A whole lot of catching up to do!

In a stunning move, that will disappoint dear Belinda, I'm going to combine a whole lot of posts into one right now because I'm behind on blogging and I just want to 1) feel like it's not on my check list anymore and 2) share cards with the world! :D (Side note: I have been busy at work, loving what I do, but it's hard to come home from a tech job and hop on the computer! No more details, I'd like to keep this a work free zone!)
So here's what I have for you:
Mami Doodles - 6/24

Tuesday Morning Sketches - 7/5

Tuesday Morning Sketches - 7/12

 

The first two photos are demos of the awesome detachable bookmarks that we were challenged to incorporate into this week's card! I love the way this turned out! Let me know if you want instructions, I'd love to help!

That's all I have for you today, hope you enjoy! I'll start working on getting the posts out a little more consistently. :D (And no, BCL, I'm not sharing the cards I made in PA...I'm submitting them for publication.)

Tuesday Morning Sketches #99

Another fun week of designing for Tuesday Morning Sketches. This week we have this sketch to work with:

And here's my take:

My card was one of those everything-comes-together-perfectly kind of experiences. I used Kitchen Sink stamps (layered stamps) which I purchased and learned how to use the day before making this card. The paper is all blank PTI cardstock, which I had just organized and found the blue. And amazingly enough I knew where each item I needed for embossing was. This was my first time using SRM stickers and I'm very pleased with how well they worked, bet you didn't know that my sentiment was a sticker before I told you! :D
Hope you have a great day and play along at Tuesday Morning Sketches this week!

Happy Birthday Mom!

*My post has nothing to do with my mom's birthday other than I'm posting on her birthday! Love you mom!*

It’s Tuesday Morning Sketches time again! I’m a bit late in posting my card because I’m SUPER EXCITED!! For Stamping Around today and I’ve been packing and making my nametag and generally forgetting to blog! The challenge this week is an inspiration challenge set by Angela. Here’s the inspiration:

And here is my inspired card:

I used the succulent digital stamp from Tiffany Doodles and paper pieced it into layers. The sentiment stamp is from Waltzingmouse Stamps’ Say It Loud (sketch is WMS too!), and all of the card is from PTI. I’d say it was a quick card except for the hours I spent coloring, cutting, and embossing those flowers! I’m in it for the fun of it though, definitely not the pay! Lol

Hope you all have a great weekend and I will be back on Tuesday (and on time!!) with the next TMS sketch! I’m off to Stamping Around Ohio! Hooray!

So, you stuck around until the end of the post...this is post 99 for me. I'm pretty sure you can guess what's going to happen at 100! I would make sure you're a follower or a commenter before my next post (which will be before Tuesday)! ;)

Welcome to Tuesday Morning Sketches #97 - Take 2

I'm a little sheepish, and embarrassed to admit it, but I used the wrong image on my first Tuesday Morning Sketches card. I apparently got *SO* caught up in getting it done on time and beautifully that I missed a detail about which image to use.

Here is my proper TMS card:

A lovely, punny, gorgeous specimen of cardmaking if I do say so myself! It's colored with Prismacolor pencils and a blender pen, and then paper pieced together, inside and out. I'm glad that I had a chance to redeem myself, and that Melissa didn't just shake her head in shame and pretend like I don't exist! (Just kidding!) Ok, it's time for me to go work on next week's creation, because I can't afford to make this mistake twice! :D

Welcome to Tuesday Morning Sketches #97

Announcement time again...
*drumroll please*
I am now a part of the Tuesday Morning Sketches (guest) design team! Which, for my pushy friends out there, means you will see a blog post at least 3 times a fortnight, and a minimum of 7 times a month. But I can't stop there...you're going to see a lot more than 7 posts a month from me, because after a year of post-graduation real world life, I'm finally all settled in! Time to craft! Oh yeah!
Here is this week's sketch:

And my take on the sketch:

I used the "Bluebonnet" image from Whimsy Doodles (this week's sponsor), and I colored it in reds with my Copics. Yes, I know it's a Bluebonnet. I actually checked. There are RED bluebonnets. Yeah, awesome, I know! Dear Google, thanks for supporting my desire to use reds to color this image. Finished off with a WMS sentiment, some PTI cardstock, free ribbon, and a lot of dimensional adhesive! I have really enjoyed working with digital images in the recent weeks and I enjoyed doing all the fussy cutting to "pop" the flowers up, totally worth it!


Head on over to Tuesday Morning Sketches to play along with this week's sketch!

Let's Party with Mami Doodles

I totally thought I was over the plague (that's what I'm calling my bout with Ohio these days) and then I went back to the doctor this week and found out that I have added a sinus infection to the party! How does that saying go? Two's company, three's a crowd, and four is a party? Well, with layrngitis, bronchitis, a sinus infection, and allergies I definitely have a party going on! What doesn't kill me only makes me stronger! I've also identified my priorities - re: the craft room is 1/2 unpacked, my clothes are completely packed still. o_O You didn't come here for my rambling about packing and diseases though, you came for my Mami Doodles creation! Here it is:

I used shimmery paper (dark and light blue) and gold foil to compliment the metallic blue and gold colored pencils that I used as accents on the image. Unfortunately, the penciling is so subtle that I couldn't get it to show on camera. I'll work on some macro shots in the daylight and see if I can get something better for you! And yes, you are getting another flat card. What can I say, there are a lot of Montana birthdays that I need to send cards for! Hope you join the party over at Mami Doodles and play along in the "Let's Party!" challenge! I can't wait to see what you make!

You may have noticed I used a modified Tuesday Morning Sketch...again! I always find so much inspiration, when I'm set on colors but stuck on layout.

Mami Doodles Spots and Stripes

Welcome to my big announcement post!

1) I'm now a member of the Mami Doodles DT! *Yay!* *Hooray!*

2) This fortnight's challenge is spots and stripes, you can find more details here!

3) I've moved to a new apartment! (A very good thing for those who knew anything about my neighbors. *Ugh!*)

4) Spring has sprung! It's actually quite pretty here in Ohio right now, even though I'm allergic to it all. Only a few more days until my allergy test though, I'm learning a lot about patience. It's good for me.

5) For my birthday, I got a Big Shot Pro. =D You'll see projects that reflect this amazing news as soon as I get unpacked.

6) I have another big announcement coming soon...stay tuned.

7) I have another big announcement coming after that...continue to stay tuned!

On to the card:

This purple beauty is one I'm really proud of! I colored the image with Copic markers on PTI White Stock. All of the pieces of colored or patterned paper are scraps, most were pieces that I got for free! Yay! If you have Freecycle in your area, you should post a "wanted" for paper scraps, you'll be amazed at how many people actually just cut a chunk out and throw the rest of a 12 x 12 away. (You could probably post on CL too, but then you might have to pay $$ for it.) I love this party girl and can GUARANTEE that you will see it again on another one of my cards. Oh, and I used this week's TMS sketch, it was far too perfect to pass up!

Happy St. Patrick's Day! (Take Two!)

Happy St. Patrick's Day...again!

I chose to do another card for St. Patrick's Day to give to a new friend who is absolutely nuts about St. Patrick's Day! I used the 2010 St. Patrick's Day shamrock freebie. I printed it on cardstock and did something I haven't done in a long time - Gamsol and colored pencils! (In doing this, I did something I've never done before -- used my Prismacolor pencils.) I followed the Tuesday Morning Sketch for this week, and did something that I don't normally do -- decorated the inside! I really hope she likes it, especially since I'm not like Belinda and give cards for non-standard card giving holidays.
My dear husband and parents are out right now, celebrating St. Patrick's Day the only way Butte, America knows how! ;) They are chilling at home now, pigging out on corned beef and cabbage like it's an Irish Thanksgiving! I'm glad they are having fun, but I'm not the wee bit jealous...ok, maybe a wee bit! 

Here's a little taste of what it's like in Butte, my adopted hometown: http://ptc.mtech.edu/faculty/cokrusch/music.htm
If you'd like to support this local artist, you can buy this song here: http://www.amazon.com/St-Patricks-Day-At/dp/B001AKZ158

I'll leave you with one of my favorite Irish blessings (maybe Claire can tell me if I'm wrong and it's not Irish):

May you have the hindsight to know where you've been
the foresight to know where you're going
and the insight to know when you're going too far.

(Note - I rounded the corners after I took my photos, somehow it created a lot more unity. =D )

A very inspired happy birthday!

Happy Sunday! Twice in one month, that's some sort of record for me! Well, you should get used to it. I have a lot of posts saved up and will be posting a lot more often! (Plus I start another cake class on February 1, I plan on sharing!) This week, I made this lovely happy birthday card for three fantastic challenges:

• Tuesday Morning Sketches  
• Glenda's Random Amusing Challenge 
• Waltzingmouse Sketch Challenge 

It's a sweet happy birthday card for my stash! It feels good to get these kinds of cards done when I don't even need them. Maybe now that I'm out of school and the hubby is away on a business trip I'll be able to give people cards on their actual birthdays! (I'm not off to a remarkable start though, since I missed Ren-Yi's early January birthday! Fail!) 


For those Cuttlebug embossing addicts out there, do you have tips on not trashing your pp when you run it through an embossing folder? Specifically the Cuttlebug brand folders. I like the pseudo distressed look it gives this card but it doesn't always work for me! 


One last shout out before I go look up hubby's next flight - I used the fabby NEW Just Rite stamps that Laurie gave me for Christmas. Perfect for the Scrap Our Stash January Challenge of playing with something NEW! Have you played along yet?

The Box

So, you get another short post today but since I work on Friday night (loads of fun!) I intend to finish a couple of these posts! This is another Tuesday Morning Sketch inspired creation. I learned something that they never taught me in school - Measure twice, cut once, try folding and fitting, CUT AGAIN, and glue once. Another thing that can't be taught in school is how to cope when your measurements weren't good enough the first time! (That glue was permanent...those were my only two sheets of paper. *sigh*) This box went from being a two piece get-up (a box with a lid) to a one piece contraption (a box with an attached tip-open lid). I used the exact same paper, ribbons, brads, and flowers as I did on the card set inside. There are even some envelopes in the box! Yay! I have just a smidge of ribbon and a couple of flowers left so I may have to decorate a pen to put in the box as well! Enjoy my slightly cock-eyed attempt at a card set!

Details:
Medium Weight Natural Chipboard - Grafix
White Cardstock (inside box) - The Paper Company
Polka Dot Paper - My Mind's Eye "All Girl" Stack
Flower - Fabric Fancies "Aquamarine"
Brads - SEI "Wintersong" Collection
Pearls - The Paper Studio
Ribbon - Goodwill Stash
Adhesives: Zips (ribbon adhesive), 3M Clear Scrapbook Glue

It's been a while...

I decided that I would use the Tuesday Morning Sketch to make a sweet little notecard set this week. You'll see this set of cards again next week because I'm going to use the next sketch to make a sweet box for this card set.
That's all for now, I'm grossly involved right now in my thesis. It's like housework, I need to do it while I'm motivated!

And now I'm even double dipping!

(Edit: After learning of the amazingness of Your Next Stamp, this card is now for 3 challenges! w00t!)
This frosty birthday card is for three challenges. (That's pretty big for me!) The first challenge is the Pollycraft Monday Challenge. The challenge this week is to use winter/christmas stamps on a birthday card. So, I pulled out my DCWV Holiday matstack and my trusty Inkadinkadoo Snowflake stamps and made my own patterned paper (under the beer glass). I colored the beer glass with colored pencils and popped up the beer foam. I used light blue shading and some clear embossing powder to make it look a bit more enticing. Yum-o! Fantabulous embossing on the foam makes this card YNS #7 - Embossing worthy! Score!
 I then used my making memoried magnetic stamp set (and the Rummage Alphabet) to make my sentiment. After I decided what I wanted to make, I decided I needed a sketch. I'm a little predictable with my layouts! So, I headed over to Tuesday Morning Sketches and found the perfect sketch. To make the sketch fit my bubbly beverage I pulled another piece of patterned paper from the Holiday matstack and cut out some equal sized snowflakes.
I think I've finally made a card for a guy without using glitter, ribbons, pink, or flowers. I'm beaming with pride now! And it worked for three challenges. Lovely!
Card details
Paper: All from DCWV Holiday Collection
Sketch: Tuesday Morning Sketches
Stamps: Magnetic stamp set by making memories, Grunge Alphabet
Embellishments: Clear embossing powder from A la card, Snowflakes cut from DCWV Holiday Collection paper, 3-D foam from 3L adhesives, colored pencils by Crayola, image from stash