PP616 Thankful Thoughts

Hi stamping friends!  Happy Sunday and time for a new Paper Players challenge where the sweet Claire is our hostess!  She has a timely theme for us today:

I pulled out a set from the Holiday Mini catalog from 2006 for my card today!  Talk about an oldie but goodie!  This style of line-art drawing was what drew me to SU in the first place!  So fun to stamp in Stazon, then use inks to watercolor in!  Here we go:

I used Crushed Curry, Pumpkin Pie, Pear Pizzazz, Cherry Cobbler, Crumb Cake, Poppy Parade, Cajun Craze and Cinnamon Cider to color in my images:

Then mounted it on a piece of Old Olive plaid DSP.  I stamped a sentiment from the same set in Mossy Meadow, and since I didn't get it quite centered, added a little leaf from the retired Itty Bitties set to make it look a little bit more centered!

Finally, I stamped the inside sentiment also in Mossy Meadow and left enough room for a couple more leaves at the bottom to tie it all together!  Square stitched dies were from Lil'Inker!  Everything went on a pretty Mossy Meadow card base!

I am also entering this at Double D Challenges, where they have a thankful mood board, and at Make the Cards, where they also want "thankful"!  

     

I know you'll have lots of ideas to share with us, so I hope you'll stop by the Paper Players blog, see what the DT created, then post yours as well!  Can't wait to see it!

We had Cassidy overnight and after running a bunch of errands, she wanted to make homemade ravioli!  She has a monthly baking/cooking subscription from a company called Kiwi, and they send utensils and directions for a variety of goodies!  This month's was ravioli, lasagne and marinara sauce.  Believe it or not, I have never made ravioli, so I was intrigued.  We gathered the ingredients together and went to work!  She put the flour in a baking dish and made a well:

Added the eggs and mixed it all together.  She was not too keen on the mixing part...she wanted to use her hands but the dough was pretty sticky before it came together.  Then we took turns kneading it for fifteen minutes:

After kneading and resting, she rolled it out and laid the first layer on the ravioli form:

We made the ricotta filling and filled them up; by trial and error we realized we had them a little too full, but after adding the top layer and pressing them together, these are the final product!

I was very impressed with her skill, even though she is a little lax on the tidying up!  We boiled them and added our own spaghetti sauce. She loved them!  I did not realize that the Italian seasoning I used in the filling has lots of sage in it, of which I am NOT fond, so I wasn't crazy about them.  They were a little thicker than I thought they would be, since she rolled the dough to what I thought was the perfect thickness!  But she's going to leave the ravioli form with me and I might try to make them again, maybe with a different dough recipe!  It was definitely labor-intensive but satisfying to see those little doughy pillows pop out!  Thanks for visiting today, enjoy it and be blessed!

Project Details—All Products SU! Unless Otherwise Specified
Stamps	Thoroughly Thankful (ret), Itty Bitties (ret)
Card stock & Papers	Mossy Meadow, Old Olive DSP, Basic White, Watercolor
Ink	Stazon Black, Poppy Parade, Pumpkin Pie, Crushed Curry, Cajun Craze, Soft Suede, Pear Pizzazz, Cherry Cobbler, Cinnamon Cider, Mossy Meadow
Accessories
Tools	Big Shot, Stitched Square Dies (Lil'Inker Designs), Aquapainter

MTCC66 Jolly Christmas

Happy Monday, peeps!  Hope you had a good weekend! My card today uses the sketch from Make The Cards Challenge:

and since I recently got the Jingle Jingle Jingle set, I though it would be a great sketch to highlight one of those fun sentiments!  So here we go:

I stamped the Jolly outline in the retired Emerald Envy ink and the inner portion in Poppy Parade.  I tried to get the other words in the set to fit on my Stitched Nested Label panel, but it just wasn't working, so I ended up adding some words from an older Christmas set (I believe it's from My Favorite Things but it's not marked) and embellishing the panel with some stamped images from Jingle set:

I added another Emerald Envy panel, trimmed, behind my main panel to mimic the shape in the sketch a little better.  Another older set, Jar of Cheer, provided the inside sentiment!

This was a fun set to use and easy to line up, so I am sure you'll be seeing more of it!  Thanks for popping in today--enjoy it and be blessed!

"All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give all of you into our hands."  1 Samuel 17:47

Project Details—All Products SU! Unless Otherwise Specified
Stamps	Jingle Jingle Jingle, Christmas Words (My Favorite Things?), Jar of Cheer (ret)
Card stock & Papers	Basic White, Sweet Sorbet DSP, Emerald Envy (ret)
Ink	Poppy Parade, Emerald Envy (ret)
Accessories	Mini Dimensionals
Tools	Big Shot, Stitched Nested Labels Dies (ret)

AYSI265 Quick Snowflake

Happy Friday, peeps!  It's Speed Stamping time at As You See It!  Yep, we want to see what you can stamp in 10 minutes or less!  Here's our prompt:

I just barely made it...my timer stopped at 8 minutes and 55 seconds!  Here we go:

I found this piece of glittery snowflake paper in my stash and I added a piece of Basic White cardstock embossed with the die from Stitched Snowflakes along the edge.  Although it's hard to tell, the snowflake (same die set) is cut from some Dazzling Diamonds glimmer paper, and embellished with a enamel dot:

A Merry Merlot card base and stitched circle provided a pretty contrast, and I added a diecut sentiment from last year's Wrapped In Christmas; it went on the inside too:

I am going to enter this in the Make The Cards challenge for this week as well, their theme is "winter"!

We can't wait to see what you create!  Remember, less than ten minutes, and tell us how long it to you to create it, then share it with us at As You See It!  Have fun! And thanks for popping in today!  Enjoy it and be blessed!

Project Details—All Products SU! Unless Otherwise Specified
Stamps	Wrapped In Christmas (ret)
Card stock & Papers	Basic White, Merry Merlot, Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer (ret), DSP (unknown)
Ink	Merry Merlot
Accessories	Matte Decorative Dots, Dimensionals
Tools	Big Shot, Tasteful Label Dies, Stitched Snowflake Dies, Stitched Shapes Dies (ret)

MTCC41 Tis The Season

Happy Monday, peeps!  Hope you had a good weekend! Brrr, it was a chilly, wet one!  While I was playing with my Soft Succulent papers and ink last week, I came across a scrap piece of Painted Christmas DSP that had the same hues, so I went to work, using some new stamps I had gotten a while ago and never got inky!  Here we go:

I began with the sketch from Make The Cards challenge:

After adding a white mat to the DSP, I scalloped the bottom front of the card, then added the circular element and the ice skate image, which I filled with greenery and candy canes.  The stamps and dies are from Avery Elle.  The sentiment is from Christmas to Remember.  I added a strip of Real Red to the bottom inside so the scallop would stand out a bit better:

I found this sentiment in a set my friend gave me after she de-stashed her stamp collection, and it fit perfectly in an Ornate Frame die!  Love it!

I am also entering this at the Krafty Chicks, because it's Christmas week!  Thanks for popping in today!

Enjoy it and be blessed!

Project Details—All Products SU! Unless Otherwise Specified
Stamps	Christmas to Remember, Holiday Skates (Avery Elle)
Card stock & Papers	Basic White, Real Red, Soft Succulent, Painted Christmas DSP
Ink	Real Red, Gray Granite, Soft Succulent
Accessories	Dimensionals, White Gems from my Stash
Tools	Big Shot, Ornate Frames Dies, Scalloped So Sweetly Dies, Stitched Shapes Dies (ret), Holiday Skates Dies (Avery Elle), Smoky Slate Blends, Real Red Blends, Zig Painty Pen (ret)

AYSI262 Prince of Peace

Happy Friday, stampers!  It's time for a new As You See It challenge....and I love this "Fill in the Blank":

For me, the one thing that sums up Christmas is our ultimate gift: the birth of Jesus, our Saviour!  I used a Nativity die along with several other dies to create my card today:

I used a stitched panel die from the Stockings dies to cut a panel from Crumb Cake, and I stamped a portion of the retired Christmas Collage background stamp on top in Crumb Cake ink, sponging the edges a bit.  I adhered my Early Espresso Nativity scene on top:

My background was a piece of Evening Evergreen, diecut with the Scalloped Contours die, then embossed with the Wintery embossing folder and sponged with white craft ink.  I added a banner for my sentiment and a gold diecut star, along with a few other gold stars scattered around:

I added a sentiment with a little gold Zig Painty pen dot on the inside of my Crumb Cake base:

Finally, for my layout, I used the Make the Cards sketch from their current challenge:

I struggled with the colors on this card, I am thinking I should have done a dark blue background, so maybe I'll try another one again!  Meanwhile...this is it!  So what sums up Christmas for you? I hope you'll check out what the design team members created over at the As You See It blog and share your creation with us as well!

Cassidy's karate club participated in their local Halloween parade last night!  She and her friend Avery were thrilled because they got to carry the GLOW IN THE DARK staffs!  And it was a perfect night for a parade!  Thanks for popping in today--enjoy it and be blessed!

But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid.  I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.  This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." Luke 2:10-12

Project Details—All Products SU! Unless Otherwise Specified
Stamps	Christmas Collage (ret), Prince of Peace (Close to My Heart), Joyful Noel (tiny Merry Christmas), Concord & 9th
Card stock & Papers	Crumb Cake, Early Espresso, Evening Evergreen, Gold Glimmer (ret)
Ink	Crumb Cake, Early Espresso, Craft White, Evening Evergreen
Accessories	Dimensionals
Tools	Big Shot, Stockings Dies, Scalloped Contour Dies, Nativity Dies (Impression Obsession #355-M), Banner Die (Nestability), Wintery Embossing Folder, Sponge Dauber, Star Die (Verve), Zig Gold Painty Pen

IB189 with a Guest!

Hi stampers!  This is a very special Thursday at Inspired By!  Today we're having company!  Yep, we've each asked a guest stamper to stamp with us!  You can see all the DT and their friends over at the IB blog...be sure to pop over and give them some love!  But first, let's look at our inspiration photos...fall and the holidays, both gorgeous:

My guest is the oh-so-sweet Linda Callahan!  I have met Linda a couple of times at SU conventions and she is a delight!  She's fun to be around and an awesome stamper to boot!  She chose the first photo for her card and look at this stunner:

She nailed it!  I feel like I could reach right out and take a bite from one of those apples!  Yum!  I chose to use the second photo inspiration for my card; that little galvanized bucket with the Christmas trees on it was calling my name:

It's hard to tell, but the gray elements are my card are actually Brushed Silver cardstock; I stamped the (very old) Cornish Heritage Farms sentiment in Stazon ink and used elements from the Sparkle of the Season bundle to create my wreath:

The panel behind it was embossed with the Pinewood Planks EF, and the buffalo check is a digital paper!  I had an extra little leaf left over, so I added to the inside of my Old Olive card along with a sentiment from Christmas to Remember:

I am also entering this at the Make the Cards challenge this week, where they are looking for "Country Life & Buffalo Plaid"!

I hope you'll play along with us this week...lots of inspiration to get your creative juices flowing!  Linda and I are happy that you popped in!  Enjoy your day and be blessed!

Project Details—All Products SU! Unless Otherwise Specified
Stamps	Sparkle of the Season, Christmas to Remember, Winter Vintage Signage (Cornish Heritage Farms)
Card stock & Papers	Basic White, Pear Pizzazz, Old Olive, Brushed Silver (ret), Digital Paper
Ink	Stazon Black, Crumb Cake, Soft Suede
Accessories	Dimensionals, Black Gingham Ribbon
Tools	Big Shot, Pinewood Planks EF (ret), Ornate Frames Dies, Seasonal Swirls Dies

MTCC30 Thinking of You

Happy Saturday, peeps!  My card today uses an awesome sketch from Make the Cards Challenge:

I pulled out Shaded Summer and some purple hues and went to work:

I stamped the floral image in Gorgeous Grape and Fresh Freesia, then diecut it and added some coordinating mats.  I cut three pieces of Gorgeous Grape DSP for the vertical panels and layered them on a Basic White panel that was embossed with the Ornate Flowers EF, then added the floral piece:

I added a sentiment from Quiet Meadow and a pearl, colored with a Blend, to finish it off.  Thanks for popping in today!  Enjoy it and be blessed!

Oh, I almost forgot...I'll be taking a little blog break, so I'll see you back in a few days!

'For this is what the Lord says---he who created the heavens, he is God; he who fashioned and made the earth, he founded it; he did not create it to be empty, but formed it to be inhabited--he says: "I am the Lord and there is no other."'

Project Details—All Products SU! Unless Otherwise Specified
Stamps	Shaded Spruce, Quiet Meadow
Card stock & Papers	Basic White, Fresh Freesia, Gorgeous Grape, Gorgeous Grape DSP
Ink	Fresh Freesia, Gorgeous Grape
Accessories	Pearls, Dimensionals
Tools	Big Shot, Ornate Flowers EF, Tailor Made Tags Dies, Layering Circles Dies, Stitched Shapes Dies (ret)

MTC Challenge #23 Seashell Wreath

Happy Monday, peeps! Hope you had a good weekend!  I was blessed to have this card chosen as a winner at Make The Cards last week, so today I get to be a Featured Creator!  

This week we have a sketch challenge, which is always a favorite....gives me a good starting point:

What a great sketch!  I was reminded of this pretty shell wreath I saw in my Martha Stewart Living magazine:

So I set about to recreate it in my own way, with the small shell image from Friends are Like Seashells:

I stamped and diecut each shell in Seaside Spray, then sponged color on a few of them to try to replicate the ombre effect on the wreath.  

Instead of the woodgrain background, I chose to emboss my panel with a retired embossing folder, then added a few sequins and a thank you sentiment.  I am also entering this in the Inspire.Create challenge, where they are looking for thank you cards too!

Meanwhile, pop over to the Make The Cards challenge to see what Jill and the other creative team members have shared!  Hope you'll play along!  And thanks for visiting!

We found a few little new neighbors under the shed; three baby robins:

And the sunflowers are in full bloom!  You can even see a tiny bit at the top of the center one that's been "deseeded" by some goldfinches...I heard them flitting around a couple days ago!  They look so pretty--little yellow birds sitting on big yellow flowers!

Enjoy your day and be blessed!

Project Details—All Products SU! Unless Otherwise Specified
Stamps	Friends are Like Seashells
Card stock & Papers	Basic White
Ink	Seaside Spray (ret)
Accessories	Sequins from my Stash, Dimensionals
Tools	Big Shot, Sponge Daubers, Stitched Rectangles, Ruffled Embossing Folder (ret)