Kindred Spirits from The Craft's Meow

It is Day #2 of

NEW RELEASE PREVIEWS WEEK

at

Today we have a beautiful set called

'Kindred Spirits'

illustrated by Karen Baker

Paul and I love pansies.  We see 'faces' in each different design

and with this set from TCM, you will have an opportunity to put

beautiful 'faces' and color combos together.

For this card, I used a variety of inks from Memento to create

an overall background . . . very bold and bright !

How would you like a chance to win this set ?

All you have to do is stop by the TCM blog and leave a note

to say you stopped by for a visit.

Each day of the previews will bring another set up for grabs.

You have until 8pm PST, tonight to comment to be eligible.

I'll be back tomorrow with another TCM preview.


Project Recipe:

Patterned Paper: gingham from A Muse
Stamps: Kindred Spirits by The Craft's Meow

Inks: Memento
Embellishments: Amy Tangerine ribbon from America Crafts,
Stardust Stickles & Liquid Pearls from Ranger,
mini brads from Recollections

Happy as a Lark!

It's getting closer!

We're on Day #3 of the New Release Previews over at

and today we share two sets with you,

one is this month's 'free gift with purchase'!

Today's sets are . . .

'Happy as a Lark'

and
'Lark Additions'
designed by the talented Karen Baker

I simply adore these sets.  

I love the images . . . I love the fonts of the sentiments . . .

I love them all !

This card is fairly straightforward in it's design.

I used a very old {and I mean like, 14 years old}

cloud template to create the subtle sky,

then stamped each image and layered things as you see.

 

For the tree trunks, I actually stamped in brown first

then 'shadowed' in gray to create dimension.

The inks are Memento & A Muse Studio,

the baker's twine is Cappuccino & Ocean from The Twinery.

'Lark Additions' is this month's 'Free Gift w/$50 Purchase'

It's such a fabulous addition with it's pretty sentiments.

Free for a limited time!

How would you like a chance to win these sets ?

All you have to do is stop by the TCM blog and leave a note

to say you stopped by for a visit.

Each day of the previews will bring another set up for grabs.

You have until 9pm PST, January 20th to comment to be eligible.

I'll be back tomorrow with the final fabby preview.

See you soon ! ! !

Project Recipe:

Cardstock: Coordinations & GinaK Designs

Stamps: Happy as a Lark & Lark Additions by The Craft's Meow

Embellishments: baker's twine in Ocean & Cappuccino
from The Twinery 

Guest Designing with Avery Elle

It's Day #2 Guest Designing with the folks over at

I'm just gonna say it . . . I had lots of fun creating this card

I used a Spellbinders die to create a frame from coordinating paper

then stamped the the hearts in their own 'geometric' pattern.

Look at that . . . talk about matchy-matchy !  Even the baker's twine !

Here's the set I used called 'Lots of Love'

I'm really happy to have two more days left sharing on behalf

of Avery Elle.  I'll be back on Tuesday & Wednesday but until then,

I hope you will stop by Avery Elle blog 

and say hello.

Have a great day !

Project Recipe:

Patterned Paper: My Mind's Eye
Stamps: Lots of Love by Avery Elle
Ink:  Memento by Tsukineko

Tools: Lacey Squares die by Spellbinders, Big Shot
Embellishments: baker's twine from The Twinery
pearls from Recollections

 

New Release Day with The Craft's Meow!

The day has finally arrived !

It's New Release Day at

All week long we've been sharing previews of the

November collection from TCM and today we celebrate each

set now on sale with our team blog hop.

You should have arrived here by way of my

talented friend & teammate

Jessica Fick's Blog

If not, please PLEASE make sure you stop back at

The Craft's Meow Blog

 because there is so much beautiful inspiration from

each designer and

YOU COULD WIN THE ENTIRE RELEASE

just by stopping by and leaving a little love with us !

My cards have been quite Clean & Simple of late and

although this one stays on that theme, it uses

three sets from TCM . . .

'Zoom Goes My Heart'

'Valentine's Wishes'

and from the previous release

'Holiday Foundations'

The only additions to this card were baker's twine from The Twinery

and beautiful gem flourishes from Zva Creative

Don't forget . . .

'Stitched Sentiments Two' is this month's 

FREE GIFT w/$50 purchase

AND

to be eligible to win this month's entire release,

make a visit to each designer's blog

{complete list over at TCM}

and leave a little love by 9pm PST, Sunday, Dec 2nd

Thanks so very much for coming by . . .

I won't keep you long because it's time to get your on your way 

to the most talented

Karen Baker's Blog

Always great to have you at The Open Window !
 

Project Recipe:

Cardstock: Bazzill
Stamps: Zoom Goes my Heart, Holiday Foundations & Valentine's Wishes

all by The Craft's Meow

Embellishments: gems flourish from Zva Creative
baker's twine in Blossom from The Twinery

Happy Birthday to Sweet 'n Sassy!

For The Craft's Meow Preview

and

The Play Date Cafe Color Challenge

Please Scroll Down

{it's a busy day here today }

I am so glad you came by for a very special celebration

and I'm so happy to be a part of it.

My friend Korin is celebrating her 5th Birthday

as owner of Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps

and it's quite a party !

I love the friendships I've made through my blog

and this is one I've had for a couple years now.

Korin is a creative designer and offers a variety of

images that appeal to so many styles.

I've been designing pretty Clean & Simply lately

and 'Forest Silhouettes' makes it really easy.

I had lots of ideas and settled on this one using

Memento inks.  This is a great set for Christmas too !

I want to wish a 

BIG HAPPY BIRTHDAY

to Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps !

There are terrific giveaways going on and all you have to do is

make sure you leave a comment on the participating blogs

on the hop.  The deadline to comment & win 

is 11:59pm EST, Friday Nov. 30th.

Winners will be announced over at SNSS December 1st.

Have a great time on the hop 

and don't forget to leave a

little love before you go.  

I'd love for YOU to win !

   

Shades of Purple

It's so great to back at The Open Window.

Paul and I celebrated our 21st anniversary last week,

so he took four days off from B&N and spent lots of

time together just hanging out.

Today, I am back with another great challenge from

I love these different shades we are calling

Plum ... Fuchsia ... Wisteria

I created this very CAS card using stamps from The Craft's Meow.

For each ink or leaf I stamped, I also 'shadow' stamped without

re-inking the image.  It created more depth.

I used Memento inks for the three shades and done !

The gems added a little texture.

We are always happy when our friends from

come by and offer their terrific prize !

I really hope you'll take the challenge this week.

Our design team knocked it out of the park with their

very creative projects, so make sure

you come, take a peek and play !

Before I go, thought I would share a few of the photos

Paul and I took during our anniversary date.

We make sure to visit our local apple orchard

every fall for lunch and this was a great day to do it.

We have the same 'fare' every season . . .

Paul is finishing up a slice of hot apple pie with ice cream

which always tastes great with a hot cup of coffee

Paul loves to sample apples in the apple barn.  There are

two dozen apple cider donuts and some fresh peanut brittle

in the basket.  We did share a dozen of those donuts with

our daughter and grandsons!

Here is a quick trip down memory lane . . .

 

We met here in the states in 1989

fell in love and got married in 1991 ...

and we're as happy as ever 21 years later ...

Thanks so much for stopping by today . . .

I always appreciate your visits!

Project Recipe:

Cardstock: Bazzill in Avalanche
Stamps: Golden Days by The Craft's Meow

Ink: Memento in Sweet Plum, Lilac Posies, Grape Jelly & Tuxedo Black

by Tsukineko

Tools: corner rounder punch by Fiskars 

Embellishments: gems from Want2Scrap

 

 

How Would YOU Like to Win Six New Stamp Sets?!

For the new challenge at

The Play Date Cafe

please scroll down

It's a very exciting day today !

All week long I've been sharing projects from

and today is RELEASE DAY and our team blog hop.

If you've come by way of our newest illustrator

Elizabeta Kushner's Blog

then you are on the path of the hop.

If not, you will definitely want to start over at

The Craft's Meow Blog

because someone is going to 

win the

ENTIRE RELEASE

That's the SIX brand new stamp sets

we previewed this week.

I fell in love with this set designed by NinaB Designs for TCM

called 'Stitched Flowers' with the matching 'Stitched Sentiments'.

I stamped the flowers & did a faux-watercolor using Memento inks.

I used paper from Lily Bee Design as my wallpaper.

For a little interest, I punched a border on one edge and added

baker's twine, in Flax & Orchid by The Twinery, on the other.

I think it's always fun to place the sentiment on it's side

because it's 'unexpected'.

The tiny pearls are from Want2Scrap.

I know you will see all the sets on the TCM Website, so I am going

to show you a very special one here...

This terrific set is 'Summer Fun'and for a limited time is available

as a gift with a purchase of $50 or more.

I used this set in my post from yesterday as well...

you can check it out here

So here is how you can win....

Visit each designer's blog on the hop, leave a comment

{ there's only 16 total over 4 days...very do-able }

and you have until 9:00pm PDT, Sunday June 24th to do so.

They are all on sale today!!!

Don't wait!

Look forward to your comment and I will keep my fingers

crossed that YOU are a winner!

The next stop on the hop IS the talented


Karen Baker's blog

Just in case there are any glitches in the blog hop,

here is a complete list of blogs participating for TCM:

The Craft's Meow Blog
Amy Tsuruta
Amy Wanford
Ivana Camdzic
Larissa Heskett
Iwona Palamountain
Jackie Rockwell
Jean Martin 
Jen Cuthbertson
Jessica Fick
Gayatri Murali
Elizabeta Kushner
Julie Ranae

Karen Baker
Lindsay Amrhein

Nina Brackett

 Project Recipe:

Patterned Paper: Picket Fence by Lily Bee Design
Stamps:  Stitched Flowers & Stitched Sentiments
both from The Craft's Meow
Inks: Grape Jelly & Bamboo Leaves Memento

Embellishments:  pearls & flourish from Want2Scrap

baker's twine in Flax & Orchid from The Twinery

Tools:  Apron Lace border punch from Fiskars

Spring is Here with The Craft's Meow

It's certainly Spring here at The Open Window as it's

Day #1 of 

New Release Previews

 Each day this week, you will see a new set

revealed and have a chance to win a set each day!

Before we get to it, I am so excited to welcome our
April Guest Designers at TCM...
Gini Cagle & Geri Freeman
These women are super talented and I am so glad they
will be a part of the new release festivities.

Our first sneak peek is called 'Nature's Beauty'
from TCM illustrator Michelle Bertuzzi

Another very versatile set indeed!
I did a lot of 'fussy cutting' for this card, but I like the
way it turned out.  Had my fingers held out, I would have cut a dozen more
of these blossoms and created even more layers.
The centers were created using Liquid Pearls.

I would love to submit this cards for the call over at CARDS/Create
for the Spring Cards Challenge.

I think it would be really elegant to stamp these same blossoms
in black and white and have that lovely little butterfly in a bold color.

The next release sneak is from TCM illustrator
Kaitlyn Ord called 'Travel Time'.

I took a really BOLD approach with this stamp set.
I created my own background using the sentiments that come
with the set and layerd the uber-cool airplane on top.
I LOVE the 'newspaper-style' graphics on the plane.

Just wait till you see the rest of this set  !!!

Make sure you pop by

 The Craft's Meow Blog

and check out the fabulous-ness

from all of the designers.

TCM is giving away a new release set

each day, so make sure you leave a comment

on the blog for a chance to win!

I am so glad you stopped by today and I hope

you will plan to come by each day this week

so you don't miss a thing!

Spring is Here Project Recipe:

Stamps: Nature's Beauty by The Craft's Meow

Ink: Orange, Bubblegum, Fern & Lido by A Muse Studio

Grape Jelly Memento by Tsukineko 

Embellishments: Liquid Pearls by Ranger in Buttercup & White Opal

Travel Time Project Recipe:

Stamps: Travel Time by The Craft's Meow 

Ink: Slate, Blueberry & Burano by A Muse Studio

Lovin' my New Digs!

Hey there...what a GREAT idea for a Clean & Simple Challenge.

Well, of course I'm talking about

 

but I'm also talking about the 'challenge' itself...

BLACK AND WHITE!!!

When I first saw this new 'retro' set from Paper Smooches,

it screamed black and white...

It's called 'Vogue Abode' and...here it comes...I dig it!

This one is pretty self-explanatory.  I just 'arranged the furniture'

and done.

The black in is Tuxedo Black from Memento.

I actually have a variation on this card using a 'splash' of color,

but I'll save that one for another day. Wouldn't want to see anyone

'sneak' any color in on this challenge.

Hope you enjoyed it!

I will be back Friday morning with a FanTABulous bit of news

I've been keeping under my hat...in fact, there might

just be TWO bits of news.  We'll see.....

Project Recipe: 

Stamps: New Digs by Paper Smooches
Ink: Tuxedo Black by Memento from A Muse Studio

The Twinery Has Gone Sweet 'n Sassy

It's blog hop time once again at The Open Window.

has teamed up with

   
If you've arrived here from the Sweet 'n Sassy Blog

you are in the right spot.

If not, just pop back to The Twinery blog where it

all gets started and enjoy the hop!

There are some great prizes to be won, so you won't want

to miss out on any of the fabulous inspiration

from the designers of both teams.

 

I really enjoyed working with the 'Forest Silhouettes'

from SNSS.  Masculine-style cards are sometimes

hard to design, but this set made it so easy!

My 'wallpaper' background is a mix of

Authentique's 'Free Bird' Collection and of course,

this card would not be complete without a few

baker's twine accents.

I mixed Denim, Honeydew & Cappuccino to match

the colors in the paper.

Both companies are giving away fantastic prizes...

From The Twinery...

 and from Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps...

Just make sure you visit each blog on the hop,

leave a comment and do so by midnight EST

on Saturday, Oct 22nd.

The winners will be announced on Sunday, Oct 23rd.

Your next stop on the hop is the very talented

Bridget Finlay

Project Recipe: 
Designer Paper: 'Free Bird' from Authentique
Stamps:  'Forest Silhouettes' by Sweet 'N Sassy Stamps
Ink:  'Rich Cocoa & London Fog' by Memento
Sepia & Bottle by Ranger, Old Paper & Faded Jeans by Tim Holtz 
Tools:  Labels Four by Spellbinders, Big Shot,
Fiskars corner rounder punch

Embellishments:  mini brads by Recollections
Bakers twine in Denim, Honeydew & Cappuccino from The Twinery