Birthday Treat

Quickie today... The Divas have a fun color challenge I dare you to try!  Here's my take.  I used a neto-me stamp level one hostess set called Birthday Bakery and the Big Bold Cupcake Sizzlit set with the Big Shot.

Have a great day!
~Kristin

Not Exactly Traditional

 Elegant, unique, not exactly traditional:  that's what I lean towards (strive for) when designing Christmas cards.  It is rare to find a straight-up green and red card from me- not sure why.  I suppose because I like thinking outside the box and by the time Christmas rolls around I'm about sick of the red/green combo in my face.  Now that's not to say I don't appreciate cards in those traditional colors- because I do, truly!  Even some of my favorites have been true red and green.

With that said, I've chosen Sahara Sand, Bravo Burgandy and Vanila with a touch of Early Espresso for these two designs.  What do you think of that color combo??  I love it and can see it for so much more than holiday cards! 

These are both quite simple as I'm working on designs for my upcoming Holiday Stamp-a-Stack.  Simple is always best for these events with 40 or so people wanting to do the same 12 cards in a limited time.  But simple doesn't have to mean boring or lacking that something special. 

So what do you think?  Would you be excited about making either of these two cards at a Stamp-a-Stack?  The first one entails sponging and a rectangle mask, with a rhinestone and some lovely narrow Espresso Taffeta topping it off.  The second one, which happens to use the CAS sketch challenge from yesterday on SCS, is a Sahara Sand base with monochromatic snowflakes and a portion of the tree showing from the set Snow Swirled.  The extra details include a few touches with the Bravo Burgandy marker on the tree and a rhinestone topper as well. 

Quick, simply and lovely is the goal.  What do you think?  Feel free to "vote" by leaving a comment- I'll let you know what I decide before the SAS on October 23.  If you are anywhere near Kenton, Ohio and are interested in joining me for this fun event I'd be thrilled to call you my guest!  Cost is $30 and that includes lunch and snacks, 12 holiday projects (all cards except one gift packaging idea) and lots of door prizes and fun!  Leave your email address if you're interested in getting the flyer.

Thanks for stopping by! I'm hoping to get some scrapbooking done today... we'll see what happens!

~Kristin

SUO Supplies

Stamps: Snow Swirled

Colors: Sahara Sand, Bravo Burgandy, Early Espresso, Very Vanilla

Accessories: Wide Bravo Burgandy grosgrain ribbon, narrow Early Espresso taffeta ribbon, Basic Jewel Rhinestones, sponge.

Peek-a-Boo!

Good morning!  I've got a card for ya today, believe it or not.  This sweet stamp set, Build-a-Roo just arrived on Friday and I had to get it inky right away!  I've always thought it is cute and fairly versatile.  This sketch is from the Pals Paper Arts (PPA61) challenge and the color combo is for the Color Throwdown (CTD111). 

For my circle element for the sketch I used a black jumbo grommet.  I have TIP for using those babies:  don't try to put the prongs through the paper, just bend them flat with an old eyelet hammer and attach it with glue dots.  It doesn't wrinkle up the paper and is much easier to attach. 

I colored the kangaroo with my blender pens and some River Rock ink then some touches of Soft Suede for some shading.  Yes, I know, my coloring skills aren't up to par with the masters! 

If you have a Stamp-a-Majig this is a great set to use it for to get the accessories in the kangaroo's pouch!  This set comes with not only the baby roo, but also flowers and hearts plus a few things to put in her hand and 3 different sentiments.

Have a great Sunday!

~Kristin

SUO Supplies

Stamps:  Build-a-Roo

Colors: River Rock, Pacific Point, Whisper White, Basic Black, Melon Mambo

Accessories: Pacific Point striped grosgrain, Big Shot, Dotted Embossing folder, black Jumbo Grommet, Scallop border punch, blender pens

Diva Day, are you going to play??

 Good morning my loyal readers, how are you today?  I'm tickled to be stamping and that it's no longer 90 degrees here in my stampin' studio!  Ooh, speaking of Stampin' Studio (which you might know is really just one long wall in our master bedroom)- I might have a studio of my own in the next year or so!  Woohoo, I'll post details some other time.  You'll be so excited for me I'm sure!

Anyway, today is a Diva Wednesday and we've got a wonderful sketch for you which I've paired with a color combo challenge from Splitcoast that was much tougher for me than I expected.  I am late posting this today because it was one of those cards that just wouldn't come together- I tried and tried, cut and recut, scrapped idea after idea.  Well actually that's not true, I stuck with my original idea and just kept trying until it worked (which wasn't until this morning at 11am!)  Maybe I should've scrapped my idea last night and I would have come up with something much sooner.  Ah well, hindsight is always 20/20!

So it turned out fairly clean & simple considering how long it took me.  The tree was inked with markers, black and Wild Wasabi which takes a bit of time but I was anticipating a really neat look, especially since I've not used black for the tree before.  It was my layer colors that gave me fits but once I textured the Cajun Craze I liked it much better.  Somehow that texture helps it blend into the background which is what I wanted. 

Do you remember these felt flowers?  Well, it is one of those products that I love but completely forgot about until the box (with two full sets of flowers) fell off my shelf last night (while struggling with this card) and dumped everywhere!  Voila- using them!  I added a corduroy button in Baja Breeze to one and a black brad to the other. 

TIP:  Wondering how I made the layered sentiment?  Don't forget about the Big Shot die Movers & Shapers.  The Punch Windows set (page 209) comes with dies that layer perfectly with the punches: Scallop Oval, Modern Label (that I used here), large heart and the large star.  The idea behind this die is to be able to punch those shapes anywhere on your card, even where a standard punch wouldn't reach... but you can also use it like this and just cut out a layer for behind your punch.  Works like a charm!  I just lay a scrap of paper over the die and run it through the Big Shot. 

Anyway, I did up the inside a bit too so I'll leave you with that.  It looks a little plain to me, but keep in mind that the black striped ribbon actually ties in a bow on the inside of the card so that adds a little something too. 

Thanks for stopping by today!  I love having you visit!  Please go check out the other Divas and play along with the Diva challenge!
~Kristin

SUO Supplies

Stamps: Thoughts & Prayers, Teeny Tiny Wishes

Colors: Baja Breeze, Cajun Craze, Wild Wasabi, Basic Black, Very Vanilla

Accessories: Big Shot, Square Lattice Textured Impressions Embossing folder, Felt Flowers, Corduory button, Movers & Shapers die, Modern Label punch, black brad, Black striped ribbon (phew!)

Two in Two!

 Happy Monday all!  I'm back today with two challenges in two different cards.  I was determined to stamp today since it's been a few days so I set out to find a few challenges to try.  First up is the Mojo Monday sketch challenge.  Second, is the Clean & Simple color challenge on SCS to use kraft, red, brown and vanilla.  This rarely happens to me but while brainstorming I had two totally different ideas and decided to do them both!

The first is more clean and simple.  I combined a sentiment from Whimsical Words (a Sale-a-Bration set from earlier this year) and I {(Heart} Hearts!  Did you notice the three clear buttons?  Did you notice the XOX connotation for hugs and kisses (in the buttons)??  Is it cheesy??  I wasn't sure. 

My second card is this Christmas Wishes card made with Gifts of Christmas.  The main image is embossed in Vanilla powder and the dove is painted with Lumiere which is an old pearl white paint that SU used to carry years ago.  My lid has a crack so it was fairly dry, but I just added some water and stirred and it thinned down nicely.

I'm sure you noticed the Glimmer Brads (available now in the Holiday Mini Catalog- pg. 36)- aren't they beautiful?!!  I also embossed the Vanilla piece with the Petals-a-Plenty Textured Impressions embossing folder.  Finally, the handmade poinsettia was done with the 5-petal flower punch and three black brads. 

I hope you've enjoyed these.  Next time you're trying a challenge, why not do it twice and see how different your cards end up?! 

Thanks for visiting!

~Kristin

SUO Supplies

Stamps: I {Heart} Hearts, Whimsical Words, Stitched Background, Gifts of Christmas

Colors: Crumb Cake, Poppy Parade, Soft Suede, Very Vanilla, Basic Black

Accessories: Big Shot, Embossing Folders: Dotted & Petals-a-Pleny; large heart punch, scallop trim border punch, scallop border punch, vanilla EP, Lumiere, Glimmer Brads, 5-petal flower punch, black brads, black narrow taffeta, bitty buttons, linen thread

It's the Thought Collection

 Since I've been posting so sporadically lately I thought I'd go ahead and post all four of these at once.  I made them the same day as my last post, all with similar elements that I cut out at once then mixed and matched until I had a whole set.  These were fun and easy to do! 

 Each of the stamped images are from the stamp set It's the Thought, which was in the Summer Mini catalog.  Had you noticed that there are now a Level One and Level Two hostess set in the front of every Mini Catalog?  Yep, that's right!  So when you are finalizing your order of $150 or more, or your workshop, make sure to check them out before making your final decision!

 Sometimes little images can be hard to use.  So I punched them out with the new Decorative Label punch and added some interest to the card base with a variety of strips of paper that have been dry embossed with the Big Shot or punched with one of our border punches. 

I added a bit of ribbon, linen thread or an Antique Brad for a unique touch on each.  Too keep the set similar and easy to make I used the same colors on all 5 cards:  Crumb Cake, Wild Wasabi, Cajun Craze (which is quickly becoming a surprising favorite for me!), and Peach Parfait.  The rows of embossing on the bottom two cards are not a Stampin' Up! product, however our Big Shot easily accommodates most all brands of embossing folders!  I also made sure to stamp the Woodgrain background in Crumb Cake ink on every design to further tie them together.  Wouldn't this make a cute gift set to give to a favorite great-Aunt or long distance cousin?! 

Thanks for stopping by!  We've got a baseball game this afternoon and our very first midget league football game tomorrow- wish me luck.  :)

Hugs,
~Kristin

SUM Supplies

Stamps:  It's the Though, Woodgrain background stamp

Colors: Crumb Cake, Cajun Craze, Peach Parfait, Wild Wasabi

Accessories: Decorative Label punch, linen thread, Antique brad, Double Stitched Wasabi ribbon, SU embossing folders: Square Lattice, Vintage Wallpaper, other embossing folders:  Cuttlebug:  With Love

Enjoy the Journey

Good morning!  I'm back...  sorry I haven't been around in a while.  I've been preoccupied with a few things.  I did some major landscape renovation (well, actually just trimming but it was a HUGE job and I did it by myself!), sick kid yesterday and sick dog today.  Besides all that I'm smack in the middle of a good read and I can honestly say that I love reading almost more than stamping.  Hard to believe, I know. 

Anyway, today it's time for another fabulous color challenge from the Diva's Coffee Break Designs blog.  Now I gotta admit, normally having four colors to work with is tricky for me.  I don't usually enjoy it as much as only three.  But with Crumb Cake being one of the colors I just adored this combo.  You'll see what I mean over the next few days...  I made not one or two, but FIVE cards with this combo!  I guess my stamping hiatus took a toll and I was ready to create.

Anyway, I had this week's MOJO sketch in mind when I did this.  I took some liberty with it, but I must give credit for the inspiration.  I hope you like it and can't wait to show you the rest.  I might have just posted them all tonight, but none of them have been photo'd yet. 

Thanks for stopping by, and please take a minute to CLICK HERE to view the Diva blog and all the other goodies made with these colors.

Thanks for visiting!
~Kristin

SUO Supplies

Stamps:  It's the Thought

Colors: Crumb Cake, Cajen Craze, Wild Wasabi, Peach Parfait

Accessories: linen thread, Decorative label punch, jumbo eyelet, Big Shot, Dotted embossing folder, scallop border punch, Wild Wasabi ribbon (retired), markers

Halloween Window card

This is a window card in more ways than one.  I designed it to look like you're looking out a window, and you are actually seeing the owl on the inside through a punched open window.  I'm playing along with the color challenge on Creat With Connie & Mary (CCMC115) to use Tangerine Tango, Early Espresso, Crumb Cake and Very Vanilla.  I took the liberty of adding some Summer Sun which is generously sponged with Tangerine Tango for my moon.  This is also following the sketch for this week's Clean & Simple challenge on Splitcoast. 

 Here's a shot of the inside.   I had fun with my punches for this:  the large circle is the new 2.5" cirlce punch, of course there's the owl punch and the branch from the Two-Step Bird Punch.

I took this shot so you could really see what window I'm talking about.  Gotta run, I've got water boiling to make my third batch of salsa.  I dread making it, but LOVE eating it! 

Thanks for stopping by today!
~Kristin

ETA:  Thanks everyone for your great comments.  To answer a few questions- I made the window kind of by accident.  I was actually just punching 4 squares from a scrap of Crumb Cake paper and noticed the remaining piece looked like a window so I used that instead!  You gotta love those happy accients (gosh, I just reminded myself of Bob Ross and his "happy little trees"- anyone else remember him?  I'd watch him in college and was so sad when he died!) 

And for the other question- I just made regular ol' tomato salsa I guess.  I've never done anything fancy, just tomatoes and peppers and onions.  Yum!  I've found that the store bought salsa is way too salty now that I make it myself!

Fairytale Sketch Challenge

Today I've got a new Diva sketch challenge for you.  I love how simple it looks because that gives you plenty of room to maneuver!  As soon as I saw the circle I knew I wanted to use my Medallion background stamp that hasn't seen ink in a while.  My next thought was purple and black and a touch of silver.  Both the medallion center and the sentiment were stamped on Brushed Silver cardstock with black craft ink.  My cardbase is Perfect Plum and the Medallion is stamped in Versamark.  I had to add a little bling with the Jewel Basic Rhinestones and some satin ribbon too. 

I hope you'll play along with the Divas!  Thanks for stopping by.
~Kristin

SUO Supplies

Stamps:  Medallion background, Full of Life

Colors: Perfect Plum, Basic black, Brushed Silver

Accessories: Jewel basic Rhinestones, scallop border punch, black satin ribbon

"Easely" my favorite!

OK OK,dumb play on words!  But I do love this sentiment and this IS my first Easel card... just go with it, would ya?!  I've been wanting to do this type of fold but just had never taken the time to figure it out until now.  It is so easy too.  This card measures 8.5x4.25" and is scored at 4 1/4" and 6 3/8", but you could also do this with a standard half sheet of cardstock.  For a fabulous tutorial by Beate and all the measurement options CLICK HERE. 

I combined a number of different stamp sets on this one.  Started with the grass and sentiment from Inspired by Nature, added fussy cut flowers from Greenhouse Garden and finished with the uh.... pigeon is the only word that keeps coming to mind, no it's a pheasant.  Yeah, the pheasant (stamped off once for a subtle look) from Autumn Days.

Wondering about the color combo?  Certainly Celery, Cajun Craze, More Mustard and Early Espresso.  This sketch is from Stampin' 411's Saturday Sketch Challenge. 

Thanks for stopping by today! 
~Kristin

SUO Supplies

Stamps: Inspired by Nature, Autumn Days, Greenhouse Garden

Colors: Certainly Celery, Cajun Craze, More Mustard and Early Espresso, Very vanilla

Accessories:  Chantilly Lace ribbon, Antique brad, scallop edge punch

Stacked Hand-Made Gift Boxes

***This is the second post for today.  Scroll down to make sure you do not miss the DCBD challenge posting.  I meant to schedule this for tomorrow but messed up.  Oops.***

 So what do you think of my hand-made gift boxes??  I found this wonderful tutorial from Tina at My Therapy, My Creations that made them so so easy.  It can be found here:  paper box tutorial.  I used the Scallop Circle and Scallop Circles #2 dies with a piece of cardboard that comes in every pack of Designer Series Paper to make the bottoms and lids for these boxes.  Then covered them with cardstock.  There is one TIP that I'd like to point out if you decide to try these:  FOLLOW the tutorial when she says to glue the cardstock and cardboard together BEFORE running them through your Big Shot.  Trust her!  Trust me! 

 Here is a shot of the largest box open.  I am giving this set to a friend with a little something special in each box (I'll show that on another post).  Each box has a little stamped surprise in the lid and, for the bigger two, in the bottom of the box as well.  That's one reason this project is so fun- tons of areas to jazz up however you want!

Here is another shot of the inside of the lid for the largest box.  Sentiment is from In My Thoughts, leaves are from Great Friend.  I also used the new Chantilly Lace, an antique brad, pearls and the Large Oval punch and scallop oval punch with Oval All for the label on the outside.

 This is the medium box with a sentiment from Full of Life and 3 Jewel Basic Rhinestones.

 Here is the smallest box.  It has pearls all the way around it plus a hand-made carnation flower on top (more on how to make those later!)

On the inside of this lid I used a stamp from Think Happy Thoughts and punched a little flower with the Boho Blossoms punch, attached with a Rose Red brad.  For all three boxes I used retired Raspberry Tart DSP (designer series paper).  The measurements I used are as follows: 

Large box: 2"x12" strip & a 1"x113/4"
Medium box: 1 1/2" x 9 1/4" and 1"x9" (as per the tutorial)
Small box: 1 1/2" x 5" and 1" x 4 3/4" 

For the larger two boxes I just cut circles that looked like they would fit with my circle cutting system.  For the small box my 1 1/4" punch worked perfectly!  These circles are to line the inside so the edges of paper don't show. 

Want to know more about the paper carnation?  Here is a tutorial that is super easy:  paper carnation tutorial thanks to Emma F. at Lady and the Stamp.  These have been around awhile so I might just be the last person to try them.  If you haven't either then check out this tutorial! 

Hope you have a great day.  If you have any questions about this post just post a comment and ask, I'll do my best to answer. 
~Kristin

{PS- Special thanks to Tina and Emma for your inspiration and wonderfully done tutorials!}

River Rock Blues

Good morning!  Welcome to another Diva Coffee Break Design Wednesday.  Today we've got a fabulous color challenge for you!  These colors are so beautiful together you really can't go wrong.  If you are scrunching up your eyes looking for my Rose Red, well check out that Glimmer Brad in the center of the ornament.  Yep, that's Rose Red alright! 

I used a variety of different products on this card and I'm so happy with it!  The Northern Flurry embossing folder (available TODAY!) is making another appearance here as well as the ornament from the new stamp set Tags Til Christmas which works great with our ornament punch.  Other accessories include the Jewel Basic Pearls, Glimmer Brad and White Organza ribbon! 

I hope you'll consider playing along with this awesome Diva challenge!  Be sure to check out the Diva blog for more inspiration before you get started, then stop back there and link your creation so we can see your hard work!

Have a great day!  Be sure to stop back tomorrow... I have a rare 3D gift idea- three of them as a matter of fact.  I can't wait to show you!

~Kristin

One Scoop or Two??

 Good day ladies and gentlemen (dad)!  I've got a quick two-scooper for ya!  LOL!  Over the weekend I found this wonderful stamper and spent most of my Sunday browsing her blog.  I copied many of her cards and projects to my "Cards to CASE" folder and actually copied one today already!  Well, I shouldn't say copied because I borrowed her layout and changed everything else.  Not that I didn't love everything else- I totally did, I just don't have all the products and... that's just how I CASE usually. 

Anyway, today's Clean & Simple challenge on SCS is to be inspired by the word "Delicious" and I immediately thought of my Sweet Scoops stamp set.  My first card is above.  I realized after I had it all uploaded that it is kind of an oxymoron because my sentiment says "One of a Kind" but none of my cones are identical.  Duh!  Cute anyway, but all those colors of ice cream were kind of bothering me anyway.  Not nearly clean enough for a CAS challenge so.....

I tried again.  This time all my cones are identical but one of them has a few little extras!  I changed the scallop at the bottom from the pinking hearts punch on my first try.  Both have "sprinkles" of chunky glitter, but this one has a cherry on top as well. 

The sentiment piece that I punched with the Designer Label punch is from an ancient set from 2006 called Designer Label.  I told you I never get rid of anything.  I though the style was perfect for this card.

Well don't leave without checking out my inspiration!  Her name is Jo Dumbleton and her blog is Stampin 'N Stuff.  HERE is just ONE of her amazing cards that I loved enough to save to my favorites file and CASE for this post.  Thanks Jo!

~Kristin

SUO Supplies

Stamps: Sweet Scoops, Designer Label

Colors: Crumb Cake, Pretty in Pink, Daffodil Delight, Rich Razzleberry, Melon Mambo, Peach Parfait, Whisper White

Accessories: Razzleberry Lemonade DSP, chuky glitter essentials, Designer Label punch, scallop border punch, pinking hearts border punch

Quirky, Cutesy & Clean

Thought I'd try a new challenge today... this one is called Embellish Magazine and the challenge is a combination color challenge with the requirement that it be quirky, cutesy and clean.  QUIRKY.  Don't ya just love that word?!

Well, here's what that means to me.  I think the colors are quirky all on their own- I rarely enjoy putting shades or orange with any shade of light blue.  Usually I just think YUCK... but this one really grew on me.  This stamp set, Love Bandit, is definitely what I'd call cutesy and quirky. 

This card isn't as clean as they come (as far as simple goes) but it's lacking layers and many embellishments but has some quick cute details. 

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great weekend if I don't see ya (have family coming to town tonight so I may not be back until Sunday or Monday). 

~Kristin

SUO Supplies

Stamps: Love Bandit, Well Scripted

Colors: Peach Parfait, Crumb Cake, Soft Sky (yes an oldie!)

Accessories: New large circle punch (Holiday Mini Catalog), Scallop Circle die #2, Big Shot, Dotted embossing folder, scallop border, kraft taffeta ribbon

Best is Yet to Be!

 My parents celebrated an anniversary this week and yes, I'm late sending a card.  Of course when I realized I was late I couldn't just pull something from my stash.  Oh no, I had to make something fresh and new.  Today's Diva Coffee Break Designs' challenge is a sketch this week so that's what I used here. 

Here's a picture of the inside.  I'm slowly starting to join the masses in prettifying the insides.  I usually do some stamping but this time I added some coordinating DSP from the front.  Hope you like it. 

Gotta run, getting together for some volleyball tonight again, finally!  Go join the Divas, why don't you!
~Kristin

Glimmer Berries

Have you ever used an embossing folder on vellum?  It is such a cool look but I rarely remember to do it.  Well this time I remembered and tried it out with the Elegant Lines folder.   Did you notice those awesome sparkly brads??  They are called Glimmer Brads and are also from the new Holiday Mini catalog.  I couldn't help myself and ordered them in every color combination (4 sets)!  These are actually in the set of Brights and are referred to as Real Red but I think they look great with the Cherry Cobler paper.  That's the nice thing about some accessories, they can nicely transition between shades.

For this card I was attempting to use last week's Color Challenge on Splitcoast.  The challenge was to use Always Artichoke, Cherry Cobler and Pretty In Pink.  If you're thinking I forgot about the pink, I really didn't.  If you look closely I painted some onto the vellum with an aquapainter.  It added some shading.  Not sure that it was needed except to qualify for the challenge.  I do like how it is a subtle detail though. 

If you have already started your list for the Holiday Mini (Sept. 1) you may just want to add these Glimmer Brads!  They will be available in Brights, Subtles, In Colors and Basics which are neutrals: black, gray, champagne, silver and gold!

Thanks for stopping by today!  Be sure to come back tomorrow to join me for another Diva Sketch challenge! 

~Kristin

Edit:  Forgot to mention that I used a sketch from the Clean & Simple blog sketch challenge 104! 

SUO Supplies

Stamps: All Holidays

Paper: Cherry Cobler, Vellum cardstock, Whisper White, Always Artichoke

Accessories: Big Shot, Little Leaves Sizzlit, Elegant Lines Embossing Folder, Glimmer Brads, Scallop Trim border punch, aquapainter

Pickin' Punkins

 You haven't seen a scrapbook layout out of me in quite some time.  Must be the cooler mornings, or kids being off to school, but I'm itching to scrapbook lately.  I love how this turned out.  For the left side here I used Valerie's Got Sketch 101.  If you aren't familiar with Valerie Salmon you have got to check out that link.  I subscribe to her via email and save every single sketch in a special folder in my email.  Then, when I am scrapping I flip through them and often find just what inspired me! 

 Did you notice my Greenhouse Gala DSP??  I just HAD to use it, the colors were so perfect for my pictures!  I borrowed a sketch for this side also, and boy was it harder than it looked.  I messed once or twice and was so stressed about wasting this beautiful paper, but don't worry, I didn't throw away my mess ups... I'll just save them for another day.  The sketch is from THIS amazing scrapbook page by Tanja at StampaMemory.com.  I've got this fantastic resource for using SU products on scrapbook pages in my list of blogs down there on the left, but I need to correct the link.  Use this one I just listed for now. 

Here is the spread as it looks together.  Everything I used on these pages is from Stampin' Up! with the exception of the pumpkin die, which I've had since the red Sizzix machine day and works wonderfully in my Big Shot, and the little swirl clip on the round picture at the right.  Not sure the brand of that but it was a gift from my friend Nicky!  The pumpkin ric rac ribbon and the green ribbon are both from retired Ribbon Originals that were on the Clearance Rack at some point: Pigtails and Jersey respectively.  The green viny swirl by the pumpkin die is actually from SU's Scribble Swirls sizzlit.

Thanks so much for stopping by and a special thanks to Nancy for selecting my Aviary card in her iPicks yesterday!  What an honor!  Be sure to check out her blog for all kinds of great finds from her exhaustive blog search!

Thanks for visiting me today,
~Kristin

SUO Supplies

Paper: Chocolate Chip, PUmpkin Pie, Whisper White, Greenhouse Gala DSP

Accessories: Big Shot, Billboard alphabet strip, Pigtails & Jersey Ribbon Originals (retired), Scribble Swirls sizzlit, 1" circle punch, new Decorative Label punch.

Sanded Northern Flurry

Last but not least... here's my third card made with the fun new Northern Flurry embossing folder.  This time I embossed it onto a piece of this Concord Crush patterns paper (a Level 1 Hostess set) then gently went over it with my sanding block.  This technique reveals the white core of the paper to highlight the raised pattern.  I added some chunky glitter to the snowflakes and also to the main stamped piece for snow.  This round snowman tag is from the new stamp set Tags Til Christmas and actually has a "To: and From:" sentiment on it which I just covered up with the glitter and my own Modern Label punch with a stamp from Teeny Tiny Wishes. 

I have one more Christmas card I'll add either later today or tomorrow using the Elegant Lines embossing folder and new Glimmer Brads from the Holiday Mini Catalog that is available on September first.  After that I'll try to just sprinkle them in here and there.  No one wants to be sick of Christmas cards already in August! 

Thanks for stopping in!  I'd love to hear from you!  Let me know what you prefer- this XL photo or the Large from previous posts.
~Kristin

SUO Supplies

Stamps: Tags Til Christmas, Teeny Tiny Wishes

Colors: Concord Crush, Pear Pizazz, Whisper White (Poppy Parade for the snowman's scarf)

Accessories: Big Shot, Northern Flurry Textured Impressions embossing folder, Concord Crush ribbon, Chunky Essentials glitter, Modern Label punch, 1 3/4" circle punch

Northern Flurry Dasher

I'll try to make it short today and not mention the Holiday Mini Catalog more than once!  ;)  Here's the second card made with the new Northern Flurries Textured Impressions folder on Whisper White.  I used the reverse or "debossed" side and then brayered some Night of Navy ink over over the whole piece.  After I stamped Dasher in Navy I sponged some white at the bottom of the Top Note for a snowy effect, then added a few touches with the white gel pcn.  The sentiment piece is one of the labels on the Matchbox Bigz Die and the stamp is from Snow Swirled. 

That's it!  Have a great day and I'll see ya tomorrow!
~Kristin

SUO Supplies

Stamps: Dasher, Snow Swirled

Colors: Night of Navy, Whisper White
Accessories: Big Shot, Northern Flurry Embossing folder, brayer, white gel pen, Matchbox die (label), Top Note die

Holiday Mini Catalog Sneak Preview

Hello!  Are you ready for Christmas cards yet??  I know I know, I'm not sure I'm ready yet, but at least I didn't make you look at them in July!  Anyway, today I played with my new Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Northern Flurries, which will be in the new Stampin' Up! Holiday Mini catalog.  Isn't it cool?!  I know, I say that about EVERY embossing folder... but seriously, I had so much fun playing with it that I will be showing you a few more over the next two days.   

So what do you think of this color combo, Basic Gray and Cherry Cobler??  The edges of my top layer of Basic Gray are sponged with a hint of Basic Gray ink for some added dimension.  I added a jewel basic pearl to the center of each embossed snowflake- they look so cool in person.  I love that there are 4 different sizes of those babies!

My sentiment label is actually a Short & Sweet sentiment punched out with the small oval, layered on top of a new stamp in the Holiday Mini from the set called Tags Til Christmas.  I covered up the "Dec 25" that is part of the stamp.  Finished off with some Cherry Cobler seam binding ribbon also from the Holiday Mini. 

Wondering what this Holiday Mini is all about?  Well, it comes out September 1st and lasts until January 3, 2011!  Want to see it?  Stop back here shortly after Sept. 1st and I'll get it linked to my sidebar. 

Did you notice my new sidebar gadget counting how many Christmas cards I've made so far?  I thought it might be fun to see how many I get made in the next few months.  When will you start?  Well, stop back tomorrow- I can't wait to show you the other two I've made. 

~Kristin

SUO Supplies

Stamps: Short & Sweet

Colors: Basic Gray, Cherry Cobler, Whisper White

Accessories: Big Shot, Northern Flurries Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Jewel Basic Pearls, Extra-Large Decorative Label punch, Small oval punch

Bundle of Baby Boy!

 Some friends of ours had a baby boy recently and I've been meaning to make a special card to send them.  Monday's Clean and Simple challenge on SCS seemed the perfect sketch to use for a baby card.  I wanted a sweet image but I don't have any stamp sets that are specific to babies- I guess they just don't appeal to me.  Besides it's always a challenge to make a themed card out of non-specific stamps!  Anyway, my color combo is one I just came up with playing around with my new Color Coach:  Marina Mist, So Saffron and Chocolate Chip. 

My Marina Mist strip has been embossed with the Dotted embossing folder (and Big Shot of course) and enhanced with a strip of Pinking Hearts border in So Saffron.  I love that the recipient may or may not notice the extra relevant details like the tiny hearts in this border! 

Just the other day, out of necessity due to having WAY more accessories than my Stack & Store Caddy (p. 193) can store, I decided to combine all my retired (but still way loved) designer buttons into one jar and all my gorgeous corduroy buttons into another jar.  I'll have to take pictures because they look so cute.  Anyway, that made me really want to dig out some buttons for this card.  I'll tell you a funny story at the end about what I found while combining buttons! 

Anyway, here's a quick picture of the inside.  I stamped the tree again- in Versamark for a subtle look- which I think symbolizes family and new life.  Then punched the sentiment out with my BRAND new Decorative Label punch from the Holiday Mini which will be out Septemeber 1st!  And added some of SU's awesome new jewel basic pearls to it. 

So onto my funny story- actually it's kind of amazing I think!  While sorting through my buttons and trying to decide what to do I picked up a very old bag of non-SU brads that look like paw prints.  They were in a tiny ziplock baggie and I hadn't used them in over a year probably.  While trying to decide if I wanted to combine any non-SU stuff (I didn't!) with my SU stuff I happened to notice a sparkle out of the corner of my eye.  So I dumped the bag of brads and found............... a DIAMOND EARING!  My sister lost it several YEARS ago at my house while scrapbooking one weekend!  I took a picture and emailed it to her and sure enough it is a match!  Can you believe it??  How often does something that tiny show up and in such a random place!  If it weren't for all the scrumptious new accessories I'd just gotten from the new Mini catalog I wouldn't have needed to reorganize and might have never found it. 

Well gotta run, I'm late for a hair appointment.  I'll stop back to post a supplies list for this card later today.  Thanks for stopping in!
~Kristin

Yummy Diva Color challenge & some fast and fun note cards!

Good morning ladies and gents!  Today is my kiddos' first day back to school.  I can't believe the summer is over!  More time to stamp now... I hope! 

Today's Diva challenge is a fun one- plenty of bright happy colors to work with here!  We've got Tangerine Tango, Daffodil Delight, Old Olive and Rich Razzleberry.  

I don't know what came over me this week, but I used 100% scraps from my desk and went crazy making this set of 4 matching notecards that will be super handy to grab on the go.  I like adding tiny little notes like this to my customers' orders sometimes but never seem to have one when I want it.  Mostly they would always say a simple thank you, but I wanted to do a variety for today's post.  Each of these was made with punches except the candles which were from the Big Bold Cupcake die (I think that's what it's called- doesn't sound right just now).  Anyway, the sentiments are all from a favorite set called Short & Sweet. 

Now make sure you take some time to go visit the Diva blog for fabulous examples- we have so many new Divas now that there are tons of yummy samples just waiting for you- and boy are they good!! 

Thanks for visiting me today!  I'd love to hear from ya.

~Kristin

SUO Supplies

Stamps: Short & Sweet

Accessories: Bitty punches, small oval punch, small heart punch, Word Window punch (to cover a boo boo!), BIg Bold Cupcake Sizzlit, Big Shot, Daffodil Delight narrow taffeta ribbon.

Happy for Mojo Challenges!

I made this card using yesterday's Mojo Monday sketch challenge and the colors are from the Stampin' Royalty color challenge (Cherry Cobler, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Not Quite Navy).  My Holiday Mini Preorder arrived while I was gone last week so I've been anxious to play with all the new goodies! 

Today I included the new Cherry Cobler seam binding that I had to have as it's the only thing close to ribbon SU has in that fabulous color.  The stamped frame is from the new stamp set Tags 'til Christmas- I just omitted the Dec. 25 when I inked it with my Not Quite Navy marker then punched it out with the AWESOME new Extra Large Decorative Label punch.  You are gonna WANT this punch!

The layered flowers are new to me also.  They are from a level one Hostess set in the Idea Book & Catalog called Punch Potpourri.  I just stamped them in two colors, punched them out and layered them with an old Not Quite Navy brad from my retired stash.  I love that each of these stamps fits a punch that I already have!!

I've been wanting to use the musical score paper from the Newsprint DSP and decided to combine it with a musical score embossing folder that I've had for quite a while and hadn't used yet (this is not an SU item but it does work fabulously in our Big Shot!)  And yes, I am somewhat musically inclined and I know my embossed score is upside down... that's the only way I could make it work with this sketch. 

I also used the Dotted embossing folder on the Old Olive layer and finished off the card by piering a scalloped border along the top.  The sentiment is from an old favorite, Fancy Flexible Phrases.

Thanks for stopping by today!  Be sure to come back tomorrow for another exciting Diva Color Challenge!  I've got a quick and easy set of cute note cards that will be great to have handy for last minute notes and gifts.

~Kristin

SUM (SU Mostly) Supplies

Stamps: Tags 'til Christmas, Fancy Flexible Phrases, Punch Potpourri hostess set

Colors: Not Quite Navy, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Very Vanilla, Cherry Cobler (ribbon)

Accessories: Newsprint DSP, Big Shot, Dotted embossing folder, Musical embossing folder (by Cuttlebug), Cherry Cobler seam binding ribbon, Extra Large Decorative label punch, Boho Blossom punch, Not Quite Navy brad, Paper piercing tools