Aloha!

Aloha everyone! Sigh.... Hawaii oh so beautiful! I can't believe it is almost 8 years since I went there! We went for our honeymoon and it was amazing so worth it especially considering we probably won't get there again for a long time! Anyhow, I just received some new stamps from a fabulous new company called Mothers and Daughter's Creations. They have some great clear images at amazing prices. The penguins are the images that drew me initially because I had to have them. With my order I think I got about 8 images! This great Hawaiian themed penguin is my first creation with them. I remember thinking at first about their size, how big or small will they be and I was impressed when I rec'd my happy mail yesterday!

I used Stampin Up's mellow moss as the base color. The flowered patterned paper is from a DCWV stack pack. I mounted this cutie on a pink cardstock (source unknown) and added the flower and brad. The Aloha sentiment stamp I had for some time in my stash, I believe it is one I picked up at a dollar bin in Michaels some time ago.

I hope you like this great Penguin! I didn't forget about my sampls using my new Crafty Secrets set, stay tuned....

Edited to add: I forgot to mention that I added (in case it's not clear) Stickles to her skirt and her flower!!

A Bunch of Hearts and Vintage Birds - Oh My

I know that Title made you think what the heck is going on. After typing away I started to babble about vintage stamps so.....

How cute is this heart bouquet stamp I picked up at Michael's dollar spot! YES I know I do love those areas of Michael's, Target etc. But you have to admit they have great finds! I used a basic pink for the base and the patterned paper I cut as corners, like photo corners. Yes that is a doily! I found a pack of heart ones I thought would look cute on a card. I added red stickles to the heart to make it glimmer! I don't think this one came out spectacular or anything but cute. I figured I'd share anyhow. :-)

Yesterday I stopped by a local Scrapbook store to find they have Crafty Secrets Clear Art Stamps. So I picked up a set. Their images are definitely more vintage than cutesy but this one has to do with Coffee and I loved it. I think Miss Lauren posted a cute card with this set awhile back. At one point (before blogging days) I liked the vintage images so I do have a bunch actually so I'm thinking I should pull some out and see what I can do. LOLOL. Here is a basic sample of a set from Oxford Impressions that I purchased awhile back..... I just loved this bird and the other bird images in the set.

What do you guys think about the vintage sets? It's not a bad thing to mix it up once in awhile right? Humm..... I'll have to see what I come up with. A little bit of vintage with a little bit of cute, it's art anything is possible right?

SU Oldie - CPS Sketch Challenge

This is a simple card I made using the sketch challenge over at CPS. If you love the sketch challenges like I do this is a great site to check out. I did a few more of their challenges which I will post soon as well. Check out this week's sketch here.

Here is my creation for the challenge.... I used an old Stampin Up set called Natural Beauty. I haven't used many of my SU sets recently and lord knows I have many so I pulled this one out today. I can't remember but I think this set I received as a freebie when I attended the Providence Demo Regional a few years ago. Unfortunately, I am no longer a demo or hobby demo :-( Maybe one day I will join again! I used rose romance for the base color. The great patterned paper is from the DCWV Mat Stack "Once Upon a Time". This pack has great fairy tale papers which have glitter already on them!! (Sorry if the photo does not pick that up well) I stamped the flower on Vanilla cardstock and mounted it on Mellow Moss. It was colored in with markers (not Copics yet). I added some bling in the middle of a flower, it's part of the blings I picked up at Michael's dollar spot.

This is definitely a super simple card but in the end I really liked it. Nothing too fancy but the paper and flower are fancy enough I thought. Sometimes simple is better.

Lizzie Anne Weekly Sketch Challenge

I made this using the challenge sketch over at LAD. They post one each week and it's alot of fun to play along. I just love love this darling ballerina stamp, it's one of their new singles.

I embossed the background SU paper using my swirls embossing folder for the Cuttlebug. The background paper is from a DCWV stack pack. I colored this cutie in using markers and adhered it to a darker pink background. On a recent trip to Michael's I picked up some great bling bling in the dollar section and that is what I put on the four corners. I think this came out very simple but cute. Part of the challenge was to use the sketch but to also incorporate stitches! Oh, my cute little craft sewing machine is still sitting there because I can't figure it out! (I've never been one to sew and I've never used a sewing machine:-) ) Soo... I went with faux stitches, or tried... I know this gal needs a sentiment added but I decided to leave it simple.

Drumroll..... Blog Candy Winner

Today is the day for the drawing for blog candy! Thanks to everyone who left comments it was fun reading all of them.





And the winner is (drawn at random) is.......








laos348

Congrats!!! Please send me your mailing information.


I'll be back later with a card posting.

Lauren's Weekly Sketch Challenge

Every week Lauren has a great sketch challenge on her blog. I love sketch challenges! This week the challenge used circles. I think she loves circles:=) I definitely have to invest in nestabilities because this shape cutting thing gets too difficult! Here is my take on her challenge...

I used SU mini messages set for the center of the flower. The patterned paper is from my DCWV glitter pack, gotta love those stack packs!!! The background is of course using my wonderful friend the Cuttlebug! If it weren't for Lauren I probably would not have one right now. She convinced me I NEEDED one and boy was she right!! Thank you Lauren! I also thank DH every day because it's the best gift!!! :-) The cool flower embellishment is from the Target dollar spot! This is great but is something that adds weight to a card so beware if you use these guys and have to mail them. Not sure how much that would cost! The sentiment is an old stamp not sure of the source. Speaking of sentiments that is something I realized that I don't have many of!

Have you guys checked out The Saltbox Studio yet? They just lauched today and boy do they have some cute images! I may have to order at least one set. :-)

Cutie Patootie Valentine

This stamp is from the Cutie Patootie set at Serendipity Stamps. I used the Mrs. Patootie for this card :-) The background is actually a "pre-made" card that I purchased as a pack at the Target dollar spot. I thought it would be a fun way to make a quick cute card. If you haven't already you should check out their dollar spot every once in a while. The last time I was there they had alot of great Valentine stuff. I'm hoping they will have Easter stuff soon. I added some embossed fun to the bottom using my heart embossing folder for the Cuttlebug. I added some heart ribbon (Michael's) and the little embellishment. For this I used the scallop punch from Stampin Up and a circle punch. The heart button I had in my stash, I believe I picked up at a dollar spot as well :-) I colored the Mrs using markers and added red glitter. Pretty simple but I think it turned out cute.

Don't forget there is still time for my blog candy giveaway here, I will pick a winner on Sunday!