Reflecting on 2009

The last day of 2009...always, the closing of the year brings the desire to reflect upon all the things that those 365 days of life brought...some experiences were wonderful, others painful, but what an amazing year 2009 has been! I am amazed as I look back on the friendships that stamping has brought to me in this one year, and I'm so grateful.

I hope that as you look forward to 2010, that you will be filled with hope and enthusiasm. Each day brings its own unique opportunity. None of us know what the future may bring, but we can know that as we walk along the journey of life, God is with us, and His love is everlasting.

May you be blessed! In His Love,

Deb

Notes: Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps Trees of the Field, Basic Grey designer paper, Stampin' Up rick rack, border punch, SEI and Basic Grey buttons, PTI jute thread, Nestabilities rectangles, Sweet Stop Sketch (minus the pocket!)

The First Day of Christmas...

...and it is so nice to have a really relaxed pj day! We said this morning that we'd go to the movie this afternoon, but after staying up half the night Christmas Eve (I think I finally went to sleep at 3:15) we are truly not motivated to do much of anything!

I finally finished a little Christmas thank-you card. That was a feat within itself because my craft room is in total chaos. I had brought quite a bit of stuff down to the dining room so that I could stamp but still be sorta on the fringe of Christmas movies, and even stamp with a friend, during the last week or so. Of course, all that had to be hauled back upstairs to clear the table for Christmas dinner last night, and it was done in a hurry and not put back into its proper places (not that any of it really has a proper place...we're still working on furnishing this room!).

This little cutie is Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps' Birthday Party Emma. My friend Julie's Christmas Day birthday was the inspiration for the papers and colors...this week's Sweet Stop sketch provided a starting point for the layout, which is constructed of CutCardStock's textured card stocks and Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses designer paper in both 12 x 12 and 6 x 6 inch sized prints. I love the smaller scale of the 6 x 6 for card-making, especially when using it for paper-piecing as I did for her dress, here. The thank-you sentiment from another SNS set, I'd Pick You. The frayed giant rick-rack reminded me of the fringe of a scarf, so I added some snowflakes and buttons...Emma appears to be better at braving winter than I am because she must've been willing to part with her sweater when she arrived at the party! ;)

I hope you're enjoying all of your Christmas goodies and some yummy Christmas dinner left-overs! Wonder when we'll finally venture out to the movies! Doesn't look like today's the day!

We make...

...the perfect pair! I thought that this would be the perfect sentiment to express my delight that Korin and Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps have invited me back for a month of guest designing! What a wonderful affirmation! It is such a blessing to me to get to spend time with SNS again!

My card for today uses the adorable Punny Fruits and Veggies, one of today's new releases. I colored the images with Copic markers, paired them with Basic Grey Nook and Pantry paper, used Nestabilities squares and Ribbon Tag Trio 2 to cut out the image and sentiment, and then warmed everything up with some Tim Holtz distress ink. A couple of Basic Grey buttons, some cording, and a few little dots with a white pen provided the finishing touches for this layout, Sweet Stop Sketch 32!

Thanks so much for inviting me back! I am *so* looking forward to this month! I know it is going to be special!

God Bless the USA!

Today's card is a combo card for SCS's Limited Supplies Challenge, "Chinese Take-out," and The Sweet Stop's sketch with a spin (red, white and blue) for this week. I was thrilled that they worked together! I used a Sweet 'n Sassy digital stamp, Celebrate America, resizing and flipping the image to fit the sketch (there's still one more day for you to play! There will be a new sketch tomorrow!) The rocket was colored with prismas and Gamsol, then shaded along one edge with a Copic blender pen and cool gray marker. I used a microliner to frame the image with a fine line and a few dot-dot-dots. The rest of my supplies are things that have been in my stash for ages...I think both prints came from a big stack of designer papers that my mom sent me forever ago, probably from Michael's or Hobby Lobby. I printed the sentiment, God Bless America, on some white cardstock, then matted it with red for the inside. Relatively clean and simple.

Sweet 'n Sassy Sweet Stop Sketch

I really love sketch challenges, and this week's sketch at the Sweet 'n Sassy Sweet Stop is a fun one! This colorful little frog from Pond Pals was the perfect fit! I stamped him with Memento ink, colored him with Copic markers, cut and embossed the panels out with square nestabilities, and ended up with this! I love it! I used some Stampin' Up designer paper...the Cuttlebugged polkadot texture of the orange mat mimics the frogs' polkadot skin, and the white dots on the black scallops balance the white across the top. A bold, quick card with a punny sentiment and just enough bling!

Sweet 'n Sassy Blog Hop!

Welcome, Sweet 'n Sassy blog hoppers! (If you're here for Joy's www.surprise birthday party, scroll down to the next post!) I am sure you've been having a marvelous time and that you've gotten lots of inspiration! I am always amazed at all of the gorgeous creations our SNS girls come up with! If you are starting here, you'll want to check out the blog schedule on the sidebar so you can go back to the beginning and not miss a thing!

Owl Occasions is such a cute set! I knew immediately that I wanted to pair this image with Basic Grey's Porcelain designer paper, one of my favorites! (Pink is one of my favorite colors, especially when paired with brown!) I love the tea-stained appearance of this paper and its vintage appeal...it looks great as it is, but it is still fun to age the edges a bit more with some Tim Holtz distress ink. I stamped Olivia twice, once on ivory cardstock and again on the print so I could paper-piece her belly. I colored her with prismas and gamsol, then stamped her a third time on brown card stock so that I could give her a pair of false eyelashes...I curled them with my fingers and then gave them a coating of At-You Spica gold *mascara* to give them a bit of sparkle. I used my nesties to cut and emboss the center panel, along with a brown polkadot mat, arranging layers according to our Sweet Stop sketch for this week. A few pearls and a little ribbon complete my card. My mom loves owls...I bet she is gonna think this one is really adorable!

From here, you'll be heading over to Deedee's. I hope you will visit my blog again soon! Have fun!

SNS Sweet Stop Sketch

Today's card features a cute l'il frog from Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps. It has been raining for two days straight (I'm not complaining...we need it!) and yesterday when Matthew and I were leaving the hospital after visiting a friend (hi Dana!), we saw a teeeeeny tiny frog hopping across the sidewalk. He was literally the size of my pinky fingernail. So adorable!

I thought this Basic Grey Archaic print would go well with his dotty skin, and the soft blue from the same dp pack would work for a sky-like background. I stamped my images using Memento Rich Cocoa ink, then colored with prismas and gamsol, cutting out some duplicates to pop up on dimensionals. The cattails I coated with Fun Flock, and the wings of the dragonflies were glittered with a Copic At You Spica clear pen. All of the paper edges were heavily distressed with Tim Holtz Distress Ink.

This layout is Sweet Stop Sketch SS04. You have until Saturday to play along! There's more inspiration from our other designers, so be sure to visit The Sweet Stop to get the mojo flowing!