Well, I wasn't actually going to post anything tonight. In fact, I wasn't even going to stamp. I am sorely in need of some summer bottoms, and since I can't wear cards, I figured I better crack open my poor neglected sewing machine, and use some of the fabric I have, to make what I need. Well I forgot that I had to wash the fabric first, so into the wash it went, and out popped the stamps......just while I waited. Well I am now one card later and in the wee hours of the morning again. So anyway I decided on some warm colors and a yummy image. Kinda makes me hungry. I wanted to keep everything simple since I did not want to be up too late. The colors came from a card by Ana Wohlfahrt's. She used Saffron, Marigold and Rose. I added the Olive. I also have some SU DP from the pallet of prints. The stamps are Lockhart Cupcake big and small, Itty bitty background, and French Flair. Ink colors are Banana, Marigold, Tea dye distress ink. The ribbon is from Walmart. It looked so pretty that I just had to try it somewhere. There are 6 gold brads, faux stitching details with the White Signo Gel Pen, and last I made a charm out of the smaller cupcake. My question is do I keep the charm, or ditch it? I tried to ask hubby, but he kinda gave his standard response of 'eye rolling' and "beautiful" and finally " I thought you weren't going to stamp tonight". Oh well so much for that.

Well I decided to try something a little different from what I have done recently. I picked out a more whimsical image. The stamp sets are Flannel, Riveting, and Cattitude. CS colors are Pumpkin, Saffron, Olive and Brocade Blue. Ink is Pumpkin, Apricot and Banana which are sponged on the Cuttlebug textile layer. The cat was colored in with Prismacolor pencils and gamsol, then re-layered with Prismacolors for texture. White stitching was added all around, and some printed twill ribbon which I bought loose. The card is very straight forward, but I find the colors and image to be very cheerful. Hope you like! ( I like to switch around my style allot).

I don't know what it is about these color challenges, but they bring out really weird cards from me. I honestly have know clue where I was going with this. I started out wanting a vintage feel, and then as I played around I ended up with this. Do I like it? I have no clue, I only know that no other inspiration is coming right now.

The colors are of course Garden Green, Choc. Chip, and Cool Caribbean. Stamp sets are Measure of a Life, Linen and Ephemera. I stamped the dragonfly on Vanilla, then masked him and stamped Ephemera. I colored in the dragonfly with re-Inkers in CCaribbean, Night of Navy, TTurquoise and black. I then sponged the background in various Distress Inks. I stamped the dragonfly twice on acetate with black staz-on and then applied crystal effects and pale blue glitter to the undersides of the wings ( one wing was reversed). The wings were then applied with black pop-up dots. Next I placed the green CS on the Choc. Card and sprayed it with Moon Mist in Pirates treasure. This was to add texture. The CCaribbean CS was stamped with Linen using matching ink. I then sponged it with Garden Green and Brown ink. I was trying to imitate some of the Basic Grey DP. Lastly the dragon fly was matted on Choc.Chip and the ticket punch was used on the two layers. I added brads and the window punch accents and called it a night.

Hope you like, If not, well, everyone is entitled to an opinion lol.

Well I hope you don't mind my publishing a cute photo. My daughter who is also a big fan of stamping decided that she needed to make a card to the Tooth Fairy. She wanted to apologize for her previous tooth which was broken, and make sure that the Tooth Fairy would be suitably pleased with the newest tooth. The card she made is 1 1/4 " by 1". It is very tiny, with printed writing inside that my husband helped her with . Gotta love the next generation of stampers lol.

Well, running low on time, I decided to keep my card simple tonight. I saw a beautiful card on http://stampinlibby.blogspot.com/2007/05/beates-weekend-sketch-challenge.html .
I loved the colors and the layout which was from Beate Friday Sketch Challenge. I love her mini cards and decided to do one also. The card is 4 1/4 x 8 1/2. I am so in love with square cards right now and this helps me to save on paper. I had this old Magenta image which I have not used in a long time and I thought it would go really well with this size of card. I kept my layers to a minimum. The image is not matted because I felt that it could stand on its own and I didn't want anything detracting from it. My CS colors are Cool Caribbean, Night of Navy, Basic Grey DP and water color paper. The N of Navy was sprayed with something called MoonMist in the color Land Lubber. It is basically Pearl Ex with walnut ink. I wanted to bring to mind the shimmer on a beetles back. The Image itself is water colored with re-inkers, and I painted over the wings with twinkling H2O. I went over the dots in the image with yellow and blue stickles and finished with 3 gold brads. Ink colors used were Ruby Red, Real Red, Cranberry, Black, Cool Caribbean, TTurquoise, Marigold, Rust, and N of Navy. I kinda went a bit ape with the shimmer, but at least I had fun doing it!

As a quick note, I've been made aware that I have a restriction on comments. I'm kinda new to this and didn't notice. So I have removed the blockage so that anyone can post a comment. I look forward to any and all comments, I find it so cool to get other peoples opinions and know what they are thinking.

What a long day. It was 10:00 p.m. before I Finlay had time to do a bit of stamping. Some times I'm astounded by how much time the necessities of life take. Well go figure that I was in the mood to do something a little more intricate. It is now 1 a.m. and I am just now uploading. The only problem with this type of card is that inevitably I fall in love with it and can't part with it. I have to like someone an awful lot to give it away. I wonder if I would still be normal if I took to framing the cards? Hubby might object.

Anyways, this card is something that has been on my mind for a while. I had not completely decided on all the elements until I saw this card http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/565310

It inspired me for the greeting. The card stock used is Choco.Chip, More Mustard, Very Vanilla, and Daisy D DP. The stamps are Touch of Nature, French Script, Happy Harmony, and The Artful Stamper flowers. Ink is a brown, Distress Ink, and black memory ink. Coloring is done with assorted SU and Tombow markers. The images are stamped on water color paper. Accessories are brads ( copper and gold), a chip board photo corner colored with brown craft ink, and lots of Sakura Stardust Pen. I cut the images out with a craft knife, and boy let me tell you that it took awhile. The card itself is pretty self explanatory, but time consuming. I hope you enjoyed looking. Have a great Sunday.

Wow, I finally have a moment to make something and then post it. I've been so busy with last minute preparation for my Stampers Club tomorrow, and trying to spend time with my daughter that I haven't had time for much else. I did have time to come up with this simple wedding invite. I was asked by a customer if she could borrow a couple cards to show her sister-in-law. They are thinking of making their own cards. I came up with this sample to fit their color scheme. Black and pink. The stamp is by Sunshine Designs and is the only wedding cube that I own. I figured that it matched the SU cake from Happily Ever After pretty well. The paper is Basic Black, Rose Red, Shimmer White, and water color paper. The image was stamped with Staz-on and painted in with a variety of markers. I was really trying to keep the design simple since I'm not sure of the experience level of the stampers. I also find that for a wedding, less can be more. I hope you like it and will leave me your opinions.

Well, I decided to try out the color challenge for the first time. Good Grief! who would have thought that it would be so difficult to constrain myself. When you're required to fit into a mold, its amazing how the brain will come up with anything but. After two hours of tinkering ( I was also watching a movie which may not have helped) I decided on this layout. My Stew Pot Pals came in really handy for this challenge. My turnip screamed purple and green. I also used Itty Bitty Background for the olive, and the print pattern from Looks Like Spring. The DP is Celery from the Pallet of Prints ( I love those pads). The turnip was colored using a variety of re-inkers and markers. When coloring in an image with water color, the next important thing to remember is to color from lightest to darkest. Thus assuring that you are not going to end up with to much darkness ( its easy to add color, harder to take it away). If you do end up with an error in watercolor, it is not the end of your piece. Simply add a blob of water and soak up the color with a paper towel. The ribbon is of course Stampin'Up. I honestly think that I have not seen a better quality of Grosgrain. Finally, I don't know if you can see it, but I added Lime Stickles and Sakura Stardust Pen to the leaves to add a touch of bling.
My second card is one of those mini tri-fold cards that I have been promising myself that I would make for a dog's age. The stamp used is Lockhart, the watercolor paper is Arturo Soft-White. The image was colored in with markers, water colored and then I went over the blue portions with a clear Glaze Pen. The ribbon is May Art from a swap with Texas Jodie Lynn. The paper is a bazill and the DP is unknown. I have a tendency to pick up random pieces of DP paper whenever it catches my eye. Finally, although you can't see it, the inside has a white mat for the message, and a small apple stamped and colored in the inside.
Well I hope you have enjoyed my posting for today. If I have enough interest, I may decide to post a tutorial on how I water color with markers, but for now I have a full plate.

It's a school day tomorrow, and I was only able to get one card done. I decided to pull out this Woodland Cottage set, because it makes me think of high summer when the scent of roses is heavy in the air. My rosebushes are all leaves, and I have a while to wait before the flowers come. The paper is a mix of Basic Gray, Regal Rose, Chocolate chip, some unknown brown that I wanted to use up, and a piece of Arturo pink watercolor paper. I used copper brads, velvet ribbon from the Winter mini catalog ( I am guilty of serious hording), Sakura Stardust pen, and the Signo gel pen for faux stitching. I also used my piercing tool and mat pack to create the holes for the faux stitching. The image is colored in using re-inkers and water color brush. Whenever I do water coloring, I use real water color brushes instead of those Aquaflow brushes because I have more control over the amount of water being applied. More water means more dilution which I don't like. It could also be that I have not yet found the perfect Aquaflow brush.

Once Again, I was up late stamping. This time I had no choice, I had to get my stampers club projects finished. After I was done though, I had a little time to create something for my Blog. The first card is from last night in the wee hours (2 am ) and the second one is something I did a month ago but matched well with my new one.

This first card uses The Faux wood technique which I absolutely love. I think I will be doing it regularly with farm animals. The whole card to me feels like the French countryside. It is rustic and warm. The CS used is Night of Navy, Confetti Cream, Very Vanilla, and a speckled blue which matches the Navy perfectly. The DP is Daisy D's Provence collection. I colored the chicken first on watercolor paper with Markers, then water colored it. I added Sakura Stardust pen to the wings, tail and crest. I then stamped the image unto the Vanilla, aged the paper with sponge and Caramel and Cocoa, and stamped the Weathered stamp in Cocoa. This was matted on Navy and then mounted on the matted Daisy paper ( which was also distressed). Ribbon was attached to the corner with gold brads, and this was then mounted on my final mats of the wood and Cream. May art ribbon runs across the card. I finished by adding Sakura Stardust to the nails of my wood.
This second card is cased from one I saw on Splitcoast http://http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/413590?cat=4633 I kept the feel of the card and the colors, but did my own coloring on the chicken and tweaked a bit.The CS colors are Real Red, Basic Black and So Saffron. The ribbon is SU black Gingham, Ink is Black and white craft, Stamp set is all Best of Cluck, and the chicken is colored with SU markers and water colored. Well I hope you enjoyed today's posts, I hope once again to be stamping into the wee hours of the morning. Now if I can just find the miracle cure for morning zombyisme!

I have decided to add two of the cards I worked on a while ago. I don't know if anyone can tell, but I absolutely love the Lockhart images . I purchase mine from Ellen Hutson. She has a great blog and store which you can find on my sidebar. I love them because they can produce very simple elegant cards. You don't need lots of embellishments, the images stand out on their own, and are wonderful for watercolor. This first card uses Perfect Plum, Eggplant, and Old Olive CS. The image is stamped on water color paper, then filled in with markers and water colored. I used every green marker I had along with Chocolate Chip and Eggplant marker. Creamy Caramel was used for the background. The egg was colored with yellow marker, and Sakura Clear Glaze was applied to the yellow, and Sakura White Souflee pen was applied to the white. The image was finished with Sakura Stardust pen on the leaves. The Olive card stock was embossed with a Cuttlebug folder. The final details are the mini tags on which I hand wrote 'friend, kind and thanks'. The tags are by Quickutz. The greeting is Lockhart, and the photo holder is Everlasting Keepsakes (got at Frantic Stamper). It is the Pine cone one colored with Olive craft ink.
The second card is again a Lockhart image. But I also used Print Pattern BG and Dots & Daisy BG and Fancy Flexible Phrases 'Hugs'. The CS is Old Olive, Artichoke and Vanilla which was sponged with Creamy Caramel and Close to Cocoa and the Background stamped in Old Olive. The image was colored in with greens, Caramel and Yellows then water colored and lined with Sakura Stardust. Faux stitching was placed on the mat, little paper Quickutz buckles were placed on the True Thyme and May Art ribbon.
I hope that you have enjoyed looking at these as much as I have enjoyed making them.

Wow, this is frustrating, I just finished writing out all my comments, and wanted to preview, when I realized that I had not saved and I lost everything. So now I am re-doing everything.
These cards are for my July stamp class. I just love this set, and working with it makes me hungry lol.

This first card uses Bashful Blue, Rose Red, and Whisper White. The stamps are Sweet Treats, Print Pattern and a greeting of unknown origin. The white CS was placed in a Cuttlebug embossing folder and the embellishments are Quickutz. The image was colored in with Chocolate Chip, Rose Red, Apricot Appeal, Real Red, Old Olive, Close to Cocoa and Bashful Blue markers, the technique is watercolor. One of my favorite methods of coloring is water coloring with markers. The results are often rich and vibrant.

The second card uses Rose Red, Certainly Celery and Very Vanilla CS. The Celery was embossed with the Cuttlebug embossing folders. The greeting is Fancy Flexible Phrases punched out with the SU tab punch. The cake was stamped twice on water color paper. Both images were marker water colored, and then one was cut out in pieces and layered using pop up dots, and glue dots. The bottom was cut with Create-a-Cut. The ribbon is SU Organdy, and gold cord.
My third card is one that I cased. The original is here www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/507186?cat=844

When I saw this card, I just had to make one for myself. I changed a few elements of the background, as well as the greeting. The colors are all the same. Chocolate Chip, Creamy Caramel Real Red, and Close to Cocoa.

My final card is once again using Sweet Treats. The other stamp sets are Petals and Paisley for the background and Blooming with Happiness for the greeting. Random circles of the background were filled in with Signo white gel pen. The image was once again stamped on water color paper and colored in with coordinating markers. CS colors are Almost Amethyst, Rose Red and Certainly Celery. I am absolutely adoring this color combination. The only other thing I did was add Caramel sponging and a bit of doodling.

Well I hope people don't think that I am going post crazy, but I just find this to be so much fun. First I couldn't get myself to learn how to upload images and post, and now I can't stop. Mildly addictive I must say --probably won't last to same degree. I so much enjoy looking at everyone Else's blogs and Splitcoast uploads, and I hope you enjoy mine too.

It's not going to be a regular habit to post multiples daily, But I am starting to play around with my camera, and how to achieve the best images. So for the next while I will be posting a fair bit to get comfortable with everything. This frog was made for one of the Splitcoast challenges a few weeks ago. I still wasn't ready to tackle the computer uploading so I never got around to posting it.


The frog is from Unfrogettable, and the dress is a Lockhart image of a Rosebud dress. I colored the dress image with markers and water colored it, then cut it apart to make my Froggy couture. The dress colors are regal rose, rose red, and Sakura stardust pen to outline. I had a lot of fun with this and am thinking of doing a whole line of Froggy Couture lol. The frog was stamped on shimmer card stock and colored in with Prismacolors and Gamsol. The paper is old olive, choc. chip and an unknown DP. I finished off with 3 gold brads, and some sponged clouds around the skyline.


This second card was inspired by one that I saw on Inkastamp a while ago. It uses pretty in pink, celery, apricot, choc. chip and SU DP. Stamp sets are Carte Postal, much Appreciated, and a Lockhart cupcake stack. Ink colors are Choc.Chip, white craft, apricot, rose red, amethyst, caramel and regal rose. The image was water colored and then Art Institute glitter was applied in Juicy Fruit, Bonnie Blue, and Magnolia. I finished off with Organdy ribbon.
Finally my last card for the uses the Shore Thing stamp set. CS colors are caramel,caribbean, and whisper white. Stamps are Shore Thing and Itty Bitty Backgrounds. I sponged a series of clouds in the sky, Made waves with the cuttlebug embossing folder and added dimensions with stickles and applique to mimic the sea foam. The images were all stamped on watercolor paper and colored in using markers in a watercolor technique ( my favorite method of coloring). Lastly stickles were applied to some of the critters, and Sakura Stardust pen to others as well as to the sand on the main card. Hope you enjoyed, and will come to see what I'm up to Tomorrow.

Lately I have been really in the mood to play with this bunny. It has been my personal challenge to see how I could use him in a non Easter setting. The sets used are Riveting, Bunny Hugs,Paisley BG, and Lockhart cupcake stack. The card stock colors are chocolate chip, certainly celery and a Bazzill beige punched with a scallop square. The decorative paper is SU petals and paisleys, and it is attached with 4 gold brads. The bunny was stamped on marker paper and colored in with copic marker, and the oval was sponged with old olive. The tail of the bunny has applique on his tail, Sakura Stardust pen on his ears and black Glaze on his eyes. The cupcakes and chicks were stamped on watercolor paper, water colored with markers, and the one he is holding is laced with dazzling diamonds.

I hope you like this card, I know that it has grown on me. At first I did not know what to think, but the more I look at it the more I like it.

Well, I am finally getting started in the world of blogging. It has only taken me 8 months to overcome my trepidation. I am not very technical minded! I wanted the chance to start sharing with others my love of stamping and the ideas I have. My ideas are not always original, sometimes they are borowed from others , but I always hope that I will be able to offer some fresh new take on something old. So I hope that you will join me in my creative journey,and that you will share your ideas while I share mine.
This card that I have made to kick off my blog is made with the bunny hugs stamp set. I simply punched out squares in different colors and layered my Lockhart radish image on the top of each. The radishes are on watercolor paper, and I used waterbased SU markers and Tombow markers to watercolor the images in. The rabbit is also water colored with markers on watercolor paper, and his ears are then lined with Sakura stardust pen, and his tail is filled in with Ultra Fine Art Institute glitter. The background paper is from the celery pallet of prints, and the ovals are punched out with the word cheers (Fancy Flexible Phrases) The ribbon is May Art held with a gold brad. Hope you enjoy my first uploaded card!