inside.

I'm so glad you stopped by, and, as always, I appreciate your comments! Have a SUPERB day!

Heartfelt

2011-11-08T12:38:00.000-05:00

Vicki (vdutchr on Splitcoaststampers) gave us a beautiful color combo for this week's color challenge: Tempting Turquoise, Cajun Craze, and Kraft. Here's my design using these colors.

I stamped the image onto kraft cardstock three times, watercolored and cut each one out, and popped them up with dimensionals. Here's a close-up of the dimension.

I like how watercoloring directly on the kraft toned down the brightness of the turquoise, which I thought blended better with the more earthy colors of the kraft and rust. I added a few white dots with a Signo gel pen on the flower center.

Wallpaper Inspired

2011-11-05T12:55:00.000-04:00

Happy Saturday, friends! It's a beautiful, sunny day here and we still have some beautiful fall foliage upon which to gaze. I love it!

My inspiration for this masculine card came from a website called Wallpaper Collective hosted by Splitcoaststampers. I love the gradient inks in the Lucky Stripe, Mica on Gold Mylar paper. I'm also entering this into the Pals Paper Arts challenge to use River Rock, Soft Suede, and Early Espresso inks.

I gold embossed the Rubbernecker Petitite Folk Art Maple Leaf and then sponged the three inks over them with sponge daubers. Since I wanted to keep this card masculine and simple, I only added dark brown ribbon and gold brads as embellishments.

Lotsa Patterns

2011-11-03T00:01:00.001-04:00

Tosha is the CCEE Stampers hostess for the month of November, and she's indicated that we're going to be doing a countdown this month! For this first Thursday in November, Tosha asked that we use four different embellishments (buttons, rhinestones, lace, twine, flowers, etc.) in our design. I used olive green brads, ivory pearls, ivory lace, and a poinsettia flower as my embellishments.

I believe this is the Jolly Holiday Christmas paper that Stampin' Up came out with last year (or maybe the year before). I love the colors! It is a challenge for me to coordinate more than two designer papers into my card, but I did use four patterns from this set of paper. The reason I mention this is because this is also for Lydia's Hope You Can Cling To challenge on Splitcoaststampers to "wear a costume," that is, design a card that is not typically our style. I also don't typically use different Nestability shapes with one another either, so I challenged myself to do that with these Big Blossoms Square and Petite Scalloped Oval dies.

The cute little tree is a die by Sizzix. I made the poinsettia with the Layered Poinsettia die by Spellbinders. I used a stylus in the center of the poinsettia to help give it some depth and then I shaped the end of the petals by rolling the ends of them around a skewer. The wavy-like border on the striped designer paper is a Tim Holtz alterations die called Brackets.

Wanna play along? Check out the details on our CCEE Stampers blog. You can also see what Tosha, Joanne, Shirley, Cindy, and Frances came up with, too!

Dolce Stamps & Cards Challenge!

2011-10-27T06:00:00.009-04:00

It's time for another Dolce Stamps and Cards design team challenge! This week Judy challenged the team to make a square card with at least one die cut shape in our design. I used the MFT large scallop border Die-namic for my die cut.

I love this beautiful fall wheelbarrow image by Art Impressions. I enjoyed taking my time to color and shade it the way I wanted with my Copic markers. I added Glossy Accents for the shine on the apples.

(click on photo for larger view)

After I adhered my ribbon, I used my Cropadile to add these Pumpkin Pie eyelets. Here's a closer view of the coloring.

Here's a complete list of the supplies I used:

Stamps: Giant Harvest Wheelbarrow by Art Impressions

Ink:    Memento Tuxedo Black
Paper:    Very Vanilla, Pumpkin Pie, Bazzill Brown, DCWV Amber Autumn designer paper
Embellishments:   eyelets, ribbon
Tools:   Copic markers, Glossy Accents, white gel pen, large scallop border die, Cropadile

I hope you'll join us in Judy's challenge. The winner of the challenge will receive a $10.00 gift certificate to the Dolce Stamps and Cards online store which is full of all kinds of awesome stamping goodies. Be sure to read all the challenge rules on the left sidebar on the Dolce Stamps and Cards blog so that you're eligible to win the prize!

Just a Peek!

2011-10-26T06:00:00.005-04:00

This is a little peek at what I have posted on the Rubbernecker blog for my Wednesday's Worktable today. I'd appreciate it if you stopped on over to see the full design! You'll need to scroll past the top post of our recent blog winner to get to my posting. Thanks!

If you'd like to see the Hope You Can Cling To challenge cards I've been working on, it'd be easier to visit my gallery at Splitcoaststampers.

Have You Seen???

2011-10-25T10:15:00.000-04:00

Hello, friends! Just a quick note to see if you've been over to the Rubbernecker blog lately. Omigosh! You really have to check out the posts this week. My friends Charlene (cookiebaker) and Kittie (Kittie747) have some magnificent creations for you to gaze upon!!! Check them out here (scroll past the top post of the Halloween blog candy winner) and leave them some love, okay?

I'm still busy working on Hope You Can Cling To challenges, and will have more to share with you soon!

2011-10-23T16:15:00.000-04:00

Here are a couple more Hope You Can Cling To challenge cards I made. As I've indicated in previous posts, Splitcoaststampers has partnered with the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Texas with a month-long card drive in October for Breast Cancer Awareness. There's a different challenge posted each day, and all of our cards will be sent to the Cancer Center for the patients and family members.

Anna Wight (sweetmissdaisy) challenged us to make a card with a bee(s) and/or use yellow. I used this sweet Bee Bear Penny Black image colored with a mixture of Ranger Distress Inks and Copic markers. I paper-pieced the bear's outfit. The lace ribbon is ruffled. The sentiment is from Rubbernecker.

The next HYCCT challenge was given to us by Patty (pattyb) to make a pink collage. I paired this challenge with the Featured Stamper challenge to honor DeborahLynneS. I met Deb a few years ago when she lived in our Upper Peninsula. She is a sweetie and makes the most beautiful cards!

I chose to case Deb's gorgeous Stamp Simply Prima Hop card. We are required to change two or more elements in our design to make it our own. I used different stamps, colors, made my own flowers, used grungeboard instead of chipboard, and distressed the edges of my paper for a shabby chic effect.

I used two designer papers (the very back panel and the panel with white writing) and then made my own designer paper for the panel in between these two that was stamped with Rubbernecker's collage image in Adirondack Shell Pink. A portion of this same collage image was used for the postage stamp piece. The "Believe" sentiment is from Rubbernecker's Fall Trilogy set. Deb used chipboard in her design. I took a flourished piece of Tim Holtz Grungeboard and tried to color it pink. It didn't come out the way I really wanted it to look, so I sprayed a Krylon Adhesive over the entire piece and then covered it with pretty pink glitter.

The little flowers were made with Marianne Creatables dies. I used the same Rubbernecker collage image for one flower, striped dp for another, and then I colored white cardstock with Ranger's Spun Sugar Distress Ink. I glued these flowers around my white organdy ribbon with Aleene's Tacky Glue. Here are a couple close-up photos of the flowers.

I hope you're having a great Sunday, and I appreciate your stopping by to visit me!

More HYCCT Cards

2011-10-22T15:11:00.001-04:00

Here are a few more cards I made for the Hope You Can Cling To challenges on Splitcoaststampers. This is their second annual month long card drive to benefit those affected by breast cancer. Our cards are being sent to the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Texas.

My first card was for the challenge to make a card using things that begin with the letters P.I.N.K. I used:

P = Polkadot & Paisley stamp set
I = Iridescent Ice embossing powder
N = Notched corner punch
K = Knot as in french knots sewn at base of flower

I stamped the flowers in Melon Mambo first and then used my Versmark pen to heat emboss them with Iridescent Ice embossing powder.

Here's a close up so you can see the iridescent ice embossing and french knots a little better. You can always click on the photos for a closer view, too.

My next card was for the challenge to Treat Yourself by making a card with candies or cookies or fruits, etc. I chose to use this beautiful pear image from Gina K Designs stamp set called Fruitful Harvest. I colored the pears with Copic markers and sponged around the image with Ranger's Spun Sugar Distress Ink.

My third card is also for the HYCCT to dry emboss something. I dry embossed my vellum window pane with a stained glass embossing folder. I made my door using long classic rectangle and classic square Nestabilities. I used brass hodgepodge hardware for the door handle and mail slot.

It's Definitely Fall and Purple Passion

2011-10-20T00:01:00.003-04:00

Yes, it's definitely Fall here in Michigan. Shirley challenged the CCEE Stampers to make a card/project with a Fall theme.

I love the leaves that come in Rubbernecker's Leaf Group set. They are especially fun to work with when using the polished stone technique. For those of you who may not be familiar with this technique, you simply apply colors of ink onto a piece of glossy cardstock and blend them with alcohol. You can either put your ink and alcohol together on a cotton ball and dab them that way or you can use what I prefer to use and that is the Tim Holtz Blending Tool. You apply the ink to the piece of felt and dab it onto your glossy cardstock. Again, you can also put your alcohol blending solution on with your ink at the same time or you can add it by dropping the alcohol blending solution directly onto the glossy cardstock after you've applied the ink. You get a slightly different effect with each way.

I used Stazon Black; Encore Copper; Adirondack Alcohol Inks in Lettuce, Butterscotch, Hazelnut, Cranberry, and Copper Mixative for my leaves today. Here's a closer view of the leaf.

Isn't that pretty? I just love the effect.

This card is also for another Hope You Can Cling To challenge to use the Colors of Hope: green, brown, and yellow.

Here is a list of all the supplies I used:

Stamps: Thank You So Much sentiment; Leaf Group; Grid bg

Paper: River Rock, Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip, Glossy
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Stampin’ Up Chocolate Chip; Stazon Black; Encore Copper; Adirondack Alcohol Inks in Lettuce, Butterscotch, Hazelnut, Cranberry, and Copper Mixative
Accessories: brown brads, paper crimper; houndstooth embossing folder, corner punch, dimensionals

Please stop by our CCEE Stampers' blog to see what Tosha, Frances, Cindy, Joanne, and Shirley have created for this Fall challenge. Perhaps you'd like to play along!

Here's another card I made for the Hope You Can Cling To challenges. Holly challenged us to use a shade of purple and I love purple!

The chicks (Chickie Hop by Stampendous) were colored with a Copic marker and then covered with yellow flocking. Their headbands were watercolored with Elegant Eggplant.

Hope You Can Cling To

2011-10-19T17:26:00.000-04:00

It's a rainy day here, so I've sequestered myself in my stamp room (like that's a really hard thing to do, huh?) and have been working on the Hope You Can Cling To challenges in support of Breast Cancer Awareness this month.

My first card is for the challenge to use pink ribbon in your design. I ruffled my pink ribbon behind my pinking circle.

Stamps: Pocket Full of Posies
Paper: Whisper White, pink dp
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black; Adirondack Shell Pink and Pesto
Accessories: pink ribbon, pinking circle Nestability, Fleur De Lis Rectangle, Wonder Tape, watercolor brush

My second card is for the Butterflies of Hope challenge to use a butterfly(ies) in our design. The butterfly was stamped twice. The second one was cut out and glued over the bottom one with it's wings lifted. I used pink glitter on the butterfly's body and a portion of the wings. I used a smaller butterfly from Rubbernecker's Bud Set to create the background. Each panel was sprayed with shimmer mist; I wish you could see it in my photo.

Stamps: Butterflies; Bud Set by Rubbernecker
Paper: Very Vanilla, pink dp
Ink: Spun Sugar Ranger Distress Ink
Accessories: pink ribbon, corner rounder , Fleur De Lis Rectangle, shimmer spray, pink glitter, dimensionals

Rubbernecker Fall Blog Hop!!

2011-10-16T06:00:00.043-04:00

Welcome to our Fall/Halloween hop! Thanks so much for joining us. Rubbernecker Stamps has such a wide variety of images that we thought we would share some Fall and Halloween ones with you.

There is a hop route for you to follow below. And, so you don't get lost, each Sister will have this list for you to help you on your journey! Make sure to leave some love at every stop in order to be eligible for the prize!

You could win......

Your choice of one of these AWESOME stamps sets!
(if the images are too small for you to see, click here and here to take you to the Rubbernecker pages where they are located)

Here's my side-step card I created using the Halloween Two set. Click HERE for a great tutorial on Splitcoaststampers on how to make this kind of card.

I stamped each image, colored them with Copic markers, and cut them out in order to place them where I wanted them in my scene.

Here's a photo I took above the card so you can see inside it a little better. I drew and hand cut the grass blades on my green designer paper in front of the fence and the two layers with the witch.

Ok, the rest of my Sisters from the Stampin' Sisterhood have a lot of creations to share with you, so grab a cuppa your favorite beverage, sit back, relax and get hoppin'! Be on the look out, too, for our hop next month! We look forward to seeing you then for more sharing and prizes!!! Thanks, again, for joining us today and enjoy!

** HERE'S YOUR HOP ROUTE**

- Karen Hunsaker

Special People

2011-10-14T20:30:00.001-04:00

I made a couple birthday cards for two very dear friends celebrating their birthdays soon. I went from bold, bright colors in my first card to a more subdued, soft card for the second one.

This first one is for the Free for All challenge on Splitcoaststampers to make a card characteristic of someone whom you intend to give the card. This friend loves flowers and polkadots so I incorporated those for her.

Stamps: Live, Laugh, Love and Tart & Tangy by Stampin' Up
Paper: Whisper White, Black, Ridinghood Red, Rockabilly dp
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: MFT large scallop die, circle and scalloped circle Nestabilities, Creatables flower die, red brads, markers

My second card is for the Queen for the Day challenge on Splitcoaststampers. Today we honor a friend and one of my Rubbernecker Stampinhood Sisters, Joan Ervin. I cased Joan's gorgeous card seen here incorporating changes to make the card my own.

Stamps: Victorian Lace(SKU 10 GM) and Happy Birthday Square (SKU #565-19) by Rubbernecker
Paper: Pink Pirouette, Very Vanilla, dp
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Adirondack Shell Pink, Stampin' Up Regal Rose
Accessories: Spellbinder Rose Creations die, Fleur de Lis Rectangle Nestability, black brad, foam mounting tape, corner rounder, sponge dauber, Aleene's Tacky Glue

Please be sure to check back on Sunday for our Rubbernecker Fall blog hop with an opportunity to win some blog candy!

Halloween and Friend-ship

2011-10-13T00:01:00.011-04:00

It's time, again, for another Dolce Stamps and Cards challenge! This time, Cindy challenged the team to incorporate sewing or faux stitching into their Halloween designs. Since I don't own a sewing machine, I had to go the faux stitching route, which I did in orange around the main image panel and in black at the top of the green spider web designer paper in the background.

Who doesn’t love the fun of Halloween? Fluffles sure loves it, even if this little mousie did scare him pretty badly from behind with his mouse “boo!” This image was quick and fun to color and so easy to pair up with some fun Halloween designer paper and coordinating “eyes” ribbon. Cindy also challenged us to use sewing or faux stitching in our design.

Be sure to swing on over to the Dolce Stamps and Cards blog for all the details on how to play along in this challenge and be eligible to win a prize!!

Next up is my weekly CCEE challenge card.

In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue.....

In honor of Columbus discovering America, Shirley challenged the CCEE Stampers to make a card with a ship, ocean, Indians or anything that relates to this day. I also made this card for one of the Hope You Can Cling To challenges over at Splitcoaststampers for the entire month of October as a card drive to benefit those affected by breast cancer. Yesterday's challenge was to have at least one heart in your design.

I pulled out a much-loved, but long-neglected Stampin' Up set called Boatloads of Love for my Friend-ship card today. I watercolored everything except the sky, which I sponged. The base card and ribbon are navy blue, although they appear to be black in my photo.

Here's a close-up of the multi-layering I did on the heart and the puffs of steam from the boat.

If you'd like to join our CCEE Stampers challenge and see the creations my friends made, please check it out here.

2011-10-12T11:58:00.000-04:00

Here's a peek at what I've featured on the Rubbernecker blog today for my Wednesday's Worktable post!

Swimming for Katie Blog Hop

2011-10-11T00:01:00.001-04:00

From October 10-12 some of the best stampers are joining together to support and encourage our friend and fellow stamper, Katie Renz, who is currently battling inoperable gastric cancer. If you're not familiar with her, Katie’s cancer story started just before Christmas last year. This young, beautiful, healthy, vibrant mother of 3 with her infectious smile was suddenly diagnosed with an inoperable cancer, virtually overnight. A few tummy aches and then stage 4 gastric cancer. Her first post about it is here. The idea of “Swimming for Katie” came from her recent post here.

This exclusive stamp used in my sample, designed by Becky Oehlers is available as a clear stamp, as well as a digis or a dig and SVG cut file. 100% of the profits go to Katie's fund to help her and her young family. Her husband Kevin and her three young children need our help and support. In addition to the Keep Swimming Octopus, Marianne Walker and True =D Doodle Designs both also donated digis that are for sale. Direct donations are also being accepted. Information central is HERE. This is a permanent page that will stay active at i {heart} papers with current information and the full 3 day blog hop listing, as well as the donation button.

For my card, I stamped and colored this cute octopus image with Copic markers. Using a circle Nestability, I employed the "out-of-the-box" technique by having a portion of the Keep Swimming flag outside of the circle. I matted this circle image with a Brocade Blue Fleur de Lis Motif Nestability. I used the small Fleur de Lis square Nestability and cut it in half for my corners. The background designer paper is by American Crafts and reminded me of water with its wavy lines. I finished off the card with these pretty blue pearls.

I hope you will join me in supporting Katie through a purchase or donation. The following is a list of everyone who has projects posted today. I hope you will be inspired by them and moved to purchase or donate. If you would like to send Katie a card, her mailing address is:

Katie Renz
PO Box 5913
Bellingham, WA 98227-5913

Here are all the items for sale.

And here is a list of everyone participating in today's blog hop:

Favorite Color Combo

2011-10-06T00:09:00.000-04:00

Shirley is the hostess with the mostest for our October CCEE challenges. For this first one in October, she challenged us to make a project using our favorite color combo. It was hard for me to settle on just one, but I did finally, choosing pink, green, white and black .

I used my Rose Creations Nestabilities to create my flower out of Pink Pirouette, sponging the edges of the flower with Regal Rose. The sentiment is by Verve from their Celebrating You set given to me by my friend JoJo, along with the coordinating dies (thanks, JoJo!). The ribbon is May Arts.
Here's a close up of the flower. Obviously, this kind of card is best hand delivered to the recipient. The flower would also make a lovely decoration on a gift.

Check out our CCEE blog to see what Joanne, Shirley, Tosha, Cindy and Frances have to show you in terms of their favorite color combos. Perhaps you'd like to play along with us, too!

Fall Trilogy

2011-10-05T08:39:00.000-04:00

Happy Wednesday, my friends! Wednesdays are a fun part of my week because I hostess the Wednesday's Worktable challenge on the Rubbernecker blog. I have a fun project showing how I used one image to create a couple different designer papers using different techniques, as well as using the same image as the focal point for my card. Here's the completed card, but I'd love it if you popped over to the Rubbernecker blog to see the close-up photos and narrative description of how I made my card! Let me know what you think!

I Still Relish It!

2011-10-03T13:03:00.001-04:00

What do I relish? I relish many things in this gift of life of mine, but the one I'm referring to in my blog title is R-E-T-I-R-E-M-E-N-T!!! For those of you who don't know, I was "encouraged" to take an early retirement last December due to changes being made in my pension benefits package. Some referred to it as an "incentive package," but, really, it was the state bureaucractic way of forcing those of us who worked for the state for many years and were on an older (and much better) retirement benefit plan to retire early.

Mind you, I'm not sour grapes about this happening It's the reality of the economic situation in most places these days. Rather, I count myself fortunate to have had a good state career in the 35 years I worked. Now, I count myself even more fortunate that I no longer suffer from the Sunday evening blues in the drudgery of having to return on Monday morning to what had become an unhappy place for me to be. Now, I wake up each morning with a smile on my face, knowing that the day is 24 hours of how I want to spend those 24 hours. Yes, life is good, and these nine months later I still do not regret the decision to accept that retirement "incentive." My time is mine!

And, of course, one way I like to spend my time is creating my own greeting cards. I made this card for Dolce Stamps & Cards using this beautiful peacock image by Impression Obsession.

(click on photo for larger view)

This beautiful peacock cling mount image is all one piece of deeply etched rubber and is available at the Dolce Stamps & Cards store.

I colored the entire image with Copic markers. After I colored the spots on its tail feathers with Royal Blue and Salad Green markers, I added Ranger Firefly stickles over the Salad Green portion. Oh, how those pretty, iridescent spots sparkle in real life!! Can you see the teensy-weensy royal blue gemstones on the peacock’s head crest? I colored the crackled background with Pale Aqua and Aqua Blue markers and sponged Ranger’s Tumbled Glass Distress Ink on the outer edge of the cardstock. The framed edges around the image were made with Tim Holtz’s Alterations On the Edge Die. After I dry embossed the Crumb Cake panel with the polkadots, I ran my Rich Razzleberry ink pad over it to color only the raised portion of the dots.

Here's a list of supplies I used to create this card:

Stamps: Peacock by Impression Obsession

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black , Ranger Tumbled Glass Distress Ink, Stampin’ Up’s Rich Razzleberry
Paper: Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Rich Razzleberry, Black
Embellishments: Rich Razzleberry polkadotted ribbon, royal blue micro gemstones
Tools: Ranger Firefly and Xmas Red Stickles, Polkadotted embossing folder, Tim Holtz Alerations On the Edge Die, dimensional, Copic markers , blending tool.

Also, I want to remind you of the fall color challenge happening over at the Dolce Stamps & Cards blog. I hope you'll check it out and play along with us!

Thanks for stopping by. What? You want to know how I'm going to spend the rest of my day? Well, I do have a few design team commitments that I'll be working on throughout the afternoon. Then, my beloved husband is taking me out to dinner for our twelfth wedding anniversary. We're going to the restaurant where he proposed to me!

Yes, life is good, and I count my blessings every day!

Splitcoast Challenges

2011-09-30T20:22:00.000-04:00

I managed to have a few hours to stamp today and was able to participate in both the Free for All and Queen for the Day challenges on Splitcoaststampers. I used Rubbernecker stamps for both of my designs.

The Free for All challenge is to incorporate color blocking in our design, using patterned paper. I used papers from my Good Neighbor stack by Stampin' Up. I watercolored the umbrella with Rose Red and River Rock and then I stamped the French Script background over the umbrella. The sentiment is a partial one. The entire sentiment reads "Sing in the Rain, Dance in the Sun, Dream in Your Garden." I added pieces of this 1/8" black and white ribbon by Stampin' Up to my color blocking to define and accent the lines.

Supplies:
Stamps: Umbrella (#40-22), Garden Phrase Set (#508) by Rubbernecker
Paper: White, Good Neighbor designer paper (SU)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Rose Red, River Rock
Accessories: black with white piping ribbon, A Cut Above Die by Verve, Sizzlits Little Leaves, Sizzix Scribbles Swirls die, dimensionals, black brads, sponge dauber

Dawnmercedes was chosen as Queen for the Day. I cased her Broken Lawn Mower card for my next design. We are required to make changes in our design so that it is not an exact duplicate of the Queen's. Things I changed are:

1. sketch layout
2. colors
3. placed my Primas across top of image panel
4. added purple rhinestones within the stamped image

For those of you who know me, purple is one of my favorite colors. My friend, Joanne, knows this and has blessed me over the years with many purple-icious embellishments. On this card, I used the purple Prima flowers and rhinestones she gave me. I used Stampin' Up markers to color directly onto my image and then stamped the image onto the white cardstock.

Supplies:
Stamps: Wild Garden Border 04 (#539-03), Laughing (#504-01) by Rubbernecker
Paper: White, Black, Purple stripe dp
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: Stampin' Up markers (Certainly Celery, Orchid Opulence, Summer Sun), purple rhinestones, purple Prima flowers

Yours in laughter,

Dolce Stamps & Cards and CCEE Stampers' Challenges!

2011-09-29T07:19:00.001-04:00

This will be a rather long post because I have two challenge cards to share with you today. You definitely don't want to miss out on the first one with Dolce Stamps and Cards because there are goodies attached with this challenge. Scroll down further to see my CCEE Stampers' challenge.

Yes, it's time, again, for another Dolce Stamps and Cards Thursday challenge!

Every other Thursday Dolce Stamps and Cards will be holding a fun, new challenge that will be chosen by one of the Dolce Stamps Design Team members, so get ready to have some stampin' fun and prizes!

Each month Dolce Stamps and Cards will also be featuring a different stamp company that the design team will be using for their challenge inspiration and this month we are featuring the awesome IMPRESSION OBSESSION stamp line. The winner of the challenge will receive a $10.00 gift certificate to the Dolce Stamps And Cards Online Store which is full of all kinds of awesome stamping goodies.

In addition to the $10.00 gift certificate, the winner will receive an "I Won A Dolce Stamps And Cards Challenge" badge for the sidebar of their blog and their card will be featured during the announcement of the following challenge for all to see.

So here we go...
This week your challenge has been brought to you by Ellen and she is challenging you to create a card using fall colors. This week's keywords are DSAC02 for your public galleries and/or blogs.

Here's my design using the Northern Lighthouse image by Impression Obsession.

I used a technique called Emboss Resist for my fall color lighthouse scene. I stamped the image with Versamark and then heat embossed it with clear embossing powder. I then applied the various colors of Ranger Adirondack inks (Butterscotch, Cranberry, Pesto, Ginger, Denim) with sponge daubers, wiping off the excess ink to reveal the image of the lighthouse scene. I used my ScorPal to create the dot-line-dot impression on both sides of the image panel.

Now, this is important, so please read:

To be eligible to win these amazing prizes you must first become a follower of the Dolce Stamps And Cards Blog and if posting to your blog, be sure to mention that your card is for the Dolce Stamps and Cards Thursday Challenge. If posting to a public forum (such as Splitcoast Stampers or Paper Craft Planet) please be sure to use the challenge keywords in your post (listed above) and if posting to a blog, you must place a direct link back to the Dolce Stamps And Cards Blog and must post only the link to your entry, not your entire blog in the linky widget. Your challenge entry must also be a new creation, no back links to an older card, links that do not follow these rules will, unfortunately be deleted and not eligible for any prizes that might be offered.

But wait, we are even going to sweeten the pot and give you an additional chance to win this week's prizes, all you have to do is use an IMPRESSION OBSESSION image on your challenge entry card.

Also, please be sure to check out the rest of Dolce Stamps Design Teams' creations and leave them some comment love (there is a link to each of them on my sidebar).

Here's a list of the supplies I used to make my card:

Stamps: Northern Lighthouse by Impression Obsession

Ink:  Ranger Adirondack Inks: Butterscotch, Ginger, Cranberry, Pesto, and
Paper:   Very Vanilla, Festive Variety Pack
Embellishments: Nailheads, More Mustard Ribbon
Tools:  Versamark, Judikins Clear Detail Embossing Powder, sponge daubers, heat tool

I hope you're still with me because now I'd like to share my challenge card for the CCEE Stampers. Cindy Haffner challenged the team (and you, if you'd like to play along) to make a card using some kind of postal mark whether it be a postage stamp, postage card, postage edge...pick one or pick them all!!

For my CCEE card, I went with more of a subdued vintage look. I used Rubbernecker's Paris 1908 set to create this card. I've had the designer paper in my stash forever, and I really don't remember if this was Stampin' Up designer paper or not (sorry). I inked up the couple image with Bravo Burgundy and stamped it off a couple times before stamping it onto the Very Vanilla cardstock as I wanted more of a watermark look for that image in order to stamp the postal mark over it. The Eiffel Tower image is also a part of this set that I stamped, cut out, and popped up on dimensionals. I also stamped what I call the Splatter image from this set in Bundled Sage over the main image and on the designer paper under the Eiffel Tower image. I used the sketch design from yesterday's sketch challenge on Splitcoaststampers.

Please be sure to visit our CCEE Stampers' blog and see the fabulous creations Shirley, Tosha, Frances, Cindy, and Joanne made, too!

Here's my supply list for this card:

Stamps: Paris 1908 (SKU #527) by Rubbernecker
Paper: Bravo Burgundy, Very Vanilla, unknown designer paper
Ink: Bravo Burgundy, Bundled Sage, Vintage Photo
Accessories: Marianne Design Creatables (little flowers), Pinking Circles Small and Large Nestabilities, dimensionals, blender tool, pink pearl flourish

Thanks for hanging in there for this entire post! I'd love to hear your comments!

Wednesday's Worktable

2011-09-28T06:00:00.004-04:00

I'm baaaaaaaack!!! Thank you to everyone who has sent me a card or e-mail with well wishes for my recovery. I'm pretty much back to my old self and my stamping mojo is making a come back, too. I ain't lion!!! Hee! Here's the design I made for my weekly Wednesday's Worktable over on the Rubbernecker blog. I have all the details listed there. Isn't this lion cub adorable?

I hope you'll stop back tomorrow for the Dolce Stamps and Cards blog hop challenge we have going on and that you'll be able to join us!

Beautiful Flowers from Beautiful Friends

2011-09-21T14:49:00.000-04:00

As some of you already know, last week one of my best friends and I took a trip to the east coast to see the sights and meet a couple other stampers. Unfortunately, my trip was cut short due to my becoming ill and requiring emergency surgery to remove my gall bladder. I did get to meet Joanne (YAY!!!) but was not able to meet Julia or Anne (WAAAAH!) I truly hope another opportunity will present itself when I can meet Julia and Anne, too.

Therefore, I haven't felt well enough to make cards to share with you, but I did want to share pictures of a beautiful bouquet of flowers I received from five very dear friends. What a bright spot to my day!

The orange roses are exquisite! I like the fact, too, that the flowers are in a ceramic pumpkin container (with lid) that I can use and think of my sweet friends when I do.

Thank you, Cindy, Patty, Shirley, Joanne, and Traci!

I plan to share a few trip photos and hope to be back to stamping very soon!

Have a great day!

Dolce Stamps & Cards Challenge!

2011-09-15T10:00:00.007-04:00

I'm away today and can't play, but I wanted to tell you about the new challenges being started every other Thursday on the Dolce Stamps and Cards blog. Each design team member will take a turn issuing a challenge. You can get all the challenge details and see the creations here.

Have a fabulous day!

Wednesday's Worktable

2011-09-14T06:00:00.011-04:00

(click on photo for larger view)

This is Rubbernecker's Fashion Diva, Jeanne, and I had so much fun paper piecing her dress. More details are available on the Rubbernecker blog.

Thanks for visiting, and I appreciate your comments!

2011-09-08T06:00:00.009-04:00

Cindy Haffner challenged the CCEE Stampers to make a circle-shaped card and include stitching. I used my circle and lacey circle Nestabilities for my card. I hand stitched the black and white baker's twine on the half circle sentiment panel.

I colored the Dotted High Heel (by Rubbernecker) with Copic markers and added pink gemstones to the dots on the shoe strap. The entire sentiment reads "If the shoe fits....buy it in every color." If you'd like to play along in our challenge and see the cards Joanne, Shirley, Tosha, Frances, and Cindy made, visit our CCEE Stampers blog!

My next card is one I created for Dolce Stamps and Cards using this koi fish image by Local King Rubber Stamps.

After I heat embossed the koi fish (one with Winter Wonderland white and one in Sapphire
embossing powders), I sponged Brocade Blue ink over the fish. I hand cut the fish and popped
them up on dimensionals. You can find the rest of the card details on the Dolce Blog here.

Sunflowers Galore!

2011-09-07T06:00:00.001-04:00

I love sunflowers! I remember our family seeing field upon field of beautiful sunflowers in Kansas one hot August vacation many years ago. My memories of that vacation is what inspired me to pull out my Rubbernecker sunflower image for my card today.

(you can always click on the photo for a larger view!)

My card is being featured on the Rubbernecker blog as a part of my weekly posting to that blog, if you'd like to see a close up of the sunflowers.

Happy Turkey Day!

2011-08-31T21:00:00.000-04:00

Cindy Haffner is the September challenge hostess for the CCEE Stampers, and she has challenged the team (and you) to make a fall-themed card. I decided to make mine a Thanksgiving card using Rubbernecker's Tommy Turkey image.

(click on photo for larger view)

I paper pieced the tips of his feathers with Amber Autumn designer papers, and colored the remainder of the feathers and Tommy with Copic markers.

Would you like to play along with us? Visit our CCEE Stampers blog for all the details, as well as view the designs Tosha, Joanne, Shirley, Cindy, and Frances made.

Gobble! Gobble! Have a great day!

Supply List:
Stamps: Tommy Turkey (#20-08); Happy Turkey Day sentiment (inside of card)
Paper: More Mustard, Very Vanilla, Amber Autumn Matstack
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: Big Scalloped Squares Nestabilities, Sizzlits Button Die, Tim Holtz Alterations On the Edge die, More Mustard grosgrain ribbon, Square Lattice embossing folder, dimensionals

Pine Sprig Christmas Tree

2011-08-31T06:00:00.017-04:00

(click on photo for larger view)

It's Wednesday, which means it's time, again, for my Wednesday's Worktable posting on the Rubbernecker blog. I have a couple other pictures posted there, as well as the details on how I made my tree, if you're interested.

As always, I appreciate your visit to my blog. I hope you're having a spectacular day!

Twinkling Koi

2011-08-29T12:41:00.000-04:00

Happy Monday, my friends! For those of you who are without power and/or have suffered damage due to Hurricane Irene, you are in my thoughts and prayers that things will be back on track for you soon.

My card today uses a koi fish image by Local King Rubber Stamp. My card is also being featured on the Dolce blog with all the supplies I used, if you're interested. I stamped the fish in Memento Tuxedo Black and colored the koi with Twinkling H20s. I used a fine tip watercolor brush for his scales. In real life, he shimmer so beautifully.

(click on photo for a larger view)

Please visit the Dolce Stamps and Cards website to see what other fabulous images and products they have available!

Let's Go Shopping at Rubbernecker: Sales and More Sales!!!

2011-08-28T16:00:00.001-04:00

Spellbinder Die Set Sale
This sale will run from Tuesday 8/23 noon until Thursday 8/25 5 PM. The sale will be limited to stock on hand at our distributor. For best selection, place your orders early. No backorders or rainchecks will be offered. We will place the order for the material on Friday and will advise customers of unavailable merchandise and issue refunds on Friday 8/26 if necessary. Materials will be received by and shipped Saturday 9/3. This sale will not be combined with the stamp sale.

Rubbernecker Stamp Sale
This sale will run from Friday 8/26 noon through Sunday 8/28 5 PM. It will include all items in each of our stamp lines and our free stamp program (Shoppers Rewards) WILL be in effect, so remember to incude your free choices with your order. If you have any questions about the program, rules are posted on the home page of the site. This sale will not be combined with the Spellbinders sale.

Just click on the titled links to take you there!

This post will stay at the top of my blog until Sunday afternoon. Please scroll down to view my card creations.

Gold Christmas

2011-08-25T00:01:00.015-04:00

This is for the last August challenge I gave the CCEE Stampers, which is to be inspired by the word "Gold."

I gold embossed my poinsettia and sentiment {both made by Rubbernecker}; I made a rolled ribbon flower out of gold ribbon using Beate's tutorial on Splitcoaststampers; and I used a gold leaf pen for the gold frame around the image and sentiment.

Here's a close up of the rolled ribbon flower

You can get all the details on our CCEE Stampers blog and see the creations my friends Shirley, Cindy, Joanne, and Frances made. Maybe you'd even like to play along with us!

Polished Leaves

2011-08-24T06:00:00.006-04:00

I made this masculine, fall-themed card for my weekly Wednesday's Worktable post on the Rubbernecker blog. Stop on over for close-up photos and all the details on how I made it, if you're interested!

(click on photo for closer view)

If you have any other questions, leave me your e-mail address and I'll get back to you!

Glittered Koi

2011-08-21T11:07:00.001-04:00

(click on photo for a larger view)

Challenges are good for us, right? They help us to stop and think about what we're doing and how to approach a particular situation. When I received this Local King Rubber Stamps Koi image from the owners of Dolce Stamps and Cards for my August designs, I really wanted to think outside of the box on how to showcase this unique image. From the deep, dark recesses of my brain, I remember happening upon someone's card gallery quite some time ago and seeing that they had used glitter to color their image. That's what I decided to use to color my Koi image. I stamped the image with Black Stazon ink onto clear acetate, turned over the acetate and applied Glossy Accents and the various colors of glitter. Through trial and error, I found it easiest to cut the image from the acetate before applying the glitter.

My card and a complete list of the supplies I used are featured on the Dolce Stamps and Cards blog. I'd love it if you stopped over there and left a comment! You can find this stamp image and a lot of other stamping goodies at their store here.

I made the following card in honor of the featured stamper, Korin, on Splitcoaststampers. I love how she did her right border by cutting around her butterflies. I chose to use leaves for my design. I used Ranger Adirondack and Distress inks for my leaves.

Framed Daisies

2011-08-17T06:00:00.010-04:00

(click on the photo if you want a larger view)

I made this for my weekly Wednesday's Worktable with Charlene article on the Rubbernecker blog. You might want to pop on over there to see what my design team mates have been creating for you, too!

Rubbernecker Blog Hop and Prize!

2011-08-14T10:00:00.047-04:00

Welcome to our little HOP!! We are SO happy that you could join us in celebrating some NEW stamps! Mr. Rubbernecker released some SUPER cute images, on the down low, a few weeks back and we wanted to share them with you. They are SO adorable that we just HAD to show them off! We have sweet SCOOTER KIDS, some new ANIMALS, and we even got some cute new FRIENDS. You can find them by visiting RUBBERNECKER STAMPS and clicking on the 2011 NEW RELEASES. Hey, wait, there is MORE!! We also have something else to CELEBRATE. Our design team has a NEW name!! We are SO excited!! I bet you were wondering what was up with that weren’t you?! We are NOW the……………………………..

Cool, huh? We are going to have SO much to share with you!! It will TRULY be a SISTERHOOD , for sure!!!

OK now, a HOP would not be a HOP without a little PRIZE!! Right? Of course!! SO, in honor of our news AND our new images, if you visit ALL the participants and leave some LOVE, you will have the chance to WIN a………………………………….

$25 RUBBERNECKER STAMPS CERTIFICATE!!

WOW, more coolness!! Our winner will be announced on TUESDAY, so you will have plenty of time to hop!

Now onto what I designed for today's hop. I chose to use the Ewe image from the Animals set and incorporate it into a scene on a small white purse template (by DeNami Design). I colored the entire template with distress inks. For the grass and tree leaves, I used Crushed Olive, Shabby Shutters, and Peeled Paint with a blender tool. For the sky, I used Tumbled Glass and a post-it note punched with my scallop punch to use as a template for sponging the clouds in my sky. The tree trunk was stamped in Vintage Photo; I colored it in with Copic markers. The ewe was also colored with Copic markers.

I set eyelets at the top of the purse with my Cropadile and strung baby blue fiber ribbon through the holes.

Here's an inside view so you can see how the scene carries to the inside, as well as the sentiment I stamped. Since I didn't want the backside of the eyelets or my fiber to show, I covered the inside with blue designer paper. You can also see my Velcro closure.

Here's a partial side and back view of the purse so you can see how the scene work carries throughout the entire template.

OK, better get HOPPIN’!! Thanks SO much for being a part of our excitement!! Here's the HOP ROUTE!! Have an AWESOME day!!!

Charlene Merrick (that's me!)

Flowers, Flowers...Everywhere Flowers!

2011-08-11T00:01:00.012-04:00

Hello, my stamping friends! I love flowers and designing cards with them. I have two cards to share with you today.

First, here it is another Thursday already, which means it's time for another CCEE Stampers' challenge. I am the August hostess and this week I'm challenging everyone to incorporate glass into their design whether it be a glass image, a cracked glass technique, or actual glass! You can get all the juicy details and see Shirley's, Joanne's, Cindy's, and Frances's creations on our CCEE Stampers blog.

I chose to make a bookmark for my design. I love these beautiful Aztec Gold Sunflowers by Heartfelt Creations that I bought at the rubber stamping show last weekend! There are actually three sizes in this stamp set, but I only needed the two smaller ones for this creation. What's really cool about them is that they match the Blossom 2 Nestabilities! Woot!

For the glass challenge, I used Vintage Glass Glitter for the center of my flower and around the Memory Glass frame laid over my friend to friend sentiment. Once the glue dried, I colored the glass with my Sepia Copic marker. Here's a close up view.

The sentiment and weed stamp are by Rubbernecker. The ribbon is actually made from the same blue and white gingham checked designer paper at the bottom of the bookmark. I used a checkerboard embossing folder on the Brilliant Blue cardstock.

I'd also like to share with you the fourth card in a set I made for Dolce Stamps and Cards with JustRite's Beautiful Blossoms set. Dolce Stamps and Cards has been featuring each card on their blog over the last month. Today's daisy card is the last one in the set and all the details are outlined on their blog.

Here's the entire set I shared with you back in July.

These lovely stamps made for a beautiful gift set and are available at Dolce Stamps and Cards. If you visit the blog to see my card, you'll see a link to the Dolce Stamps and Cards store at the upper right entitled Shop at Dolce Stamps and Cards.

Wednesday's Worktable - Music is the Voice

2011-08-10T06:00:00.001-04:00

I hope you'll stop over at the Rubbernecker blog to read my Wednesday's Worktable posting and leave a comment! Here's the card I designed and am writing about this week.

(click on photo for larger view)

Speaking of Rubbernecker, I had a lot of fun working the Paper Arts Festival in Novi, MI this past weekend. Here are a few photos taken with my phone camera.

(Jen--aka Miss Boo on SCS--and I each had a work station and had a lot of fun demonstrating techniques with Rubbernecker stamps.

Jen's station

I was so tickled that Roxie (aka Rox71 on SCS) came to the show, and I was able to meet her!! For those of you who are Splitcoaststampers, Roxie is the weekly sketch challenge hostess.

Here's Jen and I with another one of our Rubbernecker design teammates, Juliana. Jules worked the show with me last year, but had another commitment this year that precluded her from doing so. She was able to swing by for a few minutes Sunday afternoon and say hi to us!

Patchwork Beautiful Blossoms

2011-08-08T12:01:00.000-04:00

I made this card for Dolce Stamps and Cards using JustRite's Beautiful Blossoms set. The full details are on the Dolce blog, and I'd appreciate your stopping over there and leaving a comment!

Here's a close up of how I layered the flower.

I'll be back tomorrow to show you some pictures from what I was up to this past weekend. I hope you'll swing by then, too! I always appreciate your visits and comments.

Have a spectacular day!

Violet Card

2011-08-05T14:01:00.000-04:00

This card I designed is being featured on the Dolce Stamps and Cards blog. I'd love it if you'd swing by there and leave a little love!

Thanks! I hope you're having a great day!

Glitter-fied Shoes

2011-08-04T00:01:00.044-04:00

Hello, my stamping friends! It's Thursday, which means it's time for another CCEE Stampers' challenge. I am the challenge hostess for the entire month of August. For today's challenge, it's all about shoes. You can get all the details about my challenge on the CCEE Stampers' blog, plus see all the MAHVELOUS creations my friends, Cindy, Joanne, Shirley, and Frances made. I hope you'll join us!

(click on photo for a larger view)

When I was employed, I worked in an office, which meant I wore business attire. I use to wear high heels with my suits, and a lot of times I would buy a pair of shoes that I loved in various colors. That's what I used for my inspiration today: shoes of every color! I also had to gussy my shoes up by adding glitter. This card is FULL of glitter and so is my stamp table and room! ha! ha!

I stamped the shoes in their respective colors and then I used a two-way glue pen on them to adhere the glitter. See those glittery brads? They are faux brads! Yep. I wanted glitter brads to match my shoes, so I made my own with my 1/4" circle punch. I punched each color three times and glued them together. I applied Glossy Accents on top and then added the glitter. Attached to my silver ribbon is a pewter flower I found in my stash, and I just had to glitter-fy it, too! I sprayed Krylon Preserve It on top of my card to help reduce the amount of glitter that will flake off so that my recipient doesn't have glitter all over them, too.

Well, that's all for now. Thanks for stopping by and your comments. I really do appreciate them!

Dare I Do Christmas in August?

2011-08-03T10:03:00.000-04:00

Yes I do!

(you can always click on the photo to make it larger)

Not only is it time for my weekly Wednesday's Worktable posting on the Rubbernecker blog, but it's also time for another Dare to Get Dirty design for the daily challenges the Dirty Girls are hosting on Splitcoaststampers for Fan Club members! I hope you get time to check both out!

Oh, and one more tidbit of information....did you know that Rubbernecker customers' designs are being showcased on the Rubbernecker blog on Saturdays? Yesssirrreee, Bob! Come join us!

Continuing the Dare

2011-08-02T14:37:00.000-04:00

Here are two more projects I made that include challenges issued by the Dirty Dozen team on Splitcoaststampers for their annual Dare to Get Dirty challenges open to Fan Club members.

First up is this polkadotted cupcake card. I love polkadots and had a lot of fun incorporating them with embossing folders, circle punches, crystal gems, and french knots! Yes, can you believe that moi' hand stitched french knots onto those 3/4" circle punches? It was a bit of a challenge with the arthritis in my hands, but I had so much fun making them and this card! I used my Cricut Sweet Treats cartridge for the cupcake card shape.

My next card was inspired by Cindy Motherway's inspiration teapot for Teapot Tuesday.

Our Teapot Tuesday inspiration this week are the Three Tea-Migos in blue, yellow, and green! It's a party for Tink, LaRue, and Sunshine, too! We are to bring light-hearted, upbeat, beautiful, wonderful, and colorful things. My card

will be sent to a very special young child at Hugs and Hopes Club for Sick Kids for children battling critical illnesses.

I loved the goofy faces on the inspiration teapot and immediately thought of this goofy duck image I have. I stamped him three times and watercolored him with Twinkling H20s in Sunflower, Fresh Oregano, and Evening Primrose, and then shaded the background with Stargazer. I colored their bills with an orange marker and then put orange glitter on them. After I cut my Brilliant Blue cardstock with the film strip die, I watercolored it with the Evening Primrose so all my blues would match. I did the same thing for the circle punches so they would shimmer, too!

The "You Quack Me Up!" sentiment is computer generated. On the inside of my card, I also computer-generated in bright blue ink a duck joke that reads:

"What do you call a crate full of ducks?"

A: A box of quackers!

Dare to Get Dirty 2011

2011-08-01T09:29:00.000-04:00

Wow! How fast this past year has flown by! Here we are at another Dare to Get Dirty (DTGD) week on Splitcoaststampers for Fan Club members. There are a lot of challenges packed into each day, but you can combine them which helps if you're a busy gal on the go. They are a lot of fun to do.

Last night I was able to make this 3 x 3 note box that I made as a birthday gift box combining three of the DTGD challenges.

Here's a close up of the flowers I made using my MFT trio flower die-namics, Stampin' Up's 5-petal flower punch, hydrangea and punch (small flower in center), as well as my pine leaf and leaf punches.
After I cut the flowers, I embossed them with the Square Lattice embossing folder for dimension.

I'm off to an appointment for now, but I'm looking forward to returning to my stamp room and participating in more of the challenges!

CCEE

2011-07-28T00:01:00.010-04:00

Joanne went easy on the CCEE Stampers this week. She gave us the option to make either a summer-or winter-themed card. I am sooooooooooooo far behind on getting started with my Christmas cards, so I chose a winter theme.

I love this sweet scene of the snowman and the little girl with their faces to the night sky catching snowflakes on their tongues. The image is by Rubbernecker.

I colored the scene with Copic markers. I added white flocking to the snowman and the ground. I threaded the star button with silver cording and embossed this pretty shimmery blue paper with a snow embossing folder.

You can see the creations Frances, Cindy, Tosha, Shirley, and Joanne made on our CCEE Stampers blog. Maybe you'd like to play along with us, too!

Wednesday's Worktable

2011-07-27T11:11:00.000-04:00

It's amazing how fast the days fly by. Here we are at the middle of the week already, which means it's Wednesday and time for another one of my Wednesday's Worktable posts on the Rubbernecker blog. I hope you'll check out my post there for a full explanation of how I created my card.

Have a lovely day, my friends!

Pink Blossoms and Queen for the Day

2011-07-24T10:37:00.001-04:00

PINK BLOSSOMS

Today I'm continuing to show you the individual cards from the floral gift set I made for Dolce Stamps and Cards using JustRite stamps! This is the pink (really Melon Mambo) card. All the supplies I used are listed at this Dolce link. These JustRite Mini Sentiments and Custom Tag Dies are so cool! I made the coordinating background for each card using a background stamp from Stampin' Up's Itty Bitty backgrounds.

I'm glad you were able to stop by and take a peek. Let me know that you did by leaving a much appreciated comment either here or on the Dolce blog so I can come visit you, too!

Oh, but wait.....I have one more creation I'd love to share with you called

VELLUM EMBRACE

It was inspired by my friend, Julia (also known as artystamper on Splitcoaststampers). Julia was chosen as Queen for the Day on SCS this past Friday, and I'm just now getting a chance to case one of her beautiful cards. The one I chose is from an old favorite Stampin' Up set of mine called Terrific Tulips. Julia titled it Thinking of You.

I heat embossed my Embrace Life flower with black embossing powder onto vellum cardstock. I used sponge daubers to apply the various colored inks on both the back and front of the vellum and then cut out the flower. I did the same thing to the bamboo leaf image from this same stamp set, using it as my flower stem.

My vase was punched out of River Rock cs using SU's ornament punch. I sponged the outer edges with Pesto inks and applied a flourish of pearls to it. I also applied micro pearls to the flower.

I adhered the vellum flower and stem with Glossy Accents. Those parts of the vellum I did not affix the Glossy Accents to naturally lifted off the white cardstock creating the dimension I wanted.

Thank you, Julia, for the inspiration! Wear your well-deserved crown proudly!

Blue Card

2011-07-22T09:57:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I posted a floral gift card set I made using JustRite's Beautiful Blossoms, Just Because Set, and Happy Everything Tag Making Kit. Today, I'd like to show you the close up of the blue card from the set. Dolce Stamps and Cards is featuring my card on their blog today, and I just know they and I would love it if you visited them and left a comment. Thank you!

Floral Gift Set and Hugs

2011-07-21T00:01:00.075-04:00

I have a couple projects I'd like to share with you today. First up is a sneak peek at a floral gift set of cards I created using JustRite's Beautiful Blossoms, Just Because Set, Happy Everything Tag, all of which are available from Dolce Stamps and Cards. Dolce Stamps and Cards is featuring my gift set on their blog with all the details. I'd appreciate your stopping over there to read about it and leave a comment. If it's not up on the Dolce blog yet, it's because they are on Pacific time and I'm on Eastern, but it will be there eventually (smile)!

Next up is my weekly CCEE Stampers challenge card. Joanne (aka JoJot) challenged us to make a card of encouragement. Specifically, she'd challenged us to incorporate a hug of some kind in our design, if possible. In case you didn't know, today is the last day of Hug Week. I used this cute image from My Favorite Things (MFT). I love how this sweet little boy is tucked right into his big ol' puppy's chest giving him a huge hug! I also used MFT's Wednesday Stamp Club Sketch #29.

I colored the image with Copic markers. I added stripes to the little fella's shirt with a fine tip black Marvy marker. I used MFT's Die-namics Flower Trio (Rose Red cardstock) and Leaf Trio (Certainly Celery cardstock) and their Jumbo Scallop die (Soft Sky cardstock). The sentiment actually reads Puppy Hugs, but, for my purposes, I wanted only the word "Hugs" on my card, so I inked it up with a black marker and punched it out with a 3/4" circle punch.

Please stop by the CCEE Stampers' blog to see what Joanne, Frances, Shirley, Tosha, and Cindy made. Maybe you'd like to play along with us, too!

Wednesday's Worktable

2011-07-20T10:00:00.001-04:00

As I indicated last week, I am posting a regular article to the Rubbernecker blog on Wednesdays called Wednesday's Worktable. Here's a peek at what I'm sharing this week.

I'd love it if you popped on over to the Rubbernecker blog to see my full post there!

Color Blocked Buds

2011-07-18T17:12:00.000-04:00

Hello, my friends! How are you today? I got some devastating news earlier from one of my friends that her daughter has breast cancer. She is only 27 years old. I cried after I hung up from the phone call, but I also believe in the power of prayer. I'd appreciate it if you offered up a prayer for sweet Lindsay. You see, my friend lost her mother to breast cancer at a young age, so this is hitting her especially hard to learn that her daughter has been diagnosed with it, too.

Speaking of friends, my friend, Joanie, is hostessing the Technique challenge on Splitcoaststampers today and she's challenged us to do color blocking with a twist. You can get all the details here. I used Baja Breeze on my acrylic block for my color blocking. I then used chocolately brown embossing powder to heat emboss my Rubbernecker Buds images and "friend to friend" sentiment. The embellishments down the left side of my color blocked section are brown Mosaic stickers I purchased at Michaels. I used the Martha Stewart double edge Infinite Loops Trim punch in the same color as my base cardstock (Baja Breeze) for a little added interest in the background. After I heat embossed the "friend to friend" sentiment, I added some color blocking to it, sponged Chocolate Chip on the outer edge, and cut out with a circle Nestability.

Now, go give someone a hug and tell them you love them.

Sympathy Collage

2011-07-14T13:31:00.000-04:00

The Ways to Use It challenge on Splitcoaststampers is to create a collage using four different stamps. For my Sympathy Collage creation, I used the following Rubbernecker images: Morning Glory Frame (#523), Grid Pattern (#451), Wildflowers (#496-08), Thinking of You sentiment (#565-10). [Note: the numbers in parenthesis are SKU numbers that you can use to do a search for these images on the Rubbernecker website.)

I stamped the Morning Glory Frame onto Very Vanilla Cardstock using Stampin' Up's Soft Suede ink. I stamped the frame again onto a piece of regular paper and cut it out to use as a mask so I could stamp the grid background pattern in the center in River Rock. Stamped sentiment in Early Espresso. I colored the flower image with Stampin’ Up markers (Rose Red and Always Artichoke), huffed on it, stamped it, huffed again, stamped again. Added organdy ribbon with large round brad in corner. I tucked the Sizzlits Little Leaves in River Rock behind the ribbon, added the butterfly Embosslit in Barely Banana, and rounded the upper left corner only of the cardstock with a large corner rounder.

Ice Cream, Youse Scream!

2011-07-14T00:01:00.005-04:00

....we all scream for ice cream! Joanne has challenged the CCEE Stampers to make a card using ice cream. I scrounged through all of my stamps and was surprised to discover that I only have this one ice cream sundae image by DeNami Designs. I colored it with Copic markers.

I found this old Stampin' Up designer paper in my scraps, the colors of which makes me think of ice cream and birthdays. I used classic diamond Nestabilities and my MFT scalloped border die. The sentiment is from Stampin' Up's Bring on the Cake stamp set. The ribbon is Rose by Stampin' Up.

Why not play along with us? Check out the details and see the yummylicious designs of my teammates on our CCEE Stampers blog.

Wednesday's Worktable

2011-07-13T10:05:00.001-04:00

Wednesday's Worktable is a weekly posting I'll be publishing on the Rubbernecker blog as a member of the design team. I hope you'll be able to take time to visit my posts there, as well as the posts of my Rubbernecker design teammates who'll be posting on other days of the week.

This is the card I created for this week's post. I have all the details outlined in how I created it on the Rubbernecker blog. I'd appreciate your support and comments!

Bring Your Daisies by Three!

2011-07-11T23:14:00.000-04:00

Ain't she sweet?

Just a-hoppin' down the street

Bringin' daisies by three

Then we'll all have some tea!

If my little ditty doesn't make sense to you, check out Mothermark's Teapot Tuesday challenge on Splitcoaststampers to get the full gist of what she's up to this week. The main theme is to bring at least three daisies, some bees, and even a birdie or two. Don't bring trees, though, unless you want to enter the party through the back door. The back door really isn't so bad; it just where all the rebellious tea potters prefer to enter.

Aint' she sweet? My image, that is. She's a girly-girl froggie with her glitterfied green eyelids, batting those long eyelashes at all the boy frogs as she hops along to the tea party. Even the bees are happy to be buzzing along with her inhaling the sweet fragrance of her daisies.

My images are all by Rubbernecker (see supplies below) and colored with Copic markers. I added lime green stickles to Froggie's eyelids and scattered straw stickles to the daisy centers. In reality the sentiment is totally horizontal, but I wanted a circular sentiment panel. Therefore, I used my black marker to highlight the words individually, cleaning the stamp in between, lining the sentiment up with my stamp-a-ma-jig for perfect placement.

I'm so glad you hopped on by today. Keep hoppin' along those hoppy trails!

Stamps: Frog Holding Daisies (#67-09); Create a Garden Set 1 (#512); “Bee” Cuz Text (#149-08); Daisy Border (36-01 KK)

Cardstock: Whisper White, Gable Green, Green Gingham
Ink: Memento Black
Accessories: Copic markers (YG05,YG17, YG67, G85, Y15, Y17, YR16, C1, C5, W1, W3, W5, W7), Ranger Stickles (Scattered Straw and Lime Green), 1 ¼” and 1 ½” circle punches, paper piercer, scallop border punch, sponge dauber, stamp-a-ma-jig

Yum! Chocolate Covered Strawberries!

2011-07-07T00:01:00.043-04:00

Our July CCEE Stampers challenge hostess is my uber-talented stamping friend, Joanne Grzelak (aka JoJot on Splitcoaststampers)!! For this first week of July, Joanne challenged us to incorporate chocolate into our design.....whether it's an image, cardstock, ink, etc. I chose to make my Tart & Tangy strawberry a chocolate covered strawberry! Strawberries are so fresh and delicious right now. Yummy!

I also chose to keep my overall design clean and simple. I used Classic Square Nestabilities to cut out the square on my base Cherry Cobbler cardstock and then a smaller square matted with Chocolate Chip cardstock.

I colored the strawberry with markers directly onto the stamp, stamped the image three times, cut them out, and layered them with dimensionals as you can see in this next photo. I adhered the strawberries to the I Heart sentiment square and then attached this panel to a piece of white cardstock embossed with a hearts embossing folder. This entire piece was attached to the inside of the card.

If you'd like to see what Tosha, Cindy, Shirley, Frances, and Joanne created or play along with us, please visit our CCEE Stampers blog for the details!

Stamps: Stampin' Up's Tart & Tangy and Sweet on You
Cardstock: Cherry Cobbler, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Chocolate Chip striped dp
Ink: Espresso
Accessories: Stampin' Up markers, Classic Square Large Nestabilities, Classic Square Scalloped Nestability, heart embossing folder, dimensionals, scallop border punch, sponge dauber

My Heart Stamps 4 You Irises

2011-06-30T05:00:00.043-04:00

Purple happens to be one of my favorite colors, so imagine my delight when Sandra and Betsy, owners of Dolce Stamps and Cards, sent me this awesome iris image by My Heart Stamps 4 You. Copic markers are pretty much my go to coloring medium, although I do enjoy watercoloring with reinkers as well. I just love how well the Copic markers blend colors, especially on flowers. This beautiful butterfly image is also by My Heart Stamps 4 You and colored with Copic markers. I also favor polkadots and stripes in many of my designs. I like how well the striped designer paper accented the beautiful irises.

Dolce Stamps and Cards will be featuring cards of the design team members every day on their blog. You won't want to miss out on seeing the beautiful creations my friends on the design team have made.

Stamps: Iris Frame and Painted Lady Butterfly by My Heart Stamps for You (available at Dolce Stamps and Cards)

Ink:                            Memento Black
Paper:                       White, Black, The Paper Cut Festive Pastel Variety (Lilac), Recollections Purple Pinstripe
Embellishments:     Ranger Firefly Stickles
Tools:                        Square Lattice embossing folder, Marvy corner scallop punch, Copic markers

If you're looking for my CCEE Stampers card, it's the next post down.

Thanks for visiting and, as always, I appreciate your comments! Have a terrific day!

Royal Crown Jewels

2011-06-30T00:01:00.047-04:00

Do you have a Cricut that's been gathering dust due to lack of use? I know I've been pretty lazy about pulling mine out and using it. It's a good thing Frances challenged the CCEE Stampers to use them in our design today. I used the hat from the Sweet Treats cartridge using brushed silver cardstock. It reminds me of a crown, so I bejeweled mine with gemstones. I used my Ultramarine Copic marker to color the tiny clear gemstones on the bottom of the crown and the ones down the left side of my card. Gotta love those Copics! I scored the lines in the middle of the crown.

Please visit our CCEE Stampers blog to see what Cindy, Shirley, Frances, Tosha, and Joanne created. Perhaps you'd like to join us!

Stamps: Baroque Motifs, Create a Cupcake
Ink: Brilliant Blue
Cardstock: Brilliant Blue, White, Brushed Silver, and striped designer paper
Accessories: Cricut Sweet Treats cartridge, gemstones, butterfly die, border punch, JustRite Custom Tag dies, oval Nestability, dimensionals, stickles