Hello!

Happy Friday!!!

I thought this week would drag by since I had Thursday & Friday off last week....it was quite the opposite! I can't believe it is already Friday!!!

Today I have 2 cards to share with you...they are both from 2 Sketches 4 You. Pam of 365 Cards is the sponsor this week over at 2s4y! She has fabbie kits available over at Mac Mae Card Kits.

First up is Kazan's sketch 30. Yup, it's another fun Hambly Owlie!!! The polka dot paper, scallop trim & rub on are ala American Crafts. Seriously you can't go wrong with that fabulous Hambly Owl...even my daughter loves it :)

Onto Latisha's Bonus sketch:

Yup, some more American Craft goodies!

I had a ton of fun putting these cards together...thanks for stopping by!!!

Remember to take a peek tomorrow...I'll have a Cutting Cafe Project to share with you!

smile

Today is my day over at 365 Cards and it is an

Ad Inspired Challenge!

I've selected the
Pottery Barn Kids Dr. Seuss Bath
to inspire you....

I knew that the waves in the shower curtain and the polka dots were what really inspired me. I decided to play with my

Cosmo Cricket Snorkel and 'Lil Man. For those that have been following me, I've been smitten with Cosmo Cricket {no surprise there} and red/blue color combos.

So how does this Ad inspire YOU?
I can't wait to see what you create!!!

P.S. Next week is Shortcuts Week over at 365 Cards...you're not going to want to miss out on that...it will be a week full of Shortcuts goodness!!!

drumroll please....

Okay, I used random.org to draw for 2 Cutting Cafe Winners:

xiumaiyuki
{Happy Birthday 40 Ways}

and

Angie Tieman
{Happy Birthday Background}

Woot!! Woot!!!

Congrats Ladies!!!!
Thanks for playing along and send me your email addys...okay so I have Angie's :) but xiumaiyuki send me yours sista! I'll route the info to Regina so that she can email you your prizes!

I can't wait to see what you create with them!!!!

take care of yourself...

I wanted to play along in the Traveler's Inspiration Challenge #1 over at Traveling Mama...If you haven't visited Tina's blog, you should...it is truly a feast for the eyes. Seriously, check out that pic of Moroccan slippers...how absolutely gorgeous is that? I'm a slipper girl :)

After some thought, I decided to go clean & crisp for this color challenge. I went with my Hambly papers....the sheen is absolutely magnficient on them. The photog simply does not do it justice. The circles are all nestled on my favorite kraft by Speckletone. The text is from one of my current fav sentiment sets by SU, Sweet Little Sentiments. I used the Top Note die from SU and finished it off with some bling....hope you like it :)

I'll be back tomorrow with a fun 365 Cards Challenge!!

just a reminder...

If you haven't left a comment yet....pop over here:

Chock full of Cutting Cafe

Regina has sooo kindly let me give away some new goodies over at the Cutting Cafe:

Happy Birthday 40 Ways

Happy Birthday Background

You need to leave me a comment on the Chock full of Cutting Cafe blog post by midnite tonight in order to be eligible!

The winners will be posted sometime on Wednesday :)

sassy whim

The Use It #17 was perfect for my stash of birthday cards that I'm suppose to be making for my sweet nephew. This also works for the SCS CAS22 challenge which is a birthday card!

This week Joke is the hostess with the mostess and this is her challenge:

1. Use your newest papers.

2. There has to be a name of the card.

3. Use at least 1 button.

4. Use your sewing machine, if you have, or try to stitch a tiny piece, by hand.

Okay, here's my take on the challenge:

1. newest papers: I recently bought 2 pkgs of the Sassafras Paper Whimsies so that's what I used for my new paper.

2. name: yup, here's the thing, I thought I double checked that I had all the letters to his name when I was using a different Thickers alpha {chipboard} only to figure out I was all out of h's...I was spelling his name backwards....grrr...luckily I had all the letters in the felt.

3. button-check {over achiever that I am, I used 2!}

4. Sewing Machine-yup...gotta love my Janome.

I noticed that I used the CP #22...hmm perhaps it was because I did my card from yesterday before doing this one.

Thanks for taking a peek and thanks for Joke/Rae for the fabbie challenge!

------------------------

recipe

cardstock: stampin' up chocolate chip pattern paper: sassafras accessories: sassafras paper whimsie, sei buttons, felt thickers

Sabrina Hambly

Happy Monday!

Okay, so I wasn't going to play in the Raspberry Suite Challenge #11 because I just couldn't get it to work for me. Evidently, the more something frustrates me the more I want to "win". Winning in this situation is completing a card that I'm happy with...I ended up liking the end result AND having fun, isn't that what it is all about...having fun??!!

I just adore that glittery paper by Making Memories. It is from their Sabrina line. I teamed it up with the most fabulous Hambly Mini bicycles paper. The leaves are SU Green Galore and you can also see a smidge of SU Basic Gray. I'm down to about 6 inches of my beloved black pom pom trim...sigh.

The Card Patterns #22 was perfect for the design. I have to say that I'm always pretty pleased when I can combine challenges...I'm really not very good at it and I'm always impressed when I see some of these gals multi-tasking in a huge fashion.

I hope that everyone has a fantabulous week!

blog candy alert

Hey, check out Bona's {hi Bona!!} blog candy over at

Keep On Scrappin

psst...it is filled with pink goodness....

time together...

Happy Sunday!

Today is Super Sketchy Sunday over at 365 Cards!

I haven't played with my October Afternoon papers for awhile so I thought that I would break them out for today's sketch! You gotta invest in the 8x8 pad, Mandy has them over at Limelight. The Cherry Hill patterns are soooooo SWEET. I teamed them up with wide grosgrain that I found at Old Navy and the diecut is from a pkg by K&Co that I found at Tuesday Morning for $0.99!

Make sure you check out the cards that the other gals on the 365 Cards DT designed!!

Well, today is my last day of my mini vacation...back to the old salt mines tomorrow. I do have to stay that I'm grateful to have a job so, it's okay...I don't mind having to go back although a girl could get use to a life of leisure..gotta play the lottery.

Chock full of Cutting Cafe....

Can you tell that I've had a couple days off from work? I've been having loads of fun designing projects!!!!

Today is my Cutting Cafe Day....stay with me till the end of the post and you can find out about some free goodies...free is good!

My First project uses the Happy Birthday 40 Ways printable set and the Happy Birthday Background. I've been really into shaped cards so I went ahead and used the Cupcake Shaped card & matching envy. What could be more festive that Sassafras paper? The bottom of the cupcake has the Happy Birthday background. I used Martha ric rac to emulate the pleats in a cupcake liner {seriously this martha ric rac needs to be only used flat..it is 100% nylon!}. My banner is compliments of the Happy Birthday 40 Ways set...I tell you, that set rocks! Seriously, a card maker can never have too many happy birthday sentiments!

Here is the cupcake card along with the matching envy....

I had to use the scallop trim on the Sassafras paper for the back flap on the envy. For you mathematically smart peeps, you can probably figure out that I went overboard on my birthday banner making it a slight challenge to put the cupcake card into it's envy..LOL. I went ahead and created the envy so that you peeps can see how fabbie it is :)

Next up are 2 cards highlighting the Summer Word Circles set:
If you haven't figured it out, I absolutely adore the Frame Shaped card. It is a fabulously versatile shape! This card was actually inspired by my blogging friend Audrey who I met via 365 Cards. This is how my mind works...as I was sitting having coffee with some friends on Thursday I was fiddling with my Starbucks coffee sleeve. Then I started to look at it and bingo, saw the circle with the mermaid and instantly thought of the Cutting Cafe Summer Word Circles. I'm a true Starbucks-aholic and the chance to combine Starbucks with my creativity is perfection.

Anywho's, I know that just yesterday I was saying that I'm not a seamstress but check it out....I stitched that fabulously fun Sassafras paper onto the Frame Shaped card! I couldn't believe it...It is seriously stitched ALL around the shaped card...now how stinkin' fun is that?! I paper pieced the fun cup by There She Goes. I 'had' to also use the American Crafts Details to show my ♥♥ for my latte..{grande'/soy/no foam please!}.

Okay, you peeps are troopers...here is my last card for today! This is based off of the So Sketchy! July #2 sketch. Yes, yes I have found yet another challenge site...I found them via my bloggie friend Tracy. I broke out my new K&Co Citronella. I went to my LSS to look for the new Basic Grey Lemonade and they didn't have it {grr} so I picked up the Citronella. The Summer Word Circles were absolutely PERFECT for the sketch challenge!

Okay, thanks for your patience as I chatted up my projects....here's the scoop'ola. Regina has sooooo graciously offered up the Happy Birthday 40 ways set and the Happy Birthday Background.

Comment on this post {1 comment per peep please}.

I'll keep the contest open until Tuesday at Midnight.

I'll use random.org to draw 2 winners and post their names on Wednesday.

PLEASE make sure that you leave me a way to contact you...I'd hate to draw your name and not have a way to contact you.

I hope that you've enjoyed my Cutting Cafe Projects! I had a ball-o-rama creating them...run {don't walk!} over to the Cutting Cafe and Shop'ola! Regina is FABulous !!!

I wish you all a fun & safe 4th of July! May you be surrounded by friends and family!

This sunshine is all for you....

Happy Friday!!!

I have certainly been enjoying my days off from work...trying to pack in all the crafty time that I can!!!

I love Laura's sketch 29, such a great design. I wanted to break out the Jillibean Black Bean soup line...Kraft and Black teamed up together? How in the heck can you go wrong with that super color combo?

I added the Bean Seeds for a pop of color topping them off with a sweet acrylic button that I found in my stash! I went ahead and added the 'vintage' Making Memories rub ons...super easy smeasy card. Everything is nestled on my Flourishes Acetate base.

What?!

Another card...2 cards in 1 post? This is my take on the CPS122 sketch for this week. I have to tell you, this is the 3rd one I made...I decided to really put my spin on the sketch and not adhere to it as strictly as I did on the other 2....they are totally not posting worthy :)

No surprise that it is a Cosmo'licious filled one too! Okay, do you know what inspired this card? Check this out. I absolutely a-dore that sun image in July's KOTM! I'm tempted to join BUT realistically can't justify it because I've become such a scrappy card maker...I don't stamp a whole lot these days sooooooo perhaps this will be my motivation to start stamping more??!!

I stitched around the card...great way to adhere the sun down...I was going to stitch the rays too but what in the heck was I thinkin'? Crazy talk {sista's I'm your basic lazy crafter...lol..actually not a seamstress and it seems the janome sometimes has a mind of her own!}...so I just used my fav...scotch double sided tape...what is your fav adhesive?

Okay, check back tomorrow...I'll have a couple Cutting Cafe projects to show ya...and a free giveaway!!!

arigato

Good Thursday Morning!!!!

Today is my day over at 365 Cards and Pam's Challenge is:

DIY-Computer Generated

Make it the sentiment, the background, or a single image - as long as you make it computer generated.

One would think that with all the time {hours and hours} that I spend on the computer that I would be a smidge techie....nope. I leave all that to 'd'. Here's the thing, I work on one of those cute netbooks, actually just got it earlier this year. My free MS Word has expired so I was trying to figure out how I was going to tackle this challenge. I actually ended up just printing out the sentiment via the "notepad" feature...

Okay, you were waiting for it right? In my true form the top card with the pom poms was my tweaked version of this card:

What I typically do is finish a card...run downstairs to the old photo studio {bahaha..in my bedroom} and then upload the card onto my computer...then into my blog. I review it and then make changes if I want to. I'm all for clean and crisp but the sweet Hero Arts Japanese Doll seemed to be positioned too high on my square Fabriano. That's why I added the smidge of black pom pom's {I'm sure that you've noticed that I can't get enough of the stuff...}...it was a good way to anchor the paper pieced {with BG Urban Prairie} image. I added the kaiser flower shaped bling to her mini banner.

This card has already gone postal to my cousin. She is teaching my kidlets Japanese this summer. I know why my kids are so motivated to learn...they want to know what my Mom & I are talking about when we starting flinging out Japanese words...LOL. BTW, my cousin is crafty too!!!! Check out her fabbie etsy shop:

JapaneseHandmadeEtc

She still has some of her Basic Grey Urban Couture business card holders...they rock! They make a great gift for a crafty peep.

Okay, show me what you got...

Must be the week for blog candy....

The fabulous Tammy of 365 Cards has some spectacular blog candy over on her blog, Addicted to Paper.

Go check it out!

More blog candy!!!

Check out Michelle's blog, Mushi's Creative Inspirations, for her fabbie blog candy celebrating her 1 year blogoversary!

blog candy alert!!!

My blogging buddy Ann is giving away some fabbie candy to celebrate her 1 year blogoversary...you gotta check it out...

i ♥like♥ my owlies...

Hmmm....2 owlie cards in 2 days....oh well :)

Okay, I was definitely in a fun & funky mood when I put this CP#21 together.. The dp is all from Stampin' Up's Good Morning Sunshine line...love, love, love that stuff. I paper pieced the OBP cupcake and then yes, I have a sweet feltie sassy owl perched on it....if that wasn't enough, I layered 2 rows of pom poms and smacked on an American Crafts flair just to really load this puppy up. I'm thinking when I send it I'll have to put it in a USPS flat rate priority box it is sooo bumpy...LOL.

Happy Wednesday which is really my Friday!!!

woot woot thank you

It has been ages since I played along over at Caardvarks. I was hoping something would hit me for their window challenge. The other night when I was putting away a Cosmo Cricket Cogsmo kit, I decided to take the ribbon out of its packaging and then "aha" it hit me. I thought it might be the perfect size for Fabriano's and bingo it was. I wanted to put together a set of thank you cards for a co-worker's upcoming birthday...watch now she'll start reading my blog :)

I originally was going to use a hambly chandelier cardstock sticker but it wasn't big enough...wwwaaahhh...it was hot pink too...so I de-hoarded that adorable owlie...seriously I dehoarded. Lucky thing I'm close enough to my coworker to ask for the packaging back...LOL...unfortunately I'm telling the truth! I'll just tell her I'll put together a refill for her {wink wink}. In all honesty, she'll probably give me the packaging back knowing that I want the owlie back :)

I'm patting myself on the back for using my American Crafts scraps...isn't that orange houndstooth paper a-dorable?

The cards use my fav chandelier image by Impress...you can't tell but there are a couple black Kaiser Craft blings on it. The sentiment is from Stampin' Up.

Okay, that's it for today....ahhhh...it is going to be a short work week for me..we have Thursday & Friday off...woot woot!!!

cream of mushroom soup

Good Monday Morning!!!!

{hmmm...is there really such a thing? LOL}

Let me start by saying something that you all already know...there are not enough hours in the day to be able to participate in all the fabulous challenge sites that are out there in blogland!

That being said, I've been meaning to partake in the Fabulous Rae's Use it Challenges....well, the most magnficent Kay has issued this week's challenge #16:

1. Use something inspired by Nature

2. Use Polka dots

3. Use your favorite embellishment

4. Mail your creation to someone special.

Kay's challenge was perfectly timed because I also wanted to play in the Moxie Fab World's Lovely as a Tree Challenge. I ordered the fun Jillibean papers specifically for the MFW challenge so everything worked out splendid!

1. Nature = trees

2. Polka dots = aha...I'm being sneaky...there are polka dots on the 1st panel

3. fav embellie = that was a tough one but I opt'd for my

foof-a-la buttons on this card

4. postal = you betcha

I have to admit that when I think of Jillibean I think of the Fab Ingrid....I was trying to channel her style...I looked, okay anaylzed, all her Jillibean cards and well, my "cream of mushroom soup" card doesn't look anything like Ingrid's style. I was definitely inspired by her...that's even beh-tah....being inspired by another artist but putting your own spin on it.

Thanks for taking the time to stop by....sorry this post was sooo chatty...what can I say I've already consumed at least 3 cups of coffee already :) Okay, off to pour another cup of java...Have a super week!!!

I {heart} Cosmo Cricket!

For those that have been following my blog, especially lately...you'll notice a huge flood of Cosmo Cricket projects. I just LOVE their products...their stuff just makes me, well, ♥♥happy♥♥.

Did you happen to read this post on the Cosmo Cricket blog? Oh boy, that made my day...can you imagine being a part of the Cosmo Cricket Design Team?! What a fabulous opportunity to create projects for a magnificent company. I decided to throw my hat in the ring...crazy, I know...they are going to be literally slammed with DT applications. Here's the thing, bottom line, I absolutely love their products and would be thrilled to be able to represent them.

Here's a peek at some of my favorite Cosmo Cricket projects:

Thanks for stoppin' by and wish me luck!

Bowlin Distressed flower

It's Sunday and you know what that means...

365 Cards

Super Sketchy Sunday!!!

Pam is back with another challenging sketch. I tell you that gal makes me ponder things...then tweek things, as you'll see.

I really love Dawn McVey's Distressed flowers and look to incorporate them whenever I can these days...I'm trying to channel the fabulous Dawn...LOL...I decided to go shabby vintage today. I've been whooping up on the Cosmo Cricket/American Crafts these days so this is a nice change of pace for me. Seriously, what could be better than Jenni Bowlin & Hambly???

For those of you that have been following me for a while know that I've mentioned that I sometimes end up sending Pam a revised card...that I end up changing up my design. Today's card was the tweeked version of this original:

I decided against the blue American Crafts foam embellie...when I looked at the card again I thought that the pop of color was just too much. That's when I remembered Dawn's vintage flower tut and changed up my card :) It makes a huge difference...which do you like better?

I can't wait to see your take on today's sketch!!!

a big woo hoo for summer...

I have been on a huge creative streak and having sooo much fun! Today I have not one but two cards to share with you!!!

I'll give you one guess where the kids and I will be going this summer. You guess it! Hawaii! I made this card for my friend Judy, she and her boy will be our travel buddies. We have a friend that lives there with her son so we're going to have a ton of fun.

The black scallop base is ala Paper Source, the rest of the papers are from Cosmo Cricket's Snorkel line. I finished it off with the Stampin' up striped grosgrain...and of course, vinyl thickers.

Okay, you Hawaiian gals, let me know if there are any "must see" scrapbooking/stamping shops on Oahu :)

This is for the 365 Cards Paper Piecing challenge which also reminded me that SCS CAS Challenge #20 was also paper piecing. Well, obviously I can't enter it into the SCS challenge...sheesh, I was creating and having fun....one thing leads to another...2 rows of pom pom??!!! Life is good...LOL.

I really adore the Pink Paislee Vintage Moon line...seriously, if you haven't checked it out before, you really have to. The patterns and the sheen are over the top fabulous.

The crown & sentiment are via American Crafts MiniMarks. Check it out, I picked up the package at Big Lots for $2!!!!! I'm soooo going back for more...I wanted to try them out before stocking up :) The fantabulous black pom pom trim is from ScrapGal. They are by Bazzill...yes, I may have been the one to buy up the remaining stock of them but I'm crossing my fingers that they will get more in.

Remember to check back tomorrow for 365 Cards Super Sketchy Sunday!!!!

bloom...

I was sooo excited to hear that I made the most fabulous Cutting Cafe Design Team! I was first introduced to the Cutting Cafe through 365 Cards. Regina was one of our sponsors so I got to play with all kinds of goodies...I fell in love with the cupcakes :)

I wanted to show you the

Frame Shape card...are you surprised that I broke out the 'ole Cosmo Cricket Early Bird??!! I made this for a co-worker of mine. She was sooo sweet to give me roses out of her garden {a green thumber unlike me}.

Make sure you pop over to the Cutting Cafe to check out the 2 new releases and to enter to win some goodies!!!!

I've actually posted 2 cards for today...crazy, I know...make sure you take a peek at my sfytt card :)

Welcome Back

This sfytt gave me a run for my money...literally. I actually put together a different card for this sketch but it isn't posting worthy...it just wasn't hitting me...it was chock full of Hambly and a touch of Maya Road...yup, Hambly....I sliced through about 4 different sheets of Hambly only to not like the end product...ggrrrr...I'll take a pic of it but will tweek it, and force it to work, kwim?

Anywho's, here is the card that I did end up with...American Crafts Travel. I originally bought 2 sheets of the Travel line to make a "Bon Voyage" card for my oldest friend...not literally "oldest" but one that I've known for the longest time...since 7th grade. She and her dd left for Australia last week....well, I never got to makin' her a "Bon Voyage" so I decided to make her a "Welcome Back" card. She has already celebrated her birthday while travelling and will be gone for a total of 2+ weeks....lucky duck although I don't envy her flights...isn't it like 15+ hours/each way not including layovers??!

The foam letters are ala the Target $ spot...woo hoo...got*sta love that place!

Make sure you check out my Cosmo Cricket/Cutting Cafe Card for today too!

friend...

Happy Thursday!!!

Today's 365 Cards Challenge:

Simply Stamped

One stamped image

One stamped sentiment

That's it...no embellies...no pattern paper...no cosmo cricket {lol}....

This was a GREAT challenge for me...forced me to ink up my sadly neglected PTI Friends 'Til the End set. Clean & Crisp on top of a fabulous Fabriano....Green has to be one of my favorite colors...most of my friends say it is my signature color :)

Talking about friends....let me introduce you to my "New" Best friend:

I admit it, I'm getting older...LOL...this summer is actually my 25th High School Reunion...sheesh that makes me feel even older! Anywho's, as time goes by, my memory has progressively gotten worse. I'm notorious for writing myself notes {then forgetting them} or even yes, writing on my arm...can't write on my hands because I wash them so frequently....After talking to my friend "k" over the weekend, she told me she went back to a day planner. So I visited my local Franklin Covey store and took the leap. I'm so going to make it fun...color coding, rub ons...you name it...

Okay, back to being crafty & today's 365 Cards challenge...show me what you got!!

salt & pepper...

I tell you, I was originally trying to combine Kazan's sketch 29 & the raspberry suite color challenge but I just couldn't get it to flow for me...so I fell back on my favorite, Cosmo Cricket Early Bird....gotta love that stuff....

Well, it is Wednesay...1/2 way through the work week!!!!

a little bird told me....

I've been neglecting my DCWV green stack and chippies so I put them together for the CP sketch #20! I've been really lovin' all the shaped/scalloped cards I've been seeing out in blogland...I actually used my fiskars shape template for my card and cut out the black base....talk about "old school"....LOL....no nesties for this girl :) I use the fiskars template purely with a mechanical pencil, I don't even own any of the cutting tools...I've been really designing a lot of my cards with a black base, makes the other papers pop.

Have you been keeping up with the 2 Sketches 4 You Ultimate Showdown? It has ME literally on the edge of my chair...I can only imagine how you ladies must feel. Congrats to the Top 10...Great Job by the other ladies that were part of the Top 20 too!!!

woot woot!!!

Check it out HERE.

it's all about YOU...

It is Sassafras Monday!!

Gotta love the Bungle Jungle line teamed up with an oh-so-sweet strawberry feltie and CPS121! This is definitely a de-hoard post...I actually used a feltie...sigh. The rub on is hoarded MM..

Here's to a fantabulously creative week! Thanks sooo much for stopping by to take a peek!

live life

Today is Super Sketchy Sunday at 365 Cards!

Pam challenged us with a sketch that had me thinking for a smidge. I didn't know what I was going to do until I came across some American Crafts Moda bella paper. I was really drawn to the orange houndstooth/fushia. I only bought 1 sheet {patting myself on the back} and worked really hard to design my card around it.

I was looking through my stash of chipboard when I remembered I had a box of Rhonna Ferrar chipboard that I bought from Jennifer Pebbles' G-Sale last year...I found the matching chipboard ovals...perfection...crowns and all! The thickers are vinyl, one of my new loves since they are more compact than the felt {skinnier}. I recently stocked up on the Kaiser Crafts bling, so afforable. The chipboard and arrows on glue dot pop dots...

Can't wait to see what YOU do with the Super Sunday Sketch!!!

Have a super Sunday and week!!!!

kindness....

Day 7 of Cosmo Cricket Week over at 365 Cards!

Today is Saturday which is Vicky's day over at 365 Cards and she has the Ever After kit.

Pam's Challenge:

Make a wedding card and incoporate the word "love" into the sentiment.

I love the colors in the Ever After line...I teamed them up with SU's Basic Gray paper/sentiment and went clean & simple. I have to tell you, I found that ivory wired ribbon in the J's $ bin...I had the gal check the price because it was a 10 yard roll..and yupper...$1!! Score!! It turned out to be an even bigger score when I realized that one side is grosgrain and the other satin.

Kindness....doesn't seem like a big word to most people but in my book it is huge in terms of character....kindness counts.

Say, it isn't sooo....the last day of Cosmo Cricket week. I tell you, I had a ball and I hope that you did too!

just chillin'

Day 6 of Cosmo Cricket Week over at 365 Cards!

Today is Friday which is Sophie's day over on 365 Cards and she has the Cosmo Cricket Snorkel Kit!

Pam's Challenge:

The Snorkel kit uses alot of stripes and bold colors so make that your inspiration.

I was able to pick up a couple sheets of Snorkel at my local Ben Franklin craft store {oohhhh man, I love that place}. I gotta dedicate this card to my lovely kidlets! Today is their last day of school and they have been counting down the days. Don't you wish as adults that we had a "summer vacation"?! Sheesh, I sure do!!! I believe "Just Chillin" will become the kids' summer motto:)

I really love the blue & red color combo...there is something so festive & fun about it!

Here's to a Happy Friday!!!!

'lil happy birthday

Day 5 of Cosmo Cricket Week over at 365 Cards!

Today is Thursday and it is my day over at 365 Cards and I have the Lil' Man kit.

Pam's challenge:

Use argyle as your inspiration and design a card for a special father {brother, uncle etc} in your life.

Perfect timing for this challenge because my oldest brother celebrates his birthday...tomorrow!!!!! I have to admit that it was hard for me to switch gears on my Cosmo Cricket cards...from fun & funky to masculine. I tend to struggle with dude cards...and unfortunately, I'm thinkin' that my bro doesn't want pom pom trim and flowers...sheesh!

So I opt'd to fall back on clean & crisp with a smidge of felt :)

Can't wait to see what you all come up with and thanks for joining me in the challenge!!!

Jenni Butterfly

Well, this is definitely a change of pace from my Cosmo Cricket cards for the week....

I unfortunately had to make a sympathy card. My friend's father passed away suddenly this week...totally unexpected...sigh. I wanted to make her a card that wasn't depressing so I decided to use Dawn's Raspberry Suite Color Challenge #9 {dang, missed the deadline!} and team it up with Laura's sketch #28. I think that the pops of SU Wild Wasabi make it a cheerier card, what do you think? I so love the pattern paper by Jenni Bowlin and it pairs well with my crochet trim that I picked up from J's.

I turned the sketch on it's side...the Jenni Bowlin paper is actually 2 panels, the crochet trim ended up hiding that fact. Make sure you check out Dawn's Distressed Flowers 101 tut. I popped a wasabi panel on the interior with an A Muse stamped "in sympathy" sentiment....I just want her to know that I'm thinking of her....

Thanks for stoppin' by....

happy campers

Day 4 of Cosmo Cricket week over at 365 Cards!

Wednesday's are Kristie's day over at 365 Cards and she has Mr. Campy!

Pam's color challenge:

green, yellow, orange, brown & aqua

PLUS

make it feminine!

I used Jen's sketch for this week...perfect way to showcase some of the fun patterns/colors in Mr. Campy! The buttons are ala SEI and the "happy campers" text is from the bottom strip of the 12 x12 Cosmo Cricket paper...check it out ivy, I'm being eco!

Go check out what Kristie has to share!!!

Love Ya

Day 3 of Cosmo Cricket Week at 365 Cards!!!

Tuesday's are Tammy's day over at 365 Cards and she has Cosmo Cricket Jack's World Kit. {A huge shout out for Tammy...she made it to the Top 20 over at 2s4y!!}

Pam's challenge:

Make a birthday card for a little boy.

Today's Cosmo Cricket Early Bird {surprise, surprise} card is teamed up with the CPS120 sketch.

I know I mentioned it before but I'm soooo enjoying Cosmo Cricket week...I put together 4 cards on Sunday and had a
b-a-l-l!!!

Let me explain today's card...

Recently when I was organizing some of my "treasures", I came across a Mother's Day card that my boy made for me....this had to be at least 8 years ago, he was just a young pup. It said:

Happy Mother's Day!

I love you more than toast!!!

aaaaahhhh....kids say the sweetest things, it may sound strange but in my boys mind, this was an ultra compliment. We are a starchy, carby family...we love our rice {the kids only like white, but I also love brown, sushi, jasmine...you name it}, our pasta, our spuds and yes, our breads....oh should I type, our toasts :)

My boy is nearing his tween birthday so I decided to make his birthday card for this challenge. When I saw the toaster and toast in the Early Bird chipboard set, I knew it was going to the boy...

Thanks for stopping by!!!!!

U Go Girl!!!

Day 2 of Cosmo Cricket week at 365 Cards!!!

Monday's are Gloria's day over at 365 Cards and she has the Cosmo Cricket Girl Friday kit {lucky duck!!}.

Pam's challenge:

The word "Girl" must be somewhere on the card-and make the card girly!

Whaddya think? It was perfect to combine the delish Cosmo Cricket paper with this week's Card Patterns #19.

I would like to dedicate this card to all the fabbie gals that made it to the 2s4y Top 20 in their Ultimate Card Showdown!!! You gals absolutely rocked Kazan's sketch...♥best of luck to you♥ and especially to all my ♥♥bloggy sistas♥♥, you know who you are!!!! It was a hoot being part of the Top 30 and I really enjoyed it...now I can sit back, relax and see what the Top 20 comes up with!!

Hey Naomi, guess what my kids call the pom pom trim???!!!

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paper: cosmo cricket girl friday, speckletone kraft accessories: misc clearance pom pom trim from j's, foof-a-la & sei buttons, thickers, fiskars shape template {I just use it to trace the scallops!}

Tweet!!!!

Today is Super Sketchy Sunday over at 365 Cards!

I tell you, Pam knows how to make me happy....a whole week at 365 Cards dedicated to Cosmo Cricket!!!! I have always been a huge fan of their stuff but since their newer lines have hit, oh boy, I couldn't be more happy!!!

I'm absolutely in love with the Early Bird collection! The patterns and the accessories are a-dorable...I literally made this card in 10 minutes! It helps when you dig the stuff you're working with.

I hope that you'll join us in the Sunday Sketch Challenge...I'll be back everyday this week with a Cosmo Cricket goodie!!

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paper: cosmo cricket early bird, speckletone kraft accessories: early bird chipboard, thickers.

slug bug!!!!!

Hey there, Happy Weekend!!!!

As promised, here is my other 2 Sketches 4 You Ultimate Card Showdown Top 30 card design.

When I was walking around a LSS I came across this very fun stuff by Paper Loft!! I'm partial to VW Beetles...well, I actually have a love/hate dealio with them. I use to be a proud owner of a 2001 lime green VW diesel New Beetle. When it was spending more time in the shop than on the road, I decided to trade it in....bummer...because the size was perfect-o for me and the mileage was spectacular. The other thing is that there are sooo many ginormous vehicles on the road that my little bug was always lost in the shuffle...the other drivers never seemed to see me, which is crazy based on the color!

Anywho's....back to the card and the reasoning behind not entering this one but going with my

Vintage Owl card. To be honest, I hadn't heard of the whole "Slug Bug" action until I actually bought my VW and saw {primarily} kids on the side of the road slugging whoever they were with after I buzzed by...I thought that it was odd and then a friend must have told me the scoop. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that it was perhaps being raised in a Japanese household {both my folks were born in Japan} and we didn't do road trips...that's why I didn't know about it? Funny thing though, I took an informal poll at work and 2 out of 5 people didn't know about "slug bug".

So, being the curious person that I am....could you leave me a comment and let me know if you "get" my card or not?

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paper: paper loft accessories: brown button/pti vintage, pink button/mm {note}worthy, flourishes acetate base, heidi swapp distressor, mm glittery alpha stickers, scallop diecut via lss diecutting station {lol}

Vintage Owl

Well, here it is...my take on the

2 Sketches 4 You Ultimate Card Showdown Top 30 Kazan Sketch!

I used the Pink Paislee Vintage Moon pad...if you aren't familiar with it, you really should check it out. The patterns are out this world and although you can't tell in the photo, the blue panel is rich with a gorgeous sheen....I did take a close up of the pennant because that paper, although small'ish is full of detail too...it is a tone-on-tone oyster colored pattern with what I think looks like newsprint paper mache'.

I actually ended up making 2 designs for this showdown. I'll post my other one on Saturday :) I decided to go with my "gut" and enter this one. For those that know me, how could I resist an Owl card??!!!

I'd like thank Laura and Kazan again for this fabulous opportunity. I have always enjoyed the 2 Sketches 4 You blog and this is all icing on the cake for me. Thanks also to all the judges, you all have a tough decision {again}...the gallery is chock full of talented designers. What I love about it is the fact that everyone has their own style....isn't that what it is all about? Be true to yourself...your style...and have fun. Here's the thing, I was able to get a ton of projects done last Saturday. It must have been karma...that meant that I had all week to work on my Showdown card {translation...I had all week to "fret" about my Showdown card!!}. I was going to take tonight to crank out some other designs but guess what I found out this afternoon? My dd has a band concert tonight...yet again, karma for me to step away and post my "gut" card.

Thanks for taking a peek and thanks to all my peeps for all the much appreciated support...you all rock my world!!!! Wish me luck!!

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paper: pink paislee vintage moon, misc black stamps: a muse accessories: pti vintage buttons, heidi swapp distressor, fiskars shape template

I'm cookin' now...

Hello & Happy Thursday!!!

Thursday's are my days over on the 365 Cards Blog. Today's challenge is a card recipe:

4.25 x 5.5 inch card

solid background

2 patterned papers

stamped sentiment

3 jewels

check, check, check, check & check!

This has actually gone postal to someone...I absolutely ♥♥ the A Muse sentiment...had to team it up with the apple paper {both paper panels are on pop dots} from KI Memories.

Okay, ladies {& gents...we know that you are out there!}...show me whatcha got!

P.S.....Did you hear...Sunday marks the start of the 365 Cards Cosmo Cricket Week!!!! Darn, I "have" to make Cosmo Cricket cards all week....Life is GOOD!!!

spread your wings and fly....

Those of you that follow my blog know that I ♥♥♥ Amy Butler. Her stuff rocks...well, I finally de-hoarded and used a couple of her die cut butterflies {Elaine, I'm using them!!}...I guess I took the CPS119 sketch literally. Her line really goes well with the Stampin' Up Basic Gray {love that color!}...I cracked open my PTI Fresh Snow cube {that's all they had when I ordered} and inked up the edges of Basic gray panel. That particular panel along with the corduroy buttons are all on glue dot pop dots.

Have you checked out the 2 Sketches 4 You Top 30 Gallery yet? Oy vey...no pressure...I have a couple ideas swirling around in my crafty mind but won't complete anything until as late as Thursday night...I'm just thrilled to be in the crafty circle of the 29 gals...thanks to Laura and Kazan and all the judges and sponsors...this is a wonderful opportunity and I'm ♥truly thankful♥ for it.

hi {ya}!

Hey There!!

Here is my take on Jen's SFYTT...gotta love some Sassafras'alicious-ness..LOL!

I thought that the

American Crafts Details along with the bright and sunny thickers teamed up nicely with the sassy papers....

Here's to a fab Tuesday!!