Grab N' Go Gift set - PTI November Blog Hop

Hi Ladies! It's that time again for the monthly Papertrey Ink Blog Hop! This month, Nichole challenged us to create "a quick & inexpensive wrap or tag that can be the perfect solution for "grab & go" gifts!" If you are no stranger to my blog, you know by now I ABSOLUTELY love the PTI My Timeless Templates designed by the AMAZINGLY talented Lauren Meader. However, when I think of Grab N' Go, my Cricut machine comes immediately to mind! Just push the button & voila! MAJIC you have a completely cut template to score, tape & adorn with your favorite stamps, embellishments & a tag! In case you haven't heard the news, Lauren has spread her wings & will be offering her NEW templates in ALL the various electronic cutting formats :) If you would like to see a YouTube video tutorial that I made on how to create one of these gift bags using your Cricut machine, here is the link http://cupcakescreations.blogspot.com/2009/05/mothers-day-gift-bag-tutorial-and-video.html or http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_V0VF-cmqjs&feature=player_embedded#
I LOVE to make gift sets so I made a coordinating card using Beate's fun sketch for this week's Weekend Sketch Challenge #107, WSC107 & a tag with a few dangling ornaments inspired by the SUPER talented Betsy Veldman. If you are interesed, here is the link to Betsy Veldman's Ornament Tutorial using PTI ornament stamps. Thanks for hopping by! I can't wait to see what everyone has created!

Here is my Grab N' Go Gift set:I gave my Gift bag & snowflake embellies a vintagey look by sponging on a little Ranger/Tim Holtz Tea Dye ink. Inking up the various sized PTI Snowflake images from the Snowflake Serenade set with Versamark ink, I stamped then embossed them using Filigree embossing powder.
This isn't your typical gift tag! With a close-up look, you can see that the snowflake tag is 3-D!
Here is the coordinating card:
All the snowflake embellishments were made using Martha Stewart's snowflake punches x 3 & layered x 2! I finished each flake off by putting a Making Memories pink crystal brad in the center of each.
Ingredients Used: Stamps: PTI Snowflake Serenade, Signature Christmas, SU Delightful Decorations Paper: PTI Kraft, Bazzill Pomegranate & Pink, October Afternoon DP, SU Very Vanilla Ink: SU Basic Black, Ruby Red, Pretty in Pink, Ranger/Tim Holtz Tea Dye, VersaMark Sprinkles: Cricut Tags, Bags, Boxes & More cartridge, Sizzix 3-D Snowflake die, Martha Stewart snowflake punches x 3, Making Memories hardware, Cuttlebug EF, SU Ornament punch & cord, generic beads, Offray ribbon, Filigree embossing powder

Gingerbread Boy / Peppermint Gift set

Hi Ladies! I hope you all had a great weekend! We had some unexpected friends & family visit from out of town :) That surely was a nice surprise! Of course, that means visiting & eating & not much time for crafting. I am a bit late on entering in some challenges, but I sure had fun making my much needed Gingerbread Boy / Peppermint Gift set :) That's what matters most to me! I have a lot to prepare for this week in my crafting world - this Wednesday, November 25th is the PTI Monthly Blog Hop, Saturday, November 28th, I will be the Hostess for the Just Us Girls template challenge & Sunday, November 29th, I will be the the Hostess at the Pile it On! challenge site. If you get a chance, please don't be afraid to stop by to take a peek and see what I have created :) I made this Gingerbread Boy / Peppermint Gift set to have on hand :) I combined several challenges - in no particular order 1. For color inspiration: The Colorthrowdown #69, CTD69 2. For sketch inspiration: CPS142 & 3. Pile it On! - Use Rub Ons

challenge. If you haven't already, stop by all of these sites to see what the DT's have created for inspiration! I would love to know if you like Gingerbread or chocolate covered peppermint sticks? Be Sweet!

Here is my Gingerbread Boy / Peppermint Gift set:

I stamped the background paper with an oldie but goldie SU set that I bought gently used at a rubber stamp show. One stamper's junk is another stamper's treasure! :)

One of my ALL time favorite My Timeless Templates designed by the amazingly talented Lauren Meader is the Fold N' Go. It is the perfect size treat box!!! It holds a generous amount of treats & it is big enough to decorate!

Did you find the Rub On? Amongst all the stamping - there is a Rub On! OK - it is the little tree image in the center of all the HAPPY HOLIDAYS tags! I rubbed it on a piece of cs, punched it out using a small EK Success circle punch then adhered it to the tag! That is the first Rub On I ever used - of course, they were one of those items that I just HAD to have but NEVER used! I bet you have some of those items too?

Ingredients Used: My Timeless Template Fold N' Go Stamps: SU Holiday Sampler, PTI Holiday Button Bits Paper: SU Very Vanilla, Old Olive, Chocolate Chip, Bazzill Pomegranate Ink: SU Old Olive, Chocolate Chip, Ruby Red Sprinkles: Spellbinders Scalloped square nesties, EK Success punches, Offray ribbon, PTI twine, American Crafts buttons, Making Memories hardware, DCWV Rub On

Buttons & Butterflies

Hi Ladies, I hope you are all having a Wonderful Weekend :) Before I go any further, I need to share with you the winner of my give away. Drum roll please.....and the Winner is.....

Julie Ranae

Julie, please email me your address prior to Wednesday, November 25th so I can get your goodies to you :)

The saying "it is a SMALL world" even applies to Blogosphere! Julie Ranae happens to be the Manager/Creator of The Play Date Cafe Creativity Challenge site! I want to send a BIG Thank You to ALL the girls on The Play Date Cafe DT for selecting my Happy Birthday card last week as their Featured Spotlight Winner :) This week's colors for The Play Date Cafe Creativity Challenge #5, PDCC5 is being hosted by Julie Campbell. This is what Julie had to say about her inspiration photo, "Being a vintage girl at heart, I fell in love with the beautiful vintage-looking perfume bottles. The colors really drew my eye--I love that the light blue next to the purple...a little bit of

silver, some soft and lovely white all around." I have to agree with Julie, the vintage bottles in this photo with the Beautiful colors are very alluring! I combined a few more challenges to create this card: This week's challenge at the Cards Blog site is to use Buttons, 5 of them! & for Sketch Inspiration: Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge #92, TESC92. For your enjoyment & for inspiration, please be sure to check out all the sites that I have mentioned :) Thanks for stopping by today & for taking a peek :) Be Sweet!

I used these colors to make a Mother's Day card.

I have been taking my sewing machine for a daily walk lately :)

I was sooo excited to receive the Spellbinder's Butterfly die set in the mail this week :) / I soooo wish Spellbinders would have offered more than 3 various sides in this set :( / On this card, I used the small & medium sized dies, layering each Butterfly x 2. I sandwiched all the lil' blue Butterflies in a Sizzix Dot EF, then sent them through the Sizzix Big Shot Express.

I used the large & medium Butterfly dies x 2 each to make the tag. The silver embossed PTI flourish images really "POPS" off the SU Rich Razzleberry cs.

I made a few butterflies to share with someone :) All you have to do is leave a comment on this post by Saturday, November 28th EST. I will use Random.Org to select a winner & announce the winner on my post Sunday, November 29th. Please play nice & BE SWEET, ONLY one comment per person :)

Ingredients Used: Stamps: SU Best Yet, Fancy Flexible Phrases, PTI Fancy Flourishes Paper: SU Rich Razzleberry, Bashful Blue, Whisper White, Anna Griffin DP Ink: VersaMark, Ranger/Tim Holtz Tea dye Sprinkles: Spellbinders Butterfly, EK Success punches, generic buttons, Making Memories hardware, SU silver cord, Sizzix EF x 2, PTI twine, Offray ribbon, Cuttlebug scalloped flower die

Just Us Girls Challenge...JUGS8

Hi Ladies! Thank you for all of you who played along last week with the Just Us Girls technique challenge & for your support with my blog :)

Are you ready to color your world with Just Us Girls?

The Lovely Lisa is our Hostess this week & she chose to color our palettes with Bashful Blue, Pumpkin Pie & Really Rust (or similar colors)! With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I saw this color combination fitting for the occasion. I sure hope you can join along with this week's Just Us Girls color challenge! For complete details & to see what the other DT girls have made, please visit the JUGS site. Be sure to visit each of the DT members personal blogs as well, for their complete project instructions! I can't wait to see how you use this beautiful color combo! Be Sweet!

Here is my Give Thanks card:

To make the background paper, I inked up my brayer with SU Bashful Blue ink & applied it directly to the Cuttlebug EF, slipped the piece of SU Natural's Ivory in, then ran it through the Sizzix Big Shot Express & MAJIC! A two-toned piece of embossed paper! I am giving my sewing machine a great workout these days :) To make the pumpkin, I heat embossed a stamped PTI image, then punched & layered 5 ovals punched from an EK Success Oval punch. I sponged a lil' Ranger/Tim Holtz Antique Photo ink for a vintagey look :)
Using a sponge dauber dabbed in Ranger/Tim Holtz Antique Photo ink, I was able to tone down the Pumpkin Pie cs making it a little more subtle.
Ingredients Used: Stamps: SU Fancy Flexible Phrases, PTI Fall Elegance Paper: SU Bashful Blue, Pumpkin Pie, Really Rust, Natural's Ivory Ink: SU Bashful Blue, Really Rust, Chocolate Chip, VersaMark Sprinkles: EK Success Oval & border punch, Spellbinders circles, Scalloped circle nesties, Labels 4, Cuttlebug Fall EFs x 2, PTI buttons & twine, brads & clear embossing powder from stash,

You're Invited To Celebrate the Season continued

Hi Girls! I hope you are all having a great week! Some of you may recognize this card from a previous post. I am re-posting it because I am thrilled that I have finished ALL 13 :) My sister's dear friend Sue, is hosting this year's Christmas party for 12 of her childhood friends. She is in her late 50's early 60's & has a dozen friends dating back to the FIRST grade! I am honored that Sue asked ME to make the invitations for such a special event! :) Sue just asked that the invitations be "rich" looking, not the traditional Christmas Greens & Reds. LOL Thanks for taking the time to look! Be Sweet!


I like the way the gold embossing powder shows up on the SU Old Olive cs.
Here is a pic of all the pieces prior to assembly :) I like the way the punched snowflakes look when they are all in a bowl together. (I changed the snowflake from the Cuttlebug die cut one to a snowflake punched with a Martha Stewart punch.)

Ingredients Used: Stamps: PTI Fancy Flourishes, 2008 Holiday Tag Collection, SU To You & Yours, Inkadinkadoo Invitations Paper: K&Company Christmas Cheer, SU Bravo Burgandy, Not Quite Navy, Old Olive, Very Vanilla Ink: VersaMark, SU Not Quite Navy, Old Olive Sprinkles: Spellbinders Scalloped Ovals & Oval Nesties, Offray ribbon, SU Tag punches, generic gold cord, brads & embossing powder, Martha Stewart snowflake punch

SANTA BINGO!

Hello Ladies! Is ANYONE up for a game of SANTA BINGO? I made this card to simply to add to my Holiday collection :) As some of you know, this month I am the Guest Designer at Pile it On!. As a quick refresher, Pile it On! is a challenge site that would like you, the crafter, to incorporate their challenge with at least one other CURRENT challenge (at the time of posting). Sounds easy right? To make my card I used the following challenges in no particular order: 1. Pile it On! Use 3 flowers & 5 pearls 2. Just Us Girls dry embossing challenge, JUGS7, 3. For sketch inspiration: the lovely Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge #106, WSC106, 4. Cards Blog - BIG ol’ ribbon bow. If you would like to gaze upon some really cool creations, please be sure to check out all these sites that I have mentioned! Hopefully you will join me in one or all of these challenges :) I'd love to know if you play BINGO! Be Sweet!



Here is my SANTA BINGO card:
What do you think of that BIG ol' ribbon bow? I am sure it won't squish into an envelope, so I will definitely have to hand deliver this one :)

You can really see the Swiss Dots all over the Poinsettia from this close up view! After cutting the Poinsettias using the Quickutz die, I ran them through The Big Shot Express using the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots EF :) I like the way it adds a lil' more texture & dimension.

To accentuate the 5 bottom squares, I cut them out, then adhered them with an adhesive foam square. I stamped the leave images directly on the Bingo card by inking up the PTI Poinsettia leaf image with SU Garden Green ink.

Ingredients Used: Stamps: SU Perfect Presentation, PTI Peaceful Poinsettia Paper: Bazzill Pomegranate, SU Whisper White, Kraft Ink: SU Garden Green, Ranger Antique Photo Sprinkles: SU tag punches, Offray ribbon, Quickutz Poinsettia die, Martha Stewart pearls, generic brads & cord, Making Memories hardware

Just Us Girls Challenge..... JUGS7

Hi Ladies! Thank you to all of you who played along last week with the JUGS sketch challenge!

Are you ready to do some DRY EMBOSSING with a Twist?
Today is an EXTRA SPECIAL day! Not only is it time for a NEW challenge but it is JUGS team-mate, SWEET Dana's Birthday! The girls & I are celebrating Dana's Birthday today!!! Tracey dear is the lovely Hostess this week & she has challenged us girls to make DANA a Birthday card using the Dry Embossing Technique. You can find ALL the challenge details on the Just Us Girls site & when you are hopping around to see what the other DT girls have created, PLEASE be sure to wish Dana a VERY Happy Birthday! :) I hope to see what you have dry embossed! Be Sweet!

Dana, Sweetie, this one is JUST FOR YOU :)

I broke out my sewing machine the other day & put it to good use! LOL

For color inspiration, I used the colors provided by The Play Date Cafe. This week's colors for The Play Date's Creativity Challenge #4, PDCC04 were selected by the lovely Sandi & her description of the colors reads, "blue/green, chocolate brown, tan and cream. There is a peace and tranquility to these colors." PERFECT color scheme for a SWEET young ladies birthday card :) I would like to send a BIG Thank You to ALL the girls at The Play Date Cafe for selecting my Christmas card to make their Fab 4 last week! :) Yipee Skipee Please hop on over to see what this talented group of women have created!

After making the butterflies with the Cuttlebug Butterfly die & the Martha Stewart butterfly punch, I sent them on their way to fluttering about through the Sizzix Big Shot Express to appear on the other side with embossed with Swiss Dots! :) I layered ALL the butterflies up x 2. I sewed on a lil fleurette that was crocheted by my dearest sis Tina :) The biggest butterfly of them all, looked a bit odd just sitting on the cs, so I stamped a SU flourish image, then sewer her on down :) I just love how you can see all the layers to these butterflies from this angle :) I am sure Dana will need to fluff them a bit when her card arrives!
Ingredients Used: Stamps: SU Oval All, Carte Postale Paper: K&Company DP, SU Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla, Creamy Caramel, PTI Aqua Mist Ink: SU Chocolate Chip, Ranger Antique Photo, Sprinkles: EK Success Oval & border punches, Fiskars Scalloped Oval punch, Spellbinders Scalloped Oval die, Martha Stewart punch, Cuttlebug butterfly die, generic cream buttons, brads & cord, Offray ribbon, PTI Aqua Mist button

Best Wishes

Hi Girls! So glad it is Friday & the weekend is almost here! I made this card for my "Chemo Buddy". She has received her last round of treatment & is cancer free! :) Yeah!!! If you think you are interested & would like to become a "Chemo Buddy", here is the link : http://chemoangels.net/

For my sketch inspiration, I used this week's awesome Splitcoast Stamper's Sketch from challenge #254, SC254. If you would like to see many BEAUTIFUL creations, I recommend you visit the SCS gallery! Thanks for stopping by & don't forget to join me tomorrow for an ALL NEW challenge with Just Us Girls as well as the SPECIAL challenge for Henry! Be Sweet!

Here is my Best Wishes card:

Using Color Box white ink, I stamped the Kraft cs with a PTI Giga Guidelines image to create the "custom dp" :). Warning: you should either heat set this ink or wait a really long time for it to dry! After heat setting the ink, I used the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots EF to add a whole lot of texture!

To create the BIG blossom, I used the Spellbinders Blossom die to cut all 3 layers, embossed all layers with the Cuttlebug Textile EF then using a sponge dauber, I rubbed on Ranger's Antique Photo ink around the edges to give it a Vintagey look.

Ingredients Used: Stamps: SU All Ovals Paper: Basic Grey DP, SU Whisper White, Mellow Moss, Blush Blossom, Kraft Ink: SU Basic Black, Ranger Antique Photo Sprinkles: EK Success punch, Spellbinders Blossom dies, hardware & button from stash, Offray ribbon

Snow Angel

Hi Girls! This is a VERY SPECIAL post. A fellow stamper, Sarah Anderson, (a DT member of the Pink Cat Studio), & her family are experiencing the loss of their 3 year old son Henry. Little Henry was unable to overcome a virus that made him ill last week. Henry loved his local zoo and visited it almost every day in the summer. As a memorial, trees will be planted there in his honor.

Just Us Girls is conducting a special challenge to all of you out there who would like to help with this cause. Basically to play along, all you need to do is purchase the special stamp called Henry, The Snow Angel Fairy digital stamp (it's only $3.00) designed by Paper Makeup Stamps, as a tribute to Henry, make a card & post it to the Mr. Linky on the "Just Us Girls" blog. Please visit the Just Us Girls site for ALL the details as well as, ALL the JUGS DT girls blogs for complete instructions on how they created their cards! Thank You for your visit today, I hope you can join along for this GREAT cause! I hope you can keep Henry & his family in your thoughts & prayers :) Be Sweet!

For sketch inspiration, I used this week's Mercy's fun sketch #47, MTSC47. I did break out my sewing machine yesterday but I did the few cross-stitches on this card by hand :)

From this close-up view, you can really get a great view of ALL the detail in this cute Henry Snow Angel digital stamp! :)

This is a peek at all the Copic markers I used to color Henry. I personally like the Copic Sketch style of marker, as I find it easy to color between those itty bitty lines with the fine brush tip :)

As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, Sarah is a DT member for The Pink Cat Studio. The Pink Cat Studio has also created a digital stamp set to help raise money for Henry's family. If you would like to contribute more to this cause, please visit the PCS for complete details.

Ingredients Used: Stamps: Paper Makeup Stamps digital stamp: Henry, The Snow Angel Fairy, SU So Many Scallops, PTI Winter Swirls Paper: K&Company DP, PTI Aqua Mist, SU Whisper White, Certainly Celery Ink: SU Chocolate Chip, Copic Markers E00 Skin White, B00 Frost Blue, BG45 Nile Blue, C1 Cool Gray, O Colorless Blender, E27 Africano, E55 Light Camel, G21 Lime Green, Y000 Pale Lemon, R20 Blush Sprinkles: American Crafts ribbon, button from stash, Making Memories crystal brad & eyelet, SU punches & cord, Spellbinders Rectangle Scalloped Nesties, Cuttlebug Snowflake EF,

It's ALL about the OWLS!

Hi Ladies! I would first like to thank all the ladies at The Color Throwdown for selecting my Happy Harvest gift set creations as an Honorable Mention for last week's color challenge! Yeah :) If you would like to see the set, please click here (I have a give-away attached!) I think owls are so GORGEOUS looking, especially the LIVE ones! Just look at those EYES!
You may have seen my Backyard Hootie on a prior post, if not I hope you enjoy the BEAUTY of this creature! I live on top of a mountain ridge & there is a family of owls that live up here too!!!! :) They hunt in the valley below & help keep unwanted vermins out of our backyard! I made this card for The Embellish Magazine.com Color Challenge featuring OWLS. For my sketch inspiration, I used Kazan's awesome sketch #39, 2S4Y39. For your enjoyment, please visit both of these sites as the DT's have BEAUTIFUL samples of inspiration :) Thanks for looking! Be Sweet!






Here is my OWL card:
I pulled out my sewing machine, dusted it off & put it to use! FINALLY! I obviously need practice, but it sure was less time consuming than hand-stitching :) We were encouraged to use various items on our creations in addition to cs, so I picked a small twig off of a bush in my backyard & used it as a perch! The perch is very fragile, making this a hand deliverable card only!

I think this Hero Arts Owl stamp is very girly looking - those eyelashes are sooooo luscious! To accent her eyes, I paper pieced them! Cutting out those teeny tiny pieces was not an easy task! LOL Using EK Success flower punches of various sizes, I made some flower embellies.
Ingredients Used: Stamps: Hero Arts Owl stamp, PTI Polk A Dot Basics, SU Fancy Flexible Phrases Paper: SU Chocolate Chip, Natural's Ivory, PTI Berry Sorbet, Spring Moss Ink: Copic markers: G40 Dim Green, YG 95 Pale Olive, YG03 Yellow Green, E47 Dark Brown, R32 Peach, R22 Light Prawn, R43 Bougainvillaea, 0 Colorless Blender, SU Chocolate Chip, Ranger/Tim Holtz Antique Photo Sprinkles: EK Success flower punches, Spellbinders Labels 1 dies, Sizzix SU Leaf die, Sizzix Sizzlits Flourish die, Cuttlebug EF, SU cord, Making Memories eyelet, buttons from stash