Papertrey Ink April Blog Hop!

 

Good morning and welcome to my blog! Today I am happy to be playing along with the April Papertrey Ink Blog Hop.  The April inspiration was just too pretty to resist:

 

   Before I was a card maker, I was an avid cross-stitcher, so this challenge was right up my alley.

         To create my card I used a handful of Papertrey Ink stamp sets and dies. First, the beautiful embroidered pattern, stamped using the Stitches and Swirls stamp set. The wood grain background was stamped using Farm and Barn, and the sentiment die-cut and stamps, the Wonderful Words stamp and die collection. I colored the mail floral image using Spectrum Noir markers. Next I embossed it using the PTI Aida Cloth impression plate. To add an extra touch of "hand stitched" dimension I used a White Souffle pen. I used my Oval Nestabilities dies to create the oval needlework frame. The metal top was created using the Tag Sale#4 die. Fun!

                    I am happy you stopped by today and I hope you have a wonderful day!

 

A Country Birthday

 

    Today I am writing this post sitting outside enjoying the cool spring breeze and watching  (listening, haha) to my munchkins playing outside. Today's card features the beautiful stamp set from Altenew "Painted Flowers". I stamped my blooms using Tangerine Tango, and Real Red ink by Stampin' Up! The sentiment is from the Papertrey Ink stamp set "Ruby Rose". Would you believe the floral, and tan striped washi tape strips are the very first washi tapes I bought over 4 years ago! I guess I really do hold on to my supplies. Well, this time I am glad I did because it was exactly what I was looking for when creating this card. The wood grain patterned paper is by Doodlebug Designs. I have trouble adding paper ephemera to my cards, and I want to get better at it. The county fair ticket stub is from the Farm Fresh collection by October Afternoon.

 

Today I am happy to be playing along with this weeks Case Study Challenge:

 

                           I am happy you stopped by today and I hope you have a wonderful day!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lots Of Fun Stuff Today!

 

This is a HUGE post today with lots of pictures, more then my usual for sure. Today I am entering a Stampin' Up! demonstrator only contest. The winners will receive product to create projects for the sample boards at the SU convention in June. How fun would that be?! The challenge was to create 6 projects; 3 cards, 2 3D items, and a scrapbook page. Lets get started shall we?

 

My first card featured above uses my favorite DSP collection from the Occasions catalog, Retro Fresh. I added a panel stamped with the Hardwood background stamp and So Saffron ink. I added punched flowers using the Flower Shop (On the retired list so ya better grab it while you can!) stamp set and punch. The flowers were stamped in Tangerine Tango ink. I added a sentiment from the SU photopolymer set Many Thanks.

 

 

 

My next card used the same supplies, only a different design and stamped sentiment. I added a piece of linen that was in the SAB banner kit, and die-cut it with a die from the Starburst collection. I also used the Chevron border punch (love) to add dimension to my top layer.

 

 

 

 

My third card is my favorite! I distressed my DSP with a sanding block before stamping the sentiment. I used Early Espresso classic ink to achieve the solid, perfect stamping.

 

 

 

     Next up are my 3D items. I created a Mother's Day gift set featuring Stippled Blossoms, and the new, and awesome photopolymer stamps in the April Paper Pumpkin kit! The tag on my jar of yummy chocolate goodness was stamped using the Perfect Pennants stamp set, and Basic Gray classic ink.

 

 

Finally the project that took me the longest, a 12x12 scrapbook page featuring my precocious 3 year old Connor. I added so many fun embellishments, and stitching to this page. I used my sewing machine, and I hand stitched the criss-cross pattern beneath my photo. The only thing I would change about this page is my handwriting! Oh well, I'm happy I wrote down a memory, and as far as I can tell it is legible, so I guess I can count this as a win no matter what happens, right? 

 

Thank you for sticking with me till the end. What was your favorite project shared today? Leave a comment for a chance to win some Stampin' Up! goodies!

Happy Easter!

 

Hello and Happy Easter! Today we are driving three hours to visit my Dad/Grandpa and have a nice Easter cook out at his house and spend the night. I am excited. Before we leave I wanted to share a card I made especially for today, and for this weeks Cure For The Monday Blues Challenge:

 

 

To create my card I used stamps and dies from the Mama Elephant set "Just Hatched" and "Femme Frames" stitched die cut. The cute tag is from Papertrey Ink. My patterned paper is by Doodlebug Designs.

 I am happy you stopped by today, and I hope you have a blessed day.

 

 

 

 

Just Hatched - Welcome Sweet New Baby

 

Noooo, not mine! It never hurts to have cute baby cards on hand for mailing. Today I am excited to share a card I created with "Just Hatched" stamps and dies from Mama Elephant. Ca-uteness over load! I stamped my egg shell in Soft Sky by Stampin' Up!, and the grass in Pistachio Pudding. I colored the little chickie using Spectrum Noir markers. The stitched die-cut center was made using the Femme Frames set also by Mama Elephant. I am playing along with this months Mama Elephant Inspiration challenge. Here is the picture:

 

                             I am happy you stopped by, and I hope you have a wonderful day!

 

 

 

 

 

Gold Fever

 

Gold is all the rage right now, and Stampin' Up! has a lot of choices to make it easy to add extra touches of gold  to your projects. To create my card I used the SU Pansy Punch, and our gold paper from the Occasions catalog. I dry embossed the petals to add an extra 3d effect. I layered 3 blooms to create my flower. The glitter center is an accent from the March Paper Pumpkin kit. The watercolor paper background  and the strips  gold washi tape can also be found in the Occasions catalog.  I stamped the "hello" sentiment using Crisp Cantaloupe ink and I added a machine stitched border. I used my SU Woodgrain folder to emboss my Crisp Cantaloupe card base. I hope you like my card and I am glad you stopped by!

Easter Blossoms

 

             Hello! Today I have an Easter themed card to show you created with the Lawn Fawn stamp set "Penelope's Blossoms". This is a blossom building stamp set, and it really is fun to use! I stamped my blossoms using Stampin' Up! Daffodil Delight, Pistachio Pudding, Strawberry Slush, and Wild Wasabi inks. The patterned paper is from Pebbles. I added an embossed lace border using the Stampin' Up! Lace edgibilities embossing strip. Have I mentioned how much I love this?

 

I am happy you stopped by, and I hope you have a wonderful day!

Oh Happy Day!

 

      It is a bright sunny day, and that alone is cause for celebration! I have a bright, sunny card that I am excited to share with you today! I used the Stampin' Up! sets Starburst Sayings  with matching dies, and Hardwood to create my card. The patterned paper is from the Kaleidoscope Designer Series Paper collection. My doily, and chevron banner are from the SAB Banner kit. I added a scalloped border using the Ribbon Dotted Scallop Ribbon border punch.  I used Melon Mambo, and Crushed Curry ink. I love the way everything came together to create a fun, happy card. Now I just need to decide who to send it to!

With Love

 

Hello and welcome! This weekend I was thrilled to receive the Painted Flowers stamp set from Altenew. This set is so pretty, and very different from the floral stamps I already have in my collection. Before receiving the set I sent Iwona Palomoutain a message asking for any secrets in stamping, and she told me "Because of the way these stamps are drawn, you really can't mess them up."  It's okay if the outline isn't perfect.  After receiving the stamp set and stamping the flowers I completely agree. To stamp my flowers I used three colors of Stampin' Up! ink: Elegant Eggplant, (I stamped off on paper before stamping the first layer.) Pistachio Pudding, and Wild Wasabi. The sentiment is from the Winnie and Walter brush stroke sentiment set. I created my own label sticker using the Papertrey Ink stamp set Building Blocks that I stamped and heat embossed using white powder.

 

I love this card, and I hope you like it to!

 

And now for the winner of the $15 Stampin' Up! gift certificate out of 41 comments Random Number Generator picked # 29

 

So cute! on Sending Good Thoughts

Cristina Hurst

on 4/11/14           Cristy Hurst you are the winner! I'll contact you to give you more info.   Thank you for visiting my blog and have a great week!

Dino-Mite!

 

Just mixing it up a little today and playing with my newest Lawn Fawn stamp acquisition, Critters of the Past. This set is just so cute! I used patterned paper from the Lawn Fawn Into the Woods collection and colored my prehistoric diorama using Spectrum Noir markers.

 

I am happy you stopped by today!

Hooray For Friday!

 

   It has been a week of Stampin' Up! on my blog, and I hope you have enjoyed the cards I have been sharing with you! Today I am featuring "Geometrical". As you can see from my picture I thought it would be fun to try something a little different with my triangles. I created a star! I paper pierced the interior edges of my triangles using my SU paper piercing pad and template. The triangles were stamped using Pacific Point, So Saffron, and Tangerine Tango. I love that color combo! I added a machine stitched border to finish my card.

 

I promised a giveaway so here it is! To celebrate a fun week of Stampin' Up! projects I am giving away a $15 gift certificate to one lucky commenter from ALL of my Stampin' Up! cards this week! Here is a link to my other cards if you would like to comment and increase your chances of winning!

 

Sending Good Thoughts

 

Trendy Triangles

 

Thank You Sweetie Pie

 

Sweetie Pie

 

So Very Grateful

 

 

 

The winner will be chosen Monday morning.

 

Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sending Good Thoughts

 

Hello friends! Today I have a card to show you featuring nothing but Stampin' Up! goodness! To create my card I used "Perfect Pennants" and "Flower Shop" and matching punch. I stamped my flowers using So Saffron, and Pumpkin Pie. The pretty patterned paper is from the Retro Fresh designer series paper collection. My favorite part of the card is the cloth banner. That is from the SAB banner set that I earned free during Sale-A-Bration. I love it when I can stretch my supplies as far as they can go. I added a line of zig zag stitching to add a little something extra. I finished off my card with a metal button also from the Occasions Catalog.

 

I am happy you stopped by today and I hope you have a wonderful day!

 

Trendy Triangles

 

Hello! Back again today with a card that I created for this weeks Dynamic Duo Challenge:

 

        I couldn't resist these colors! I have had the Stampin' Up! set "Geometrical" for a couple of months, and tried stamping a card with it, and I just was not happy with the end result. I gave up until yesterday, Brenda Weaver mentioned that she couldn't get enough of triangles, and she had several examples on her blog of cards with triangles. So I went to check them out. Finally inspiration hit me, and I quickly stamped this card! Having the coordinating punch makes it SO easy! I used alcohol markers to color my SU rhinestones and finished my card with machine stitching.  So what do ya think about my first triangle card? 

      Thank YOU for stopping by, and stay tuned later this week, I have a fun blog giveaway planned!

 

 

 

 

Thank You Sweetie Pie - Playing Along With A Challenge

 

I'm back! I still had this adorable set on my desk, and was inspired after seeing the picture from this weeks Cure For The Monday Blues Challenge #12. Check out the inspiration picture:

 

             I just had to use Sweetie Pie and Sweetie Frames to play along with this challenge! I stamped my frames and faces in Memento Tuxedo Black. I colored the images with Spectrum Noir, Copic, and Promarkers. I have a little bit of everything! I kept the design pretty simple, and I am thrilled with the end result! I am happy you stopped by (again), and I hope you have a wonderful day!!

 

 

Sweetie Pie - Photopolymer By Stampin Up!

 

Not everyone knows this, but Stampin' Up! has been releasing seasonal, limited quantity Photopolymer sets for the past year. I use a lot of different clear stamp sets, and understand quality is a big deciding factor on whether or not I order from that company again. Well I am happy to report that Stampin' Up! photopolymer is top quality and the stamps are deeply etched. It drives me crazy when ink gets in the cracks of clear stamps that aren't deeply etched.

To create my card I used the recently released stamp sets "Sweetie Pie" and "Sweetie Pie Frames".

 

For my first card I used a card base from the March Paper Pumpkin kit, easy right? I used the Hardwood background stamp, and stamped a sheet of Bermuda Bay card stock. Next I stamped the wood frame and cut it out using detail scissors. Using a craft blade I cut out the inside of the frame and using that as a template I cut out my inner white square and stamped the adorable face! I colored her with alcohol markers. I added foam adhesive to the frame, and stamped it one more time on my card base. I attached the frame,  face, and added a bow tied with our new twine. Easy and super cute!

 

 

 

 Almost everything is the same for my second card, only I created the card base using Whisper White card stock, and a Calypso Coral Stampin' Spot! All I did was brush the square across my card stock four times being careful not to make it too uniform. I just love this look, and it is very popular in the stamping world right now!

 

If you would like to order these adorable sets while they are still available you can visit my webstore here:

 

http://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/veronicazalis/

 

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

 

 



So Very Grateful - Playing With Stampin' Up!

 

 

       Spring has been slow to start this year, but in my craft room flowers bloom year around - I love stamping flowers! To create this card I used the Stampin'  Up set "So Very Grateful" and the sentiment set "For You". I used Spectrum Noir markers to color my floral spray, and Delicata Gold by Tsukineko to stamp the outlines. I mounted my card base on Pretty In Pink card stock by Stampin' Up. Oh how I miss that color!

 

I am happy you stopped by today and I hope you have a wonderful week!

Holiday Inspirations Easter Blog Hop!

    Hello and welcome to the Easter Inspiration Blog Hop by The Inspiration Crew.  This hop is just for fun. We’re posting projects we made using products we like and hopefully they will give you some inspiration for your own Easter craft projects.

  To create my card I used the beautiful, and perfect for Spring/Easter stamp set by Papertrey Ink Garden Grace. I used the frame from the PTI set Simply Jane as my focal point. The lace background was stamped using an old CHF background stamp I will never let go of! I used the following Stampin' Up! ink colors to stamp my card: Wild Wasabi, Garden Green, and Perfect Plum. I used the same shade for the inside and outline of each flower, I just stamped off on a scrap of paper before stamping the flowers. This is a great way to get more use out of your ink pads!

  You will find links to all the other participating bloggers below. If you want to see some fantastic projects you should definitely visit each blog participant. I am happy to belong to such a talented group!

Donna Bowman 
Geri Greening

Rachel Kleinman

Ceal Pritchett

Ardyth Percy-Robb

Jennifer Cuthbertson

Veronica Zalis

You & Me = Forever

 

       I feel like I'm in middle school, doodling all over my notebooks while the teacher is talking...yep, I was that kid, a day dreamer. I had so much fun making this card using the new Paper Smooches stamp set "Spectrum", with matching dies. I colored her in the "My Little Pony" style and even stamped a little heart on her hind quarters. I used the sentiment set "Always and Forever". My patterned paper is from Doodlebug Designs. Reminds me a lot of Lisa Frank notebook paper.

 

I am playing along with this weeks Paper Smooches Sparks Anything Goes Challenge.

 

                                      Thank you for stopping by and have a great weekend!!

 

Once Upon A Time There Was A Girl...

 

...that despite the odds, she was able to do it again....

win STAMPING ROYALTY!

 

Yes, after 6 long days of keeping my secret I can finally share my amazing news!

 

Truthfully I had no expectations of being able to be in the winners circle again, but I put my heart and soul into my card submissions for the contest and luckily was able to stand out.

 

The card I am sharing today was NOT picked for Stamping Royalty but it was my favorite out of all that I submitted (which was only 8 cards.)

 

To create this card I used the Papertrey Ink stamp set The Sweetest Thing, and the watercolor and masking techniques. After I inked each stamp I misted the stamp with water before stamping. The only part of the rose that wasn't misted with water is the final rose layer that was stamped in black. I was trying to re-create vintage linens, my Great Grandmother had an old table cloth that that resembled this pattern. After I finished all my stamping and after letting it dry I ran it through my PTI Linen/Canvas impression plate.  When I created this card PTI hadn't released Wet Paint yet, so the sentiment was stamped using the Winnie and Walter stamp set.

 

Thank you for visiting my blog, for believing in me, and for letting me share my happy news with you today. I hope you have a wonderful week!

 

 

Hope Anchors The Soul

 

I was very excited to receive happy mail from Neat and Tangled stamps yesterday because I wanted to use this stamp especially for today, National Autism Awareness Day! This card is something quite different from my usual card making style, but I wanted to give the water/color distressing technique a try. I also took a picture of my card at a different angle then my usual "front on" perspective. What do ya think?

 

To create this card I used the Neat And Tangled stamp "Hope Anchors".  What a wonderful sentiment, and perfect for today. I used some of my beloved Pink Paislee Mistables paper, and sponged it with SU ink. I heat embossed the sentiment using Stampin Up Night of Navy embossing powder.  I added lines of gold machine stitching, and gold sequins also from Neat and Tangled!

 

I hope you like my card and I'm glad you stopped by!

Playing With Stippled Blossoms

 

Hello friends! My Stampin' Up! stamps have been neglected the past couple of weeks so today I created a card chock full of SU goodness. I received a sample of the beautiful gold accented vellum in the Occasions catalog, and couldn't wait to use it. I stamped my roses using Rose Red, and Blushing Bride. The leaves were stamped using Pistachio Pudding and Wild Wasabi. I heat embossed the sentiment using For You and SU gold embossing powder.  I embossed a piece of white card stock using the Delicate Designs embossing folder.

 

I am happy you stopped by today, and I hope you have a wonderful day!