Regal Blooms

Thanks for the nice, reassuring comments on my blogs new look. I'm happy to hear that it is loading properly for you. I kind of wondered since it looks different on my laptop vs my desktop where I created it. I guess that  is due to different sized screen. Anyways...today I want to share a fun project I created over the weekend.

I told you I have Spring fever! So instead of waiting for a foot of snow to melt and flowers to bloom I took matters into my own hands and created a little bouquet using the Build a Blossom stamp set and matching Blossom Petals punch. I stamped and cut out 15 petals for each flower - 10 large petals and 5 small ones. The two top layers of petals are stamped front and back since they curl upwards. Using the clear mounted stamps made it super easy to stamp even after the blossoms are punched.

I curled the tips of each petal gently around a pencil to get a more natural shape to my flowers. I glued them onto a matching cardstock base cut using the 1" circle punch. When I finished my top layer, I glued down a 1/2" circle punched out of matching cardstock to the center of the flower. This helps hold it all in place since it is just the inner tips of the petals that are being glued into place. I used Tombo Multi Adhesive for the entire project. For the finishing touch I used my favorite embellishments...the Antique Brads for the center.

I didn't bend back the prongs of the brads like I would normally do. This way I was able to insert them into the stems. Now you are probably wondering what I used for stems? They are the sticks sold in the candy making section of most craft stores, to make suckers. I hollowed out a hole in one end to fit the ends of the brad in, filled it with liquid adhesive and adhered the bloom into place. The white stick was covered in green floral tape.

The golden painted walls and accents of red in my kitchen were my color inspiration when creating my flowers. I used More Mustard, Cherry Cobbler & Rich Razzleberry cardstock and ink. For each petal I used the Rock 'n Roll technique when stamping, so the stamp was first inked in coordinating color to cardstock and then in a darker ink, so I also used Cajun Craze, Bravo Burgundy & Elegant Eggplant inks.
Thanks for visiting me today!

Springtime Vintage

Guess what I've been doing? I've been busy playing with My Digital Studio and wishing for warmer, sunnier, springtime weather. Since all I see is white when I look outside, I was rather sick of seeing snowflakes when I logged onto my blog too! What better way to beat the Winter blahs than to work with some gorgeous new Spring themed floral papers. Not only did I update the look of my blog, I made a scrapbook page to share as well.

I loved the scrapbook page in the latest issue of Stampin' Success and as you can see, that was my inspiration here. It really shows off these gorgeous papers well and makes the perfect backdrop for one of my favorite photos.

For my blog banner, buttons and background, I also used the Springtime Vintage papers which are available as one of the newest downloads. I also used one of my favorite stamp sets, Vintage Vogue, which is also available in digital form. Just visit my demo website and they are easy to add to your collection.

Trust me, I am no computer whiz...so whenever I create a new blog design, I'm always concerned about technical issues. With numerous tweaks, it now looks almost how I want it on my screen....but I always wonder if the page will load properly on my visitors computers. So I'd love to hear any feedback.

Thanks for stopping by. Enjoy every moment of your weekend!

Vintage Garden

Don't ask me why I have not used this set in so long? Greenhouse Gardens is such a beautiful set, but I just haven't used it much. I'm glad I brought it out to play because I think it compliments the new Springtime Vintage papers nicely.

Stamps: Greenhouse Gardens, Because I Care (Level 1 Hostess set) & Botanical Blooms (2009 SAB set for leaves)
Card stock: Always Artichoke, River Rock, Very Vanilla & Springtime Vintage paper
Ink: Always Artichoke, Baja Breeze, Not Quite Navy
Accessories: Always Artichoke Seam Binding Ribbon, Square Lattice Embossing Folder, Nestabilities Dies

They are saying we are going to get blasted with another 4-6 inches of snow and perhaps freezing rain. Looks like another good day to stay home and be creative! Thanks for visiting me today. :-)

Building My Own Spring Blossoms

With another 8+ inches of the white stuff dumped on us yesterday, it looks like if I want to enjoy pretty Spring flowers I'll have to build my own!

I always love stamp sets and punches that go together, and the Build a Blossom combo is no exception! This card came together quickly using products from the Occasions Mini and a FREE set from the Sale-a-Bration catalog.

Stamps: Build a Blossom & So Happy For You
Card stock: Certainly Celery, Baja Breeze, Regal Rose Prints
Ink: Baja Breeze, Not Quite Navy & Rose Red
Accessories: Framed Tulips Embossing Folder, Rose Red Seam Binding Ribbon, Smooch Spritz Spray, Blossom Petals Punch

Thanks for stopping by today!

50 & Fabulous

I'm happy to say that I've been doing some scrapbooking lately. These pages came together pretty quickly using the Ice Cream Parlor Papers and Accent Pack available for FREE during Sale-a-Bration and the adorable Build a Cupcake Punch.

I took these photos at my sister-in-law's 50th surprise Birthday party. When she walked in, we were all wearing the glasses with a fake nose. So of course I got a lot of fun photos of everyone sporting the glasses that night. Here's a look at the left side of the layout.

I used the Billborard Sizzlet Strip Die to cut the word fabulous and the Simple Numbers Bigz Dies to cut the numbers. The Swirly Sizzlet Strip was used for the border along the left side. It is cut from Daffodil Delight Patterned Paper & adorned with Basic Rhinestone Jewels. My favorite accent on this page is the little crown tag.

I used the Tiny Tags set and the Jewelry Label punch. The cute ribbon is is also a FREE item during Sale-a-Bration...it's part of the Ribbon Button Pack. You can see the cute flower buttons from the pack on the punched  cupcakes on the opposite page of my layout. 

The yellow scalloped border used on the tag here and on the photo on the opposite page is one of the Quick Accent Strips included in the Ice Cream Parlor kit. I used a few of the flowers on this page as well. They make adding a cute accent so easy because they are adhesive backed. Here's a closer look at my favorite detail on this page...

I used the retired set Whimsical Words for the sentiment here. This layout could be used for any birthday party photos, so contact me today to set up a time to come on over and make these pages or to place your Sale-a-Bration order and receive these items for FREE.

Have a wonderful day!

I {LOVE} Love Valentine

Today I have a couple of different cards to show you. They are both created with the same supplies, but they are quite different. The first one is a traditional card.

I {LOVE} the new red Glimmer Paper! It's so easy to add a nice glittery accent to a project without the mess. I'm also loving a new set I recently got...Tiny Tags which goes along with the Jewelry Tag Punch. Not sure what took me so long to get these two items...they add such a cute touch to cards or scrapbook pages. Using the same supplies, but a a different fold and a neat trick with the Movers & Shapers Die, here is another card I created.

When you open the card, here's how it looks...

I also used the heart from the FREE Sale-A-Bration set So Happy For You & the Scallop Trim Border Punch on this one. The way you create the sandwich and run it though your Big Shot enables you to create this fun fold out window design using the Movers & Shapers Die. I watched this great tutorial on Kay's blog  Stampin' to Share  to learn how to do this. Thank you for your great instructions Kay!

Happy Valentine's Day to you!

Eat Chocolate Cone

After seeing so many cute projects using the new Petal Cone Die, I knew I just had to have it! Here's my first project using it.

I also used the cute new set Eat Chocolate. I found this to be really easy to put together. I love the little banner that is on this die, and can see using it on cards and scrapbook pages. The little heart image is from the set Tiny Tags. I wanted to use the Decorative Label punch, with the stamp that had the border, but wanted the other saying. So I used my Regal Rose marker to ink up just the border and then used my Stamp-a-ma-jig with the "...I'm that friend" saying to get perfect placement.

Stamps: Eat Chocolate, Tiny Tags & Teeny Tiny Wishes
Card stock: Pretty in Pink. Whisper White & Regal Rose DSP
Ink: Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, Crumb Cake & Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Petal Cone Die,  Decorative Label punch, Rose Red Seam Binding Ribbon, Stamp-a-ma-jig, Basic Rhinestones & CHOCOLATE!

Have a wonderful weekend!

You Rock!

Here's a card I created for my hubby's birthday. I surprised him with tickets to see BB King, so of course had to use a guitar and some blue, right!?

The shade of blue I chose was Not Quite Navy. I like using the Perfect Details Texturz Plate with Brushed Silver cardstock because it looks like diamond plate chrome...which gives a nice masculine feel. Instead of using ribbon I used my crimper and added a strip of crimped black card stock. Both the guitar and "you rock" sentiment were embossed with Black Detail EP. The diamond shaped silver brads used to be part of the Vintage Brad collection, but that shape was retired a few years ago...still have a few left in my stash.

Thanks for stopping by...hope your day rocks!

Inlaid Cupcakes

Are you ready for another cupcake card? Here is one I created using the inlaid embossing technique.

All you need to do is punch out and adhere your pieces to your background piece. Then run it through your Big Shot using an embossing folder with a pretty tight design...in this case I used the Square Lattice EF. The force of the Big Shot embeds the card stocks together and the result looks like an inlaid design...pretty cool, huh? Here's a closer look...

Stamps: Punch Bunch, Cupcakes wheel
Card stock: Very Vanilla, Pumpkin Pie, Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry, Certainly Celery & Tempting Turquoise
Ink: Pumpkin Pie & Melon Mambo
Accessories: Create a Cupcake, Eyelet Border & Scalloped Square Punches, Rich Razzleberry Satin Ribbon & Square Lattice Embossing Folder

Have a great day!

Perfect Plum Sympathy

The Just Believe set makes such beautiful cards for any occasion...even sad ones. Here is a sympathy card I had to make recently. I really love the color combo I used...Crumb Cake, Basic Black & Perfect Plum.

I used the thumping technique to color this image. To do that you color your image using markers and then use a darker color which you tap or "thump" onto the rubber. Real technical, eh? I don't really know how else to describe it? lol But it adds some nice shading without taking a lot of time.

Stamps: Just Believe, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Card stock: Crumb Cake, Basic Black, Perfect Plum & Very Vanilla
Ink: Certainly Celery, Always Artichoke, Pink Pirouette, Perfect Plum & Basic Black
Accessories: Basic Pearls, Perfect Details Embossing Plate, Scallop Trim Border, Modern Label & Window Word Punches

Thanks for stopping by today!