Popsicle Enjoyment

 I could have used a couple of yummy popsicles today - it was beautiful outside!  That's one thing that summer brings more of - the ice cream treats.  We went to a family owned ice cream spot last night with the family - they're only open through the spring/summer months.  Makes it an extra special treat!!!

Anyway - today's sketch is from Stamping 411 and the Summer theme is from The Paper Players.  I love the bright colours in the Floral District DSP.  For the Daffodil Delight section, I used the White Craft Pad with the Fancy Fan Letterpress Plate.  I can't wait to get my new Fancy Fan embossing folder!!!!

For the popsicles, I used our coloured embossing powder.

This past Saturday I had my Open House and Retirement Sale.....here is the Make and Take that the ladies did.

 This weekend was extra special because I got to visit with Elliot Friday, Saturday and Sunday. I love him to pieces!!!

Hope there is someone in your life, young or "old", who you love to pieces.  

Thanks for taking time to stop by - 

Joan

Two Down, One to go...

Busy, busy, busy.  Conventions and report cards are now done - kids get their report cards at the end of this next week, but I've met the deadline for having marks in!  Now, I just have to get through Music Festival on Monday and Tuesday and I'm clear to look for other stressors.  Ha ha ha!

So - I was very pleased to be able to actually create one of my own cards today before moving on to cutting and prepping for next weekend.

I've used the Everybunny set from the Occasions Mini and incorporated the colours from the Friday Mashup - ....yellows and greens and the sketch from Stamping 411.  I'm sure this is the first time that I've only done one part of the Friday Mashup - the second part this week was to create a treat basket - this bunny's basket probably doesn't count for that.

Well, I'm off to cut paper for an event next weekend, and I just realized that I have to make sub plans for tomorrow - yeuk!  Oh well.....

Hope, if you are busy with chores and activities today, that you enjoy doing them.  Thanks for stopping by!
Joan

Blushes and Banners

I'm gearing up for an upcoming Extravaganza with our extended Stampin'Up! Team next weekend.  I'm going to be doing a demonstration using the new Blushing Bride Smooch Spritz and I'm taking the ideas right out of the January Stampin' Success Magazine.  

For the card above, which uses the sketch from Stamping 411 (positioned horizontally), I've used the Smooch by spritzing it right onto the rubber stamp image and then stamping it.  You have to spray lightly or stamp lightly otherwise the image is fuzzy; and the areas where there is more of the spray glistens very nicely.

Next I'm sharing a Valentines banner I created using a tutorial from Create with Connie and Mary Occasions Edition 2012.  Check out their website if you're interested in getting a whole whack of fantastic creative ideas with products from the Occasions Mini and the SAB mini!

I had to change some of the things on my banner because I didn't have the same supplies as were used in the tutorial, but I'm happy with how it turned out.  I also added a central heart to the banner, just to make it a bit longer.

As I sit in my stamping room in the basement this afternoon, I can hear the water on the road in front of the house as the cars drive by.  Very bizarre for January 29 in Northern Alberta!  Hope it doesn't rain like it's expected to later!  However, precipitation is precipitation - and the farmers will be needing it!!!

Hope you are having a great end to your weekend.  Thanks for taking the time to stop by for a visit.

Joan

Silvery, Snowy Thanks

I can't believe how long it's been since I posted a card - AND the fact that I missed an entire Friday Mashup!  I have been busy these past two weekends, and I did spend this whole last week preparing for a Christmas Trade Show - but still!  Well, I have this whole week off - so in between doing report cards and tweaking things for the next Trade Fair - I will be catching up on my usual challenges.

So - this week at the Friday Mashup they were looking for heat embossing and gratitude.  We've celebrated our Thanksgiving already - so I thought I'd gear my card towards thanks at Christmas or in the winter.  The sketch is from Stamping 411.

I embossed these wonderful Serene Snowflakes with silver embossing powder.  I used the Versa Mark Pen to touch the snowman's buttons and added embossing to them also.  The Lace Ribbon Border was punched from the Brushed Silver Paper as well as the one little Northern Frost snowflake which I had leftover in a drawer waiting to be used.

Well - I am thankful for this week off - I've got lots of upcoming events planned and need the time to prepare, in addition to necessary jobs, reading, cleaning, napping! 

Hope you are having a wonderful Sunday afternoon.  Thanks for stopping by for a visit.
Joan

Simple Fall Gratitude

It's been a very busy weekend, and I'm glad to be home - frustrated with a stuffy nose - but glad to get home.  I had a great time at the Fine Arts Conference and learned a lot of new stuff to take into the classroom!  So - I've created a relatively simple card this afternoon to fulfill my stamping need. 

The Paper Players are looking for a fall element in this week's challenge - the trees are pretty much bare here and the leaves on the street have even been picked up so that's why I selected these lovely bare trees.  The sketch for today's card comes from Stamping 411 and the colours are inspired by a photo at Hand Stamped Sentiments.

I have a lot to look forward this week - hope you do to!  Thanks for stopping by.
Joan

Remember When

Leaves, leaves, lots of leaves...Hand Stamped Sentiments is challenging the use of Cherry Cobbler, Pumpkin Pie and Not Quite Navy - which works with SUO challenges of including leaves in your project and I've used the sketch from Stamping 411.

I did end up using Early Espresso for the bases of the leaves - and in hindsight figured that using the Not Quite Navy would have been pretty cool too.  I tried twisting the Seam Binding Ribbon, holding the twists in place with glue dots.  The punched leaf has been stamped with the veins from "Gently Falling" and then crumpled up.

The following are the A and B pages for the alphabet book I created for my husband for our 25th anniversary next week....all done on My Digital Studio.  I love the capability of being able to change the sizes of stamps - connecting them and manipulating them.

Hope your week is going well - thanks for stopping by!

Joan

Simply Black & White

I think some of my mojo has gotten blown away by the wind today.  It was a good day, but I'm feeling tired again - I guess the wind can do that to you.

I've created this simple card today for the clean and simple sketch over at Stamping 411.  I had been using this fantastic Mocha Morning paper earlier in the day, and hadn't noticed this particular piece - I just HAD to use it and created the ribbon flower - I wish some of the petals didn't stay so square!

Today I am in the city at a Stampin' Up! Regional event. Sooooooo exciting!  I'm sure I'll have something to post for you tomorrow.

Hope there is something you're able to get excited about today!  Thanks for visiting - Joan

Butterfly Gratitude

I'm back from the mountains and raring to get into gear......I had planned on doing some planning while in the mountains, but that didn't work out -  which I guess is good in the long run.  The weather was pretty good - but it sure is warm back at home.  Perfect for spending a wee bit of time in the basement stamping.

I created this butterfly card for the Friday Mash Up! this week and I used the sketch from Stamping 411.

The Mash Up! was:

• Create a card with butterflies and bling  OR
• Create a card using Perfect Plum, Marina Mist, one other colour and a neutral  OR
• Create a card with butterflies, bling and the Color Combo.

I chose Wisteria Wonder as my extra colour and Very Vanilla as the neutral.  I actually like these colours together - I'll have to keep them in mind for the future.

I'm going to have to make sure that I get some school planning in during the next while - in addition to workshop planning....not much time left - but I'm NOT counting yet!

Hope you have some events to look forward to - and thanks for taking time to stop by to visit.
Joan

Monochromatic Little Things

A dragonfly accompanied me on the deck this morning while I was drinking my coffee....so I decided that I would use one on whatever I made today.  He's a bit out of place with all the geometric things - but that's okay! 

I used the sketch from Stamping 411 for this - however the top section is a whole lot busier than one piece of DSP - that's where I've incorporated the Inspiration Challege from SCS.  The website is Linda Billet Gallery - I've included the thumbnail, below,  of the piece I chose for inspiration.

For the lower section I used the circle stamp from "Circle Circus" and then just added some extra colour to them.  (A bit of a shakey hand today!!!) For the top left piece I brayered ink onto the new Houndstooth embossing folder before putting it through the Big Shot.  The top right section is just a piece of black paper with the Frost White Shimmer Paint scrunched onto it.

Off to do a bit of organizing - hope you're having a great day and thank you for stopping by - Joan

Stainglass Tortoise

Okay - it's not really a stainglass tortoise - just two different challenges.

I had a lot of fun making this first card based on the stained glass window shown below from Daniel Maher Stained Glass - which was the site for the Inspiration Challenge over at Splitcoast Saturday. I love stained glass and am in awe of the people who can create such intricate works of art with such a difficult medium. I had fun with my punches creating all the little bits for my creation - the tiniest circles were made using the eye parts of the Two-Step Owl punch. Once I had all the pieces down and the lines drawn, I added Crystal Effects to make them glassier. It really perks up the colours a bit too.


Our dear little tortoise is sending Thanks for the challenge over at The Paper Players this week - remembering how important it is to send messages of Thanks, especially in an age of electronics. It's much more fun to receive Thanks in the mailbox! The sketch for this card is from Stamping 411 this week.

I guess the weekend is coming to a close and I will be happy once Wednesday is over this week. Hope it has been a wonderful one for you. Thanks for taking the time to stop by.
Joan

Grrreat Camping

Camping season has begun for many - I camped EVERY weekend as a child with my Dad - always had to be someplace Educational too. We were living in Chicago at the time, so ventured to the neighboring States. They were enjoyable times - but, aside from taking Brownies and Girl Guides camping, I haven't camped since returning to Canada. However, you don't have to go camping to enjoy stars, eat S'mores - or get bitten by mosquitos!!!

The sketch for this card is from Stamping 411 and the colours are from the Color Throwdown which was a "Pick a Combo" - Baja Breeze, Old Olive and So Saffron were part of the palette and I added the Chocolate Chip.
The Bear was stamped on Watercolor Paper with StazOn and I used ink with the Aquapainter to colour him in.
I still have a couple tubes of Liquid Applique that I used for the marshmallows in the S'mores. I keep it especially for marshmallows, beer foam, and the occasional cloud. LOL

Hope you are continuing to have a wonderful day - Thanks for stopping by!
Joan

Roll with the Punches...

Ya just gotta love punches.....they can be so so versatile. Butterflies turn into flowers and straight lines can turn corners..

I know these pansies have been around for a while, but today was the first time I'd ever made them. A Colour Dare Design Team-mate, Lesley (Always Playing with Paper), used them yesterday on her Color Dare card, and I promised myself I would give them a try. The tutorial that both of us used is from Kathy - the Paper Stamper. I used watercolour paper instead of regular or Shimmer paper. I got so hooked on making them that I even went to look for the different colour variations that pansies come in. They are one of my favorite flowers because they are just so happy looking. The sketch I used for this card is from Stampin' Royalty.

I created this second card a couple of days ago using the Paper Players Sketch Challenge and the Stamping 411 Color Inspiration which was Rose Red, River Rock and Always Artichoke. I used one the the flowers from the Triple Layer Punch to create the flowers on the outside of the oval.

I'm thoroughly enjoying the "Fabulous Phrases" stamp set, which I recently got, and desperately hope it won't end up on the retiring list June 1. Guess I don't have to wait long to find out! I find it such an exciting time of year in Stampin' Up!

Well, hope there are some things in your world that you are looking forward to. Remember to look for the good - don't dwell on the bad.....although it can be hard sometimes!
Have a terrific Thursday!
Blessings, Joan

Mojo full of Butterflies

The last number of posts I've had, have been scheduled while I was away in Edmonton to stay with my husband while he attended meetings for the Alberta Teacher's Association. It was a nice little holiday - not far from home!!!! The two of us were also able to attend a "Parent's Barbeque & Party" held by my son and his housemates. They had awesome food, and most of the parents and siblings of the 6 housemates got to meet. It was a very nice evening - a perfect way to end the weekend. So - I came home and went right to my stamping room to see what challenges were at hand and found myself using mostly butterflies....

I tried my hand again with the Faux Mother of Pearl again - using a butterfly die. I've ordered some white Shimmer Paint - so I can't wait to see what this technique will look like with that. I am pleased with the butterflies although I forgot to use glossy paper - it's just regular Whisper White cardstock.
The challenge for this card was a Sympathy card for Raise the Bar. I've also used the Frayed Ribbon technique from Stamping 411's How-To Wednesday. The frayed ribbon made for a different body on the butterfly.

I used a leftover background piece on my Mojo Monday Sketch card - I had embossed the Baroque Motif in white and put it through the Big Shot with the Square Lattice Embossing folder. It didn't end up working for the card I was working on back then, so I kept it on my desk to remember to use it. I didn't realize, until it was together, that the leaves in the Baroque background and the leaves on the butterfly match. I must say I think there is something missing on the card, but I'm not sure what. Any ideas!

Well, we're in to a short week now - and the long haul until the end of the school year. I'm hoping to remain sane until my spring concert is over! Now that the leaves and blossoms are out I know it will add to my sanity!
Hope things are blooming for you - and thanks for taking the time to stop by for a visit. Joan

Awash with Orange

Thought I would give this stamp set another try. Thursday night I came across a blog with this technique and for the life of me I couldn't find it again today. It used the Shimmer Paint - I used the Champagne because it was the only colour I had, but on the explanation she used Pearl - to give it the Faux Pearl look. On Beate Johns tutorial HERE she used white acrylic paint. I think I have a few too many globs of shimmer paint - I will try this technique again though.

Thanks to Kerin, I found the tutorial for this technique - which I had seen on Thursday - over at Stamping 411 - so HERE is the tutorial they have. Both 411's and Beate's are easy to follow. Give it a try.

The sketch today is from Stamping 411 and the colours are from Raise the Bar - {Green} Apples and Oranges.

Hope you're having a productive Saturday - we've got wind back here again - makes it a bit difficult to get things done outside.

Have a great day - and thanks for dropping by for a visit. Joan

Stamp Set - Awash with Flowers, Inspired by Nature Paper - Peach Parfait, In-Colour Patterns DSP, Whisper White, Tangerine Tango, Glossy White Ink - Tangerine Tango, Pumpkin Pie, Peach Parfait, Old Olive Accessories - Pear Pizzazz Seam Binding Ribbon, Basic Pearls (coloured with black Sharpie), Champagne Shimmer Paint, Blossom Bouquet Triple Layer Punch, Dimensionals, Glue Dot

Butterflies in the Grass

Finally got onto the computer - my son has been hanging here today - got my card created this morning, but haven't gotten to the computer until now. It's not totally his "fault" though - we sat and watched a movie together which was very nice. He has to work tomorrow so he's hanging with me today - I'm so blessed!

S0 - today's butterflies are nestling in the grass today with the Stampin' Royalty Challenge Colours and the Stamping 411 Challenge sketch. The colours are Rich Razzleberry, Wild Wasabi, Pacific Point and Real Red. I definitely found it a challenge - but I'm happy with the final results.

Stamp Set/s - Inspired by Nature, Butterfly Prints Paper - Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry, DSP, Red Glimmer Paper Ink - Wild Wasabi, Basic Black Accessories - Basic Rhinestones, Oval Punch, Scallop Circle Punch, Butterfly Wings Embosslits Die, Rich Razzleberry Taffeta Ribbon, Dimensionals, Sponge Daubers.


Here is another Extravaganza Card. I don't actually have this flower set, but I like it. Big and Bold!

On to watch the hockey game with the boys -
Hope you have had a wonderful Saturday - Happy Mother's Day to you tomorrow.
Thanks for Stopping by - Joan

Post Extravaganza and a New Challenge

I always like to do at least one challenge every day - so that I have something new to put on the blog....and I don't have to think up colours or sketches myself. Yesterday I found a new Challenge blog, which I'm very happy about....Stamping 411. - I'm happy because they use Stampin'Up! supplies. This week's challenge was the sketch I've used.
To Colour the "Lovely as a Tree", I used sponge daubers to apply the ink in order to get different shades of green within the leaves.

Stamp Set/s - Lovely as a Tree, Teeny Tiny Wishes Paper - Chocolate Chip, Wild Wasabi, Woodland Walk DSP Ink - Chocolate Chip, Wild Wasabi, Garden Green Other - Word Window Punch, Hemp Twine, Gold Brads, Dimensionals, Sponge Daubers, Polka Dot Embossing Folder

This is one of the cards I used in my demonstration at our Extravaganza yesterday. I used the Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch to create the edge around the circle. On one edge of the circle I cut slits at each scallop and then cut every other section out so that the straight edge would curve around the circle. I really like the effect!

Stamp Sets - Strength and Hope Paper - Whisper White, Pretty in Pink, Rose Red, Presto Patterns Specialty DSP, Sweet and Sour Specialty DSP Ink - Rose Red, Pretty in Pink Other - Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch, Pretty in Pink Taffeta Ribbon, Pearl Basics, Sponge Daubers, Dimensionals, Snips

Finally, here is one of the cards we created at the Extravaganza. What a fantastic time we had!!!!! A lot of the cards incorporated water colour techniques. For this particular card we used Watercolor Wonder Crayons and Aquapainter. Afterwards, the flowers were covered with Crystal Effects.

Stamp Set/s - Fast and Fabulous, Heard from the Heart Paper - Always Artichoke, Basic Black, Watercolour Paper Ink - Basic Black, StazOn Black Other - Watercolor Wonder Crayons, Aqua Pen, Basic Rhinestones, Crystal Effects.

Hope you are having a wonderful Sunday - Thanks for stopping by!
Joan