Monday, November 29, 2010

Perfect Presentation Holiday Gift Ideas!

I have some exciting news!! Over the weekend I was asked to join the Design Team for Perfect Presentation! They have wonderful templates for a phenomenal value. They come in SVG, GSD and PDF. Today I used my Silhouette SD to cut out this adorable Winter Sleigh.

(You can click on all of the images to see the pictures larger.)





It came together so quickly and easily. I am in love with the shape of this sleigh!! I wanted to keep it simple so I just added a flourish that I cut out with my Silhouette. I spruced it up with some stickles and gave the skates some shine with some big chunky mica flakes.


















I put some Hershey Kisses into a clear bag and tied it off with some ribbon and twine. Then I added a few mini jingle bells to the tag. All ready to be given to a friend, neighbor or teacher. It was so much fun making this sleigh that I can't wait to put together some more.



Check out what the rest of the Perfect Presentation DT made!



Stamps: PTI Tiny Treats Christmas (for sentiment)
Ink: Versamark Pixie Dust
Paper: PTI Sweet Blush, Hawaiian Shores, Vintage Cream
Misc: Silhouette SD machine, Silhouette holly flourish, Spellbinders Tag Trio, Divine Twine, mini jingle bells, Hershey Kisses, Stickles, Martha Stewart Mica flakes, misc satin ribbon, pink gems

Sunday, November 28, 2010

So Grateful

This Thanksgiving I decided to send a card to some of my friends. Just to let them know that I am grateful for them.



As I was making them I noticed that I was surrounded by a lot of cards. Many more than I thought I would be making.



I realized that I have a lot of dear friends that surround me. And how fortunate I am.


























Stamps: PTI Friendship Jar, Delightful Dahlia, Flutterby Friend, Signature Greetings, SU Easy Elegance
Ink: Memento, Versamark
Paper: Vellum, PTI White
Misc: Bubble Gum Pink Twine, Cuttlebug Tag die, Liquid Pearls

Thursday, November 25, 2010

PTI Blog Hop Tags 2010

I'm so excited about this month's blog hop! I am in the process of making an Advent Tag Banner. Here are the first round that I've completed so far. If you are interested, you can check back in the next week to see the rest of the tags. :)





Here is one of the tags up close:



The back of the tag with the countdown number:



Here is what they will look like on the Banner:


Thanks for stopping by! Enjoy the Hop!! :)


Stamps: PTI 2009 and 2010 Holiday Tags, Friendship Jar, Holiday Button Bits, On Ice, Tiny Treats Christmas
Ink: Versafine, Memento,
Paper: PTI Sweet Blush, White, Spring Rain, SU Ruby Red
Misc: Silhouette SD for the numbers, Divine Twine, Stickles, PTI Buttons, PTI Dies, Tags, Candy Cane Clothespins from The Shabby Chic Cottage

Monday, October 25, 2010

October 2010 PTI Blog Hop

With not much crafting time these days, I chose to do a Clean And Simple card. I wanted to be able to send this card to all of my friends, regardless of faith. And it had to be easy to mass produce. I'm also going to make some with the sentiment "Warm winter wishes".

I'm keeping this brief so you can continue on with the Hop. Have fun!!


















Stamps: PTI Holiday Button Bits, Through the Trees
Ink: PTI Pure Poppy, SU Whisper White Craft Ink
Paper: PTI Select White, Spring Rain
Misc: Pop dots, glue pen, MS Glitter, white embossing powder

Monday, August 30, 2010

Thank you Nichole Heady!

This card is dedicated to Nichole Heady; the innovative and creative force behind Papertrey Ink, my very favorite stamp company. PTI has changed my way of paper crafting forever. I was a scrapbooker and fairly new to the stamping world when I discovered PTI. Nichole has made card making so easy and enjoyable! I get giddy when the sneak peeks arrive and I get ridiculously excited whenever I place an order. Nothing {well besides my family} makes me so happy!!

Thank you Nichole for all of your hard work and effort that you put into PTI. It definitely does not go unnoticed and I am extremely grateful for you!!























Stamps: PTI Year of Flowers: Roses, Signature Greetings
Ink: Memento Dandelion, Memento Rosebud, Copic Markers
Paper: PTI Select White, Hibiscus Burst
Misc: PTI Hibiscus Burst Satin Ribbon, pop dots

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Anni-Verve-sary Blog Hop 2010























Welcome to the Anni-VERVE-sary Blog Hop! Verve turns three today and we’re celebrating with a hop, hop, hop! If you've already been hopping along, you arrived here from the very talented Verve Diva Shannan's blog. If not, head on over to Julee's Blog (owner of Verve), for all the info on how to win prizes (after all, what's a party without presents?), and to start hopping from the beginning. If there's a hiccup along the hop, you can always head to the Master Hop List to get the full list of links.



























My Grandmother has been my idol and inspiration all of my life. She and I have always been very close. Grandma is 96 years old and is still as quick witted as ever. She is a very "hip" Grandma and has always been with the times. But sadly, Grandma's heart is now failing. She loves receiving my cards so I wanted to make her a special card before she passed.
























There is no way I could ever be exactly like her, but I hope that I have retained some of her wonderful qualities. I wanted to convey a little something to her along those lines, that's why I chose this very special sentiment.


At the very last minute I decided to add this to the inside. I wanted to keep it fairly simple so that I can write her a note. Hope you enjoyed my card. It might take me all day long, but I'll be visiting and commenting on every blog on the Hop for sure! Have fun hopping!


Stamps: Verve's Because of You, Grateful Elegance
Ink: Versamagic Turquoise Gem, Versamark
Paper: PTI Aqua Mist, Hawaiian Shores,  Vintage Cream
Misc: Clear Embossing Powder, Cream Embossing Powder, Flat back pearls, Pop Dot, SU Top Note Die, PTI Hawaiian Shores Satin Ribbon

Thanks for hopping by! Now it's time to hop on over to the Sweet and Fabulous Terri E’s blog for a little more Verve-y goodness.

Friday, July 30, 2010

Little Bundle

A very good friend of mine asked me to make her a baby card for her friend. I am really not good at coming up with something without any direction. But thanks to a sleepless night I was able to sketch this card out in my head. I tried to keep it simple but let the elements pop out.

I decided to try out a window technique that I've seen before but never did myself. For this card I had to work from the inside out. I cut out the Top Note shape and stamped the sentiment on it. Then I adhered it to the inside of the card. Next I took a scrap piece of cardstock the exact size of the card. Found the center with my T Ruler and traced around the nestabilities circle in the center. I cut it out to make sure it would line up properly. I wanted to make sure you could read most of the sentiment from the outside. Once I was sure it would, I then lined up the Nestabilities circle in the center of the front of the card and cut.

I used an old PTI stamp box for the clear acetate window. After I cut the openings in the front, I cut out a piece of the plastic box and laid it between the cardstock layers. Used my ATG gun to adhere it all down. Then I added the cute little baby and Prima Roses.
























Inside you can see the cute little butterflies I added next to the sentiment. I hope the new Momma enjoys it as much as I enjoyed making it! Thanks for stopping by!!























Stamps: Dress Up Sweet Pea by Pink Cat Studio
Ink: MS Chalk Ink in Pink Geranium, Memento Black
Paper: PTI Vintage Cream, SU Certainly Celery, Rosy Cheeks by Imaginisce
Misc: SU Top Note Die, MS Butterfly Punch, Clear PTI Stamp box for clear cardstock, Prima Roses, PTI Silk Ribbon, PTI Sweet Blush Button, SU Certainly Celery Twill Ribbon, Nestabilities, Copic Markers, Pop Dots

Monday, July 12, 2010

Clothesline Easel Card

My cousin and his wife just recently had twins. A boy and a girl. They had them through a surrogate so I wanted to make an extra special card. I got this great Unity stamp as a RAK from my friend Chrissy a while back. I thought it would be perfect!





I colored the clothes with copic markers and popped them up. Then I glued down some twine for the clothesline. I made it look like an outdoor scene using some cloud paper and the fence punch. I cut the grass myself with scissors even though I could have easily used the Silhouette. I was on a roll and didn't want to stop by using the computer! I found the PERFECT sentiment to go on the front of the card. I was so excited once I pulled it together.























I had decided to make this an easel card just to give it more pop. I don't have many baby sets so I struggled to find a sentiment for Twins. Luckily I was able to use this sentiment from Signature Greetings and add an "S" to the word bundle. For the "S" I just inked up a letter from another sentiment in the set.  The Memento Dew drops work perfectly for these tight areas!




I added a couple of strips of patterned paper at the bottom to finish off the card. I am working on a picture frame to send with the card. I'll post it when I'm done. :) Thanks for stopping by today. I hope you enjoyed your weekend!

Stamps: Unity, PTI Everyday Button Bits & Signature Greetings
Ink: Memento Black, Colorbox Night Sky, Distress Ink, Copics
Paper: PTI Vintage Cream, Hibiscus Burst, Summer Sunrise, October Afternoon Patterned  Paper
Misc: EKSuccess Punch, MS Fence Punch, PTI Hawaiian Shores Buttons, Twine, pop dots, Stickles, sewing machine

Friday, July 9, 2010

Pink & Gray Love

I thought I'd try another CAS card. I'm not sure where I found this layout. I had it scribbled on a post it note and it sat on my desk for a very long time. I'm guessing it's from the CAS Blog, probably the Fall to Layout Sketch #85. This is another swap card I made for the SCS PTI swap that I'm in. I made 8 of these. They came together quickly but tying bows still gives me such a fit!!Apparently I am bow tying impaired.

Stamps: PTI Delightful Dahlia & Signature Greetings
Ink: PTI Smokey Shadow, Memento
Paper: PTI White, Bazzill Grey
Misc: EK Success Scallop Punch, Pink satin ribbon, MS Butterfly Punch

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Soaring By

I'm stunned! I won an honorable mention on The Playdate Cafe's blog for my Argyle card. Wow! I'm the one who feels honored. So how appropriate that today's card is in the clouds. Exactly how I'm feeling. :)




I'm in a PTI swap over on SCS hosted by my good friend Amy. We were to make a square card. I chose to try making one of those "scene-like" type of cards that have been popping up all over the place. They are by far my favorite, followed closely by the Clean and Simple designs. Weird combo, huh? Yep, that's me.

I had a ton of fun creating this card. It was sooooo nice to have some alone time in my craft room after a week of entertaining the In-Laws. So much so that I made 6 of these cards plus another one for me to keep for myself. :) Crafting is so therapeutic for me. I really need to make more time to craft. Hope you get some crafting time in soon!


Stamps: PTI Everyday button Bits, Text Background
Ink: Memento Black & Rose Bud, Colorbox Sky Blue
Paper: SU Bashful Blue, PTI Green Leaf & Hibiscus Burst
Misc: PTI Lemon Tart, New Leaf, Hawaiian Shores & Hibiscus Burst Buttons, pop dots, felt, felt glue, sewing, copics

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Cherry Blossom Tree & Elegant Chick



I had a vision of making a Cherry Blossom Tree. But I didn't have the right stamps and ink. Or so I thought! (I'm in the process of getting rid of all of my PTI inks and supplementing with other manufacturers so my ink selection is limited right now.) I used the tree from SU's Branch Out set and the flowers are from PTI's Floral Fusion. I inked a group of 3 blossoms and stamped off on some scrap paper so I could get just the right color of pink. I added some darker flowers to add some depth. Then I used a Copic Marker for the center of the flowers. That's one of the great things about the Memento ink, you can use Copic markers right on top of them!! I tried making the tree look like it was losing some blossoms in the wind. Not sure if I accomplished it, but I tried. I made 6 of them for a swap held by my good friend Jen. It's a clean and simple design but it was A LOT of stamping. Sure was fun though and that's what matters! :)

Stamps: SU Branch Out, PTI Floral Fusion
Ink: Memento Rose Red, Palette Burnt Umber
Paper: Gina K Luxury White Cardstock, PTI Hibiscus Burst
Misc: PTI Hibiscus Burst Button, misc ribbon, twine, pop dots, copic marker



The next card is for the same swap. My wonderful and generous friend Banu sent me her extra PTI Anniversary set, Round and Round. (Does anyone else sing that eighties song in your head when you read the name of this set? heehee! Who sings that anyway?) This was the first time I was able to use it. It's such a nice set. I especially love the big flourish with the circle in the center. So many things you can do with it!!

I didn't use ANY pink on this card!! I know Chris will be proud of me. It was tough, let me tell you. I think for me, pink is what Kraft is for most people. It's my neutral. :) But it's nice creating out of my box. Once in a while.

Stamps: PTI Round and Round, Everyday Button Bits, Polka Dots 2
Ink: PTI Hawaiian Shores, Versamagic Olive
Paper: PTI Hawaiian Shores, Aqua Mist, Select White, SU Old Olive
Misc: PTI Lemon Tart buttons, flat back pearls, nestabilities, pop dots, EK Success Scallop Punch

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Busy Bug



I made this card for my best friend. I hope to visit her next month. I haven't seen her in years and years. We've both been very busy living in different states and raising our kids. I promised her that I'd drive all the way up to see her if I had to. Even if it means 14 hours in a car with 2 kids with no DVD player. Oh the horror! But she is definitely worth it.

I thought this card was too busy with the patterned paper and then I paper pieced the car. I played around and even used a copic colored car instead but it just didn't look right. So I'm not thrilled with this but I'm hoping my friend will be.

Stamps: Clear Dollar Stamps
Ink: Memento black
Paper: October Afternoon, PTI Hawaiian Shores & Summer Sunrise, Raspberry Fizz Dots Patterned Paper
Misc: PTI Raspberry Fizz Satin Ribbon, PTI Lemon Tart button, PTI Cream Twine, pop dots, acetate for windshield

Sunday, July 4, 2010

The Play Date Challenge {with no kids involved!!}



This is my first time trying the Play Date Cafe Challenge. Actually I just happened to stumble upon the blog today. I loved the combo so I just had to play!

























I loosely based my sketch on the Fall to Layout Sketch #96. Well, it started out CAS with just the argyle. Then I made a mistake so I thought I should cover it up with some ribbon. But the ribbon was too high up so I added the butterfly to try to balance it out. Then it still didn't look right so I added some more ribbon to give it a gift box effect. It's funny how the end result can sometimes be something that you did not have in mind at all. Gotta love those mistakes. ;)

























Usually ofter playdates I am exhausted and need some alone time. Preferably in my craft room. But this play date was kid free and just what I needed after a long weekend. Happy Monday!

Stamps: PTI A Little Argyle, Butterfly Dreams, Signature Greetings
Ink: Memento Angel Pink, Lady Bug
Paper: Gina K Luxury White Cardstock, PTI Pure Poppy
Misc: PTI Butterfly Die, stickles, white satin ribbon, pop dots

Here to give you a Lift



Hello my poor little deserted blog. I've missed you!! I had some free time the other day so I created this card just for fun.  I also had some time to create another 15 cards. However, 12 of them are swap cards that need to mailed out. Stop by tomorrow to see some more! Hope you are having a wonderful weekend.


Stamps: PTI Everyday Button Bits, Text Background
Ink: Memento Rose Bud & Tangelo, Versamagic Turquoise Gem, PTI Hawaiian Shores, SU Garden Green, Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Peeled Paint
Paper: PTI Vintage Cream, New Leaf
Misc: PTI Buttons, Vintage Cream Felt & Vintage Cream Twill, Shearing scissors, Felt Glue

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Long time no SEE!!!

Hello everyone! Long time no "see". It's been exactly one month. Pathetic!! Kids home from school, a puppy to train, in-laws due here any day and a computer crash has kept me busy. I've missed blogging and creating so much!! I hope to get back on track soon. Especially since I ordered some new PTI goodies. :)

This week I posted a Paper Piecing challenge over at the Papertrey Chicks blog. Check it out and join us if you feel inspired to do so. I thought I'd post the photo and deets over here just to give you some eye candy.



The first card I made using some October Afternoon Paper and PTI's Baby Button Bits. It's a very simple card, but I wanted to showcase the paper piecing aspect of it.


This next card is a cute 3x3 that literally took seconds to make. I'm going to make 5 more of these babies  in varying colors and make them a complete set. When that will be? Who knows...lol!


This last project was something that I have been itching to do for a long time. SCRAPBOOK!!! I used to scrap every week and I need to get back into it. I've even considered getting rid of all of my stamps  and stop card making just to force myself back into it. Crazy talk, I know. Don't worry, I still have plenty of stamps and many reasons to keep making cards.


Well that's it for now. Must feed kids, dog, self and shower. But hey, I got to play with my toys this morning. Yay!!

Project Details:

Baby Card:

Stamps: PTI Baby Button Bits, Honey Bee, Little Lady
Ink: Ranger Distress Ink, PTI Dark Chocolate
Paper: PTI Summer Sunrise, Hawaiian Shores, Lemon Tart Bitty Dot paper, October Afternoon
Misc: PTI button, misc satin ribbon, PTI twine, pop dot

3x3 Card:

Stamps: PTI Delightful Dahlia, Through the Trees
Ink: Black Memento
Paper: PTI Hibiscus burst, Summer Sunrise, Aqua Mist Bitty Dots

Scrapbook Page:

Stamps: PTI Butterfly Dreams, Delightful Dahlia, Fresh Alphabet, Polka Dot 2, Impression Obsession Journaling 1
Ink: PTI Hawaiian Shores, Memento London Fog & Black, Versamagic Dew Drops
Paper: PTI Hawaiian Shores, Spring Moss, White Select, SU Certainly Celery, misc blue
Misc: PTI Buttons, MS white twill ribbon

Saturday, May 22, 2010

Chick Challenge # 2 Re-Do

So last night I was able to make a proper card for the Papertrey Chicks Challenge. {Everyone is welcome to join!! We post a new challenge every Monday.} The card above was what we were supposed to case. As I said before I just love Betsy. Casing her cards is intimidating!! I don't have that particular set she used, so I used Damask Designs. I'll be sending this to my Mom because after almost 2 months in the hospital my brother is finally coming home!!! Thanks for stopping by! Have a great weekend!!




Stamps: PTI Damask Designs, Fancy Flourishes, Round & Round
Ink: PTI Smokey Shadow, Spring Moss, Summer Sunrise, Sweet Blush
Paper: PTI Select White, Sweet Blush, Spring Moss, Summer Sunrise
Misc: White Satin Ribbon, Rhinestones, Pop Dots, scallop scissors

Friday, May 21, 2010

PTI Chicks Challenge #2 Casing Betsy Veldman

Last week's Papertrey Chicks Challenge was to case a card from the PTI Design Team Gallery. I thought I was to choose my own card to case but apparently I do not know how to follow directions!!! I was supposed to case the particular card chosen on the blog. Oh well, back to the drawing board.

I have been completely in love with this card since I set eyes on it. Betsy Veldman is my favorite DT Member!!! Below is the picture of her gorgeous card from the PTI Gallery:


I tried my best on my card but I had to leave some things off. My card just didn't look right with ribbon and a bow on it. It was way too busy. I also left off the second set of vellum flowers. I almost didn't want to put the vellum over the flower at all!! I am  not very good with copics but when I was done, I was happy with the outcome. It was almost painful to cover it up!!



























I'm going to give this card to a sweet lady that I met at a church function. You know when you meet someone and you immediately connect with them? Not only did I connect with her, I absolutely fell in love with her. She was full of such energy and vim and vigor. She was the sweetest lady to me and my girls. After talking to her for a while, she told me that she was 79. I was completely in awe! I would love to have her energy and attitude at that age! I am giving this to her because we left behind my daughter's sweater and she tracked me down to let me know. And the next week at church she brought a bag full of puppy toys for Buddy. So I wanted to thank her. I'll give it her on Sunday. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Stamps: PTI Delightful Dahlia, Damask Designs (sentiment)
Ink: PTI Hibiscus Burst, Summer Sunrise & Spring Moss, Memento Black
Paper: Gina K Luxury White Cardstock
Copics: RV10, RV13, RV14, Y15, Y35, Y38, YG63, YG67
Misc: Vellum, Silhouette, Velvet Ric Rac, Rhinestone

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Thank you Teacher

I have been in such a rut lately. Too much going on at home I guess takes away all of the crafty Mojo. A good friend of mine asked me to make her a card for her son's teacher. I had no idea where to start or what she would like. I knew I wanted to use an apple from PTI's Everyday Button Bits. I started searching teacher quotes and found a great one. I then took it from there and created this card.





Edited to Add: Because I blog surf so much, I had forgotten that I found the tree idea from another much more creative blogger. You can see her gorgeous card here:




Thanks for taking the time to stop by today!! I hope to have some more cards posted this week. I bought some great patterned paper at my LSS and can't wait to use it. I'll be by your blogs sometime this week to check out what you've been up to. I feel so behind in my blog surfing!! But Buddy appreciates my attention right now. ;)


Stamps: PTI Communique Curves Sentiments, Take Note, Through the Trees, Imaginisce Crayon
Ink: SU Close to Cocoa & Old Olive
Paper: PTI Pure Poppy & Summer Sunrise, SU Old Olive, GSD Studios "Practice Book" DSP from the Schooled Collection
Misc: Arial Rounded Font for the sentiment, PTI Pure Poppy Buttons, Pure Poppy Satin Ribbon, pop dots, SU Top Note Die, Copics

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Whee!!!

When I first saw this image I knew I had to get it! It's so sweet and reminds me of my girls. I paper pieced her dress with coordinating paper from the Basic Grey Paper Pad I used. And glued on twine where the rope is. She's swinging from this wisteria vine and just having a wonderful time! I hope you all have a wonderful day today whether you are celebrating Mother's Day or just enjoying a relaxing Sunday.



Stamps: My Favorite Things Pure Innocence
Ink: Memento Black, Adirondak Lettuce
Paper: PTI Vintage Cream, Basic Grey Wisteria 
Misc: PTI Spring Moss Satin Ribbon, Spellbinders Ribbon Tag Die, Twine, Pop Dots, Prima Flower, Rhinestone, Copics

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

PTI Chicks Color Challenge Take 2

So while I was working on my card for this color combo challenge, I changed things quite a few times. Fortunately I ended up with 2 cards! AND this card also qualifies for the Three Cheers for Chairs Challenge in the Moxie Fab World. If you have some time,  you should play along!


This card will be sent to my best friend. I have known her for 30 years now. I met her when I was a shy 12 year old and moved to a new town. She was an outgoing chatterbox who made me laugh harder than anyone on this planet. And she still does!! She likes to refer to us as "Lucy and Ethel". Two good friends who get into a lot of mischief. Yep, that's us! Only I'm not sure I like being Ethel. ;)

I had fun with my new Cosmo Cricket pad! I was so excited when I saw that the flower and striped paper had almost every color from the color challenge. Debbie Olsen does some amazing works of art with this company's paper. I have another Cosmo pad on it's way to me and can't wait to use it!! This layout was very basic but I wanted to show off the papers. I don't have much experience with mixing all types of patterns so I was  hoping that because I bought a matching set of paper, it would match. What do you think?


























Stamps: PTI On My Couch Additions
Ink: PTI Hawaiian Shores, SU Pumpkin Pie, Ranger Tea Stain
Paper: SU Pumpkin Pie, PTI Hawaiian Shores, Pure Poppy, Spring Rain & Vintage Cream, Cosmo Cricket 6x6 Garden Variety Pad
Misc: PTI  Pure Poppy Twill Ribbon, pop dots, sewing machine