I probably won't make any more posts in December. I work at a card shop, so I get really stressed at Christmas.

A few Christmas cards

Materials:
Magazine freebie stamp (snowflake)
Stampin' Up scallop punch
HOTP paper
silver embossing powder


Materials:
buttons
embossing powders (clear with glitter and gold)
Magazine freebie stamp ('Merry Christmas' and ornament - mostly covered by the buttons)


I used masking and 2nd generation stamping
Materials:
Magazine freebie stamp (tree and 'Merry Christmas')
Sakura gel pens (Tiara range)

Song Lyrics Penny Black Card

This week's challenge at Penny Black Saturday challenge is song title/lyrics. I knew I had to use this sentiment stamp; it's one of my favorite Christmas songs, especially when it's Dean Martin singing.

Stamps:
Penny Black: Holly Day Critters, and the Wonder
Hero arts: snowflake

Bronte as a Black Cat

I loved coloring this MDP image; it's just so cute. I love how Bronte the dog is dressed as a cat for halloween. Now that it's finished I've got to post it quick, so it'll get to my neice in the states in time.

And since everyone seems to be challenging 'Halloween' and 'Fall,' this card meets the challenge at Mo's Digital Challenge (only buttons and ribbon), Papertake weekly, Cute Card Thursday, OneStopCraftChallenge, and Stamp with fun. (Hope it's ok to combine. Let me know if it's not.)

Materials:
Mo's Digital Pencil image by Maurie J Manning
color pencil
Whisper markers
chalk
message from Penny Black clear set 'Spooky'
Inque Boutique star and swirl stamp
Scenic Route paper
buttons
ribbon

Penny Black dotty Xmas card

Just a simple card, but it meets 3 challenges:
Pink Elephant's "something with dots, punch and tag."
A Spoon Full of Sugar's "Christmas challenge."
Simon Says Challenge: "Red and green."

Materials:
Penny Black clear set 'Holly Day Critters' (cat) and 'the Wonder' (message).
Papermania paper
Quickutz spiky circle (from Reuse set) and label
red ribbons and thread
glitter
color pencil

Age 1 card

One Stop Craft Challenge this week is die cuts (and my favorite die cuts are always my alphabets). Cute Card Thursdays' challenge was to make something celebrating a first. And Stampavie and more's challenge was to make a card with animals (did I do enough animals, you think?).

Materials:
Penny Black clear sets:
"Every which way" (Dog and bumblebee)
"Bubbly" (cat with balloons)
"Critter Party" (two butterflies, hedgehog, mice, kitten with present, and 'happy birthday')
"Garden Friends" (ladybug and one butterfly)
"Hugs" (just the little bird)

Quickutz "Bright" alphabet
DCWV papers Nanna's Nursery 'Baby Boy'
whisper markers
color pencils
teal glitter

Black and yellow bird card

I made this card these colors for the challenge at Cute Card Thursday. And I used a sketch from Friday Sketchers. And I tried my hand at decorating the inside of this card.

Materials:
Inkadinkado ('Quartet' and 'A little bird told me')
Penny Black Salutations (happy birthday)
Papermania paper
crochet flower (made by me)
ribbon
whisper markers
Sakura Tiara pens
button
black cardstock

Cotton Candy Bird Card

It might be hard to tell but I colored the birdies with Sakura Tiara gel pens, so they're very sparkly. I also stitched along the bottom paper, as well as doodle stitched. I'm really loving making crochet flowers; I've even made a little leaf for this one as well.

I decided to fit this card for Basic Grey Challenges (embossing) and Simon Says Challenge (stitches). It was a pleasure to use this fabulous sketch from Mojo Monday; it's a fabulous sketch.


Materials:
Inkadinkado stamp (Duet 98419-K)
Basic Grey papers (Two Scoops)
Sakura Tiara gel pens
Cuttlebug folder (Swiss Dots)
crochet flower and leaf (made by me)
circle punch (1.5")
ribbon
buttons
***If mixing challenges is not allowed, please let me know; I'm pretty sure it's ok for these challenges.***

Penny Black lace and pearls

The challenge over at Penny Black Saturday challenge is lace and pearls. I also used the sketch from icsketches.

And as I was aiming for those I also met the challenges over at Color Create (pinks and chocolate), Our Creative Corner (pinks, white, and chocolate), Whimsy (buttons), and Secret Crafters (for the girls).

Materials:
Penny Black stamp set "Critter Party"
Autumn Leaves paper
Prima pearls
crochet flowers (made by me)
flowers
lacy ribbon
buttons
***If mixing challenges is not allowed, please let me know; I'm pretty sure it's ok for these challenges.***

Happy Halloween: Knight Charlie card

The "happy halloween" and the pumpkins are on light green foil (I hope you can tell- it's very shiny and looks mint chocolate chip ice cream, mmm). I made this for the "neon and black" challenge over at Color Create challenges.

Whiff of Joy stamp: Knight Charlie
Inque Boutique stamps: Happy halloween set (swirls/stars and pumpkins)
Quickutz Bright alphabet dies (from Merry & Bright set)
Sakura pens
gems stars (colored with green Sharpie marker)
Whisper markers
color pencils
the striped black paper is the kind designed for gel pens
Stampin' Up color spritzer

One Color Card: Purple

Here's my purple one-color-card using the sketch from Stamp with fun. This sketch was really fun but a little to simple for my small image, so I added a little variation with a shorter front of the card.

Materials:
Penny Black clear set: "Critter party"
DCWV papers
various ribbon
lilac pearl card blank

Cute Christmas card

Bentley Bear is adorable; I especially love the little cat in this stamp. And since he's a teddy bear it fits today's One Stop Craft challenge of "Beary Nice." Gotta love teddy bears!

Materials:
Bentley Bear clear stamp set from "Cardmaking & Papercraft" October magazine
Studio g "Happy Christmas" stamp
Scenic Route paper
cardstock
ribbon
glitter
color pencils
whisper markers

A husband is...

A husband is someone you can give candy to even after it's been in your mouth.

My cards and my style

ABC challenge is looking for new additions to their design team. Check it out. So I've picked three cards of mine to highlight. It is such a challenge to choose favorites from my cards. When I finish a card, it usually becomes my favorite until I make the next card; I've picked three cards that have been favorites of mine for a while.

I chose the card on the left, because I love how it came together. This orange card is the first of my self-imposed challenge of "One Color Cards." So far I've made 5 out of 7 Penny Black "one color cards" this summer - It's going to make a rainbow when it's finished.

The middle card is one of my top-three, because it's exactly as I pictured it when I first got the idea. Perfect for my little niece. And it was so much fun to color a variety of animals for the same card.

The card on the right is nearly a year old, but it sits out on my desk because I love it so much. My favorite color is orange - seeing it anywhere makes me happy. Orange and blue - that's just classic!

Looking at all my cards, I would say my style is definitely colorful, mostly cute, and pretty tidy (I think a lot before gluing anything down).

Whiff of Joy: Rogue Charlotte

This sketch was the challenge over at Whiff of Joy challenge blog. It was difficult for me to use - way too many layers for me (so I took one out). This is the first time I've used Rogue Charlotte; coloring her was fun.
Materials:
Whiff of Joy: Rogue Charlotte
Scenic Route papers
Prima flowers
buttons

HoHoHo card

This is the first time I've tied string around ribbon, instead of knotting it.

Materials:
Hero arts sparkle clear H and O
QuicKutz holly leaves
red buttons
ribbon

My crochet flower - check it out!

I'm really pleased how I colored Willow. I mainly used colored pencils, but a little bit of marker, too. However, I'm really happy with my crochet flower; I'm definitely going to make more of these. I chose orange and teal to fit the challenge at Whiff of Joy challenges; I love orange!

Materials:
Whiff of Joy stamp: Willow with cookies
Stampin' Up stamps (message from 'Delight in Life', texture on teal from 'A little bit of happiness')
Daisy D's paper
color pencils
Whisper markers
2.5mm crochet hook
embroidery thread
flower pattern from Jan Eaton's 'The Encyclopedia of Crochet Techniques'

Willow with Umbrella

I made this card to fit two challenges. The Whiff of Joy challenge was to add bling to my project, so I used glitter and gems. I also used (and tweaked) this sketch from Friday Sketchers:


Materials:
Whiff of Joy stamp: Willow with umbrella
Dovecraft/Studio g stamp: star from mini Xmas set
October Afternoon paper
Whisper markers
various cardstock
glitter
gems
red sharpie marker (to color gems)

Off to Uni - good luck card

I used this sketch from CPS. It was very fun and easy to use. Since this card is about going to Uni, it also fits this weeks Simon Says Stamp challenge of "Back to School." And I added some bling to play along at Whimsy Stamps Challenge; I colored the gems with a sharpie marker. (I love doing that!)

I'm most proud of the "good luck" with the swirl around it.

Materials:
QuicKutz Paige and Paige mini alphabets
Chatterbox papers
Alphabet stamps
Swirl stamp (Elusive Images: Here be Dragons)
Stampin' Up scallop punch
circle punch 1.5"
corner rounder
ivory satin ribbon
Kaiser Craft gems
Sharpie blue marker

One Color Card: Pink

Here's a close up of the coloring and glitter on the cake. It's colored with Whisper markers and colored pencils.

I was making my One Color Cards in an order, but I had to skip ahead to pink for the challenge over at One Stop Craft Challenge. Their challenge for the week was a pink and black card.

Whimsy Stamps Challenges this week is ribbons; I've had the polka-dot ribbon for ages, but haven't been able to use it until now.

Sinatra (Mo's Digital Pencil)

This is an adorable image and so much fun to color. The drawing is fabulous: the position of the ears and back foot is so believable. Very feline!

Materials:
"Sinatra" digital image (Mo's Digital Pencil)
colored pencils
Whisper markers
papermania paper
various ribbon
blue staples

One Color Card: Blue

Here's a close up of the speckles I created and the Friday Sketcher's sketch that I used:

I used my Stampin' Up color sprizter and the same blue marker that I colored the balloon with to add the speckles. Isn't the mouse just darling? And the sketch was really fun to use.

This is my 4th One-Color-Card, so I'm exactly half-way through the basic rainbow. It's definitely going to be an all Penny Black set, but I might start on Whiff of Joy next, since this is so much fun. Have YOU ever tried a One-Color-Card? I'd love to see, even if it's not a new card.

Materials:
Penny Black: "Hugs" clear set
Close-to-my-Heart papers
black brads
Whisper markers
Stampin' Up color spritzer

Christmas Card: Nativity

I'm a little late for Christmas in July, but I've got a 2 month break from birthdays. So I thought I'd start making Christmas cards now. Here's a really simple one to get me started; very traditional theme and colors, too.

I've used the sketch from this week's Mojo Monday. It's a great sketch, but I did a star instead of a circle. I'll definitely be trying it with a circle soon.

Materials:
Nativity stamp (company unknown)
Papermania Medallion stamp (INTERLINKED STAR 39361)
Hot Off The Press papers
green gosgrain ribbon

Willow with Umbrella

I used paper piecing to put Willow together; I used pink patterned paper for the umbrella, blue cardstock for the jean, and white cardstock for the rest of her. Then I used my markers to color the pieces before gluing down.

For those who don't know what paper piecing means: It's essentially cutting paper into shapes and putting them together to make an image. For stampers, it's a cool technique to add color to lined images with paper instead of ink. It's also a popular technique for quilters.

When my husband saw the finished card he said, "Looks nice. Very British with the umbrella." Am I the only one that thinks that response is humorous? It's like he thinks the UK is the only place that gets rain. LOL.

This card also manages to meet 3 challenges:
Papertake Weekly: 4 Seasons (I picked Spring: April Showers... and spring colors)
Simon Says Stamp: Ribbons and Buttons
Sugar Sweet Paper Treats: Splish Splash (anything with water)
*** If combining challenges isn't allowed, please let me know. I looked, but I didn't see anything against it. ***

Materials:
Whiff of Joy stamp: Willow with Umbrella
Papermania papers: Sweet Nothings
Whisper Markers
various buttons
white ribbon
green 5x7" cardblank

Creatalicious Challenges

Here's the sketch from Bizzy Bec's Creatalicious Challenges (they're looking for DT for the new challenge site):

I've made this card in ~15minutes because I just discovered the new challenge site. Hope I'm not too late. I've not added flowers since I wanted to make a more masculine card this time; I'm always needing more guy cards.

Creatalicious Challenges is also giving away a blog candy to celebrate it's "Grand Opening."

Materials:
Inkadinkado stamp ("Birds Galore" clear set)
Penny Black stamp ("Salutations" clear set)
Creative Imaginations patterned paper
brown button
brown ribbon

One Color Card: Green

Since I made a yellow card this week, I thought I'd follow on with a green card. I've used a Penny Black stamp, Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder, and Stampin' Up paper. The base of the card and the buttons are a light green, but they look white in the photo.

This is the sketch from Papertake Weekly Challenge blog for this weeks challenge. It was not an easy sketch for me to work with this week; I don't know why.

One Color Card: Yellow

The challenge over at ABC Challenge blog is to make a yellow card. This is perfect for me to continue with my personal challenge of one-color-cards. So here's a simple yellow card with some cute Penny Black mice.

Whiff of Joy Video #1

Here's my card for Katharina's Whiff of Joy guest designer call. I gave this card 100% of my creativity this past week. I even made a short video of the how to make the best bits of this card. It measures ~ 6 1/4 x 8 3/4" and it's pink! I'm not usually a pink person, but I was lucky enough to win these lovely Papermania papers from docrafts.com monthly prize draw (May's draw).


Materials:
Whiff of Joy stamp: Melinda Helping Angel
Penny black stamp "Thinking of You" from clear Salutations set
Papermania "Touch of Pink" patterned paper
Plastic flower shapes bling
Prima flowers
White ribbon
Black eyelets
Fiskars circle cutter

One Color Card: Orange

I've decided to set myself a goal this summer. I'm going to make at least 7 cards in one color only (one for all the colors in the rainbow). I might do them all with Penny Black stamps, but I'm not sure yet.

This is the first One Color Card made using a sketch from Friday Sketchers challenge blog. I chose orange first because it's my favorite color.

Materials:

Penny Black "Garden Friends" clear set
Prima flowers
Quickutz die
Stampin' Up papers
colored pencils
Sakura pen

Cute Penny Black Age cards

Here are some super cute number cards for the challenge over at One Stop Craft challenge blog. I've got two nieces birthdays in July and I figure that by making them matching, but personalized I can't go wrong. If I were to do two completely different cards, I might make one better than the other; this way I know that they are equally cute.


If you'd like to find out which stamp comes from which clear Penny Black set, click on the photo, then hover over the image you like.

I used ALL 6 of my Penny Black clear sets to make these two cards.
Bubbly, Critter Party, Every Which Way, Hugs!, Garden Friends, and Salutations.

I used Quickutz alphabets Paige Mini (Natalie) and Merry (Chloe).