Ice Cream Parlor Bliss

Here are a few projects using the Ice Cream Parlor Papers and the Bliss stamp set that I forgot to show you. The Bliss cone was a little hostess gift made with the Petal Cone Die. I used the stamps from Bliss to add a pretty design to the Melon Mambo card stock. It's tied with ribbon from the Ice Cream Parlor Ribbon & Button pack.

I was surprised that these little cones actually can hold quite a bit of stuff. I filled this one with Dove chocolates (you can't go wrong with chocolate, right!?), a sample of the Ice Cream Parlor Ribbon & Buttons, along with some punched out images from Punch Bunch and a "to do list" magnet using the Eat Chocolate set. (We'll be making one of these at my Eat Chocolate Class on April 10th)

Here is a quick and easy birthday card I demoed at the workshop. It also uses the Ice Cream Parlor Papers, Ribbon & Button Pack along with the So Happy For You stamp set.

It's hard to believe that Sale-a-Bration is almost over! Only two more days...don't let it slip away before you get these cute papers, stamps and ribbons for your collection!

Birthday Peace Within

Here's a Birthday card I made for my SIL. She loves cats and it is supposed to be Spring here so I thought this was perfect. Ahh...I long for the days when I can lounge outside and soak up the warmth from the sun like this little kitty cat.

Doesn't the Springtime Vintage pillow look cute? I don't think I've ever passed up the opportunity to paper piece this image when I've used it...that pillow just asks for it!

My Four Frames set showed up here while I was making this, so of course I was excited to ink that up! The Four Frames set is four stamps that coordinate with the Decorative Label Punch. The best part about these images is that, like the name states, they are frames with no greetings...so they can be used for any occasion. I think I'll be using this set quite a bit! Four Frames, along with some gorgeous new papers called Paisley Petals are part of Stampin' Up!'s April promo.

Stamps: Peace Within, Four Frames, Watercolor Trio (greeting)
Card stock: Baja Breeze, Certainly Celery, Very Vanilla & Springtime Vintage papers
Ink: Not Quite Navy and various other Classis Inks to watercolor
Accessories: Framed Tulips EF, Baja Breeze Seam Binding Ribbon, Basic Pearls, Decorative Label Punch

Have a peaceful day!

You Mean So Much

Here's another creation using the Blessed Mother set from the Occasions Mini. The color combo was inspired by the colors in the Springtime Vintage papers, but I ended up using my Square Lattice Embossing Folder instead of the paper. The little banner along the bottom with the stamped sentiment was cut using the Big Shot and the Petal Cone Die.

Stamps: Blessed Mother
Card stock: Baja Breeze, Always Artichoke, River Rock, Not Quite Navy & Whisper White
Ink: Black Stazon, Not Quite Navy & various other Classic Inks to watercolor
Accessories: Framed Tulips & Square Lattice Embossing Folders, Scalloped Rectangle Clearlit, Petal Cone Die, Always Artichoke Seam Binding Ribbon, Basic Pearls & Aqua Painter

Here's hoping that the weather reports for today are wrong...they have issued a winter storm warning...YUK! I was so hoping that we were done with winter weather. I guess good ol' Mother Nature hasn't looked at her calendar to know it's now "Spring!" Hope wherever you are is sunny...and send it my way!

Thoughtful Pup

Not exactly sure what this cute little puppy is thinking about as he relaxes on this boot, but I thought he would be perfect for a "thinking of you" card.

This adorable puppy image is from a retired stamp set called For Father, and I stamped him in Black Stazon on Very Vanilla card stock. I used my Aqua Painter and Classic Inks to color him. I used Woodland Walk papers, so I used Garden Green ink to color the boot and tie in with the paper. Since this card was made for a man, I used Twill Tape in place of my usual ribbon. I held it in place with some brads and stamped the sentiment (from Level 1 Hostess set - Silhouette Sentiments) right onto the twill.
Thanks for stopping by today...have a GREAT weekend!

Good Luck Shamrock

A quick post to share a quick & easy card that is perfect for St. Patrick's Day.

I used the heart stamp from Hello Again (FREE during SAB) and my Stamp-a-ma-jig to create this four leafed clover. The sentiment is from another SAB set...So Happy For You, and so is the dotted line I used for the stem. See the stamps I used here...

Happy St. Patty's Day!

Hello Friend

What could be more cheerful on a gloomy day than some pretty daisies stamped in Melon Mambo & Rich Razzleberry? It's raining here this morning (better than snow at this point!) and I needed to play with a bright color combo to add some sunshine to my day. This card will be perfect to lift the spirits of a friend

Recently after using my Greenhouse Garden set for the first time in a long time, I've now used it several times since. I actually used the same card design as this card I posted recently, I just changed up the colors and the DSP. The "hello" stamp I used here is from the Hello Again set, which is a FREE set available during SAB.

Stamps: Greenhouse Garden, Hello Again, Tiny Tags & Botanical Blooms (2009 SAB set for leaves)
Card stock: Rich Razzleberry, Whisper White and Pumpkin Pie & Melon Mambo DSP from the Brights Patterns Pack.
Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Pumpkin Pie, Tangerine Tango, Melon Mambo & Certainly Celery
Accessories: Jewelry Tag Punch, White Organza Ribbon & Nestabilities

Hope your day is bright & cheery!

Baja Birthday Frog

I just {LOVE} this adorable little frog with the watering can image! It's part of the A Flowers For All Seasons set...and it's FREE during Sale-a-Bration! I think this color combo is perfect for a Spring birthday, don't you? I made this card for a friend who loves frogs, so I'm sure she will like it.

Stamps: A Flowers For All Seasons & So Happy For You (both sets are FREE during SAB)
Card stock: Baja Breeze, Certainly Celery & Shimmery White
Ink: Black Stazon, Baja Breeze & various other Classic Inks for watercoloring
Accessories: Elegant Lines & Framed Tulips Embossing Folders, Scalloped Rectangle Clearlit, Aquapainter, Baja Breeze Seam Binding Ribbon, Basic Rhinestone Jewels

Thanks for hopping on in today...ENJOY your day!

Deck the Halls Pages

I bought the gorgeous Deck the Halls papers from this past Holiday Mini, but didn't have much time around the holidays to use them. Each design is so pretty it was almost hard to cut into them, but once I did, I was glad I did.

I used my hobby blade to carefully trim around the poinsettias so I could slide my matted photo under it. Here's a closer look at the left page...

On the right page I cut out a round frame with poinsettias from another sheet using my Coluzzle and turned it into an ornament with a Cherry Cobbler bow and line of Basic Pearls for the hanger. I used the Top Note stamped with the holly image from Bells & Boughs stamp set in Crumb Cake ink for my journaling.

If you like the Deck the Halls papers but didn't order them while they were available in the Holiday Mini, you can still get them as a download for My Digital Studio .

Thanks for visiting me today...ENJOY your weekend!

Blessed Baja Wishes

The color scheme I used for this card was inspired by the Springtime Vintage papers, which I thought I was going to use when I watercolored this image. However, I started with Whisper White card stock instead of Very Vanilla and it didn't look so good with the paper because of that. Despite that little wrinkle in my original plan, I just love the way this turned out...hope you like it as well!

Stamps: Blessed Mother & Silhouette Sentiments (Level 1 Hostess Set)
Card stock: Baja Breeze, River Rock, Not Quite Navy & Whisper White
Ink: Black Stazon, Not Quite Navy & various other Classic Inks to watercolor
Accessories: Framed Tulips & Square Lattice Embossing Folders, Aqua Painter, White Organdy Ribbon, Basic Pearls, Jewelry Tag & Scalloped Border Punches & Beautiful Wings Embosslit

Have a wonderful day!

Celebrate Birthday Album

A few weeks ago a dear friend of mine celebrated her 50th Birthday. A bunch of friends got together for a Girls Night Out to celebrate. I'm always the photographer in our group, so I made her this little flip album to hold some of the photos from that night.

I'm having so much fun with the Build a Blossom stamps and matching punch! This big blossom was stamped in Melon Mambo and then Rock 'n Rolled in Cajun Craze before stamping on the Pumpkin Pie cardstock. After I assembled it, I sprayed it with some Vanilla Shimmer Smooch Spritz for some nice sparkle. As you flip open the album, there are spots to add the photos and fun embellishments. Since I shared this with her before I added the photos, I also stamped the mats where the photos would go.

 Here's what it looks like with some photos...

Don't you just love my friends birthday glasses?! lol She was a good sport and posed in the glasses & sombrero so I got lots of good photos. Here's a look at a couple of my favorite embellishments I added to the album.

The margarita glass was cut with a Sizzix die and the border along the side is one of the adhesive borders from the Ice Cream Parlor Scrappin' Kit (FREE during SAB).

I couldn't make a birthday album and not use my Build a Cupcake Punch, now could I? I didn't adhere the bottom part of the 50 to the page so that I could easily slide in the photograph under it. For this album I used the Brights Designer Series Paper Stack in Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie and Rich Razzleberry.

On May 1st I am offering a class to make another version of this album using the Springtime Vintage Papers. That is such a pretty paper pack, and it will make the perfect keepsake album for Mother's Day photos. So, if you are in my area, sign up now to hold your spot. I could also make this a kit to go class if there is enough interest.

Thanks for stopping by...ENJOY your day!

Retired Stamps & More For Sale

Yesterday I was without power for most of the day. (Freezing rain must have done a number on the power lines.) Luckily we have a gas fireplace downstairs so we stayed warm. My stampin' space is down there but with no electricity it isn't too well lit, so it forced me to do other things...like sorting through some retired stamp sets and other craft supplies. I have so many things that just aren't being used. Time to part with them and find them a good home. Click here to see what I am letting go...maybe it's something you've been looking for.

*Edited to add: I will only accept payments through Paypal, unless you are local and want to pay/pick up in person.

Razzleberry Blessed Mother

I just got this pretty new stamp set from the Occasions Mini called Blessed Mother. I immediately loved the sentiments and liked the images, but was unsure if they would be suited for traditional watercoloring since they seemed kind of dark and detailed in the catalog. The only samples I had seen were colored directly on the stamp vs stamping in black and watercoloring with inks, which is the method I enjoy most. Anyways, after playing with the set, I'm happy to report that it is a fun set to watercolor! I've made several sets of cards in different color schemes already...here is a couple using Rich Razzleberry paired up with So Saffron.

I stamped the main image in Black Stazon and used my aqua painter and Classic Inks to color it. Here's a closer look...

Here's another card using the other two stamps from the set, with basically the same color scheme. I just swapped out the Always Artichoke for Elegant Eggplant on this one.

I'm wishing now that I would have used the White Organza Ribbon on my first card as well, because it I like how it looks here over the Razzleberry Taffeta on my 1st card. I wish the Organza Ribbon came in more colors...I really like the mix of the sheer and silky solid down the center. The little banner I stamped the sentiment on comes from the Petal Cone Die. The main image is matted using the Scallop Rectangle Clearlit.


We haven't gone out in a while, so I think tonight we are going to dinner and to a movie. I want to see Rango...it looks really cute in the previews. It stars Johnny Depp, so I'm sure it will be good. (too bad it's just his voice! ;-) Hoping to get some stamping in too. Whatever your plans are...hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Baja Bliss

The images in the Sale-a-Bration set Bliss are so pretty...especially the two that I used here. Combining these delicate, yet bold stamped images with the Framed Tulips Embossing Folder made a detailed card that came together in just minutes. The hardest part was cutting out the butterfly.

Inking the stamps in a light color ink and then adding a darker ink to the edges, using the Rock n Roll Technique is a quick and easy way to add detail. Here I used Crumb Cake & Baja Breeze for my lighter shade of ink and then inked edges in Not Quite Navy. I used coordinating colors of card stock and Crumb Cake Seam Binding Ribbon and a few Adhesive Jewel Pearls to finish off the card.

I cannot rave enough about the Seam Binding Ribbon! It is so soft and easy to work with...plus it doesn't leave a bulky bump (which requires extra postage) when you put it in an envelope. Love, LOVE, {LOVE} it!!!

Have a blissful day!

It's March!

Yes! That means Spring will soon be here! February may be the shortest month, but with the weather we have here in Michigan this time of year, it always feels the longest to me. So I'm happy to start this new month! However, with the start of March, it also means only one month left to Sale-a-Brate!

In the past week or so I've received the Stylish Blogger Award from three very talented blogging stampers who have visited my blog. First, I'd like to thank the Academy, my parents who always encouraged me to be creative, my wonderful husband who doesn't mind me spending all my SU! profits (and then some!) on new stampin' goodies...Oh wait, I think I've been watching too many awards shows!

Seriously, thank you so much for taking the time to visit me and for leaving such nice comments. Kim at Kim's Stamp Studio  Patty at Roc Paper Stamps  & Wendy at Its All About Stamping for giving me this award...I {LOVE} your blogs too!

When you receive this award you are to:
1) thank the person who gave this award and link it back to their blog
2) share 8 things about yourself
3) pass this award to 8 other individuals that you have recently discovered
4) leave a comment so that they can pass along the recognition!

8 Things about myself...

1. I cannot think of 8 things I have not already shared here about myself.
2. I would love to move to a warmer climate, but almost everyone I know & love lives here in Michigan.
3. One of my favorite things to do is going to concerts. My favorite band to see live is Aerosmith who I've seen at least 14 times. So glad I got to see one of my fav musicians - Stevie Ray Vaughan, in concert before his untimely death.
4. Top on my list of places I want to visit is Italy.
5. I spend most of the month of October each year "haunting" our barn and yard for our annual Halloween party.
6. I spend a lot of time during the warmer months going to garage & yard sales because I never know what kind of treasure I may find.
7. I'm in {LOVE} with my Big Shot who I've named Antonio.
8. The show Hoarders freaks me out...but I cannot stop watching it!

There are so many inspiring bloggers I like to visit, and after visiting many of them, it seems most have already posted this award. Since it is now 10:30, and I'm still in my jammies and I need to get in shower and get out for some groceries...I guess I'll have to skip that part. If you are visiting me now and want to play along, consider yourself nominated.

Have a great day...and thanks for stopping by!