Keep Calm

I'm flying out today, so I thought today's card would be appropriate:  I don't particularly like flying, but I am going back to the land where "Keep Calm" originated.  Plus I liked the idea of bookending my trip with Keep Calm cards.

This one's super-simple; the only hard part is making sure the white embossing powder doesn't go anywhere but where you want it.  This is one of those super-easy go-to layouts I use when I need a card in a hurry.

Keep calm and carry on, y'all!

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Carry On
Ink:  Real Red, Versamark
Paper:  Marina Mist, Whisper White, Real Red
Accessories:  White EP, Marina Mist taffeta

Sycamore Street Butterflies

It's Wednesday and that means that tomorrow I fly back to England :( but I get to see my dogs again :)  and my stamps!  I've missed stamping the last couple of weeks, and I seriously want to get started on scrapbooking again too.  Now if only school didn't get in the way :p

This was another swap card, and the one that was inspired by an old Great Friend card I made with butterflies (second one down on that Friday Flashback post).  The Pool Party butterfly is stamped and then punched out, because I wanted to show how the Bloomin' Marvelous butterfly fit perfectly in the punch.  The color combo was taken directly from the Sycamore Street DSP, don'tcha love that?

Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Bloomin' Marvelous
Ink:  Pool Party, Island Indigo, Tangerine Tango
Paper:  Pool Party, Island Indigo, Tangerine Tango, Whisper White, Sycamore Street DSP
Accessories:  Bitty Butterfly punch, basic rhinestones, Sycamore Street ribbon

Butterfly Birthday

Howdy, folks!  (I'm in Texas right now, I can say that.)  Today's card was made for a recent SCS sketch challenge and an old SCS color challenge.

Hmm, I guess I'm liking Daffodil Delight lately...nice antidote to gray weather!  This sketch is a bit more complicated than I generally prefer, but I think the card came out okay anyway.  And I love that Daffodil DSP, leaves or feathers or whatever they are, they make me happy.

Happy Tuesday, folks, and thanks for stopping by!

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Papillon Potpourri, Perfectly Penned
Ink:  Rose Red
Paper:  Rose Red, Basic Gray, Daffodil Delight, Whisper White, Floral District DSP, Neutrals DSP Stack
Accessories:  Whisper White taffeta, basic rhinestones, Elegant Butterfly punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, scallop circle punch, corner rounder punch (yeah that's a lotta punches)

Rain or Shine

Happy Monday, everyone!  I've got another swap card to share today:

Oh, how I love those cute little umbrellas, and that DSP.  That DSP is why I am almost completely out of Melon Mambo cardstock...can't have that with Valentine's Day on the horizon!  The row of flagged DSP strips was inspired by this card on SCS that used the More Amore DSP and Hearts a Flutter stamps; I wanted to do that to show off a lot of the scrumptious Sunshine & Sprinkles DSP without using a lot of each sheet.  The umbrella tops are popped up on Dimensionals and I think I might have liked a more opaque ribbon on there, but that was the only Daffodil Delight ribbon I had on hand and it works.

I said this one day last week and I liked it, so go forth and stamp happy!  :)

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Rain or Shine, Cuddles & Kisses
Ink:  Melon Mambo, Pacific Point, Lucky Limeade, Basic Gray
Paper:  Melon Mambo, Pacific Point, Whisper White, Sunshine & Sprinkles DSP
Accessories:  Daffodil Delight seam binding, Dimensionals

Friday Flashback: Teddy & Train

Welcome to another Friday Flashback!  Today's stamp set is Teddy & Train, which I bought on a whim right before it retired.  I haven't used it a whole lot yet but I'm not sorry I bought it :)  First up is a card from the archives:

Seems like where I am, people mostly do Evites for baby shower invitations, but occasionally I get asked to make a keepsake paper invitation.  For this one, the shower hostess told me the mommy was decorating the nursery in pink, light green, and paisley, and she liked traditional baby type stuff.  So this was what I came up with based on those guidelines.

Here's the new card:

Not the greatest photo, sorry about that--the flash reflected off the embossing powder a bit.  Simple layout and a more neutral color combo from old SCS challenges.  The card base is Blush Blossom, so it's almost a neutral pinky color maybe?  All the stuff is retired Stampin' Up!, even the button...I got some old buttons when they did the first color renovation years and years ago (the one where they switched Baroque Burgundy for Bravo Burgundy, which I still think was a mistake...Baroque was so much prettier).  Anyway, simple card for today.

Thanks for visiting the Friday Flashback!

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Teddy & Train (retired)
Ink:  Blush Bossom (retired), Chocolate Chip craft (retired, wah), Certainly Celery
Paper:  Blush Blossom (retired), Close to Cocoa (retired, wah), Certainly Celery, Whisper White, Certainly Celery DSP (retired)
Accessories:  clear EP, Close to Cocoa button (retired)

Bring in the Sunshine

Howdy folks and happy birthday to meeee!  Today's card is one that I made for a recent swap and I really liked how it turned out.

I love the Feel Goods stamp set, don't you?  Awesome font, awesome sayings, and I think I might have said that before but I don't care if I'm repeating myself.  And I love that Sunshine & Sprinkles DSP, definitely gonna have to get more of that!

Thanks for stopping by and have a fantabulous day!  I'm gonna eat some birthday cake.  But first, Mexican food!  Oddly enough, not much good Mexican food where I live in England, so I'm taking advantage while I'm in Texas.  :)

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Feel Goods
Ink:  Pacific Point
Paper:  Melon Mambo, Pacific Point, Daffodil Delight, Whisper White, Sunshine & Sprinkles DSP, In Color DSP Stack
Accessories:  Labels Framelits, Elegant Butterfly & Bitty Butterfly punches, basic & large rhinestones, Dimensionals

Hawaiian Butterflies

For the longest time when I was growing up, I was the only one out of all my family and friends to have a January birthday.  Now I've got three friends who are all within a week of me, and one of my dogs is 12 days before me (can't forget the canines, though they don't get birthday cards).

This one will go to my friend who lives in Hawaii, the Rainbow State (they even have rainbows on their drivers licenses).  I was inspired to make this by a gift bag I saw at the store (though the butterflies on it weren't staggered, I couldn't fit five across the card front unless I did that) and also this pretty little card I saw on SCS.  I added a few rhinestones to give it some extra oomph.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Bring On the Cake
Ink:  Whisper White
Paper:  Pacific Point, Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight, Gumball Green, Tempting Turquoise
Accessories:  basic rhinestones

It's a MANLY Ferris Wheel

For once, I managed to make a masculine card!  My hubs even said it looked acceptably manly.

This was another one of those stamp sets that I kinda wasn't sure what to do with it once I had it in my hot little hands.  Finally, I saw a set of super cute cards on Mary Fish's blog and I CASEd it to come up with this.  I tweaked the layout a bit, used different colors and patterned paper, but I think you can still pretty easily tell where I got the inspiration :)

And Sale-a-Bration starts today, woohoo!  Go forth and stamp happy!

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Feeling Sentimental
Ink:  Cherry Cobbler
Paper:  Very Vanilla, Cherry Cobbler, Crumb Cake, Parker's Prints DSP
Accessories:  Regals brads, Dimensionals

A New Little Someone

I posted the pics from the baby book for our new niece a while back, and this is the card I made to go with it:

The picture seems just a little bit blurry, doesn't it?  Sometimes it's hard to tell if I got it really well in focus until it's downloaded to the computer.  Oh well, you get the idea.  This was an old SCS sketch and I really like it...especially now that SU! has oval Framelits!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Rain or Shine, Cuddles & Kisses
Ink:  Melon Mambo, Lucky Limeade, Basic Gray
Paper:  Pretty in Pink, Basic Gray, Melon Mambo, Whisper White, Sunshine & Sprinkles DSP
Accessories:  Oval Framelits, Occasions paper piercing template, heart punch, Dimensionals

Friday Flashback: Tart & Tangy

Welcome to another Friday Flashback!  Today's stamp set is Tart & Tangy, which is a fun little set with four fruit images.  First up, let's open up the archives (I still giggle at the thought of me having archives):

Lots of polka dots on this one!  I thought that sentiment was pretty cute with the strawberries.

I used Iridescent Ice embossing powder on this one to make the oranges sparkly, and the brads were silver ones colored in with an orange Sharpie.

One year for Father's Day we sent my dad a gift card to Sonic (terribly mean that they sell Sonic gift cards here when there's an entire ocean between me and the closest one), and I made this card because my whole family is utterly addicted to cherry vanilla Cokes at Sonic.

This is one of several similar baby book layouts I did with the apple image from Tart & Tangy, it's always been one of my favorites.

And here's my new card!  It might look black, but the dark color is actually Elegant Eggplant.  Call me crazy, I like orange and purple together (and it was an old SCS color challenge).  The layout is based on the latest sketch at Freshly Made Sketches:

I wasn't quite sure what to make of the sketch when I first saw it, but I like what I came up with.

Thanks for joining me on another Friday Flashback, and have a fabulous weekend!

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Tart & Tangy, One Smart Cookie
Ink:  Pumpkin Pie
Paper:  Pumpkin Pie, Elegant Eggplant, Whisper White, retired Tempting Turquoise DSP
Accessories:  Brights brads, 1 1/2" and 1 3/8" circle punches, Dimensionals

Shop On!

Today, I am on my way to the airport to fly home to Texas for two weeks for my birthday (my hubs has to go on a business trip the day before my birthday, so that's why I'm going home to my parental units).  Since I haven't been anywhere in the States in over two years, I'm totally stoked, and of course...

Mom and I are going SHOPPING!  Circling some counters, as her grandmother would say.  I promised Lee I wouldn't go *too* crazy...actually I kinda want to just spend a few hours wandering around Target just for funsies whether I buy anything or not, because I miss Target.  And of course by the time I get back here, I'm *really* gonna need to hit the gym.  Helloooooo Sonic and Panera Bread and my favorite Italian restaurant and real Tex-Mex!!!

Yeah, kinda thrilled here.  But I'll miss my sweetie pie and my little fur-babies.

Keep calm and shop on!

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Carry On (hostess set)
Ink:  Elegant Eggplant, Rose Red, Taken with Teal (sadly retired), Versamark
Paper:  Elegant Eggplant, Whisper White, Taken with Teal, DSP Stacks in Subtles and Regals
Accessories:  Subtles brads, white EP

The Best Things

Helloooo in blog land!  It is a lovely snowy day here in England...well, it's not snowing now, but we've got a pretty good amount of the white stuff from a couple days ago and everything looks all pretty ('cept where the snow has gotten slushy on the streets).  I even went out walking around our village this morning and took some pictures :)  So as a break from all that snow, how about a cheery springy card?

I love the new Feel Goods stamp set, isn't it awesome?  Fabulous font and even more fabulous sentiments!  The card layout is from Retro Sketches:

And the color combo is from Color Throwdown, I think this is the first time I've played in that challenge!

I admit, the Crumb Cake was kinda throwing me for a loop so there's just a teensy bit of it poking out under the butterfly's wings.  Thanks for stopping by today and have a marvelous day!

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Feel Goods, Bloomin' Marvelous (SAB!)
Ink:  Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie
Paper:  Pretty in Pink, Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Brights DSP Stack
Accessories:  Elegant Butterfly & Bitty Butterfly punches, basic rhinestones, Whisper White taffeta ribbon, Dimensionals

Pink Seashells

Hello again!  I've got a pretty card to share today, or at least I think it's pretty.

What do you think?  The color combination is courtesy of Create with Connie and Mary, though I added Sahara Sand to the mix (I hope the Challenge Police don't arrest me).  And there is Whisper White on this card...the Sahara Sand piece is stamped with Netting in white craft ink, the ribbon has white thread in it, and...well, the shells used to be white before they met my sponges and got all pinkified.  I stamped the crab from this stamp set too, and even started cutting him out before I thought hahaha NO and just went with the five shells that are easier to cut :)

I wouldn't have thought of using marine stamps for this color combination but Connie's card inspired me :)  What, shells can be pink.  And dark blue.  And pretty much every other color, right?  The advantage of being a stamper:  shells can be any color I want them to be.

The layout is from Fab Friday's 9th challenge:

Hope you like, thanks for stopping by!

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  By the Seashore, Netting, Perfectly Penned
Ink:  Pink Pirouette, Midnight Muse, Whisper White
Paper:  Pink Pirouette, Sahara Sand, Whisper White, Subtles DSP Stack
Accessories:  Midnight Muse double-stitched satin ribbon

Blooming Wishes

Monday again already...hope your week is off to a good start!  This Thursday I'm leaving to spend 2 weeks in Texas for my birthday, so I'm excited :)  But first I've got a birthday card to share:

I admit, if I get a bunch of stamp sets at the same time, sometimes it takes me a long time before I actually use all of them.  I got Blooming with Kindness when SU! had that one-day 20% off all stamp sets sale last October and just got around to inking it up.  I knew its time had come when I saw the latest challenge at Freshly Made Sketches:

This card will be going to a friend of mine who loves the color red.  While I love color in general, my personal favorites are definitely on the cool end of the spectrum--green, blue, purple.  But I have fun with all kinds of colors so Katie gets her pink and red card :)  My mom doesn't like pink and red together but I think this kinda works!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Blooming with Kindness, Parlor Prints
Ink:  Real Red, Early Espresso, Pink Pirouette
Paper:  Pink Pirouette, Early Espresso, Whisper White, Neutrals DSP Stack
Accessories:  Brights Glimmer Brads, corner rounder punch

Olivia's Baby Book

Not too long after I started stamping, I got the idea to make baby books for a couple of friends of mine for their baby showers.  Since then, I've done ten, and I've got one more that's 80% finished (I just need to find out if the baby's a boy or a girl).  I do one layout for each month of the year, plus layouts for the baby's birth and first birthday.  Add in the first and last pages, and each book is 30 pages.  They take me at least a couple of months to do, so I don't do them for very many people.  And I won't sell them either, because honestly, no one would pay what I would want to charge for them given how much time they take, never mind the cost of supplies.

So here's the one I just finished up for my SIL and her new daughter, Olivia.  If you want a complete supply list, check out my SCS gallery here.  Jill is doing the nursery in what my mom calls Strawberry Shortcake colors--pink, hot pink, and lime green, so that's what I started with.  The die cut alphabet I used is by Sizzix and I've had it since I graduated from college and it's long retired :)  Click on any of the pictures to see it bigger.

 Stamps:  Mixed Bunch, Papillon Potpourri

Stamps:  Baby Prints

Stamps:  Make a Mitten (retired), Snow Swirled

Stamps:  Artistic Etchings, Carte Postale (retired), En Francais

Stamps:  Celtic Knots (retired), Tag Time (retired)

Stamps:  Announcements (retired)...I did this one several months ago, had I known Rain or Shine was coming out I woulda waited so I could have used that!

Stamps:  Tea Shoppe...I thought a mother-daughter tea party theme would be cute?

Stamps:  By the Seashore

Stamps:  Land That I Love (retired)

 Stamps:  Bronc Buster (retired), Wanted (retired)...Olivia was born in Texas, she needed a cowgirl layout :)

Stamps:  Fruit & Flowers, One Smart Cookie

Stamps:  Googly Ghouls (retired)

Stamps:  Wonderfall, Falling Leaves (retired)

Stamps:  Reindeer Print

Stamps:  Crazy for Cupcakes (retired), coordinating cupcake wheel (retired)

So excited this one is done!  I've even made a card to go with it, so now I just need to get it in the mail.  Thanks for stopping by!

Friday Flashback: Kindred Spirits

Happy Friday and welcome to the Friday Flashback!  This week's stamp set is Kindred Spirits, which I bought from my friend Amber after it retired.  The two image stamps are so large that I think this one might be better for scrapbooking than card making, but I gave it a shot:

I knocked out two more SCS color challenges and used today's hot-off-the-presses sketch at Sketch Frenzy Friday but oops I forgot to flag the ends of the DSP strips...

And I'm late for getting somewhere so I must dash.  Happy Friday and thanks for stopping by!

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Kindred Spirits, French Script
Ink:  Purely Pomegranate, Groovy Guava (left), So Saffron, Old Olive (right)
Paper:  Purely Pomegranate, Groovy Guava, Whisper White, So Saffron, Old Olive, DSP scraps were from my stash, I think Holiday Treasures and Haiku?
Accessories:  oval punches (smaller one retired), Word Window Punch

Place de la Concorde

When my hubby and I went to Paris last year (somebody pinch me that I get to say I've been to Paris), we spent about 2 hours sitting in the Place de la Concorde, freezing our butts off and waiting for sunset so Lee could get a picture of the Eiffel Tower lit up.  It was totally worth it when we got the picture:

Awesome, right?  I still can't hardly believe that Lee took that (and let's face it, I'm jealous that I didn't take it).  He didn't even edit it either other than getting rid of a few spots due to some schmutz on our camera lens.  But anyway, today's card also features the Eiffel Tower.

Had I been thinking about it, I totally woulda made the colors on the card match the photo.  Oh well, I was playing with the retired In Colors...I like the tower in Concord Crush.  This one is courtesy of the lovely ladies at Retro Sketches:

I like that sketch quite a bit.  I'd say I should file it away for future use but there are SO MANY sketches out all the time, how often will I really go back?  It is a great one, though.

Thanks for stopping by today, have a wonderful Thursday!

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Artistic Etchings
Ink:  Concord Crush
Paper:  Whisper White, retired In Color DSP
Accessories:  Labels Framelits, Argyle EF

Sweet Friend

Have you ever seen a stamp set in the catalog and really liked it, then bought it, and once it got to your house you just sat and stared at it and it stared back at you and you had absolutely no idea what to do with it?  You Are Loved was one of those stamp sets for me.  But after owning it for at least a year, I have finally made something with it, and it will finally quit staring at me in such an accusatory tone of voice.  Yay.

Hey look, two More Amore DSP cards in a row.  Well, I bought the Valentine paper this year but not the Hearts a Flutter stamp set which I am trying mightily to resist.  Wish me luck and tell me to stay strong; my husband will thank you for encouraging me not to buy another stamp set ;)

So You Are Loved might still be languishing in my stamp cabinet, uninked, were it not for the Sketch Frenzy Friday challenge posted last week:

I had to make the middle panel wider to accommodate the heart image but everything else is the same as the sketch.  I wish SU would quit "aging" the edges of their DSP; it can make it look kinda weird when you cut it up for a card.  The pattern I used today had pinkish sponging all around the edges, so I added some more with Primrose Petals so it would look right to me.  I also lightly sponged some Pool Party and Basic Gray around the heart panel to make it match the aged paper, though it doesn't show up well in the photo (hate it when I have to take pictures after dark...doesn't help that dark is before 5 p.m. here right now).  And the good folks at SU apparently also disagree with my opinion that Primrose Petals and Real Red clash, though thus far I have succeeded in ignoring the Real Red in this DSP ;)

Thanks for stopping by today, enjoy your Wednesday!

Supplies:
Stamps:  You are Loved
Ink:  Primrose Petals, Pool Party, Basic Gray
Paper:  Primrose Petals, Pool party, Very Vanilla, More Amore DSP
Accessories:  uhh...sponges?  Dude, I didn't even use Dimensionals on this one.  I did fussy-cut that bird though.

Because Once Isn't Enough...

Say it three times!  This idea pretty much fell into my head when I saw the sketch challenge at Create with Connie & Mary...I like it when my mojo works like that, it could happen a lot more often as far as I'm concerned.  The only thing that took me a while was choosing something to go on the middle banner...it felt too plain with nothing there, so I ended up with a button threaded with DMC floss (3731 is a fairly good match for Primrose Petals if you're interested).  Pretty sure I still have more skeins of floss than I do stamp sets, but the floss is a bit more portable ;)  Cross stitching is my other obsession.

Anywho, here's the sketch:

Thanks for stopping by today, and don't forget to tell people you love 'em as often as possible!

Supplies:
Stamps:  Seasonal Sayings (still available, woohoo!)
Ink:  Primrose Petals
Paper:  Pool Party, Very Vanilla, More Amore DSP
Accessories:  Sycamore Street ribbon & button pack, DMC floss

Mambo Number 5

Ever since I got my spring catty preorder, I've been going through Melon Mambo cardstock like it's going out of style.  I'm totally in love with that Sunshine & Sprinkles DSP, though I didn't use any of that on the card I'm sharing today.

The inspiration for this one came from a couple of challenges; first off, one from Freshly Made Sketches: 

And second, a color combo courtesy of Pals Paper Arts:

Well, I like the colors and the sketch, but this isn't my favorite card ever.  I did use a new toy though--I just got that Argyle EF, always fun to play with new toys :)

Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies (all SU!):
Stamps:  Mixed Bunch, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Ink:  Melon Mambo, Basic Gray
Paper:  Melon Mambo, Basic Black, Whisper White, Neutrals DSP Stack
Accessories:  Argyle EF plus lots o' punches--Blossom, 3/4" circle, Word Window, Scallop Trim Border