A Different Kind of Challenge.... 33

Hi Everyone! I appreciate all the sweet comments that have been left regarding my creations :) They sure are encouraging & greatly appreciated!
Today I have a different kind of challenge... You know how fashion goes around & around, never really changes, just comes full circle? Well, I feel like that is what I have done: I started sewing when I was 16 as a necessity to mend my clothes, (growing up with 10 siblings), to making my daughter's dresses & quilting during the long cold winter days & nights in Buffalo, NY. I then adventured into scrapbooking, scrapping my children's photos & making memory books to sell. My girlfriend, Dianne, & I had a wild idea that we could actually make $ selling little memory books at the Hospital Holiday Bazaar. LOL! That was a bust but we had a lot of good laughs & that is when I met my 1st SU Demonstrator, Shana, who introduced me to stamping & has become my dear friend. Consequently, Shana welcomed a set of wonderful twin boys & rarely gets a chance to stamp anything these days & Dianne took on a job requiring 4 out of 5 days of traveling & doesn't even step foot into her Craft room! As one of my New Year's resolutions, I have promised myself that I am going to complete some of those unfinished scrapped books :) I have "met" many cyberfriends, if you would like to see some awesome creations, please feel free to visit their blogs. In no particular order: Diane, Kim, Carole & Susan to name a few! Which leads me to today's post - Are you still with me? :)

Here is my 1st page from our trip to Europe 2007- Venice One think I find very challenging is choosing which photos to use. We always take a million! These 3 are some of my favorites. I love the largest photo which is a "street" view of Venice taken from the water taxi. Of course, I had to get a few pics of the Gondoliers & their beautifully ornate Gondolas.

For sketch inspiration, I turned to the gals on Splitcoast Stampers for some inspiration, SBCS68, to get my scrappin' MOJO flowing :) I tweaked the sketch a bit to "fit" my photos. I "flipped" it & eliminated the big circle because it just didn't look right with my photos. I hope the SCS girls don't mind :) In my search for inspiration, I came across a few awesome sites, but if any of you scrappers out there can recommend some, my "eyes" are wide open for suggestions :) Please feel free to email me or pass the information on in a comment, I read them all!
As you can see, I love to layer my pages as much as my cards :) This is a close up view of the little blossom on the left I made using 3 different sized Spellbinders Scalloped Circle dies & 1 tiny Blossom die. The ornate center is a Making Memories brad.
I made this "Post Card" embellishment from a free digital print of a map. I downloaded the image, scaled it the size to fit my page then hit print! Easy as that! I never knew just how many freebies are out there on the www! I inked up the Post Card image from the SU Winter Post set with SU Chocolate Chip ink & stamped it near the top of the map. I crinkled it up for a distressed look & smudged some Ranger Tim Holtz Vintage Photo ink on the edges as well as the print. Using my distressing tool, I roughed up the edges, layered it on a piece of Bazzill brown cs, then stitched it into place. I found that gorgeous button at the "garage sale" at my LSS :) The little postage stamp image inside the fancy Tim Holtz Ideology bookplate is from a Hero Arts multi-package. I inked it up with SU Rose Red ink then cut it out using a Spellbinders Oval die.
To make this little tag, I inked up the Hero Arts Italia image with SU Bordering Blue ink, stamped then cut it to fit inside the Cuttlebug postage stamp frame, layered with a piece of Bazzill brown cs & set aside. The tag itself was made by first stamping the Waltzingmouse image with SU Chocolate Chip ink then by centering the Spellbinders Labels 4 die right over the image, then sent it through my Sizzix Big Shot Express machine. The tag topper was made from inking up the Waltzingmouse image with SU Old Olive ink, centering the Spellbinders Labels 4 die & repeating the cutting process. I repeated this step again by placing a Spellbinders Scalloped circle die over the image. Topped it off with a little clip from SU.
This big blossom was made by layering the beautiful, whimsical MTME © Fluttering-by digi paper & K&Company DPcut with the Spellbinders Dahlia die then distressed. The center has a Tim Holtz Ideology flower embellishment & pearl Paper Studio brad.

So there you have my first scrapped page of 2010 :) There will be many more to follow. I would love to know if you are a Scrapper as well as a Card Maker? Be Sweet!

Stamps: Hero Arts Italia Tower, International Cancel Post, SU Winter Post, Waltzingmouse stamps, various free digital images
Paper: MTME © Pretty Printables: Fluttering-by, K&Company DP, Bazzill Brown, SU Very Vanilla, Bravo Burgandy
Ink: Ranger Tim Holtz Vintage Photo, SU Chocolate Chip, Cranberry Crisp, Bordering Blue, Old Olive
Sprinkles: Spellbinders Dahlia, Blossom, Oval, Scalloped Circles, Labels 4 & 5, Tim Holtz Ideology hardware, Paper Studio brads, Making Memories hardware, Sizzix Flourish #2 die, Cuttlebug postage stamp die, PTI twine & button from stash

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Thinking of Friends 30

Hello Girls! It is going to be a BUSY weekend around here! We will be celebrating Halloween on Saturday with some neighborhood Trick-Or-Treaters & on Sunday, my Hubby & I will be shuffling off to the Phoenix Cajun Festival for some YUMMY food :) My DH was raised in Louisiana, so I am sure the food will not stand a chance in comparison to his Momma's Southern Cookin'! His mouth is still a bit sore from having a Wisdom tooth pulled on Monday but I think he can enjoy soft food like Gumbo or Etouffee! :)

In my crafty world, I will be sharing an all NEW Just Us Girls challenge with you. My team mate Kristin will be this week's hostess & she has something special to share with all the players :) I hope you stop by the JUGS site for all the details as well as here, to see what I have made for this week's JUGS Wildcard Challenge. Maybe you will become inspired to play along :) Recently, I have had some dear friends experiencing some difficult times in their lives, so with them in mind, I made these 2 cards to let them each know that they are in my thoughts. For sketch inspiration I used Kazan's AWESOME Sketch #38, 2S4Y38 & Anja's FUN BONUS sketch (from 2S4Y) & for color inspiration, I used this week's BEAUTIFUL colors from Color Throwdown, CTD66 selected by the ever so talented LeAnne:) Also, this week over at Moxie Fab World, Cath has gone Plum Crazy! :) She is challenging us papercrafters to "Capture its depth. Sample its nature. Command its presence. Ensnare its mystery. Quench our desire for plum". If you haven't already, I encourage you all to visit each & every one of these sites for AMAZING inspiration & maybe you will see something that just sparks your creativity & you too will play along! I hope these cards cheer up my friends :) Thanks for looking! Be Sweet!

I think I may have discovered a couple of new fave background stamps! I really love the PTI Polka Dot Basics set :) How can you go wrong with Polka Dots? AND I think this size dot won't make you dizzy! I gave the card an overall vintagey look by inking a sponge dauber with Ranger/Tim Holtz Vintage photo ink then gently rubbing the edges of all the SU Naturals Ivory cs.

This is the 1st time I spritzed the cs with water before crinkling it up & that sure made it a bit easier to crumple! I let it dry overnight though because it was too damp to use. NOTE to self: go easy on the water!

It was like Christmas when the other day when the UPS man delivered a box containing my loooooong awaited for PTI order! I tore into that box 'cause I couldn't wait to get my hands on the new Giga Guide Lines set :) I think that is on the top of my favorite stamp list as well :)

I used the Spellbinders Blossom die for this card as well, but it has a TOTALLY different look when you don't distress it! I wanted it more flat so I could place the sentiment in the center so I just bent up the edges a tad to give the bloom some dimension :) I REALLY need to practice paper stitching with my electric sewing machine-hand stitching is not only time consuming but I find it difficult to pierce all those layers! LOL I sure do like the final result though :)

Ingredients Used: Stamps: SU All Holidays , PTI Giga Guide Lines, Polka Dot Basics, Hero Arts Message Circles Paper: SU Rich Razzleberry, Bordering Blue, Elegant Eggplant, Naturals Ivory Ink: SU Rich Razzleberry, Bordering Blue, Elegant Eggplant & Chocolate Chip Sprinkles: Spellbinders Labels 1 & Blossom dies, Martha Stewart Butterfly punch, Making Memories Hardware, EK Success punch, Cuttlebug EF

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Vintagey Holiday Creations...October PTI Blog Hop 93

Hello Everyone! It's time for the Annual Papertrey Ink Holiday Blog Hop! This month, Nichole challenged us to show some our best upcoming holiday plans for cards, gifts & wraps! PTI has released soooo many GORGEOUS stamps & templates that are so fun to play with, it was difficult for me to choose which ones to use for my creations for the Holiday Blog Hop. LOL I combined several challenges to use in my blog hop creations-Card #1 & gift bag: 1. Sketch Inspiration comes from The Pink Elephant Challenge #37 2. For BOTH cards Color Inspiration comes from Dawn McVey's RSCC #18, (I don't have PTI New Leaf so I substituted SU Old Olive). I have been lovin' the Old World, vintagey, shabby chic style! I am so looking forward to being inspired for my holiday creating through this blog hop! If you haven't visited any of these sites, be sure to check them out as the DT has AMAZING inspirational samples as well as all the participants! :) Thanks for hoppin' by! Be Sweet!



This is my Poinsettia card & gift bag:
I like these medium size Kraft gift bags as they are the perfect size to hold my gifts. Stamping a gift bag & attaching a tag is a Beautiful way to present a gift, yet quick & easy. :)

Using a sponge dauber inked up with Tim Holtz distressing ink, I smudged the edges of the card & tag giving it an antiquey, vintagey look.I adorned the big tag with the larger Poinsettia & sprigs that I stamped then cut out using the Beautiful PTI Peaceful Poinsettia set & sprigs.

This closeup of the tag really shows the Season's Greetings tag & it's vintagey edges.

I loved Dawn's color combo so much, that I made another gift set :)

I have not mastered my sewing technique on cards yet so, I hand stitched around the square that showcases the ornament.

From this bird's eye view, you can really see all the embossing on the SU Natural Ivory cs & the lil' PTI button on the ornament.

I like to decorate tins & fill with various goodies! :) I made coordinating ornament tags to give as a lil' gift.

Ingredients Used: Stamps: PTI Peaceful Poinsettia, Winter Swirls, Polka Dot Basics, 2008 Holiday Tag Collection, SU Delightful Decorations Paper: PTI Raspberry Fizz, Kraft SU Chocolate Chip, Naturals Ivory, Old Olive Ink: PTI Raspberry Fizz, Tim Holtz Vintage Photo SU Old Olive, Chocolate Chip Sprinkles: PTI buttons & ribbon, Cuttlebug Textile EF, EK Success punch, Spellbinders Labels 4, brads, paper bags & cord from stash, SU punch, Martha Stewart pearls

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Vintagey Love 18

Hi Girls! Yeah - It's Friday! Lots of things happening here at Cupcake's this weekend! Tomorrow is the 4th challenge at Just Us Girls & I am the hostess :) I will be sharing my video on how to create a tissue paper flower, so I hope you all check it out & hopefully get inspired to play along! Please be sure to visit both the Just Us Girls site & Cupcake's for ALL the details! Sunday evening beginning 5pm EST, I will be hopping along in the Papertrey Ink Annual Holiday Blog Hop. Don't be shy, stop by ANY time this weekend to see what I have been up to. Thanks for looking! Be Sweet!

April, my son's sweet girlfriend wanted me to make her Mom a Birthday card. Well, when they were visiting the other day, April & I sat down & I taught her how to create her OWN card! Here is April, so proud of her 1st card of many I am sure :) She made her card with so much love & gave it a Vintagey look! April used this gorgeous orange / rust colored K&Company DP for her background.

To make April's BIG blossom, she inked up the SU French Script stamp with SU Close to Cocoa ink & stamped the image on SU Natural Ivory cs. Using the Spellbinders Blossom die she create the blossom. To give it a Vintagey look, she crinkled it up in her hands then fastened it to her card with a pearly brad from my stash. Inking up a PTI Damask Designs image with SU River Rock ink, she stamped her leaves then roughed up the edges with a distressing tool & repeated the crinkle technique :) April did such an amazing job & I am sooo proud of her! I think I have a new stamping partner :)

My dearest husband has to have a tooth pulled on Monday :( YIKES!!! He has a cracked Wisdom tooth that is extremely painful. For sketch inspiration, I used this week's awesome sketch provided by Card Positioning Systems, CPS138.

Here is my Vintagey Love card:

To create this BIG blossom, I inked up the SU French Script stamp with SU Chocolate Chip ink then ripped various size circles. To add a lil' more character to the flower, using a sponge dauber, I sponged a lil' SU Close to Cocoa ink around the edges.

Ingredients Used: Stamps: PTI Damask Designs, SU French Script, Fancy Flexible Phrases, Warmest Regards Paper: K&Company DP, SU Chocolate Chip, Naturals Ivory, Old Olive, Mellow Moss, Kraft, Bravo Burgandy, River Rock Ink: SU Chocolate Chip Sprinkles: PTI buttons, Making Memories hardware, SU copper & gold cord, Offray ribbon, EK Success border & oval punch, Spellbinders Labels 4 die

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Croatian Inspiration 23

Hi Everyone! I am changing gears here & shifting to a Vintagey - Old World Style for this card & then some... I needed some Sympathy cards for a few co-workers who recently experienced the loss of a family member so I pulled out some Vintagey-soft looking K&Company DP. For sketch inspiration, I used Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge #102, WSC102. If you have never visited Beate's site, you have no idea what you are missing! You really ought to visit her site as she has so much to share! :) I hope you don't mind, I would like to share some pictures that inspired me in making this card. They were taken in Dubrovnik, Croatia which sits the the Adriatic Sea. Dubrovnik was a port call on a cruise that my honey & I took in the summer of '08. There is so much history in Croatia & the city is full of old buildings, beautiful flowers, countryside & very friendly welcoming people. I would love to know if you have ever been to Dubrovnik, Croatia? Be Sweet!

This is Dubrovnik, Croatia. It is surrounded by a massive wall that served to protect the city during war time.

You can see the beautiful flowers in bloom & rustic old buildings.

This picture is from a lil' countryside town on the outskirts of the city.

This is my DH :) We were eating lunch at this lil' restaurant next to the creek that you see up above. The Croatians are very proud of their wine!

Here is my Praying for you card...

To make that BIG pink blossom, I inked up my SU French Script stamp with SU Close to Cocoa ink, stamped it then using the Spellbinders Blossom dies, I ran the stamped paper through my die cut machine. To give them that distressed look, you just put them in the palm of your hand & crinkle them up a lil'! MAGIC!

I rarely use Gold but since the pearl brad is trimmed in gold, I used a few gold brads on the Label as well. I think the gold gives it a fancy / elegant look?. I inked the edges of the Label under the Pink blossom with SU Close to Cocoa.

To create those distressed leaves, I cut them from SU River Rock cs, then inked up my PTI Damask Designs image then stamped the leaves. After stamping, I used a distressing tool to rough up the edges then once again, I crinkled them up in my hands! :) Easy Right? I hope you give it a try!

Ingredients Used: Stamps: SU French Script, PTI Damask Designs Paper: K&Company DP, SU Pink Pirouette, River Rock, Close to Cocoa, Kraft Ink: SU Close to Cocoa Sprinkles: Spellbinders Labels 4 & Blossom nesties, Offray ribbon, brads from stash, PTI buttons

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Many Thanks & Happy Hellos 25

Hi Everyone! T.G.I.F. :) It has been a busy week over here at Cupcake's! I was not only able to share my new position with you as a Design Team member for the Just Us Girls Challenge Blog, http://justusgirlschallenge.blogspot.com but I have been invited to be a Guest Designer for the month of November over at the Pile it on! challenge site. A BIG Thank You to the girls over at the Pile it on! challenge site for inviting me to play with them!!! Yipee Skipee :) The Just Us Girls Challenge Blog is UP & RUNNING in FULL SWING! Be sure to stop by & grab your Blinkie!! :)

REMEMBER: Tomorrow, Saturday, October 10th there will be a new Just Us Girls challenge for YOU to play along in! Be sure to stop by here & Just Us Girls for more DT inspiration! I sure hope you girls feel inspired to join along with ALL the FUN!!!! I am looking forward to your creations! :)

I am introducing something new here at Cupcake's today called my K.I.S.S. (Keep It Sweet & Simple) card series. I realize I don't personally make a lot of cards that are easily "mass produced" so to say & with the hustle & bustle of the up-coming Holiday season right around the corner, it's more practical to create cards that can be duplicated rather quickly & efficiently! I thought maybe to help get some of you JUMP STARTED with your Holiday card making, I would come up with a card or two demonstrating how easy it can be to create several cards at once! I needed 10 Thank You cards for my girlfriends who recently helped make the Graduation party I hosted a success! :) I combined 3 challenges to make these cards, in no particular order: 1. For Color inspiration - Challenge #18 from Scrapmaster's Paradise, SPCC18 2. For Sketch inspiration - Laura's Sketch 36 from 2 Sketches 4 You, 2S4Y36 & 3. Challenge #18 - Three Dimensional from Pile it on! If you haven't already, I recommend visiting all these sites for many samples of inspiration! I would love to hear if you think this K.I.S.S. series will help you with your Holiday card making! Be Sweet!

Here are my Many Thanks & Happy Hello cards:

To make the center scalloped focal point, I inked up the SU Many Thanks image with SU Soft Suede ink, then punched it out using the 3/4" EK Success circle punch. Layered it on top of SU Dusty Durango, Not Quite Navy & DCWV white cs scalloped circles cut using Spellbinders scalloped circle nesties x 3.

I assembled the flower embellies by layering the punched flowers x 3 layers, then sewing a button right smack in the center!

Simply by bending up the edges of the middle layer of the flower embellies, makes the flowers POP off the card!

These are the tools I used: EK Success 3/4" circle & flower punches x2, Fiskars scalloped edge punch, SU Soft Suede ink & stamps, Spellbinders Scalloped nesties, Lasting Impressions paper piercer.

Here are MOST of the supplies needed to make the next 9 cards! The actual 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" card & layers are not shown.

Ingredients Used: Stamps: SU Lots of Thoughts Paper: My Mind's Eye DP, SU Soft Suede, Not Quite Navy, Whisper White, Dusty Durango Ink: SU Soft Suede Sprinkles: Spellbinder's Scalloped Circle nesties, EK Success punches, Fiskars punch, Michael's ribbon, buttons & floss from stash

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