Flowers & Flourishes 28

Hi Everyone! I hope all of you had a Wonderful Thanksgiving Day (if you celebrated) & I hope you survived the crowds, if you were out shopping on Black Friday!
First, I must share with you the randomly chosen winner of my homespun butterflies from my Buttons & Butterflies post. The Winner is......

Isabel Jett

Isabel, please contact me prior to Wednesday, December 2nd so I can get your goodies to you!!! :)
I have had the Honor of being the November Guest Designer at the Pile it on! challenge site & the pleasure of working along with the super talented DT members! Thank you ladies!!! As a little reminder, Pile it on! is a challenge site that offers a new challenge every Sunday. They would like you to incorporate their challenge with at least one other CURRENT challenge (at the time of posting) to "qualify" to be one of their Three Top Scoops or should there be a prize offered that week. The girls at Pile it on! asked me to be this week's Hostess!!! I chose the challenge to focus on Flowers & Flourishes, TWO of my favorite things, especially when combined :) I played around with Photoshop & made this graphic for the PIO #26, Flowers & Flourishes challenge! I made a Mother's Day card & some fleurettes using the following additional challenges: 2. For color inspiration: Splitcoast color challenge #246 which is to use Old Olive, Pretty in Pink, Bermuda Bay or (Taken with Teal) - I used Taken with Teal & neutrals 3. For sketch inspiration: Mercy Tuesday Sketch challenge #49, MTSC49 4. The Cat's Pajamas Tuesday challenge - EMBOSSING & 5. Crazy for Challenges Week 13 - Punch Happy (use at least one punch).

I really enjoy playing along with challenges & I encourage of all you to do the same if you don't already! It is a super fun way to meet many people with a common interest (papercrafting), develop your style & skills while completing your projects!!! :) Please be sure to stop by all of the sites I have mentioned & see what their DT's have created to get you inspired! If you don't play along in challenges, I would love to know why not? Be Sweet!

Here is my Mother's Day card & fleurettes:I inked up several PTI Fancy Flourishes images with VersaMark ink, sprinkled on some Filigree white embossing powder then heat set. The white embossed flourishes "pop" off the SU Kraft cs. I embossed most of the lil' fleurettes using the Cuttlebug Textile texture EF then sponged the edges with Ranger Tea Dye ink.
I gave the BIG pink blossom a vintagey look by crinkling it up then sponging the edges with a little Ranger Tea dye ink. Using the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder, I added a lil' texture to the leaves :)
I cut a mat using my Cricut Expressions & the Accent Essentials cart to show the flower emellishments. I stamped some flourish images using VersaMark then embossed with Filigree white embossing powder. Ingredients Used: Stamps: PTI Fancy Flourishes, Damask Designs, SU Fancy Flexible Phrases Paper: SU Pretty in Pink, Taken with Teal, Old Olive, Whisper White, Kraft Ink: Ranger Tea Dye ink, VersaMark, SU Basic Black, Taken with Teal, Craft White Sprinkles: Cuttlebug Textile texture EF, Spellbinders Dahlia & Labels 4 dies, Offray ribbon, SU silver cord, Sizzix Sizzlit tag, Making Memories hardware, EK Success border & flower punches, Filigree white & clear embossing powder

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Just Us Girls 3-D / Template Challenge....JUGS9 31

Good Morning Everyone! Thank you to all of those who played along with last week's Just Us Girls color challenge & for your support with my blog! This week, it is my turn to be the Hostess for the 9th JUGS challenge.

Are you ready for another 3-D Template Challenge?

'Tis the season of gift giving! With MANY Holidays right around the corner such as Kwanzaa, Hannakuh, Christmas, etc... the girls & I would like to see your best decorated holiday gift box/bag using ANY company's template of your choice or one created by you!

You don't need to own a template to play, here are a few links with FREE templates: Splitcoast Stampers and Papertrey Ink.

You can find ALL the inspirational JUGS DT examples & the challenge details over at Just Us Girls. Thanks for stopping by & be sure to visit ALL the DT girls blogs to see how they created their project! We look forward to all your custom holiday gift packaging! Be Sweet!

Here is my decorated Holiday gift box:

I used the My Timeless Fold N' Go template designed by the Uber talented Lauren Meader:

I love gift sets especially this time of the year!I made a coordinating card :) For sketch inspiration, I used Kazan's fun sketch #40, 2S4Y40. From a close-up view, you can see that BOTH my gift box & card are 3-D! Definitely making this a hand deliverable set :)

Blog Candy: Link your creation up on the JUGS site in the Mr Linky to be entered for a chance to win the little offering from me pictured below! I made a "petite" sized Fold N' Go gift box to hold some ornament tags & embellishments along with a few other goodies that I would like to share and for the opportunity to be the next Chic of the Week!! Show us your best Holiday decorated gift box/bag made from a template for that special someone and don't forget to provide us with a DIRECT link on your blog or gallery to our Mr. Linky.

Ingredients Used: My Timeless Fold N' Go template Stamps: SU Delightful Decorations, Fancy Flexible Phrases Paper: Basic Grey DP, SU Soft Sky, Whisper White, Bazzill Pomegranate Ink: SU Soft Sky, Pretty in Pink, Ruby Red, Basic Black, Ranger Tea dye Sprinkles: SU Ornament punch & silver cord, Making Memories hardware, Offray ribbon, Spellbinders Labels 4 die, Cuttlebug ornament EF, beads from stash

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Grab N' Go Gift set - PTI November Blog Hop 69

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

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Gingerbread Boy / Peppermint Gift set 35

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

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Buttons & Butterflies 36

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

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Just Us Girls Challenge...JUGS8 20

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,

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You're Invited To Celebrate the Season continued 21

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

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