Am I Blue?

Well, I'm not blue but my card sure is!! I'd like to enter this card in Annabelle Stamps Bling Sketch Challenge #45, Jellypark Friends Old Year/New Year Challenge to use something old and something new, and For Fun Challenges to show New, Something New.

My "something old" is the lighter color paper that I've embossed with Cuttlebug's Checker Board folder; this is actually one of the first papers I bought when I first started stamping, if you can believe that! And the "something new" is my Papertrey Ink stamp, Background Basics: Gingham. I just got it today, it's that new! Many thanks to my friend Ruthie who brought it down here to me!

Wanted to share another photo with you too. I made another valentine similar to the one I posted yesterday, only reversing the colors -- red where the first card was white and white where the first card was red. I used white embossing powder and versamark to stamp onto the red paper. I also made envelopes for both of the valentines. Love how they all turned out -- my thanks again to Melisa for her inspiration!

Bye for now,
Betty

Make It Manly

My last post showcased a "girly" card. Today, we're switching directions and going with a "manly" card.

I have four challenge spots to thank for my inspiration for this card.
Eat, Sleep, Stamp  sketch challenge 148
AnnaBelle Stamps  Say It With A Male Card
Speedy the Cat's Friends  to make things with wings
Fab N Funky Challenges  to make a card that's "hard for you to make".

I used Stampin' Up cardstock, Close to Cocoa and Creamy Caramel and papers from a Scrapbook Kit titled Great Outdoors. I used the Cuttlebug CheckerBoard embossing folder on the small circle to imitate the pattern on the square paper.

I don't make a lot of "manly" cards because "girly" just comes much easier. However, this one seemed to come together with no trouble at all, thanks to a great sketch and a beautiful dragonfly image that I printed, cut out and popped up. The sentiment from AnnaBelle Stamps "All Things Grow" is also popped up to add some dimension.

Hope you all have a pleasant weekend!
Betty

CASual Friday with Annabelle Stamps

Hello, friends! I took a day off from crafting yesterday to go to Guadalajara with stops at Costco and Home Depot. I just love looking at hooks and all sorts of other gadgets at Home Depot; I even spied a soaking tub that may one day come to live at my house (we just have showers in our bathrooms now). Fighting the traffic in Guad was not exactly fun and we were sure glad to get back to our quiet home in Chapala!

Woke up this morning and while checking emails and Facebook, saw that Annabelle Stamps is hosting the challenge at CASual Fridays this week. The challenge is to make a Clean and Simple Mini card no larger than 4" x 4". My card is 3" x 3". I have a Cuttlebug butterfly die with matching embossing folders and that is the focal image of my little bitty card, with the sentiment  from Gina K. Designs.

Hope you can join in on this challenge -- the winner gets a $20 shopping spree at Annabelle Stamps and will have a hard time making a purchase decision, I'm sure! I've got my fingers crossed!

Betty

Sunflower Wishes

At stampTV today Theresa Momber has issued a challenge to CASE design team member, Cathy Tidwell. I decided to case her card called heartlovelyday3. We are to change at least two things on our card. I used a different corner and border punch, changed the image, used ribbon instead of twine and a flower instead of a button. My image was too large to add inside the card so I went with the border punch to add interest inside.
I would also like to enter this card in the challenge at Annabelle Stamps, Say It With Distressing. I have distressed the edges of the flower image and the mats surrounding it.
Hope you can join me in one or both of these challenges!
Betty

Stamp sets used: A Year of Flowers, Pressed Flowers, and Fanciful Tags all by Gina K. Designs
Punches: Martha Stewart Double Loops Border and Corner Punches
Cardstock: Stampin' Up Whisper White, Chocolate Chip and Summer Sun
Inks: SU Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa, Summer Sun and More Mustard

Annabelle Stamps' Color Challenge

The current challenge at Annabelle Stamps is to Say It In ..... Raspberry, Olive and Orange. I've been impressed with a lot of the clean and simple card designs that I've been seeing and wanted to give it a try. I used Stampin' Up's Island Oasis Designer Series Paper and cut out flowers and leaves in the colors that I needed. Then I chose a piece of striped paper in that pack and used only the colors that I needed for the challenge. The sentiment is from Annabelle's set "Ballerina Rose". A bit more of the stripes on the inside to add a little flavor to the white base and my card was finished. I was quite pleased with the look; didn't know if I could pull it off or not!!

Annabelle Stamps will be turning two years old next month and they will be having some special challenges to celebrate. If you grab their blinkie and post to your blog you will be in the running for some free stamps. Check out my previous post for more info!

Betty

Don't Miss the Celebration!

Did you notice the blinkie at the top left? Annabelle Stamps' is going to have a celebration. It's time to party because they are turning two!  They have a week of celebrations planned and you won't want to miss a day! Add the blinkie to your blog and get a chance to win free stamp sets! Click on the link to their blog to find instructions:  Here is some info on the upcoming festivities ......

8th September - Challenge hosted by Sue w & Kylie

Join Sue and Kylie on their blogs for a fun challenge!

10th September - Challenge hosted by Sue K & Stephanie

Join Sue and Stephanie on their blogs for another fun challenge!

12th September - Challenge hosted by Patti & Marion

Join Patti & Marion on their blogs for the last fun challenge!

All challenges will finish on the 14th September at 12.00pm AEST, so if you miss the first one you can still catch up!

Enter any of the challenges for a chance to win 1 6 x 4 set of your choice and 3 packs 6mm Sprinkles! Winners will be announced on the 14th September on each of the DT blogs.

Annabelle Stamps Say It In Red, Cream, and Chocolate

What gorgeous colors, Red, Cream and Chocolate -- they make such an elegant card! Hope you can play along this week!

Sorry my post is late -- I've been having some computer probs, but it seems to be working now, thank goodness! Cardbase this week is Very Vanilla by Stampin' Up; also, Real Red and Chocolate Chip. Dp by Basic Grey. I really like this round border stamp from the set Sentimental Bluebells by Annabelle Stamps. The sentiment is from this same set. Nestability dies were used for cutting the circles and a Cuttlebug border die for the corners. I also like this brown ribbon with cream polka dots -- reminds me of the dress Julia Roberts wore to the polo match in the movie Pretty Woman.

I want to thank Andrea for giving me the chance to be guest designer this month. I have been a fan of Annabelle Stamps since being introduced to them by my friend, Sue Walsh and it has been such a joy to join her and the rest of the design team this month. Hope I've inspired you a bit and that you'll begin your collection of Annabelle Stamps -- you'll love 'em!
Betty

Annabelle Stamps Say It With .... Circles

This week the challenge from Annabelle Stamps is to Say It With Circles. I'm not only saying it with circles, I've been going around in circles ever since Saturday when our household goods arrived from the United States. It's been a crazy few days unpacking and shuffling furniture and it's not over yet!
My card was made with a Creamy Caramel card base from Stampin' Up, stamped with Backgrounds By Design2. The circular border from Sentimental Bluebells was stamped in the accent color of Not Quite Navy by Stampin' Up on an ivory base, and cut with circle and scalloped circle dies. The butterfly from All Things Grow was stamped twice; once in the center of the decorative and again, cut out for dimension. Another circular element is the sentiment which was printed on cork circles (one wine cork bit the dust to add this element!)
Hope you enjoyed my card and also enjoy the challenge this week -- please join us!

Betty

Annabelle Stamps Challenge

The challenge from Annabelle Stamps this week is ........

And here's my card ........

The stamp set that I used is Ballerina Rose, colored with Koh-I-Noor pencils. The card base is Kraft and dp is Origins, by Basic Grey. The ribbons are white grosgrain and a double-stitched green. Butterflies were done with a Marvy punch. I distressed the edges of the sentiment with green and added a couple of gorgeous light green pearls.

I was pleased with the outcome of this one -- truly enjoyed coloring those delicate wild roses. Unfortunately, we had gale force winds several evenings back which caused two slight leaks from rain getting under the tiles on the roof. And guess what happened to be directly in the path of one of those leaks -- yep, it was this card! (You knew that was coming, didn't you????) I can salvage the ribbon, butterflies and sentiment but the rest will have to be redone.

Do you want to see a picture of the sky during this bad weather? Well, here it is -- if you're scared of storms -- don't look! Actually this was taken as the dark clouds were blowing away and a bit of bright sky was appearing, so the worst was over by this time! We normally don't have very bad weather here at Lake Chapala but Tropical Storm Arlene was slowly moving through the Sierra Madras mountains causing havoc all over Mexico.



Adios,
Betty

Annabelle Stamps Say It With ..... Frames

The challenge at Annabelle Stamps' blog this week is to Say It With Frames. I have used two of Annabelle's stamp sets for my card, Sentimental Bluebells for the main image and sentiment and All Things Grow for the beautiful butterfly. I made my frame with a Spellbinders die and Mellow Moss cardstock from Stampin' Up. The border at the bottom of my card is from a Martha Stewart punch and the "little swirlies" are made with a Cuttlebug corner die and SU Ballet Blue. I colored the image with Koh-I-Noor pencils and added some blue "pearls" and ribbon for a decorative accent.
Hope you'll check out the inspiration cards from the design team and play along with the challenge this week!

Betty

Get Well Wishes

Had another sleepless night and this card was the result. I was pleased with its clean and simple look. I used three different stamp sets -- All Things Grow and Backgrounds by Design2 by Annabelle Stamps and Kind Caring Thoughts by Stampin' Up. My card has a So Saffron base, with a layer of Whisper White, stamped in So Saffron ink. The flower image and sentiment are stamped in So Saffron ink on So Saffron cardstock, framed with More Mustard; they were all cut out with rectangular nestabilities and I added a couple of rhinestones to the flower layer. The butterfly was also stamped in So Saffron ink on white cardstock. This card will the entered in the following challenges:
Annabelle Stamps -- Say It In Yellow (like my friend Sue, I used "mellow yellow"!)
Phindy's Place Challenge and Stampin' B's -- both are for a monochromatic card.
Betty

Button Brads

Okay, I felt sorry for the big brads that I trashed in yesterday's post so I designed a card especially for them!! Kept the color combo of Chocolate, Blue and Pink from the challenge at Annabelle Stamps (after all the brads are brown, blue and pink -- it was a no brainer!)and added an image from Annabelle Stamps set titled Thoughtful Stems. DP is from My Mind's Eye paper pack titled Simply Delightful. Sponged with SU ink.

Hope all of your football fans are enjoying the game!
Betty

Missing You

(Please scroll all the way to the end of this post -- I decided that I need to redo this card!)
Here is a card I've made to send to Operation Write Home. I have used the sketch from Card Patterns Sketch 101 and the color combo from Annabelle's Stamps Challenge to Say It in Chocolate, Blue and Pink.
You have probably heard about a special campaign for Katie Renz, a designer for Clear Dollar Stamps, who was diagnosed with Stage 4 stomach cancer. Several stamp companies banded together in an effort to help Katie and her family pay for her medical bills. You can find the information about the stamps and how you can help at Jak Heath's blog. Jak is now hosting a contest to make a card with one of the images that you receive when you make your donation. You can find info about the contest here. My image comes from Clear Dollar Stamps and it is part of a set of several sewing images and sentiments. I learned about the contest from a fellow blogger -- thanks, Donna!

On a personal note, it warmed up here today (that made me so very happy!) and we also had someone else come to look at our house which is for sale -- We'll just have to pray that something good comes from the visit!

Edited to Add: I had to redo this card. The more I looked at it, the less I liked the "honking big" brads on the top right. They were fighting with the polka dots and with the focal image. So, here is my card with smaller brads!!


Betty

All Things Grow with Annabelle Stamps

I have another card made with my new stamp set from Annabelle Stamps. Made this one just to be making it -- no special challenge (I'm a little tired of "heart" challenges!) I bought a kitchen sponge and cut it up to replace my "real sponges" but I think a trip to the storage facility is in order. The kitchen sponge is better than nothing but doesn't come close to the real thing! We've been needing to reaarange in there since more of my MIL's things were added so tomorrow is going to be the day. Hopefully, "my day will be a special one" and I can find what I'm looking for -- may even bring home some of my designer paper if I can find it. May your day be a special one, too!!

Betty

All Things Grow

I was so excited to see my envelope in the mailbox from Annabelle Stamps. It had come all the way from Australia and I was right there to welcome it to its new home!
The set I had ordered is All Things Grow and you can see it here on the right. Aren't those grasses and butterflies gorgeous???? Nature at its best!

I was eager to use this lovely set and Annabelle Stamps had just posted the February Sketch -- how convenient! I only used two of the stamps in this set for my card so I've got lots more to try out -- look out for more to come!

Betty

Love, Love, Love

This valentine was made for two challenges: Annabelle Stamps say it in Red and White; and Speedy's Friends -- to use hearts on your card.

The patterned paper was made with Annabelle Stamps Backgrounds by Design2 and the heart images come from GTC's Crafty Corner. I also used some sheer red ribbon that I found at Big Lots.

Wanted to say Congrats! to a friend of mine, Mary Anne, who was a winner recently at Speedy the Cat's Friends Blog Hop! Way to go, Mary Anne!! Won't you have fun getting a sneak peek at one of the coming new releases!

Betty

With Sympathy

I made this card for the Repeat Impressions Sketch J1211. I created the background with Annabelle Stamps Backgrounds By Design2, using Stampin' Up Soft Sky ink and Tim Holtz Pumice Stone Distressed ink. The image and sentiment are from Annabelle Stamps, Thoughtful Stems. Cutting was done with Nestabilities and a punched butterfly and colored pearls were the final elements. Hope you enjoyed stopping by!



Betty

Monkey See, Monkey Do!

No, I'm not talking about my DGD having to do everything that she sees my DGS doing! I saw this beautiful card over on my friend Janice's blog and had to do one like it. She told me that she had gotten the sketch from Repeat Impressions Skech #D2910. I'm pleased with my card but that cardinal on hers is just stunning!

Will also be entering this card in some other challenges:
Speedy's Friends -- to use embossing (I heat embossed the borders in black)
Stampin' B's -- to use something old and something new
the new is the border stamp that I blogged about yesterday; also dp from DD at Christmas
the old is Stampin' Up Certainly Celery cardstock (is it still an active color????)

Now, on to the last challenge which requires some explanation. Annabelle Stamps is having a recipe challenge to use 1 border stamp, 2 flowers, and 3 gems. Okay, I guess I just don't know how to follow a recipe. I ended up with 1 border stamp, but I used it twice; my stemed flower has five blooms, and I used six pink pearls. I could say that I got confused and thought that it was supposed to be:
1. border stamp
2. flowers
3. gems BUT,
that would be a big old fat lie and I couldn't live with myself. So, I will just take myself over to the time out corner and sit out this challenge -- but I did want to show my card to you, Andrea, Sue, and all you other sweet gals! And to show you how much I appreciate winning the border stamps!

Betty

New Stamps in the House!

I did not make a card today but I did have a thrill when I checked the mailbox. Found an envelope that had come all the way from Australia with a set of border stamps that I won from Annabelle Stamps.

On the back of the package it says "Ink the image and stamp a few times on scrap paper to help prepare your stamp. When happy with the impression begin stamping." Well, I have to tell you, I was happy the the impression from my first stamp with each of these beauties. I had no need whatsoever to "prepare" them -- they are perfect from the word go!

Here's a link to Annabelle's Stamps Challenge Blog but there's a tab there that will take you to their store. Be sure to check out what they have to offer. You might even want to enter the current recipe challenge: 1) border stamp 2) flowers 3)sparkles/gems. I'm thinking that my border stamps arrived at just the right time!

See ya later,

Betty

One More Christmas Card

I have a Christmas card today that I will be linking to the following challenges:
ABC Christmas Challenge - choose any letter - I chose C is for Candy (and it's also for canes!)
MelJens Challenge - Sweet as Candy (or cookies)
Annabelle Stamps - Say it in Green and Red

The background is from Cloud9 Design (Harvest Holiday Glitter Mat Stack). I heat embossed the greeting and swirl with white powder, cut out one of the candy canes to "hang" on the swirl, and added four green rhinestones. Will this be my last Christmas card this year??? Time will tell.......

Betty