Cuter Than a Panda Butt -- for Kitty Bee Designs

I'm the Designer Spotlight over on the Kitty Bee Designs blog today, and I've been so excited to share today's card.  It's so. darn. cute!  

 I absolutely love this Kitty Bee Designs Panda!

You can find many cute panda digis and acrylic stamps in the Kitty Bee Designs Etsy Shop.

Here's another view so you can see his cute panda tail:

Seriously cute, huh?  The sentiment is from Whimsy Stamps.  The embossing folder is from Darice.  

Thanks for looking, and join us for the Aloha Friday Challenges!  I'd love to see your lovely creations! 

I'd like to enter this in the following challenges:

The Crafty Addicts -- all about pets (challenge #50)

D.L. Art -- July Linky Party

Send a Smile 4 Kids -- ATG

Jo's Scrap Shack -- ATG

Simply Create Too -- No Patterned Paper

Outlawz Twisted Thursday -- Wags and Whiskers

Pink Gem Challenge -- Teddy Bears

Crafting with dragonflies -- Animal

Don't Forget You're Beautiful -- Outlawz Progressive May Freebie

It's been a beautiful weekend, and I found a little time for crafting this afternoon.  I did a little coloring, including the May progressive freebie image from The Outlawz.  This month's free image is provided by Sandi's Samples. Here's what I created with it:

I colored the perfume bottle from Sandi's Samples with Copic markers, then used the sketch from this week's Outlawz Wednesday sketch challenge to create the card.  

I used a couple of Spellbinders dies to cut out the image and back it.  The tag die was cut out with a Paper Wishes die.  The sentiment is from an MHKDesigns digital stamp set -- Beautiful Bottles.  A Darice embossing folder created the quilted looking pattern in the pink paper.  The rhinestone flourishes are by Close To My Heart.  A little Timeless Twine finishes off the card.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:
Outlawz Wednesday Sketch Challenge -- week of May 2
Outlawz Monthly Progressive Freebie -- May
D.L. Art -- May Linky Party
IDCB -- ATG
Di's Digi Challenge -- for a special lady
Hiding in My Craftroom -- Freestyle
Jo's Scrap Shack -- ATG
Lemon Shortbread Challenge -- ATG

Joy to the World

Yea! Another Christmas card done!  This one uses the free digi image provided this month from DigiStamps4Joy.  Since I used this month's freebie, I will get next month's free also.  Score!

I usually stick with traditional Christmas images, so this was a bit of a stretch for me.  I also forget to use embossing folders, so I broke out this pretty snowflake design for the background by Darice..  I used a Spellbinder ornament die and a Spellbinder tag die, some Timeless Twine in Cherry Red, and some Icicle Stickles. She is colored with Copic markers, and the edges are inked with Tim Holtz distress ink in Spun Sugar because it sounds like a Christmas color! The sentiment is a Close To My Heart retired stamp.

I'd like to enter this in the following challenges:

DS4J -- Monthly Christmas Challenge

CHNS August Challenge Anything Goes as long as it is Christmas related
ABC Christmas - Q forQuick and Easy
Winter Wonderland - Christmas - Anything Goes

Sister Act Card Challenge -- ATG

D.L. Art Thankful Thursday -- August Linky Party
 

New Year's Advice -- for The Cutting Cafe

We're a week into 2014, and I'm still offering advice!  It's in my nature, I guess!  I'm also thrilled to be posting my first card today for my second term with The Cutting Café.  I love this team, and the wonderful cutting files and printable stamps Regina Easter designs for us to use.  This week was a "free week" -- a chance for us to use anything from The Cutting Café that we wanted.  I knew right away what I wanted to use -- this very fun cutting file:

This high heeled shoe shaped card is just too much fun! I paired it with a Unity Sentiment stamp set, "I am Woman" to offer you a little advice for the New year.  Papers are from Close To My Heart.

Here's another slightly different angle so you can see that it is truly a card:

I embellished this card with a Close To My Heart brad & bling, ribbon from 3 Girl JAM, and a feather from Darice.

Remember to visit The Cutting Café blog for inspiration, and on Thursday, a chance to win 3 free sets of your choice. Pick this one! It's a riot!

I'm entering this in the following challenges:

http://sisteractcardchallenge.blogspot.com/  anything goes

http://audsentimentschallengeblog.blogspot.com/ -- Sentiment is the focus

http://justbcreativecrazy.blogspot.com/2013/12/januarys-just-because-linky-party.html -- anything goes

http://dianamlarson.blogspot.com/2014/01/dlart-thankful-thursday-january-linky.html  anything goes

Its Friday, the middle of the month, and Friends with Flair!

Here we are, smack dab in the middle of November.  It's been so cold this week that if I didn't have a calendar in front of me I'd think it's December or even January.  Just a prelude of what's to come!

I so love Fridays and linking up to Unity's Friends With Flair.  And I love spending time throughout my weekend visiting all of the blogs that are linked up.  Such talent and inspiration!  Oh, what fun!

There's a story that goes with today's card.  One of my staff members has had an aging dog that she knew wouldn't make it much longer.  Well, last Sunday was Eddie's day to cross to the Rainbow Bridge.  She called me Sunday evening, too distraught to come to work on Monday, needing one more day to mourn his loss before facing everyone.

When I got home from work on Monday, I made her this card in memory of her English Bulldog, Eddie:

 

I used a new Darice embossing folder to get the paw print background, then painted some of them with Chocolate Creative Inspirations Paint. 

This was the first Phyllis Harris stamp I ever bought, and it's still my favorite.  You'll find it in the Unity Store here.  It's called "First Love".  I colored the image with Copic markers. The sentiment is from a Market Street Stamp set.  It's also one of my favorites, and my "go to" quote for situations like this one.  The paw with wings stamp is part of the MSS set.

Don't forget to check out the Unity Store for this weekend's new releases.  I love the Snow Peeps! I need to get going on making some Christmas cards with them!  OK, I'm off to visit my FWF blogs.  Can't wait!