Thursday, January 30, 2020

Magic Wallhanging -- for Lavinia World Challenge Blog

It's Thursday, so we get to start a new challenge at the Lavinia World Challenge Blog!  Yea! Thursdays are beginning to be my favorite day of the week!

Winter can be a magical time of year when there is new fallen snow and the sun is out.   The snowflakes sparkle off the trees and in the air like diamonds.  That was the inspiration behind this home decor piece for today's challenge:



I used a paper from the Lavinia World Store.  It is called Winter Chill.  The cute bunny that is watching the diamonds of snow descend is Pippin (miniature).   The trees are the Small Fairy Fir Tree. They have a long stem on them, so I taped off a portion of the stem before I stamped, them removed the tape before stamping.  They were stamped with VersaFine Clair Ink in Rain Forest.  The sentiment is Believe in Magic.  Both the sentiment and Pippin were stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento Ink.

The frame was a decorative frame from my stash. It worked great for this project. A bit of twine finished it off.

I hope you join us the next 2 weeks.  I love to see your creativity and a $15 gift certificate is given away each challenge plus some designer pick awards.  If you don't have a blog, you can submit your entry at the Anything Lavinia Facebook Group.

I'd like to enter this in the following challenges:
D.L. Art -- January Linky Party
Not Just Cards -- ATG
Crafty Gals Challenge -- Winter Fun
Word Art Wednesday -- ATG
AUD Sentiment -- ATG + a sentiment
Outlawz Festive Fridays -- Snowy Weather

Tuesday, January 28, 2020

Love You a Ton -- a New Release at Bugaboo Stamps

Did you know there's a New Release every single Tuesday at Bugaboo Stamps?  Did you know they are 1/2 price for the first week of their release? If you like them, grab them while they're a steal! (Well, digital images are a steal no matter how you look at it, but this is almost like highway robbery!)

Today's New Release is perfect for those upcoming Valentine's Day cards. This is Cute Valentine's Elephant:



I  colored up the Cute Valentine Elephant with some bright Copic markers to emphasize his cuteness.

I created the heart-shaped card base with the largest heart die I have.  I think it may be part of a Lawn Fawn set.  The inner scalloped heart is part of the same set.

I found the pretty pink heart paper at AMB Illustrations.

The sentiment is computer generated, then cut out with a heart die from my stash.  The silver heart stickers are from Paper Wishes.

And, that,  my friends, is today's darling new release at Bugaboo Stamps.  For more great inspiration, check out what the other designers have created with this Cute Valentine Elephant over on the Catch The Bug Blog.

I'd like to enter this in the following challenges:
Gem of a Challenge -- ATG
D.L. Art Thankful Thursday --Valentine's Day
Lil Patch of Crafty Friends -- ATG
Outlawz Sunday Songs & Rhymes -- silly loves songs

Monday, January 27, 2020

Loads of Love Card - for Dies R Us Inspiration Blog

I'm posting today for the Dies R Us Inspiration Blog, where it's always my pleasure to create something with my lovely and growing collection of wonderful dies from the Dies R Us Store

My husband loves old trucks, so when trying to figure out his Valentine's card for this year, an old truck seemed like a good choice:



This old truck is by Cheapo Dies and is called Loads of Love.  I also used a set of stitched snowdrift dies from Lawn Fawn.

Here's all the supplies and papers I used:


Here's everything die cut.  I cut out extra wheels and hubcaps so I could keep the best 2 to use on the truck. Gluing small things together can be tough for me, so I gave myself extra chances :)

I thought the truck could use some rust, so a little metallic wax did the trick:

I used a hot foil machine and a foil stamp to achieve the background on this card.  I really like the look you can achieve with hot foil:

I used Stick It Sheets to adhere the letters to the card.

I wanted to make sure you've heard the exciting news!  Dies R Us now has a sister store located in Canada called Didi Crafts.  It will ship both to the Us and Canada.  Didi Crafts will carry some of the same products as Dies R Us, but most will be different.  Now our Canadian friends don't have to pay huge taxes or large shipping costs.  How great is that?!?!


I hope you check this blog every day for wonderful inspiration!  The design team is so creative, you don't want to miss anything.  Then, join in the challenges at the Dies R Us Challenge Blog.  Here's one last link to the Dies R Us Store for you, too! 



I'd like to enter this in the following challenges:
D.L. Art -- January Linky Party
Outlawz Festive Fridays -- Snowy Weather
DigiChoosday -- ATG
Crafty Happiness Challenge -- ATG - optional Love

Thursday, January 23, 2020

Wintery Treat Bags -- for We Are 3 Digital Shop

It's a long cold winter where I live,  and we are always getting creativity when it comes to ways to pass the time until the warm weather rolls around again.  Crafting fills a lot of time, but I love to be outdoors, too.  Recently some friends and I went on a snowshoe picnic.  It was us, our dogs, and a hike through the woods.  We stopped about 1/2 way and ate a little lunch.  I brought these treat bags along for a fun wintery surprise, carried in my dog's backpack:


The bags are small, measuring 3x4.  Each one has 2 small squares of my favorite chocolate.  I figured that was just enough energy to get us back to the trailhead!

There were 5 of us on the adventure, so I made 5 bags altogether, using a die from Lawn Fawn.  They all use We Are 3 Digital Shop images and digital papers.

This bag uses Snowman Heart Mitten image and a paper from Loving Winter


The other bags all use various elements from the Snowflakes images and papers from Shabby Christmas:




There you have it!  Easy to put together, fun for the get together, and they were a hit!

Check out the We Are 3 Digital Shop.  You'll find just what you are looking for!

I'd like to enter this in the following challenges:
D.L. Art --January Linky Party
Crafty Gals Corner --Winter Fun
Crafty Sentiments Designs -- Winter
Outlawz Saturday Paper ala Mode --first embellishment ever used (ribbon)

Monday, January 20, 2020

Happy Heart Card -- for Dies R Us Inspiration Blog

Hello, fellow craft lovers.  I have the great honor of posting on the Dies R Us Inspiration Blog today, where I always have so much fun  playing with my always growing die collection.  

I've been making Valentine's cards, and have one to share with you today:



I used a set of nesting hearts dies to create this card.  These happen to be by Spellbinders, but the Dies R Us Store has several great options you could use including these by Tutti Designs, and these by Card Deco Essentials.

I wanted an element of surprise when the recipient took the card out of the envelope, so I positioned my hearts at a bit of a rakish angle, then continued that surprise with lots of glitter and foil papers.

Here's a photo of all the supplies I used:

I wanted to make sure all those layers stuck together really well, and I sometimes have trouble with glitter paper adhering, so I used Stick It Sheets on the back of all the foil and glitter papers --and the sentiment.

Here's everything after I got it die cut:

The sentiment is from a great set by Creative Expressions.  I use it often.
And, one more view of my sparkly card:

I wanted to make sure you've heard the exciting news!  Dies R Us now has a sister store located in Canada called Didi Crafts.  It will ship both to the Us and Canada.  Didi Crafts will carry some of the same products as Dies R Us, but most will be different.  Now our Canadian friends don't have to pay huge taxes or large shipping costs.  How great is that?!?!


I hope you check this blog every day for wonderful inspiration!  The design team is so creative, you don't want to miss anything.  Then, join in the challenges at the Dies R Us Challenge Blog.  Here's one last link to the Dies R Us Store for you, too! 

I'd like to enter this in the following challenges:
D.L. Art -- January Linky Party
Outlawz Festive Fridays -- ATG
Lil Patch of Crafty Friends -- ATG
Cute Card Thursday -- What's New? (stacked heart dies)

Floral Thank You - For Jan's Digi Stamps

It's the third Monday of the month, so it's time for a new challenge at Jan's Digi Stamp Challenges.  They occur every first and third Monday, so set your schedule!  The challenges are always anything goes, and we want to see what you're working on, as long as it's craft related (or just creative - I'd love to see your decorated cake!)

Jan recently released a set called Tea Time.  It is an absolutely stunning set with a tea cup, a tea tin full of flowers, an inidividual flower, and some sentiments.  Images are both colored and black & white.  I decided to focus on the single blossom and highlight that:



I colored this Sweet Pea blossom (part of the Tea Time set) with some Nuvo alcohol markers I tried for the first time.  Their nibs are very different than what I'm used to, and will take some practice.  The sentiment is part of the Tea Time set.

Papers are on this card are from We Are 3 Digital Shop.  They are 3 of the papers in the Garden Dance paper collection.

The stitched oval dies have been in my collection long enough, I no longer know where I got them. The ribbon is from Really Reasonable Ribbon.

I hope you can join us this next 2 weeks over at Jan's Digi Stamps Challenges.  One $10 gift certificate will be awarded, plus some designer choice awards.



I'd like to enter this in the following challenges:
D.L. Art --- January Linky Party
Gem of a Challenge -- ATG
Angie's Digital Stamps Challenge-- ATG
Outlawz Saturday Paper ala Mode --- Things that make us happy (flowers)

Saturday, January 18, 2020

Warm Wintery Wishes -- for Bugaboo Stamps

It's Saturday, and that means it's time for a new challenge over at Catch The Bug Challenge Blog! Today, we have a bingo challenge, and I'll share the bingo board in a bit, after  I show you my card.

It's snowy, and it's dark, and it's cold where I live, so this cheerful snowman will be perfect to brighten some cold soul's day!

Found in the Bugaboo Stamps Store, this is part of Snowman Block  Set.  I colored one of the snowmen in the set (there are 2), with Copic markers, then used one of the sentiments in the set (there is another one).

Here's the bingo card for this week's challenge at Catch the Bug.
I  went diagonally, using snowflakes (in my background paper), a Bugaboo image, and ribbon.

Papers on this card are from We Are 3 Digital Shop. I used 2 papers from the Snowmen Paper Collection.

You have a week to enter the bingo challenge over at Catch the Bug! I'd love to see your beautiful creations!

I'd like to enter this in the following challenges:
QKR Stampede -- ATG
Polkadoodles -- ATG
D.L. Art -- January Linky Party
Outlawz Twisted Thursday -- First embellishment ever used (ribbon)

Thursday, January 16, 2020

Winter Dreams --- for Lavinia World Challenges

Another Thursday, another Lavinia World Challenge.  I hope you are enjoying them as much as I am! I love the stamps and other products found in the Lavinia World Store, and I am in awe of the talent of those that link up for our challenges. 

It is the heart of winter here in Northwest Wisconsin.  Some of our coldest nights happen in January.  This gorgeous wolf, Maka, is howling at the winter moon, perhaps dreaming of the warmer weather to come.  Or, maybe like me, Maka enjoys the winter months?

Lavinia Stamps have such beautiful impressions, and Maka is no exception. I just loved the way this stamped on to this heavily inked background.  Maka was stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento Ink.

The background was created with various Tim Holtz distress inks and Spectrum Noir Harmony ink pads (all water reactive).  The 'Dream' die cut is from Cottage Cutz, cut out of silver foil paper. The layered snow drifts were created free hand.

I hope you link up at this Lavinia World Challenge. There is one $15 gift certificate awarded each challenge and some Designer Choice awards.  You can also add your entries in the Anything Lavinia Facebook Group if you don't have a blog.  Join us there! 

I'd like to enter this in the following challenges:
Everybody Art Challenge -- Winter Landscape
TTCRD -- ATG
Artsy Stamper Challenge -- Baby, It's Cold Outside 
Dare 2 Be Artzy Challenge -- Winter
D.L. art -- January Linky Party
Outlawz Twisted Thursday -- no twist

Wednesday, January 15, 2020

Birthday Snowflakes -- for Scrapy Land Challenges

It's the 3rd Wednesday of the month, and that means a new challenge starts today at Scrapy Land Challenges.  Uses a die from the many brands sold in the Scrapy Land Store, and it's Anything Goes.  One winner will get a $15  gift certificate to use in the Scrapy Land Store!

My brother has a birthday early in January and he loves to ski, so I'm always looking for a winter-themed card for him.  This is the card I sent him this year.  It's not skiing related, but definitely makes me think if winter:



That beautiful snowflake die set is from Sue Wilson.  It's called Festive Collection - Bold Snowflake Frame.  It comes with 5 dies, and I used all of them on this snowflake.

The Happy Birthday are dies from Crafter's Companion

The designer papers on this card are from We Are 3 Digital Shop.  They are part of the Snow Globes Collection.

I hope you join us at Scrapy Land Challenges these next 2 weeks for our Anything Goes with a die from the Scrapy Land Store.  

I'd like to enter this in the following challenges:
Outlawz Festive Fridays -- Birthday
Crazy4Challenges -- Winter Card
Crafter's Castle -- ATG
D.L. Art -- January Linky Party

Saturday, January 11, 2020

Down on the Farm 10th Bugaboo Birthday Bash!!!!


Bugaboo Stamps turns 10! We're celebrating with a week-long hoedown of hopping "Down on the Farm Fun". You won't want to miss a foot stomping, tail swooshing moment of the whole moo-velous week!

All celebrations can be found on the Catch the Bug blog, beginning today, this a Down on the Farm Birthday themed challenge.  Interpret that however you wish, as long as it's your idea of a farm animal.

I don't know about ewe, but I think sheep belong on a farm, so here's my selection for today:



Ewe never know what goes on in that barn or pasture when the humans are away.  Maybe even some rock-a-billy. (as in billy goat, or did I lose you on that one?)

Anyway, this rock star b-aaaaa-d boy is called "Ewe Rock" in the Bugaboo Store.  I colored Ewe Rock with Nuvo alcohol markers.  The sentiment is computer generated.

Papers on this card are from We Are 3 Digital Shop. They are 2 of the Howdy papers.

This week-long celebration of all things Bugaboo will have a different challenge each day, with many generous prizes awarded! Grab your favorite hay bail, your craft supplies, kick up your boots, and join us at Catch the Bug!



I'd like to enter this in the following challenges:
D.L. Art -- January Linky Party
QKR Stampede -- ATG
2 Crafty Critter Crazies -- ATG with a Critter
Outlawz Festive Fridays -- Birthday

Monday, January 6, 2020

With love -- for Jan's Digi Stamps

It's the first Monday of the month (and the new year!), so it's time for a new challenge at Jan's Digi Stamps Challenges, where they are always Anything Goes, all the time!  Link up whatever you are creating, even if it isn't a paper craft.  We'd love to see it!

Jan has a number of adorable penguin sets.  She does them VERY well.  She recently released this Puttin' on the Ritz set, and I just had to play with it! 



All of Jan's sets come with several images that are both pre-colored and in black & white, then a few different sentiments that fit the theme of the set.  I used a black & white image here and colored it with Copic markers.

I plan to use this for hubby's valentine's card.  He spent 6 months in Antarctica so he has a thing for penguins!  He will adore this one!

I cut out the rose card base on my Silhouette Cameo, using a file I found in the Silhouette Design Store.  The 'With Love' Sentiment is a die from Crafter's Companion.  The die cut rose and the small stitched heart are dies from Diamond Press.

I hope now that the busy Christmas season is over, you have more time to craft (which will translate into more time to join challenges).  I'd love to see you linked up at Jan's Digi Stamps Challenges this next 2 weeks!



I'd like to enter this in the following challenges:
D.L. Art -- January Linky Party
QKR Stampede -- ATG
Cute Card Thursday -- ATG
2 Crafty Critter Crazies -- ATG with a critter
Crafty Animals -- ATG with an animal
Outlawz Festive Fridays -- ATG

Thursday, January 2, 2020

Winter is Here -- for Lavinia World Challenges

Lavinia World Challenge #17 starts today, and I hope you are enjoying these challenges as much as I am!   There really is something magical about Lavinia Stamps, and creating with them!

Today, I wanted to create a winter scene.  I have many berry bushes in my yard that the birds and rabbits eat on all winter long.  Those berry bushes inspired me to create the Berry Wreath on today's card:



I stamped the Berry Wreath 3 times, using both VersaFine Clair ink in Morning Mist, and Memento ink in London Fog.  I colored the berries with colored pencil in colors to match the background paper.  A stamped the Small Pixies to line up with the wreath.  I placed some clear rhinestone mini dots around the wreath to give it some sparkle.

At the top of the card, I stamped the Silence sentiment

Lavinia World products used on this card:




The background paper is from We Are 3 Digital Shop.  It is one of the papers from the Enchanted Collection.

I hope you can join us for the Lavinia World Challenge, or if you prefer, you can post your projects in the Anything Lavinia Facebook Group.  Either way, there will be one $15 gift certificate awarded at the end of each challenge, and some recognition given to designer choice favorites. 

Wednesday, January 1, 2020

Ice, Ice Baby -- for SheepSki Designs Challenge Blog

Happy New Year!  2020 has arrived, and we're off and running!  We're also off to a new start on the SheepSki Designs Challenge Blog, where our theme this month is "square cards".  There, that's an easy one for you!  Images don't have to be by SheepSki Designs, but Andrea has so many wonderful ones, that of course we like to see you using them.  There is also a challenge in the SheepSki Designs Facebook Group you can enter.  SheepSki Designs images are required there, but the themes are optional.

For my "square card" DT inspiration, I used the adorable Penguin Pals image to create this:

I colored Penguin Pals with Copic markers, then used a set of Spellbinders dies to make sure the image and the backing were square.

The polar bear and penguin papers are from Decosse's Dynamite Doodles. She has her annual 12 Days of Christmas going on now, where you can get a different paper that she has designed every day for 12 days.  They are all really cute!

The sentiment is from a really old acrylic set I have from a company that is no longer in business.  The rhinestones are from my stash. I added some icicle Stickles to the penguin's hat and earmuffs to create a bit of sparkle.

And that's it for my square card.  I so hope you join us this month at SheepSki Designs Challenge Blog.  You have until January 31 to link up!

Friendship Warms the Heart -- for All Dressed Up Stamps!

2020!  What better way to start out the year than with a new challenge in the All Dressed Up Facebook Group, and what better theme to get the year going than "Make it Girly".  It is the perfect All Dressed Up Stamps theme, as son many of Wendy's wonderful images are as girly as it gets.  Check out the All Dressed Up Stamps Etsy Shop and you'll see what I mean!

We're had a very snowy season so far where I live so I was in the mood to color up this adorable Sledging All the Way digital image:


I colored Sledging All the Way with Copic markers, then added some icicle Stickles to the earmuffs, pompoms, and snowflakes.  To  make sure she was extra girly, I added the lace and ribbon to the card.

The designer papers on this card are from We Are 3 Digital Shop. I used 3 of the papers from the Christmas Magic paper collection. The sentiment is a retired acrylic stamp from Close To My Heart.  The snowflake dies are from Crafter's Companion.

Start 2020 out right and join us at the All Dressed Up Facebook Group for the 'Make it Girly' Challenge!  How fun is That!

Cards, Cards, Cards to Start the Year Out Right -- for Scrapy Land Challenges

Happy New Year everyone!  I hope you were able to ring the year in with fun and enthusiasm!  I spent the evening at the nursing home with my friends there.  It's where I've been the last 35 years on New Year's Eve, so it's a long standing tradition!

It's not only New Year's Day today, but it's also the first Wednesday of the month, so we're starting a new challenge at Scrapy Land Challenges. There will be one $15 winner for shopping in the Scrapy Land Store!

I have a few cards to share with you today, all using the same technique, but different dies:


One of my favorite things to do is to ink up a bunch of backgrounds, lightly mist them with water so the ink can react to the water, then when they dry, cut out some dies. That's what I did with all these cards.  This first card, above, uses a die from Tonic Studios.  

Here's another version in a different color:


Here's the same inks used, but a different die.  This exact die isn't carried in the store, but when a searched "butterfly" I found many that work.  You'll find that search here.  This die is from Sizzix.


Here's a different color scheme, but the same butterfly used on a sympathy card:

And, lastly, a thank you card for a friend that is a dog lover:

This die is from  Crafter's Companion.  All the sentiments were hand stamped on the cards.  The panels were inked with distress inks using watercolor paper, then attached to card bases. 

One easy theme, many cards.  Try it! Then join us at Scrapy Land Challenges this next 2 weeks.  I'd love to see what you create, and you might win the $15 gift certificate to the Scrapy Land Store