I got a kick out of this

This is my card catalog card if my blog were in print. This just made me laugh.

You can make one of your own here. And I found out about it from this blog.

Baby bear card

Sorry for the lack of posts the last couple of days! I've had "the crud" as my dad would say, and I've mostly been sleeping it off.

This is the first card I made with this set. I LOVE how the watercoloring turned out on the bear. The watercolor paper made all the difference in making it easy. I used my aquapainter and reinker to do the coloring. The bear is popped up on dimensionals. I wanted to make a blanket for the bear to sit on, so I paper pierced all over the blanket (which really didn't take that long using the mat pack's piercing template). Then I connected the holes by drawing lines using my Mellow Moss marker, but those lines were too dark, so I sanded the whole piece to tone down the color and also make the paper softer texturally. It still didn't look like a baby blanket until I'd put the So Saffron piece behind it and cut the edges with my scallop scissors to make it softer edged.

Have a great day!

Stamps: Bundle of Joy
Paper: SU Petals & Paisley (is that the right name?), So Saffron, Tempting Turquoise, Certainly Celery, watercolor paper
Ink: Regal Rose, Tempting Turquoise, Mellow Moss, white gel pen
Accessories: 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" punches, pink grosgrain, paper piercer, SU mat pack, small scallop scissors

March VSN cards

I was busy Friday night and Saturday morning with Stamp Camp and then a wedding reception in the afternoon, so when I got home, I hopped over to Splitcoast to check out the Virtual Stamp Night challenges that were going on. I knew I didn't have time, or energy, to complete very many, but the following cards are samples of what I got to make. VSN is such a good way for me to jump-start my creative thought processes. You're given a challenge with certain parameters and asked to make a card following them within a 45 minute time frame.

Frazzled Ribbon:

The Bunny Hugs bunny's tail is done with frazzled ribbon. If you take a piece of grosgrain, and pull the thread out that ties all the fibers together, (the one that makes it be ribbon), you get a tassle-type piece (feels like the tassles on a corn cob before it's shucked) and a very zig-zaggy thread. I balled up the zig-zaggy piece actually to throw it away, and loved how soft and puffy it looked. I'm loving this bunny and he clearly needed a fluffy pink tail. I glued it on using Crystal Effects. The flower centers on the Basic Grey designer paper have Dazzling Diamonds glitter. The sentiment is from Bunny Hugs, too. I doodled the edges of the card base (Vintage Violet cardstock) with my white gel pen to frame the images a little more.

Anything that flies: aka, Froggy Godmother:

This Unfrogettable frog is colored in Certainly Celery, cut out and mounted on the butterfly from Reason to Smile (hostess set). The butterfly was Rock n' Rolled in Regal Rose and Cranberry Crisp. Some of the flowers on the butterfly were filled in using Tempting Turquoise. The background is the retired Dots and Daisies background stamp that came out with Simply Said in its mini debut last year. I highlighted a few of the dots and daises with my white gel pen. The "Froggy Godmother" tag is handwritten in black and mounted on Tempting Turquoise and stitched using a Regal Rose marker then dotted between stitches with the Old Olive marker.

I love how much crafting bling I was able to break out for this project. The crown is colored in gold paint with my Zig Painty Pen and topped with 3 small rhinestones. Her wand is a toothpick with punched out flowers that were dipped in Dazzling Diamonds and topped with another rhinestone. The stem of the wand is covered in silver microbeads (attached with Crystal Effects, but next time, I'd cover the toothpick with sticky strip instead).

Faux Postage:

We were to incorporate faux postage into our card. I'd never done this before, but thankfully, Beate had created a tutorial for Splitcoast Stampers that was linked from the challenge thread. Like all of her tutorials, it was so easy to follow and I love how it turned out! This lady bug and sentiment are from this year's Very Punny Sell-a-bration Set. The bright cheery colors were just perfect. The colors on this are Rose Red, Certainly Celery, Apricot Appeal, and Cameo Coral. The celery brad is a Stampin Up brad.

Accordian Fold:

I didn't think that I was going to get to do any of the VSN challenges, so I didn't check the supply list before hand. I'm guessing that 3.5" x 5" tabbed index cards were on the list since the challenge called for using them, but, since I started at about 8 p.m., I didn't have time to shop for them. Instead, I made my own index cards out of Creamy Caramel stock and the SU rounded tab punch. The stamp set is Farm Fever and the background is the retired Chicken Wire background stamp. The sheep was stamped in Chocolate Chip on watercolor paper and then I spread the color around with my aquapainter. I watercolored below the sheep in Creamy Caramel ink. When folded up, the two tabs together read "Bee well soon!" The primas are attached with aged copper brads and I did the doodling around the Very Vanilla pieces with my Chocolate Chip marker.

If you get a chance, you should definitely participate in VSN. It's so fun, and makes you think outside of the box.

Do you need a custom blog banner?

So, what do you think of the new look? I'm happy with the springy new blog banner! I made those virtual little green brads all on my own -- and I've never done that before! It's so fun to make something work out the way I'd envisioned.

Do YOU need a blog banner?

For the first FIVE customers, a custom blog banner would be just $15. I can incorporate photos, like I've done with my banner, or paper craft elements, like I did on Jeanine's banner, or even doodly swirls. Color choice would also be based on your preferences. If you'd be interested in being one of my first customers, send me an email and we can work out payment through paypal.

Thanks for looking, and if you have suggestions, I'd love to hear them. They might even get incorporated into my next version!

Easter Chicks

Last year, Ky and I were in Miles City, Montana, around Easter time. All of our various nephews and our niece on Ky's side of the family were there and in between some of the events, they ended up at the hardware store with their parents. I was off running an errand with my MIL so I didn't get to see them, but they came back with VERY excited reports of chicks that had been dyed in Easter pastel colors. Just the story of those springtime chicks was enough to be an Easter gift bag inspiration for me.

The chicks were stamped and masked, then the "grass" was sponged on and finally, the chicks were watercolored with my Watercolor Wonder Crayons and Aqua Painter in So Saffron, Regal Rose, Tempting Turquoise and a couple of Bravo Burgundy chicks thrown in for good measure. Each of the watercolor choices were made from colors in the designer paper.

Have a GREAT Friday!

Paper: Mini gift bag (3.5 x 5), Petals & Paisley SU designer paper, Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White, Certainly Celery
Ink: Tempting Turquoise, Black Stazon, Watercolor Wonder Crayons, Certainly Celery
Accessories: Rounded Tab Punch, Large Oval Punch, White Organdy Ribbon, Sponge, Aqua Painter

First Doodle This Card

I'm not sure how I feel about this card, but sometimes with a new set it's just a matter of getting the first card out of the way. I do like the colors of the card...

Also, the first picture doesn't show it (so I just stopped and took another picture), but the flowers are double-layered with the edges slightly curled up. The leaves are from the flower stamped in green and then cut out. Both the flower and petals were stamped in a darker shade of ink than their cardstock base for more contrast. The background swirls were stamped in Versamark ink for less contrast. The doodling around the edges (not very imaginatively done, I'm afraid) is in turquoise which is a step down in color from the teal.

Thanks for looking and if you have suggestions, I'd love to hear them!

Stamps: Doodle This

Paper: Taken With Teal, Whisper White, Apricot Appeal, Certainly Celery

Ink: White Gel Pen, Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive, versamark, Tempting Turquoise

Accessories: Paper snips, teal button from SU assortment

Winner, winner, chicken dinner!

Oh, wait, not chicken dinner -- BLOG CANDY!!!

I thought I should give you my favorite vegetable, too, which is broccoli (cooked, not raw) and my favorite non-stamping activity is reading or napping. I am a fast reader so I zip through books (just picked up another 10 from the library last night) and I am a power napper. This is where it's very helpful to not have kids to interfere with such (ha ha ha) lofty pursuits.

I was impressed with how many of you really DO like vegetables. There were some in there that I'd never heard of or tried (in particular, red capsicum, Swede, and finally, fukua or bitter melon) and I'm going to have to take note and check them out. I will have to do it carefully though, because of my freaky food allergies that have cropped up since my mid-twenties. I have very poor luck with eating fresh fruits or veggies because my bodies perceives them as me eating handfuls of pollen and I tend to have bad reactions. It's called cross-reactivity and doesn't show up as true allergies... it's a bit of a pain, but so many have medical issues that are much worse than I do, and at least I can eat cooked/canned/preserved versions of fruits and vegetables.

AND NOW, DRUMROLL PLEASE....

I went to this site and had it randomly select one number from my total entries (69), not counting my own initial testing post where I made sure I wouldn't have to moderate comments before they showed up (instant gratification), and not counting the one post where its author deleted it. The lucky number this time around was 11. I counted down from the top and the eleventh post was:

Claudia F. said --
Wow, wonderful blog, I'll be back often. Favorite
veggie? I think I'd have to say peas. We love to take nature photographs and
travel.

Claudia, email me and let me know where to send your winnings! Thank you to each of you for visiting, posting, viewing and commenting. I am having such a good time sharing with you, and hope that you've found something you like during your stay. If I haven't already, I will be visiting your blogs if they're linked from your comment and I look forward to seeing what you're putting out there and sharing!

As a little explanation for the winner, winner chicken dinner reference: "Years ago every casino had a 3 piece chicken dinner with potato and veggie for $1.79. A standard bet back then was $2.00, hence when you won a bet you had enough for a chicken dinner" (explanation found online here, so take it with a grain of caution.) It's also a quote from the movie Tin Cup, which is where I'm more familiar with it coming from.

Last day for candy entries!

Yowza! 65 comments so far on the candy post! Ky and I are going out to dinner tonight, and when we get home, I'll pick a name of the winner. Tomorrow morning, I'll post the winner's name.

If you haven't already, be sure to comment on the "It's Here! Blog Candy!" post below and answer the two questions. I'm so excited to pick a winner!

Have a great day!!

Breast cancer donation - thank you card

I received this thank you note from Jeanine in response to our donation to her Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. If you would like to donate to her fundraising efforts, you can visit her walk site. She will walk a a 40 mile walk over the weekend of June 23-24, 2007, and I'm sure she would appreciate any funds you'd like to donate to the cause. Donations are tax deductible.

Thank you Jeanine for this adorable card! I'm so proud of you for doing the walk again.

The cards' patterned background is SU designer paper that was run through a Cuttlebug with the Thanks embossing folder. It was then sanded lightly to highlight the various phrases of gratitude. In its simplicity, this card is SO poignant.

Bunny triangle card

This card is a "triangle trifold" as shown in Beate's tutorial on her blog and on SCS. I messed up the first one's folds (which is why I SHOULD have practiced with scrap paper first). I immediately saw what I'd done wrong, and made this little card. I think it's cute and it was fast and fun to make. Thanks Beate for sharing your tutorials!

It's been interesting though. Everyone that I've shown it to has thought the bow was just decorative, and tried to open the card without untying it. They don't want to untie it because they "don't want to mess it up" but it's currently the tiniest bit bent because of all their avoidance of the bow.


Stamps: Bunny Hugs
Paper: Petals & Paisley SU designer paper, Pretty in Pink, Taken w/ Teal, Whisper White
Ink: Brown Stazon, Apricot Appeal + Blush Blossom (for bunny body), white gel pen
Accessories: mega scallop punch, 1/8" punch, white grosgrain

Wedding congratulations

It seems very strange to me, but this is the first card I've had to make since starting stamping for someone getting married. But I guess I've only been stamping about a year and a half, so maybe that's not so odd.... Anyway, this card is for our neighbors who we're also friends with who are getting married this weekend. They are not formal types -- and I mean that in the best way possible -- so I wanted a card with casual elegance. I don't know that that is what I've achieved, but that was the goal.

The card base is Vintage Violet and the flower set is Serene Sunflower stamped in Perfect Plum and Pale Plum with Vintage Violet centers. Over the center of the flowers I used Crystal Effects and clear microbeads for texture and a little shine. You can see a bit of the Floral background stamp toward the bottom of the card. It was stamped in Basic Black on Whisper White Cardstock and then I sanded it off which gave it a purple-ish hue (for some reason the Stampin' Up Basic Black classic ink has sort of purple undertones - for true black I rely on black Stazon). There are then 2 layers of vellum over the background. "Congratulations" is stamped directly onto the vellum in Vintage Violet ink. The band at the bottom with the silver cording around it is Perfect Plum cardstock.

Thanks for looking and don't forget to make an entry on the current blog candy!


Stamps: Serene Sunflower, Warmest Regards, Floral background stamp
Paper: Whisper White, Vintage Violet, Vellum
Ink: Vintage Violet, Perfect Plum, Pale Plum, Black classic ink
Accessories: silver brads, silver cording, clear microbeads, Crystal Effects, Paper Snips, Sanding Blocks

It's here! Blog candy!

Thank you to each of you who have commented or even visited my blog since I started it! I am having such a good time sharing my creations knowing that you are out there! As I posted a few days earlier, because I'm over 2,000 page views, I'm giving away blog candy! Now actually, there have been more views than that, but I only installed the hit counter about a month after starting up my blog.

For a chance at the 2,000 view blog candy you need to post a comment on this entry (only one per person, please), and let me know 2 things.

1. Your favorite vegetable
2. What you do for fun other than stamping (is that possible?)

I will announce a winner from all those who have posted to this entry on Thursday morning. You have through Wednesday night at 10 p.m. mountain standard time to comment. Thanks for looking, reading and commenting!

Blog candy consists of:

• Gently Falling stamp set - Stampin' Up! (new and unmounted)
• Thank You and Happy Birthday stamps - Stampendous
• Scallop circle cut outs (mega size) in various colors
• White circle cut outs sized to fit on the scallop pieces
• Chipboard flowers (4)
• Buttons - various makers (red, ivory, clear, and brown/neutrals)
• Ribbon in 3 - 1 yard pieces of Dots, Dashes & Checks brand
• Stampin' sponge

Less than 100 views to go!

I'll go pick out a stamp set for some candy!

Welcome to the rubber room!

Can you tell I've been left to my own devices this week while Ky's been out of town?

Last night I finally put up my stamp room wall phrase.

In case you can't read it clearly, it reads: Welcome to the rubber room.

It made me laugh when I put in the order for it. The photo above is a (not-very-good) head-on picture of the phrase which actually came in two sheets. One for the red phrase and another for the brown phrase. Then you layer them on the wall. It's really a pretty easy process if you just have a little patience.

If I do anything else to whip my space into shape, I'll post pictures of it. I do have another rack like the white ones on the right side of the picture above that I'm hoping Ky will help me mount on the wall this weekend. I should have included my desk top in the photo because for a brief time, it's actually cleared off. We may never see it that way again.

My Craft Solutions on ebay is the source for the wall organizers.
Uppercase Living is the source for the words on the wall.

Scrap storage

Oh boy! I finally finished reorganizing my paper scraps.

It wasn't the best time I've ever had, but I was getting really irritated with my previous method of scrap storage which was plastic baggies with labels that had the color name on them. It was hard to look through the baggies to find a scrap that I wanted -- and I'm frugal about my cardstock.

I try to use every bit I can, but as a starting point for getting organized, I went ahead and GASP, threw out some of the smallest pieces. Then I went through and scored a line on one piece in every SU color that I own and then lined up the middle of the SU round tab punch with the score line and punched it out. I had bought some 110 lb. cover stock for my divider pieces because I didn't want to waste SU cardstock on dividers; I cut that into pieces that fit these wood boxes I found at Michael's for just under $5 a piece. Then, I stapled on the tabs to a divider piece. It was quick and tidy.

The colors are organized by color, rather than by SU color family. I had the baggies organized this way and knew that I'm more likely to look for "a blue" rather than recognizing what color I wanted and the family it would be in. I didn't include the current In Color family in my main colors because eventually, they'll be going away, and I didn't want to have to remove the tab from the lineup. In Color colors and neutrals are in one bin and the other families are in the other bin. If I start running out of room, I can take out the paper bags that I have in back of the In Color/neutral bin which would give me more room.

Blog Candy Heads Up...

When I hit 2,000 page views, I have some blog candy lined up... There are at least 2 sentiment stamps set aside for it, but what else would you like a chance at?

• scallop punched pieces (I own the mega and giga circle punches)
• ribbon
• stamped impressions from one of the sets I own
• Stampin' Up stamp set from my stash

Other suggestions? If it's in my power, and (sorry for this caveat) if it won't break my bank, I'd love to be able to hand things out! I'd love it if you'd comment on this post with your ideas and we'll see what I come up with -- hopefully matching up along the way!

Coaster Card

I've tried so hard to reign myself in on spending in the Stampin' Up spring mini, and it's getting hard to keep that effort going! I was at Jeanine's this weekend for some stamping time, and she let me use both her Doodle This set and some of her Au Chocolat designer paper to cover one of her square coasters. Sigh. After that, I had to place an order because I just liked the stamps and paper SO MUCH.

I had designed the coaster piece while I was there, and although I loved how it turned out, I wasn't at all sure what to do with it! I was pretty sure it would be tacked to my bulletin board to languish other than just being admired once in a while. However, on Monday night I was playing in my stamp room, and I decided to try something different! This is what I came up with. The first shot is of how it looks with the notecard inserted and the second is of the card and pocket side by side.

I stamped the big flower twice and then cut them out and layered them so they overlapped. I glued them together so they wouldn't spin and get out of order then I placed the pink brad through them. Then I punched out Chocolate Chip circles with both the Giga and Mega scallop punches, then a Vanilla piece with the Mega and a Regal Rose piece with the Giga. These are layered one on top of the other with the colors alternating so you see just a bit of the Regal Rose and Vanilla pieces.


Stamps: Doodle This (SU spring mini)
Paper: Au Chocolat (SU spring mini), Chocolate Chip, Vanilla, Regal Rose
Ink: white gel pen, Choc. Chip. marker, Regal Rose
Accessories: Pink brad (unknown source), pearl brad (unknown source), Giga and mega scallops, 1 1/4" SU circle punch, Rose Ribbon (SU), Striped ribbon (Michael's)

Dawn's Thank You

When I gave out my first blog candy, the winner was Dawn. I am slow to get her thank you card posted, but this is so pretty that it definitely deserves special mention. The first photo is of the outside of the card, and then the second is of the card when it is opened. The little note slides out of the pocket on the inside. I love this iris stamp -- so pretty. Thanks so much Dawn for the beautiful card!!

St. Pat Birthday

Ky's brother's birthday is on St. Patrick's day. This year, I tried to incorporate the clover, without being obnoxious about it. I made the clover using the heart from the SU set Dream Come True and stamped it three times in Old Olive ink. Since we also love him, I wanted to highlight that it was made of hearts so I dotted around the edges of each heart with my white gel pen. I doodled around the front of the envelope and the flap of the envelope with my Chocolate Chip marker.

The striped paper is by Chatterbox and is layered over Creamy Caramel and Bashful Blue SU cardstock. The stem of the clover is the word "happy" from the SU set Happy Everything which I stamped in Old Olive; "birthday" is stamped in Creamy Caramel. The stamp "this better not go in the trash" was stamped on the back of the envelope, and it's actually the first time I've used it. I got that little gem as a gift from Jeanine quite a while back, so I'm glad to get to ink it up. I also think it will get the birthday boy's attention!

Quick Note and Envelope

I played with the SU 5-in-1 template to make the Certainly Celery cardstock envelope which is closed with a pair of silver brads and some silver cord. The card insert is Almost Amethyst with white gel pen doodling around the edge, and a flower from In Full Bloom stamped in Regal Rose and Mellow Moss and then watercolored in the same color combination. This was a quick project that I thought would make a lovely thank you note or greeting card. There is Dazzling Diamonds glitter in the center of the flower.

I also used the template this weekend in conjunction with my Ten Quick Cards class. I'll try to post a photo of the folder/envelope that I made with it later.

You can find the Five-in-One Card Cover Template on p. 205 of the Idea Book & Catalog.

Birthday bon(e) jour!

As I wrote yesterday, I was thinking I had to make a punny birthday card for my brother-in-law. This is it. It's very simple. I don't think I've ever used this dog from the set before...

I can't remember who makes the striped paper used on the left side. Otherwise, it's all Stampin' Up supplies. The "bone jour" is done in Versamark and stamped on the Chocolate Chip cardstock. The dog is colored in with markers in (Close to Cocoa, Creamy Caramel, Real Red and Blush Blossom). The stitching is paper-piercing which was then traced with my Chocolate Chip marker. The bone is layered color of Blush Blossom overlayed with Caramel.

Yum!

A woman cannot exist by stamping alone...

The other night for dinner Ky and I worked together and made a delicious pork tenderloin w/ balsamic-cranberry sauce. We've made it before, and it is SO good. I got the recipe off of epicurious, and it's originally from Bon Appétit magazine.

The chopped onions and fresh rosemary:

I thought the colors were so pretty! Also a nice contrast to my red silicone spatula...

The seared pork:


Searing means you cook the meat on a high heat to cook the outside and keep the moisture inside. It also means you get yummy cooked bits in the pan. Then you cook the tenderloin in the oven to complete the cooking of the inside.

And, the final product:

I like how artistically Ky arranged the pork and cleanly poured the sauce.

I hope you enjoyed my little departure!

Happy woof day!

This is a birthday card for my niece who turns 6 this month. She is already taking after her dad in her punny sense of humor. The inside of the card reads: Happy woof day!!! I think she'll really like the bright colors and the puppy. We're celebrating her dad's birthday soon after, and I just may have to make him a punny card using the "bone jour" dog, which is another dog from Ruff Day that's wearing a little beret and has a bone in his mouth. If I do, I'll be sure to post it.

I happen to have my Fiskar's circle punch for the big circle in this image, but I found that if you wanted the same size circle as the one shown here, you can trace around the inside of a roll of mini glue dots to cut out a circle that's the same size.

Stamps: Ruff Day, 1/4" Karen Foster Snap Stamps (sentiments)
Paper: Petals & Paisley SU designer paper, Old Olive, Taken w/ Teal, So Saffron, Whisper White
Ink: Timber Stazon, So Saffron, Regal Rose, Taken w/ Teal, white gel pen
Accessories: Rose grosgrain ribbon, Scallop punch, Fiskars circle punch, Crystal Effects (dog's nose)
Techniques: Coloring with markers

Jeanine's new blog header

I was practicing in Photoshop last week, and decided that Jeanine's blog header would be a good project for me. Although now that it's done and posted to her blog, I'm thinking that perhaps I should have started with one for MY blog instead.... Guess I'll have to update my tulips. :)

What do you think of it? Is it good enough that I should go into production of them for other bloggers?

On the move...

Nope, Ky and I are not moving, although Saturday morning we did tour some very cool new townhomes near us... Not cool enough to inspire us to pack up, though.

I got an order for 20 moving cards from a co-worker. They're a clean, simple design that emphasizes the little truck packed for the move. The truck is placed just slightly to the left of center to imply motion. On the back I pre-printed their information (blurred out for their privacy) with a little rhyme that includes their last name. They'll go out in clear envelopes with the recipient's address in the blank area on the right.

(left) card front and (right) is back of same.

Stamps: Loads of Love and Loads of Love Accessories

Paper: Cool Carribean, Sahara Sand, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White

Ink: Close to Cocoa (truck body), Cool Carribean (with blender pen), Old Olive, Barely Banana, Creamy Caramel, Zig Painty Pen - silver (bumpers and door handle), white gel pen

Accessories: Crystal Effects (window and hubcaps), Sakura Stardust clear gel pen (exhaust cloud), silver brads

Technique: Doodles around border in white gel pen, cut out truck with paper snips

Mini Bunny Bag

On Splitcoast Stampers these bags are known as Genie bags because, well, Genie's the one that introduced them. They are generally made with your standard lunch bag-size sack. The one I've used here is approximately 3.25" x 6.5". I found them at Target, and I think they're so cute. They're just a plain brown bag, made of nicely stiff paper, that goes with just about anything. You can tone it down by matching it more closely, or play off of it by going with brighter colors like I've done here.

I stamped the bunny in Chocolate Chip, then masked it off, and stamped the basket also in Choc. Chip, and then I left the bunny's mask on, and masked off the basket so I could stamp the eggs "in" the basket. Then I colored the basket with (I think) Barely Banana, and drew in the weaving lines w/ Close to Cocoa. I traced over the tie around the basket so it stood out a little more. I watercolored the bunny by pulling the brown color in using my aqua painter. Because I stamped the bunny in classic ink, it isn't waterproof, so it provided almost all of the ink I needed to give the bunny a very soft coloring. I then cut out the bunny and basket, purposely not including the basket handle and mounted it on the Celery circle and Teal scallop pieces.

I used SU's small oval punch for the "handle" and their Word Window punch to punch out the words "hugs and kisses" that I had colored with my Old Olive marker and stamped onto Whisper White. Working with the designer Petals & Paisleys printed paper, I was able to pull out all the colors I needed for the project. The ribbon through the handle is SU white organdy ribbon.



Stamps: Bunny Hugs
Paper: Taken w/ Teal, Whisper White, Certainly Celery, SU Petals & Paisleys designer paper
Ink: Choc. Chip, Barely Banana, Blush Blossom, Regal Rose, Taken w/ Teal, Old Olive
Accessories: Word Window Punch, Small SU Oval Punch, Fiskars small scallop scissors, Mega Scallop Punch, Fiskars XL circle punch, 1/8" circle punch, white gel pen
Techniques: Watercoloring on Bunny

Ewe okay?

I had to play with my scallop punch again. :) This card is for someone at my office who just had surgery, and I wanted her to know I'm thinking of her and sending good wishes.

The center piece is mounted on dimensionals. The sheep image is from SU's Farm Fever, as is the floral paper, gingham ribbon, white gel pen (faux stitching), crystal effects (on hooves and eyes) and all cardstock. The button is from a big bag that I bought at Archivers this past summer. The sentiment was stamped with my snap-stamps with a hand-drawn question mark. I punched holes all around the punched Chocolate Chip scallop piece with my SU 1/8" hole punch, and the Bashful Blue circle was punched out using my new (I know, I'm spending a lot lately) Fiskars upside-down XL circle squeeze punch. It punches out so smoothly! It looks like the punch below (minus the hand impression - I couldn't find a picture showing the circle).

Their marketing line for these punches is:

We flipped it over so you don't have to. Our newly designed Squeeze Punch is revolutionary. With this design, you can see exactly where you're cutting for perfect punches and less wasted paper.

This makes me smile, because I've always used my SU punches upside-down for accuracy, and it's not a problem, but, I have used my mom's older giant punches and they were hard to punch! You'd have to set them on the table and LEAN on it to get it to punch. You could only use it to cut out solid color scraps. With this baby, and those of SU, they punch so easily that you can use it to punch out an image - no problem. Love my punches.

Some bunny new...

I got new toys this week! I got the Stampin' Up set Bunny Hugs (super cute), then I got my Karen Foster snap-stamps (they're letter stamps that you can link together to make words), and THEN, yes, I got my first cirlce scalloped punch!! It's a "mega" size and I found it, totally by chance, at Sweet Miss Daisy's ebay store. She is so awesome to buy from. Stuff comes in fast and she lets you know when it's heading out to you. She only had one of these punches at the time, but she has tons of other cool stuff that you should check out.


This card is made with Pretty in Pink, Old Olive, Buckaroo Blue, and Vintage Violet. The bunny was watercolored in lightly with Chocolate Chip, and Pretty in Pink in his ears and on his cheeks. I covered him in flocking and dotted his eyes and nose with Crystal Effects. The sentiment was done with my new Karen Foster stamps.


This is another Bunny Hugs card done in more muted colors. The chicks were all cut out, and the bunny was masked off so I could sponge the sky using Buckaroo Blue. The green in this card is True Thyme.