Blockheads Note Card Gift Set

Hi Everyone!

 I have been working with my new Blockheads Stamps. I love to sew as well as make cards...therefore I love sewing themed stamps! Blockheads has a great set of sewing themed stamps called Notions (HH501).


  I could not decide which stamp to use first, so I decided to use them all. I made a set of Note Cards.





I stamped on a mossy green CS with Vintage Sepia from VersaFine. I was trying to achieve a Clean and Simple feel and at the same time a collagey look. I used 3-6 different stamps on each card. I did a little layering with some brown and Kraft CS. I kept the embellishments to a minimum, because I am going to give this set as a gift. I don't want the cards getting stuck in the Post Office sorting machine. LOL. Here is each card.

Here is a detail photo of one of the cards.

I like the soft vintagey look of the VersaFine ink. I also made a set of matching envelopes for the set. I used the lace edge stamp on each one.









 Have a super day!!  Love ya.

Karen

DeNami April Blog Hop

Hi Fellow Blog Hoppers!

Today is the DeNami April Blog Hop. The theme for the Hop is Monochromatic. All the ladies are making projects that use DeNami products and that have a monochromatic color scheme.

Here are the nuts and bolts-

When: The blog hop starts on April 10 at 6 AM,PST. However, you have until April 11, 2011, 11:59pm PST, to leave comments on all the blogs (to be eligible for a prize).

Prizes: We are giving away THREE $20 gift certificates to our website! We'll be giving away one gift certificate to a random participant (DT members not eligible) and then we'll also be giving away TWO gift certificates to TWO people who comment along the hop!

The Hop starts at the DeNami Design blog. So if you would like to start at the beginning or got lost click over there.

You should have arrived here from Colleen Dietrich's blog.

So, welcome to my blog. Grab a cup of coffee and get comfy. For my DeNami Hop project, I chose pinky coral as my color scheme and used the Mimi and Maddie stamp.

I stamped the image with black ink and colored it with Water color crayons and Markers. CS: Cameo Coral and Blush Blossom (Stampin' Up). DP: Stampin' Up and K & Company. I used a Sizzix die to cut the scallop oval. I added pearls to the edge of this oval.

I added a great big Sheer ribbon bow. On the inside, I added more of the DP and a friendship sentiment from Uptown Designs. Here is a peek at the inside.

I hope you are enjoying the hop. Now, don't forget to leave a comment to be eligible for the prize. And, after you leave a comment, keep hopping.

Your next stop is Virginia Larsen

Happy Hopping and thanks for stopping by!! Hope to see you again soon.

Karen

Very Vintage Challenge

Hi Everyone,

It's time for the new Very Vintage Challenge at Stamping Vacation. The theme this month is an interesting one!

Use Pieces of a Map

You have until May 7 to link up your project. All entries will be eligible for the monthly draw of a $25 gift certificate to the store of YOUR choice. What could be nicer than that??!!

Here is what I can up with.

I used a real map. I torn off pieces until it was a shape I liked. I crinkled it and aged it with Vintage Photo ink (Ranger). Can anyone guess what this is a map of?

This stamp is one I picked up at the stamp convention. I am not sure of the manufacturer. It may be Stamp Camp. Does anyone recognize it? I started out with a piece of Barely Banana CS (Stampin' Up) and stamped with Vintage Sepia (VersaFine). I colored in some of the areas with chalks. It was distressed with Vintage Photo.

I layered the map and stamped image on 3 different papers. Went over everything with Vintage Photo. For more interest, I stamped a medallion stamp (Papertrey Ink) with Tea Dye ink (Ranger) randomly over the entire surface. The card base is Cream. I made some small holes in the spine and threaded a strip of fabric through and tied it in a knot.

Here is a peek at the inside. This will be a nice card for a friend or a family member. Not sure yet who will get this one.

A few fun challenges for Vintage Minstrel Card:

The Paper Players: Recycling: I recycled an old map that was just laying around.

A Spoonful of Sugar: tons of texture

Flutterby Wednesdays: butterfly, fairy, or angels and anything goes

Have a great day and get some stamping done. Love ya.

Karen

Lavender and Celery Color Combo and Pay It Forward

Hi Crafty Ones,

I have two things to talk to you about today. One is the Color Combo and the other is the idea of Paying It Forward. It is time for the Stamping Vacation Color Combo Challenge. All entries are eligible for the monthly draw of a $25 gift certificate to the store of your choice. Click over and link up your creation. You can enter as many times as you like and as many challenges as you like. A new challenge every day! This month the Color Combo is:

LAVENDER AND CELERY

Well, to me, that sounded like a great color combo for an Easter card. Which I really need to get busy with. So, I will be making several more of this design and then come up with a few others. Here is my project.

I used a new Easter set from My Sentiments Exactly! Both the sentiment on the outside and inside are from this set. CS: Certainly Celery and Pale Plum from Stampin' Up. I stamped the sentiment with Elegant Eggplant pigment ink (SU) and embossed with clear powder. A Spellbinders die cut was used to cut out the sentiment.

The butterflies are made with a Cuttlebug cut and emboss set. These were very fun to make. And, of course I got carried away and made a ton of them. More about that later. I added some silver beads to the butterflies.





And here is a peek of the inside with a lovely sentiment (MSE).






A few challenges for Easter Wishes:
Wee Memories: Favorite colors- lavender and green
Stamps R Us: Easter
A La card Monkey: back to nature
Victorine Originals: purple and green



Now on the the second topic for today. My blogging buddy Corry has started this idea called Pay It Forward.


In Corry's words, "Pay It Forward is the idea of blessing someone with a random act of kindness without expecting anything in return. It’s passing on a kindness, hoping that your recipients will do the same, and forming a never-ending chain of goodwill. But it isn't only kindness, it is also a means to connect and share instead of just keeping it to ourselves." Click over to Corry's blog to see her post.


Here is my story: I was die cutting the butterflies and decided to cut a few more and then a few more. I thought that all the ladies at my Card Ministry Group would really like to have some of these butterflies. I kept cutting and embossing. I used papers I have received in blog candies and papers in my stash. Then I thought they would probably like some tags too. So, more cutting. I ended up with a pretty good sized pile. I took them in to our monthly meeting and every one grabbed to their hearts content. Here is the pile.













I hope you are having a great day! See you tomorrow with the new Very Vintage challenge. Love ya.

Karen

Stampsmith Birthday RAK's

Happy Monday! Hope your day is going great. Today I have four RAK (random acts of kindness) cards for you. I made the cards for some of ladies in the Stampsmith Yahoo Group. The images are all from The Stampsmith Shop. The first two are made with the Audrey Hepburn Full sheet, the third with the Lucy Sheet, and the last image is from the Shall We Dance Sheet and can be found here. So, here is the lovely Audrey. The first three images were stamped on Glossy White CS with black dye ink. I used some peachy pink CS's and a Tim Holtz embossing folder.

For accents I added some metal disk stickers, ribbon, and tulle.

The second card uses green/yellow CS and another Tim Holtz embossing folder which I picked up over at The Blockheads Store.

Using the direct to paper method, I added the distress ink to the dry embossing. I fussy cut Audrey and added her to the corner of the card.

The third card uses an image from the Lucy Sheet. I used an aqua color scheme here and added some velvet ribbon, yellow ribbon, and tulle.

The last card uses Ballerina 002 from the Shall We Dance Sheet or available in a single. This card is done in white and pink, but the image was stamped on regular CS not glossy. I used 2 ribbons and some more of the metal disks for accents. I stamped a Birthday sentiment on the inside of each card and added this fun saying to the back of the card. This stamp is from Victorine Originals. I think it is cute.

For more Stampsmith inspiration, click over to the Stampsmith Design Blog.

A Few challenges for my Birthday RAK's:

Pile it on: Romantic and fancy

By the Cute and Girly: cute and girly

I did it Creations: Anything goes

Shabby Tea Room: inspiration photo colors shown right.

Corrosive Challenges: Pastels Oh, I guess that's it for me today. This week I will be posting the new Color Combo and Very Vintage for Stamping Vacation. Check back to see my Design team cards. Have a super day! Love ya. Karen

Flashback Challenge

Hi! I am back again for a quickie.

I have been checking out the Flashback Challenge for awhile now and finally decided to give it a whirl. The idea is to go back and look at something you posted in the past. The current flashback is the first project you posted with a window. I found this card that I posted on Friday, March 19, 2010. I used a Lost Coast Design image.

I cut a window/frame in the DP from SEI. I stamped the image on more DP and added some strips of DP too. The medallions are from SEI too. Sentiment is from Daisy Bucket Designs. This has been a fun trip backwards. Have a super great day!

Karen

Stampsmith Challenge Time

Hi Everyone,

Happy April 1! Wow, can't believe it is April already. Still pretty cold and dreary here weather wise. But, the crocuses are bloomed and the snowdrops are up. Since it is the 1st, that means Stampsmith Challenge time!!!

The theme for Challenge #11: The Female Of The Species

You may use any stamp company for this challenge. Lynne picked our theme this time. Let's see what you come up with!! And, as always, one entry will win a $10 gift certificate to the Stampsmith store! Great way to build up your Stampsmith collection.

I used the Audrey Hepburn Set for my Design Team Project. I went all collagey and added lots of shimmer and roses. Take a look. I call this piece "Audrey at Tiffany's".

The base is Textured Barely Banana CS (Stampin' Up). I added a layer of DP, black CS (SU), and another layer of DP. I Stamped the images on glossy white cs with Black dye ink (Memento) and cut them out. I glued them down onto the DP. The sentiment was stamped on Barely Banana CS with Basic Gray ink (SU). I stamped over the entire piece with Sanded background stamp (SU) using Basic Gray ink (SU). And, then went over everything with Vintage Photo ink (Ranger). I also sprayed it with Shimmer Mist and let it dry.

Here it is again with a white back drop.

To make the floral bouquet, I twisted the stems of the roses together and wrapped tulle around them. This was glued down with Fabri-Tac. I then tied the ribbon and glued it down with Fabri-Tac. I also added a few pearls.

This signature stamp is also in the Audrey Set. I hope I have inspired your to take the challenge. Click over to the blog and check out what the other ladies have designed!!

A Few Challenges for Audrey At Tiffany's:

The Craft Garden: Four- I used four different images of Audrey Hepburn.

Dutch Dare: Distressing

Rainbow Lady: A night the movies

Samuel Taylor: Distressing

ABC challenge: R is for Roses

Simon Says Stamp and Show: Show a hat. Audrey is wearing a Hat and a crown.

Anything goes: Make your own embellishments

The Stamp Man: Anything Tim - I used distress inks

I hope I have inspired you to take the Challenge. Hope over to the blog and check out what the other ladies have designed. And, of course, I wish you a great day! Love ya.

Karen