Happy 4th Anniversary PTI

I am so excited about PTI's 4th Anniversary festivities. I couldn't wait to make a quick card this morning with the downloadable tags. I wish I had more time to stamp today to make them all.

This is a Valentine's card for my valentine. Tried not to make it too girly, but...well...

I am constantly inspired by PTI, and they often get the bulk of my stamping dollars. This month is surely no exception!

Christmas Cards

I found the idea on Gina Krupsky's (Gina K. Designs) blog to make cards of the troops to send home to their families for Christmas. I thought it was a fantastic idea, and I have a brother-in-law in Iraq who can distribute cards to the people in his group.

The girls and I have been trying to make cards, we have only gotten about 20 done, but I want to get them sent out next week.

I was having trouble with the stamp set I had chosen to use, but today Patti suggested I use her cute Hero Arts set, and tonight I have been cranking out the cards like crazy. (Thanks, Patti!)

This is a closer view. I used the new Slice machine to cut the little Holiday Cheer tags. I really like the Slice, but I'm still learning how to use it.

The DP with blue is from Basic Grey. I think it is called Figgy Pudding. I also bought this paper on advice from Patti (nicknamed "The Enabler" by our friend Amy).

I ordered this stamp from Paper Pretties. I totally love how adorable this cute little girl is. I used paper that I received from Archivers as some kind of gift with purchase. I love that it is not traditional Christmas green and red.

The irony of the day is that I NEVER make or even send Christmas cards, and here I am making Christmas cards for others to send. Funny, huh?

Rustic Branches

I made my first purchase with Papertrey Ink when Heather Nicol's (Pine's) stamp set, Rustic Branches, was released. I love the simplicity of the entire set. I also enjoyed trying Papertrey's DP and card stock.

I usually judge paper by the way it feels. I'm extremely tactile, that's the way I pick clothing too. No wonder I am so casually dressed all of the time, I choose everything by the way it feels on my skin! Both the DP and the card stock feel significant in weight and smooth on one side and textured on the other.

I used Pink Patterns DP, Spring Moss and Dark Chocolate card stock. I also ran a small swatch of Kraft through the Cuttlebug embossed with swiss dots. And embellished with a button with a thread.

All of the supplies are from Papertrey, except the Spellbinder's Nestabilities for the scalloped rectangle, and the sentiment from Printworks.

I'm back to school (the beginning of my FINAL year of law school--woohoo!), so both card-making and posting will be less frequent.

Hope all is well with all of my blog-friends out there!

Nesting

No, I'm not having a baby, but the "nesting" urge has hit me big-time since the girls are coming home tonight from being away most of the summer. I found myself cleaning the entire house, their rooms, making beds, and even doing a little decorating.

The decorating is what brings me to this post. I made a quick dresser scarf for Savannah out of a piece of canvas I had lying around. I washed it first, then quick zig-zag stitched around the edges, added a piece of beaded embellishment that I had around and then stamped using an old SU! Definitely Decorative set. I stamped using acrylic paint, Copic ink, and also a Sharpie. I was using whatever was on-hand and nearby.

I also refinished a $5 table I bought at a crazy junk store here in DeKalb. I sanded it a little, spray painted it white, then stamped on white card stock using the same SU! set. Then I cut out and decoupaged the stamped images and some DP onto the table using Elmer's glue and then a clear gloss coat. Finally, I bought some rick rack and glued it to the edges of the table for a CUTE finish. I mixed up the clear coat with the base coat paint, so there's a bit of a white haze over the whole project, but it just looks fine in person.

Savannah is going to LOVE this shabby-chic addition to her room. As for Macie, it was time for her to get a new dresser and bed (from Ikea). She was using my sister's dresser from when she was born - 31 years ago. (Happy Birthday on Monday, Aunt Val!)

Inspired by the Media Diva

This card was inspired by the Media Diva. (My husband has a less appropriate name for him right now.)

Yes, I'm talking about Brett Favre. Doesn't he realize we have more important mud-slinging to watch on the news with fewer than 100 days until the election?

Cindy, you didn't have to leave the ball at 11:15, but you can't return at 12:30 either...your coach has turned back to a pumpkin and your dress is a mess!

A Great Husband

My fabulous husband (look, you can see his shoulder, right there on the right, just next to me...) took me to Madison, WI last weekend for dinner. He's been trying to take me to this great place, Quivey's Grove, for a long time. So he decided to book a room off Hotwire and take me last Saturday. OK, so that's so sweet, but EVEN better he looked up about six stamp/scrap stores and took me on a little shopping tour. He even sat in the car and read a book while I shopped! What a guy.

I made these next two cards with DP and stamps I bought on that trip. I'll have to edit later with actual manufacturers.

The square card uses a Lockhart stamp, which I colored with my Copics. I also bought this "Shapeabilities" from Spellbinders to make the tag.

This card is a tri-fold. I used some fabulous DP to cover the front two panels. I love all of the color! The stamp is from PrintWorks, which I found at this little regional chain in Wisconsin, Scrapbook & Stamping Memories. I love the image so much and it is really simple to color in with Copics.

OK, I do realize that every card I make is crooked in some way. I guess that is something I should strive to fix.

So now I am back to reality. I am writing a paper for my summer class on the Constitutionality of School Fees. Yes, they are Federally Constitutional, but some state constitutions require FREE schools. Illinois is one of them, therefore I am scratching my head about the annual registration fees. Hmmm...

Have a great day!

Two more cards

This card took on several new faces until I finally got something that looked good. At first, it was intended to have the Elzy on the card below...but for some reason it didn't work. (Something to do with horizontal and vertical spacing, I'm sure.)

I don't remember the manufacturer of the stamp set with the trees (I bought it at Archivers), but the sentiment is the first of Verve's Plain Janes. It is beautiful, and it stamps perfectly.

I can never quite come up with the right sentiment for this Elzy, but I think this works. I used the Pretty Little Papers that I bought at A Muse in Seattle, and also I paper-pieced Elzy's dress. I LOVE paper-piecing.

Addition: Verse stamp by PrintWorks Collection, Inc. which I purchased at Hobby Lobby. It is a clear set of eight verses.

Have a great day!

Amuzapalooza

I was excited to receive a call from my LSS The Cottage Stamper that I won the 1st prize from their Amusapalooza celebration. Woohoo!

It is a cute little red bag (back left) filled with fabulous AMuse products, including two of their new clear stamp sets, card blanks, pretty little papers and new Christmas stamps. The Cottage Stamper also included a package of inks from Colorbox.

I never win anything, and now I've won this and also a set of Creative Play stamps from Patti Gingrich's blog. My luck must be changin'! I am so blessed.

Another Copic Card

This seahorse and oyster by Outlines Rubber Stamp Co. was colored using Copics and Spica Glitter Pens. I also used a pearl embellishment in the oyster and dimensional bubbles (some of which cannot be seen in this photo), which give it a whimsical look.

This card is going out to my good friends Rusty and Leanne on Whidbey Island, who have just built their dream home. It has a view the water and snowcapped Mt. Baker from the entire northeast side of their house. It is just grand, and they are wonderful people who deserve such a blessing. We enjoyed a fabulous dinner catching up with them.

Savannah Sparkles

I found this Cosmos & Mimosa dress from the Le Fleur Couture line by Lockhart Stamp Co. at Stampadoodle. It is perfect for a note to my Savannah, who truly sparkles.

Turns out Lockhart Stamp Co. is from Redmond, WA, same place as Microsoft. Just a little geography trivia.

The "You Sparkle" sentiment must be a Stampadoodle original, as there is no information on the stamp itself. I love this sentiment, it fits just about anyone on any given day! All of the paper is just scraps, so I don't know where it came from. But the exciting part of this card is that it is colored with Copics. I love the sketch tip, makes coloring so easy. I'm not a "shader" or a "blender" yet, but I love the functionality of Copics.

I have a few more Lockhart stamps on my wish list!