StampersBest: Borders and Frames Challenge

Come join the 1st YouTube/StampersBest Challenge! Create a project using any of the Borders or Frames rubber stamps from StampersBest.

How to enter:  Post a video response showing your project to the challenge announcement on StampersBest YT channel by Aug. 31st (no mail in).

The winning entry gets:  $50.00 to spend on anything in store at StampersBest.com

Add your entry at:  YouTube/StampersBest

 

Go shop at:  StampersBest.com

 

Find more inspiration at:  StampersBest.blogspot.com

 

Want a coupon to save 10% off your StampersBest order?  Use code msb10off at checkout.

 

 

Getting back to scrapping

Hello blogland!  When I started this crazy paper crafting hobby of mine 10 or so years ago, I was a scrapper.  I made scrapbooks for gifts, for friends, for my parents, for my kids, but I never made one for me.  Then my hobby took a turn to the Cricut for a while, but I still scrapped.  Then somehow I started making cards, and put my scrapping on hold.  How'd that happen?  I've got enough 12x12 paper stacks to climb up to the moon and back, so it's not that I don't have any paper.  Was I missing my scrapping mojo?  Maybe.....well my bleeps, I think I've found my mojo push.  I stumbled on a wonderful blog that has some of the best page layouts I've ever seen and it's given me the push to pull out the photos and catch up on my scrapping.

If you need a mojo push for your scrapping, stop by Scrap a Little Sketches and check out all the great layout sketches from Helen Croft.  Some of my fellow crafters from Crafting by Designs will be joining me every week when we challenge ourselves to do at least one layout per week to help us get caught up.  Want to join us?  We've got room for more members at Crafting by Designs; just send me an email and I'll send you an invite!

A fun copic challenge

Hello blogland!  I forgot to post this card yesterday - it's this week's second challenge at Crafting by Designs.  Our challenge was to use summer colors on our project: yellows, blues, reds, and I had the perfect summer image to go with these summer colors.

It's one of my new stamps from StampersBest.  I fussy cut the image after it was colored with Copics, and just popped it up on a piece of cardstock from the DCWV Mariposa stack, added a sentiment from The Cutting Cafe and a piece of dyed seam binding - easy peasy summer colors birthday card :)

Use Your Scraps

Hello blogland!  It's roasting in NJ - 104.6 in my backyard...in the shade!  Even the birds aren't splashing in the water fountain today, and the pool water is like bath water.  So this heat calls for quick crafts, and I have a new one to share with you.  One of the new challenges at Crafting by Designs is Use Your Scraps, and our challenge is to create a card or layout using the first 3 pieces of patterned paper scraps and one piece of solid scrap you see in your scrap pile, and make stripes out of them on a white or black base. 

Easy peasy!  I used a Martha Stewart corner punch on the end of each piece for a little added interest, added a digi stamp from The Cutting Cafe which had been tinted with Lindy's Stamp Gang startburst stain, and a piece of seam binding that has been dyed with Lindy's Stamp Gang Tibetan Poppy.  This card took less than 5 minutes - it took longer to tie the bow :)  So come on, get those scraps out and use them! 

What do you do with all your projects?

Hello blogland! This morning I went into my craft room to start playing with my new stamps from Stampers Best, but first I had to clean off my desk, put away the cards I finished last week, take a few pictures.  When I make cards and they come out really well, many times I'll make two or three of them.  One will go right into the box for Operation Write Home (as long as it meets their requirements of A2 size and no glitter), and one will go into my box for when ever I need a card.  But really, how many cards do I need?  I thought maybe it's time to open up that Etsy shop again.  I enjoy sharing my cards and I did pretty well with my shop, but this time I decided to try Art Fire.  I don't want my cards to just sit in a box, I want someone to enjoy them, and since I've got pictures of most of them, the process is going pretty quickly.

So that got me thinking - what does everyone do with all their cards?  I'm getting a headstart on my holiday cards, and I always keep a big stash of birthday cards (remember June), but most of us don't craft to become rich.  We'd go broke buying all the supplies!  Well, let's see how this works out :)

Christmas in July!

Hello blogland!  It's another beautiful weekend in NJ and I'm going to two BBQs today - smile :)  But next to a day spent with good friends and good food is a day spent playing with new stamps.  Yesterday I got a whopping box full of brandy-spankin'-new stamps from Stampers Best and I can't wait to dig in!

I picked a lovely assortment of summer, fall, winter, love, Thanksgiving, nature, and vacation stamps.  There must be a hundred new items to choose from and it was tough to narrow down my list.  But what I couldn't resist at all were the new snowmen; I've got a thing for snowmen.  Here's two cards I made for this week's CAS Challenge - Christmas in July at Crafting by Designs.

Cute, right? It was even more fun making snowmen cards when it's almost 100 degrees outside.  And what's Christmas without presents?  For all my crafty friends, here's a 10% off coupon code for Stampers Best when you sign up for a FREE Premium membership, so you can get some new stamps too :)

Cards for a wedding

Hello blogland!  My bestie's daughter is getting married soon and that means I need a  few wedding cards.  I've been looking for just the right design for a while now, but sometimes you just need to let the design come to you.  So when I went into my craft room yesterday, I pulled out a bunch of paper, put some back, took more out and waited until the ideas started flowing.  Here's what I came up with:

I did some embossing on this creme cardstock and used a scrap of the cardstock I used for to make the bridal shower invites, and added a touch of vintage lace for this first card.

This design was sort of CASED from a card I saw in a challenge a while ago and added some Prima flat back pearls to dress it up a bit.

This card is my favorite, and made from scraps - I saved a pretty scrap piece of white and creme vellum to add on top of the creme cardstock base, a piece of ribbon, a pretty paper flower from Jolee's, some rub-ons and a few more flat back pearls.  Now I'm off to share these with my crafty friends at Crafting by Designs.

Some new stamps and a new adventure

Hello blogland!  How'd it get to be Thursday already?  Do your days get mixed up when there's a holiday on a weekday? Mine do - I kept thinking it was Wednesday all day. 

I've been playing with my new stamps from Stampers Best and wanted to share two little summer cards.

These two stamps were so fun to use - and the cards will be part of the first two challenges at a new little craft community called Crafting by Designs.  Fun, fun, fun.....

Happy 4th of July!

Hello blogland and happy July 4th!  I have one quick card to share with you today before I head off to a family BBQ.

I love to make scrap cards and this was a fun one.  A white cardstock base made the white stripes, a few pieces of a red patterened paper for the red stripes, a tiny piece of blue, some white stars from Recollections, and three EK Success embellies to announce the picnic today.  I even used my white pen to make some faux stitching and ta-da, all done.

Have a safe and happy day today!

How sweet it is!

Hello blogland and happy Friday!  I've had a busy week and am finally catching up on my blog reading.  I was so surprised and honored to find that two very talented ladies have given me blog awards!  The first is from the very talented Mary at For The Love of Art. 

The second is from the equally talented and super sweet Yvonne at One Creative Mama

There's absolutely no way I can pick who to send this to - I have a nice long blog list and I admire each and every one of them for sharing their incredible talent with me, so if you're reading this, I'm sharing these wonderful awards with you.  Thank you so much Mary and Yvonne for these great awards; I'm so honored you thought of me!