Sparkle Fun!

This week I am the hostess for the Just Us Girls Wild Card Challenge.

This week is our Lynn's last week with us at Just Us Girls! She has been a wonderful team player and we will miss her!  Good Luck Lynn and I hope you play along with us when you can!

With Lynn leaving we are welcoming a new member of our team starting next week, Tangii Crain!  We look forward to having Tangii as part of our wonderful team.

So this week the challenge is our wild card week so we are going with the theme:  New Years Sparkle!  So show us those New Years cards that Sparkle!  Gotta have some sparkle to ring in the new year!

Here is what I came up with using the kit from Unity Stamp Co called Snowglobe Wonderland!

I dry embossed the background using an embossing folder from SU.  Then I heat embossed the snowglobe in gold and the city skyline in a glittery, sparkly red.

Be sure to check out what the design team came up with:

Vicki Dutcher

 Lynn

Marisa

Andrea

Lisa

Elise

Here's all you need to do to play along:

How to play: Please copy and use our graphic on your post. You need to upload your project for this week's challenge to your online blog or to a public photo gallery. Leave a link that goes directly to your project in the Linky Tools form at the bottom of the post. If you upload to online galleries, please use the keyword or tag, JUGS169. After you post to Linky Tools you may also leave a comment here.

Deadline to be considered for the "Chic of the Week" is 9:00 PM EST on Thursday, January 3rd. The Linky Tools form will close at that time. Our top pick, "Chic of the Week", will be announced on the following Friday morning. Thanks for playing with us this week!

That's all for now!  I hope you will play along with us!

Thanks for stopping by!

Maria

Fresh Squeezed Stamps: Squeeze-A-Palooza!

Have you seen Fresh Squeezed Stamps yet?  They are a fairly new stamp company with wonderful fun images made of photopolymer which is a super fabulous clear stamp to stamp with!

This month they are hosting a fun contest they call Squeeze-A-Palooza, how cute is that?  I finally had some down time to play along.  It's a photo inspiration contest.

These are the inspiration photos:

Using the free digi they are offering this month I came up with this card:

I used an embossing folder for my background and roughed up the edges of my layers a bit.  I love using my Tim Holtz distress tool.  I went with the red from the holly and the glitter for a snowy look.

There are great prizes to be had to go and play along, just a few more days left.  Soon they are going to be announcing their first design team.  I submitted but haven't heard anything. You never know, it would be fun to get involved with a new cool company.

Till later!

Maria

Just Us Girls Inspiration Challenge

Here is this week's inspiration photo.  So it's more of a New Years picture but since it's before Christmas I decided to use the rosettes and go with a Christmas Tag using stamps from Sweet n' Sassy Stamps.


Here is what I came up with:

Be sure to visit the JUGS DT:

Vicki Dutcher

 Lynn

Marisa

Lisa

Elise

To play along:

How to play: Please copy and use our graphic on your post. You need to upload your project for this week's challenge to your online blog or to a public photo gallery. Leave a link that goes directly to your project in the Linky Tools form at the bottom of the post. If you upload to online galleries, please use the keyword or tag, JUGS168. After you post to Linky Tools you may also leave a comment here.

Deadline to be considered for the "Chic of the Week" is 9:00 PM EST on Thursday, December 20th. The Linky Tools form will close at that time. Our top pick, "Chic of the Week", will be announced on the following Friday morning. Thanks for playing with us this week!

Thanks for stopping by!

Maria

Holiday Fun

I decided to play with my newest stamp set from the Sweet Stamp Shop called Tree Traditions.  

I used solid Real Red from Stampin Up and great "music" themed paper from Authentique's Festive Collection.  I thought that the music which has the little bird in the corner would make a fabulous background for this card.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Maria

Just Us Girls Color Challenge

This week it's color challenge week at JUST US GIRLS!  Our hostess is Lisa who picked the colors: White, Pink and Green.

I decided to use my new (a Christmas present) Cameo to make this:

I cut the flower out using my Cameo from a flower from the Silhouette Online store.  The sentiment is by Unity Stamp Co.

Be sure to swing on by the Just Us Girls dt and check out what they cooked up:

Marisa

Lynn

Lisa
Elise
Tangii

Come and play along and here's how:

How to play: Please copy and use our graphic on your post. You need to upload your project for this week's challenge to your online blog or to a public photo gallery. Leave a link that goes directly to your project in the Linky Tools form at the bottom of the JUGS post. If you upload to online galleries, please use the keyword or tag, JUGS167. After you post to Linky Tools you may also leave a comment here.

Deadline to be considered for the "Chic of the Week" is 9:00 PM EST on Thursday, December 20th. The Linky Tools form will close at that time. Our top pick, "Chic of the Week", will be announced on the following Friday morning. Thanks for playing with us this week!

Thanks for stopping by!


Maria

Christmas Moon

Today I have a fun image from Queen Kat Designs by Maigan Lynn called Swinging in the Stars.

I used some fun simple Christmas themed pattern papers and colored her using the traditional green and red.  I added some red bakers twine and a snowflake button to finish it off.

Be sure to swing on by the Queen Kat Store for more wonderful images and inspiration.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Maria

Just Us Girls Technique Challenge

It's Saturday and time for another JUST US GIRLS Challenge.  This week we have a simple one for you embossing!  You can heat emboss or dry emboss.  

I am sharing a wedding card I made a while back and have made a few since as custom orders in my Etsy shop.  The stamped sentiment is from Unity Stamp Co.  My original inspiration for this card came from a picture on Pinterest. 

Be sure to visit the JUGS DT:

Andrea

Lisa

Lynn

Marisa

Elise

Vicki

Come and play along with us:

How to play: Please copy and use our graphic on your post. You need to upload your project for this week's challenge to your online blog or to a public photo gallery. Leave a link that goes directly to your project in the Linky Tools form at the bottom of the JUGS post. If you upload to online galleries, please use the keyword or tag, JUGS166. After you post to Linky Tools you may also leave a comment here.

Deadline to be considered for the "Chic of the Week" is 9:00 PM EST on Thursday, December 13th. The Linky Tools form will close at that time. Our top pick, "Chic of the Week", will be announced on the following Friday morning. Thanks for playing with us this week!

Thanks for stopping by!

Maria

December Daily and Friends with Flair

Today is Friday and time for Friends with Flair!  So it's December again and everyone is working on their December Daily books.  I've tried in the past but never quite made it work.  One year I did a small chipboard style book with a bunch of pages for events in Nov and Dec.  Never did do a "real" Dec 1 - 24 style book.

After being inspired by my crafty friend Angie Bloom and her 8 1/2 x 11 size I decided to give it a try.  I also have a simple plain 8 1/2 x 11 scrapbook album I've hardly used.  So it's Dec 7 and I have 3 pages done, I didn't say I'll be able to pull each one off each day though.  But maybe I can finish by Dec 31 at least?  HA we shall see.

Here are my first 3 days:

Yes I'm going VERY simple on purpose.  Nothing crazy fancy or super pretty necessarily.  But again we'll see how the month goes.  I haven't used too many stamps yet but on day 2 I used some snowflakes from Unity's kit called Snowflake Kisses and the city image on Day 3 is from Snowglobe wonderland.  The cool tree for day 3 I cut out with my new Silhouette Cameo!  It's my Christmas present this year.

Well that's for all!

Maria

Paper Smooches Guest Call

So Paper Smooches is having their call for January Guest Designers!  I love these fun stamps so I had to give it a try.  I created this card awhile back but it's one of my favorites so I thought I'd submit it for the call.  More than one submission is allowed so tomorrow I will try and get to work on some more.
Here is my owl card using the Paper Smooches set called Chubby Chums.

I stamped, colored and cut out each owl.  For a while now I've been into distressing so this card has some great distressed edges.  

Well that's all for now!
Maria

Snowglobe Wonderland

Happy Saturday!  It's time for another Just Us Girls Challenge.  This week it's sketch week and Andrea is our hostess.  Here is the great sketch she came up with:

Here is what I did using the sketch:

I used the new kit from Unity Stamp Co called Snowglobe Wonderland!   It's also on sale now so check it out and if you order from Unity tell them Maria L sent ya!  I used pattern papers by Crate Paper called Snowy Day.

Be sure to swing on by the Just Us Girls dt and check out what they cooked up:

Marisa

Lynn

Andrea

Lisa

Come and play along and here's how:

How to play: Please copy and use our graphic on your post. You need to upload your project for this week's challenge to your online blog or to a public photo gallery. Leave a link that goes directly to your project in the Linky Tools form at the bottom of the JUGS post. If you upload to online galleries, please use the keyword or tag, JUGS165. After you post to Linky Tools you may also leave a comment here.

Deadline to be considered for the "Chic of the Week" is 9:00 PM EST on Thursday, December 6th. The Linky Tools form will close at that time. Our top pick, "Chic of the Week", will be announced on the following Friday morning. Thanks for playing with us this week!

Crafty Sale

Hey there!  

I'm going through my crafty studio and starting to list many things for sale at great prices.  Most of these items are brand new!  

I have Unity Stamps, Tim Holtz Products, Sizzix, Inkadinkado and Stampin Up!  

I listed everything on my blog on THIS PAGE HERE!  Any questions let me know!

Thanks for looking!

Maria

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to all celebrating today! 

This week over at Stamping With the Oldies it is our grungy/distressed week.  SO, I decided to make a tag.  I pulled out some old Unity Stamps and came up with this:

I distressed all the edges for this.  Al the stamped images are from Unity Stamp Co and some were uninked!  They are all from old kit of the month sets.  The buttons are wood buttons I got at Michael's a long time ago as well.  I figured it was about time to make use of these items!

I hope you and yours have a wonderful turkey day!!

Thanks for stopping by!

Maria

Queen Kat Designs 6th Birthday Blog Hop Fun!

It's been 6 years already for Queen Kat Designs!   Today we are hopping to celebrate this great birthday!

If you arrived here from Vikki's blog then you are on the right track.  If not head on over the QKD blog to start the hop from the top!

For this hop I decided to make a Happy Birthday tag using one of Maigan Lynn's wonderful images.  This one is called Cheeky Cupcake.

I used a shipping tag as my base and the turquoise is from Stampin Up.  The pattern papers are from Basic Grey.  I colored her in using markers.

Now be sure to continue on this hop and head on over to JANIE'S BLOG!

Till later

Maria

Just Us Girls Color Challenge

This week I'm the hostess for the Just Us Girls Color Challenge.  I picked some great fall colors for this week:  Pumpkin (darker orange shade), Olive Green, Brown, Ivory (for your neutral).

Here is what I came up with using some older Unity Stamps:

Be sure to check out what the JUGS team created as well.

Just Us Girls Design Team:

Jan Del Bone - November Guest Designer

Lisa
Lynn

Vicki

Andrea

Marisa

Elise

How to play:  Please copy and use our graphic on your post.  You need to upload your project for this week's challenge to your online blog or to a public photo gallery.  Leave a link that goes directly to your project on the Linky Tools form at the bottom of the JUGS post.  If you upload to online galleries, please use the keyword or tag, JUGS 163.  After you post to Linky Tools you may also leave a comment here.

Deadline to be considered for the "Chic of the Week" is 9:00 PM EST on Thursday, November 22th. The Linky Tools form will close at that time.  Our top pick, "Chic of the Week", will be announced on the following Friday morning.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Maria

Friends with Flair Friday

Happy Friday everyone!  It's time for a little Friends with Flair Unity Style!  Be sure to swing on by the Unity blog for loads of inspiration from Unity friends!

Today I wanted to share a card I made for the Stampin With the Oldies blog.  These images are from the kit called Loads of Love.  

I used some old DCWV papers on this as well.

Be sure to check out Unity this weekend there is a HUGE 50% off sale going on!!!  You don't want to miss out!

There are also some amazing new releases as well:

When ordering tell them I (Maria Levine) sent ya in the comments section.

Well that's all for now!  Come back tomorrow for another fun Unity card and the new Just us Girls challenge!


Maria

Just Us Girls Technique Challenge

This week is technique week over at Just Us Girls.  Marisa is our hostess this week and we are making ribbon wreaths.  Here is the link to a great tutorial.

I have to say it took me 3 tries to actually "get" it!  LOL!  I almost gave up and then did it and love it. I think I will try again!

Here is what I came up with:

I used SU real read for the base.  The green pattern is from K & Company.  And the great santa in the middle is from a Tim Holtz seasonal pack.  I stamped using the set called Cocoa's Christmas from Sweet n' Sassy Stamps.

Close up:

Check out the Just Us Girls Design Team:

Jan Del Bone - JUGS Nov Guest Designer

Lisa

Lynn

Marisa

Andrea

How to play:  Please copy and use our graphic on your post.  You need to upload your project for this week's challenge to your online blog or to a public photo gallery.  Leave a link that goes directly to your project on the Linky Tools form at the bottom of the Just Us Girls post. If you upload to online galleries, please use the keyword or tag, JUGS 162.  After you post so Linky Tools you may also leave a comment here.

Deadline to be considered for the "Chic of the Week" is 9:00 PM EST on Thursday, November 15th. The Linky Tools form will close at that time.  Our top pick, "Chic of the Week", will be announced on the following Friday morning.

Thanks for stopping by!

Maria

Friends with Flair and Mini Album

Hey there!  It's Friday and time for a little friends with flair.  I've missed a bit due to Hurricane Sandy but I'm back.

During the storm last weekend I attended CKU and met some great crafty friends and had a blast.  I came home inspired to make some scrapbook albums.  For one class which was all day we created a bunch of 8x8 pages for a scrapbook.  It was all using one great kit from Echo Park Paper called Everyday Eclectic.  So we used that collection along with some other accessories.  I loved doing  it that this week I decided to make my own little mini album.

I had a chipboard album from Michael's and had recently picked up one of Michael's brands - Recollections paper pad called Jolly Holiday.

Here is a quick snapshot of what I made:

Here are the pages:

I used just the paper pad (6x6) as well as Stampin Up Real Red.  I didn't use many stamps but I did use one big Unity Stamp on the 2nd to last page (which is why I figured it was ok to share for friends with flair).  This Unity Stamp is called Remember This Date (Echo Park).

The cool part is I typed up instructions for these pages and posted them on a new to me site called instructagram and I'm submitting them for a chance to win a Cameo!

You can check out all the details on Instructagram HERE!

Well that's all for now!

Maria

Queen Kat Designs

Hey there!  Last night there was a new fun release over at QUEEN KAT DESIGNS.

I wanted to share with you a fun image created by Maigan Lynn for QKD.  This one is called Cheeky Cupcake:

I wanted to make this one bright so I went with a bright pink fun pattern.  I distressed the edges to rough them up a bit.

Be sure to swing on by the QKD store to check out all the great images!

Till later!

Maria

Unity Fab Feature Wednesday!

Today is Unity Fab Feature Wednesday!  Yes Happy Halloween but today we are showcasing a Christmas set! LOL!  This is Gingham Christmas Greetings:

Using the kit I made a magnet set and gift box to match:

Be sure to swing on by the Unity Opportunity Blog for more inspiration!  Then head on over to UNITY STAMP CO and order yours today!  While there be sure to check out the full Unity line!  When you order please mention me MARIA LEVINE in the comments section of your order as your chick!

Thanks for stopping by!

Maria

Turkey Fun!

This week our  Just Us Girls challenge is an inspiration challenge! Check out this awesome fall photo:

I just love the fall colors.  I pulled out some of my favorite fall pattern papers and colors along with this fun Turkey from Unity Stamp Co. and came up with this:

close up :

Be sure to swing on by the JUGS DT blogs for great inspiration:

Lynn
Elise

Marisa
 Vicki

Lisa

Andrea

How to play:  Please copy and use our graphic on your post.  You need to upload your project for this week's challenge to your online blog or to a public photo gallery.  Leave a link that goes directly to your project in the Linky Tools form at the bottom of the JUGS post.  If you upload to online galleries, please use the keyword or tag, JUGS160.  After you post to Linky Tools you may also leave a comment here.

Deadline to be considered for the "Chic of the Week" is 9:00 PM EST on Thursday, November 1. The Linky Tools form will close at that time.  Our top pick, "Chic of the Week", will be announced on the following Friday morning.

Thanks so much for stopping by today!


Maria