Summer Heat

Here is a card I made, trying to channel some Summer Heat on this cold and snowy February day! I used the Splitcoast Color Challenge 207 - Kiwi Kiss, Pumpkin Pie and Summer Sun - can you say HOT!?! The sketch is from a Splitcoast member company, Verve Visual. This stamp set is a retired one, Shore Thing.

The card base is Kiwi Kiss and I used my Coluzzle to cut a circle from Pumpkin Pie and a smaller one from Whisper White. I stamped the beach chair in Old Olive ink and the sun in Summer Sun. The sand grains are stamped in Creamy Caramel. Then I stamped the sand pail in Pumpkin Pie ink and cut it out with my Coluzzle as well. The Summer Sun mat is with the Wide Oval Punch. I added some Pumpkin Pie eyelets from the retired pack of Earth Elements Eyelets and wrapped some of the new Kiwi Kiss Striped Ribbon around the card front. The pail is mounted on Stampin' Dimensionals.

Stamps: Shore Thing
Cardstock: Kiwi Kiss, Pumpkin Pie, Summer Sun, Creamy Caramel
Ink: Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, Summer Sun, Creamy Caramel
Accessories: Kiwi Kiss Striped Ribbon, Stampin' Dimensionals, Earth Elements Eyelets, Coluzzle





Here is another card I did, using another sketch from Verve. The challenge was to follow the sketch and use acetate. I used a heavy weight piece cut to a rectangle for one of the layers. Then I wrapped it with my very last piece of this wonderful Chocolate Satin ribbon, knotted at the top.

TIP: To have a symmetrical V cut in the ribbon ends, fold the ribbon in half and cut at an angle from the fold out.

The tower of cupcakes from Crazy for Cupcakes are an image RAK from my friend Lisa. I colored them with my Blender Pen and the ink pads. The I cut them out and adhered them using Stampin' Dimensionals. The ribbon and acetate layer are adhered with Mini Glue Dots underneath the cupcake tower, so the adhesive doesn't show. I stamped this sentiment from the Hostess Level I set, Sweet Little Sentiments, in Ruby Red ink onto a strip of Whisper White. Then I cut the banner tip with the My Way Punch. The banner is adhered with a Mini Glue Dot on the right end and a Stampin' Dimensional on the left to help it curl.

Stamps: Crazy for Cupcakes, Sweet Little Sentiments, It's Your Birthday
Cardstock: Brocade Blue, Ruby Red, Whisper White
Ink: Ruby Red, Black StazOn, Pumpkin Pie, Brocade Blue
Accessories: Blender Pen, Chocolate Satin Ribbon, My Way Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals

Branch Out Swap

I am friends with a fairly active group of demos who are spread out all over the US. They organized a New Catalog Swap. Here is the card I made for the card swap, using the new catalog set, Branch Out. I am in love with this set and have made SO many cards with it already. For this swap I wanted a card that would be appropriate for a stamp camp or club event with a few new items, but not too much fussy work. My stamp campers know what I'm talking about when I say Fussy!

I stamped the tree from Branch Out onto Naturals White card stock in Chocolate Chip Craft Ink and then embossed it with Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder. The Iridescent Ice EP gives it a little bit of shimmer, but not overwhelming glitter. I like the Naturals White card stock with this set as it isn't as bright of a white as our Whisper White and seemed better suited to this nature tree set. I inked the leaves stamp in Old Olive and stamped them a few times around the tree branches and then stamped a few butterflies in Baja Breeze ink. This main image is layered onto a narrow mat of Chocolate Chip card stock and then a wider mat of this textured double sided paper from the Parisian Breeze Specialty paper pack. This specialty paper has a texture to it that makes you want to run your hands over it and it is a card stock weight paper, too. Its matte finish and texture is another reason I liked the Natural White card stock on this card, instead of Whisper White. The colors in the Parisian Breeze Specialty paper are Kraft, Chocolate Chip and Baja Breeze.

I added the Jumbo Eyelet to the corner with my Crop-A-Dile tool. I first threaded two loops of our Hemp Twine Natural through the eyelet and then punched the larger (3/16") Crop-A-Dile hole punch through the three layers of my card stock. I pressed the Jumbo Eyelet through the hole and tightened the Hemp Twine. Then set the Jumbo Eyelet with the A-1 setting on the Crop-A-Dile and used Mini Glue Dots to secure the Hemp Twine to the back of the cardstock.

To finish the card, I used my Mat Pack to create a paper pierced corner accent on the Kraft card stock base. Then I layered a different piece of the Parisian Breeze Specialty Paper across the bottom of the card front. I covered the seam with a piece of Chocolate Chip Taffeta Ribbon, knotted on the left and secured with a Mini Glue Dot. I adhered the main image panel with Stampin' Dimensionals and called it a swap! This card has no sentiment on the front and can be used for any occasion with the sentiment of your choice on the inside.

Stamps: Branch Out
Cardstock: Kraft, Chocolate Chip, Naturals White, Parisian Breeze Specialty
Ink: Chocolate Chip Craft, Old Olive, Baja Breeze
Accessories: Jumbo Eyelets, Chocolate Chip Taffeta Ribbon, Hemp Twine Natural , Mat Pack, Stampin' Dimensionals

New Catalog Swap

This is my swap card for a New Catalog Swap I did with several demonstrators on Splitcoast Stampers website. The only requirement was to use a new set from the Spring/Summer catalog. I chose the set Wonderful Watercolors and did the Chalkboard Technique.

For Chalkboarding, it's easiest to use a 2 step stamp set, such as this Wonderful Watercolors set where there is a base stamp and then a detail stamp for each image. I stamped the base stamp of this flower and stem in Whisper White Craft Ink onto Elegant Eggplant card stock. Then using a Sponge Dauber, I tapped Pastels onto the wet craft ink. I used Summer Sun and Mellow Moss for the my flowers. When I was done adding the color with Pastels, I stamped the detail image of this flower and stem in Whisper White Craft Ink over it. I used a Stamp-A-Ma-Jig with this set, but I don't always use one. Finally, I used my SAMJ to stamp the sentiment from Wonderful Watercolors 'thinking of you' in Whisper White Craft Ink and set the pieces aside to dry.

I used the Mojo Monday Week 74 sketch for my card - I really like working from a sketch for stamping cards or scrapbooking. I used narrow strips of the Elegant Eggplant card stock on the Sage Shadow card stock base. Then cut a thin mat of Apricot Appeal card stock and used the Eyelet Border Punch along the bottom. For the corner of my main image, I snipped a tiny bit off with my Paper Snips and then fit that flat edge into the Eyelet Border Punch to create an interesting rounded corner. Then I knotted a piece of the new White Organza Ribbon and wrapped it around the the main image and mat, just below the rounded corner. I adhered this to the card front with Stampin' Dimensionals.

The swap card is a card front only, but for my finished card, I added a piece of the Apricot Appeal for a lining and a narrow strip of Eyelet Border Punch Elegant Eggplant with a small flower from Wonderful Watercolors stamped in Elegant Eggplant ink. The swaps are postal and I can't wait to see everyone else's cards!

Stamps: Wonderful Watercolor
Cardstock: Sage Shadow, Apricot Appeal, Elegant Eggplant
Ink: Whisper White Craft, Elegant Eggplant
Accessories: White Organza Ribbon, Eyelet Border Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals

Good Morning Sunshine

I stamped so many cards the other night using my Cheep Talk stamp set and the coordinating Good Morning Sunshine Designer Series Paper. I think the inside of this one is my favorite, with the center strip of Pacific Point pattern paper and the 'hello there' sentiment stamped in Pacific Point in a circle frame around it.





I love this paper so much that I even made one card without a single stamp - just used the gorgeous paper and my Eyelet Border Punch and some of the FREE Sale-A-Bration So Saffron Ribbon.









I used the same bundle of supplies to create different cards that would work for many different occasions. I love that the card stock, ink, ribbon and pattern papers are so easy to coordinate with each other and with the stamp sets. It makes it easy for my not-s0-creative brain!

The bundle I used to create these cards could easily put together an order that would qualify for a FREE Sale-A-Bration set of your choice - my cards use one of the two rolls of ribbon that come in the Sale-A-Bration Ribbon Bundle.

Good Morning DSP 9.95
Cheep Talk Stamp Set 26.95
Eyelet Border Punch 15.95
2 Roll Ribbon Bundle FREE

Stamps: Cheep Talk
Cardstock: Pacific Point, Old Olive, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Good Morning Sunshine DSP
Ink: Pacific Point, Old Olive, So Saffron
Accessories: Eyelet Border Punch, Scallop Circle Punch, 1 1/4" Circle Punch, 1 3/8" Circle Punch, So Saffron 5/8" Grosgrain SAB Ribbon Bundle, Mat Pack, Stampin' Dimensionals

Spring Song

Here is a card I did today, using the Mojo Monday Week 75 Sketch and a color combination from a friend. These colors are in a new pack of dsp from the upcoming Stampin' Up! Occasions Mini Catalog, too - Basic Gray, Cameo Coral, So Saffron, Kiwi Kiss, and Baja Breeze.

Yummy! These colors say Spring to me! I pulled out this beautiful set, Spring Song, to play with. I stamped the hummingbird image from Spring Song in StazOn Jet Black ink onto a piece of Whisper White card stock. I colored it with a Blender Pen, pulling ink from the lids of the ink pads. I used Baja Breeze, Kiwi Kiss, So Saffron, Cameo Coral, and Basic Gray to color here. I used the Basic Gray for a shadow around my images. I also stamped the sentiment from this same set in Basic Gray ink.

The Cameo Coral background piece and the Kiwi Kiss strip are both stamped in VersaMark ink with the background stamp En Francais. I punched the edge of the Baja Breeze strip with my Eyelet Border Punch and added a strip of So Saffron designer series paper from the (FREE!) Sale-A-Bration pack, Delicate Dots. The jumbo eyelet in the left corner is from the Boho Hardware and is set with my CropADile.

I love this sketch with all its layers and I really love these colors!

The inside is pretty plain, with just a lining of Whisper White card stock and a strip of the Delicate Dots Saffron paper.

Stamps: Spring Song, En Francais
Cardstock: Basic Gray, Cameo Coral, Baja Breeze, Kiwi Kiss, Whisper White, SAB Delicate Dots dsp
Ink: Basic Gray, Cameo Coral, Baja Breeze, Kiwi Kiss, So Saffron
Accessories: Boho Hardware, Eyelet Border Punch

Inchies - Teeny Tiny

Here is another VSN Challenge card - this is for Denise's 'Wee Bit O' Love' Challenge to create a card using 3 or more 'Inchies'. Inchies are teeny tiny 1 inch by 1 inch designs. I haven't tried them before and they're TINY!

I pulled out my Branch Out stamp set and stamped the tree image several times on a strip of Whisper White card stock. Then I tried to reflect the different seasons by using different colors of ink with various images from this set.

For summer, I stamped the leaves in Old Olive and the bird in Pacific Point. This is mounted on Chocolate Chip card stock and then on Old Olive card stock. For autumn, I stamped the leaves in Really Rust and the birdhouse in More Mustard. This is mounted on Chocolate Chip and then on Really Rust card stock. For winter, I stamped the snowflakes in Bashful Blue and the tire swing in Basic Grey. Then I went over some of the tree and the top of the tire with some white fabric puff paint to create shiny puffy snow drifts. This is mounted on Chocolate Chip and then on Bashful Blue card stock. For spring, I stamped the leaves in Certainly Celery and then in Pretty in Pink for blossoms. I stamped the butterflies in Lavendar Lace. This is mounted on Chocolate Chip and then on Lavendar Lace card stock.

I stamped the tree in Chocolate Chip again on a large piece of Whisper White card stock and then used my Brayer to add Old Olive ink across the bottom and Bashful Blue across the top. I sponged the corners with Night of Navy ink and then layered it onto Chocolate Chip card stock. I added the 'Inchies' seasonal pieces with Stampin' Dimensionals and used some scraps of pattern paper on a Bordering Blue card stock base.

The sentiment is from a retired set, It's About Time. I stamped part of it on the front in Night of Navy ink and the remainder of it on the inside.

Stamps: Branch Out, It's About Time
Cardstock: Bordering Blue, Lavendar Lace, Old Olive, Bashful Blue, Chocolate Chip, Really Rust, Bella Birds DSP
Ink: Lavendar Lace, Old Olive, Bashful Blue, Chocolate Chip, Really Rust, More Mustard, Night of Navy, Certainly Celery, Pretty In Pink, Pacific Point
Accessories: Stampin' Dimensionals, Fabric Puff Paint

Mojo Monday Sketches

I like to use sketches for scrapbooking (hmm, what's scrapbooking....yes, I STILL need to print 2008's photos) and for stamping cards, too. Mojo Monday - The Blog is a site with great card sketches every Monday.

Here is my card for Mojo Monday Week 74. I used my new stamp set Cheep Talk with some fun new paper Good Morning Sunshine. I love the colors in this designer series paper pack - Chocolate Chip, Kiwi Kiss, So Saffron and Pacific Point.

I used an Old Olive card base and layered a piece of the Good Morning Sunshine dsp onto a Chocolate Chip mat. I followed the sketch pretty closely with my layers and mats of Chocolate Chip and more papers from the Good Morning Sunshine pack. The chubby bird from Cheep Talk is inked in Pacific Point ink and then I wiped off his beak and legs. I re-inked them with the brush tip of my Pumpkin Pie marker - although I think Really Rust would make me happier next time. I stamped him sitting on this Old Olive branch with one of the sentiments stamped in Pacific Point as well.

I wrapped a piece of the So Saffron 5/8" Grosgrain (one of the two-roll FREE Sale-A-Bration Ribbon Bundle!) around the main image. I made a loop from a shorter piece of ribbon and secured it with Sticky Strip. Then an even shorter piece of the ribbon is wrapped around the loop and the ribbon strip and secured, again with Sticky Strip. For the Circle embellishment, I punched out one of the pears from a piece of the designer series paper with my 1 1/4" Circle Punch and layered it onto a 1 3/8" Circle Punch of Chocolate Chip card stock. I tucked it under the ribbon bow and added two stacked Stampin' Dimensionals under the bottom of it to secure it.


For the inside of this card, I just layered a piece of Whisper White card stock with a strip of the Good Morning Sunshine DSP and an inked image of the pear and leaf from Cheep Talk.

Stamps: Cheep Talk
Cardstock: Old Olive, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Good Morning Sunshine DSP
Ink: Pacific Point, Old Olive, Chocolate Chip, Pumpkin Pie Marker
Accessories: So Saffron 5/8" SAB Ribbon, Sticky Strip, 1 1/4" Circle Punch, 1 3/8 Circle Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals

VSN Challenges - For the Love of Chocolate

VSN is going on over at Splitcoast - a Virtual Stamp Night - which means a weekend of many stamp challenges and lots of fun. This weekend's VSN theme is "What's Love Got To Do With It." The idea is to complete a card within the confines of each challenge within 45 minutes.

The challenge I did was For the Love of Chocolate and because Dark Chocolate is my favorite (I mean if you HAVE to pick a favorite...) my color scheme is Cameo Coral, Apricot Appeal and Chocolate Chip. I'm not sure if the Whisper White that I used is technically okay. Regardless, here is my under 30 minutes card.

I used two Sale-A-Bration sets, Yummy and Botanical Blooms, for my card. The corner swirl is part of the largest image in the Yummy stamp set. Then I inked the solid flowers from Botanical Blooms in Apricot Appeal and stamped them in a cluster on the Whisper White card stock. The detail flower images are stamped over these in Cameo Coral. I punched a piece of Apricot Appeal card stock with my Eyelet Border Punch which I ♥! Then I layered a strip of Chocolate Chip card stock and some Chocolate Chip 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon over the seam. I took a large brad from the Silver Hodge Podge Hardware set and wrapped the legs around the ends of the ribbon and then poked it through a hole in the Chocolate Chip cardstock, to gather the ribbon, instead of knotting it.

The inside of my card has a strip of the Eyelet Border Punch Apricot Appeal card stock and some Whisper White stamped again with the corner swirl from Yummy. Both the Yummy stamp set and Botanical Blooms stamp set are FREE this month and next with any $50 order from Stampin' Up! Call or e-mail me if you need details.

Stamps: Yummy, Botanical Blooms
Cardstock: Cameo Coral, Apricot Appeal, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White
Ink: Cameo Coral, Apricot Appeal, Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Eyelet Border Punch, Silver Hodge Podge Hardware, Chocolate Chip 5/8" Grosgrain

The Cupid Gifts I Sent

Here is the collection of gifts I made for my Cupid, Robyn. I put her gifts in brown paper bags tied off with some Kiwi Kiss Stripped Ribbon and clear acrylic tags stamped with which day to open. The circle tag frame is from Frames with a Flourish and the numbers are from Typeset Numbers, which is retired. To stamp on the acrylic tags, I used StazOn ink.

Day One was this gift box filled with a bag of Hershey's Kisses - the lid is covered in Dazzling Diamonds glitter and it is tied closed with a strip of the Kiwi Kiss Striped Ribbon. I used the swirl stamp from Baroque Motif and added some small hearts from a retired set, Time Well Spent. The sentiment 'You Rock' is from Just Jawing.

Day Two was another food gift with a bag of Pepperidge Farm Raspberry cookies, in a Top Note Die wrapper and a little booklet of Tea to go with. The stamps here are from Time Well Spent and from Love Matters, both retired sets.

Day Three was a Card Organizer I made using my new Bind It All and a tutuorial from Splitcoast. This was my first Card Organizer made this way, and I can't wait to make a few more - I love the pockets for cards/envies each month with the little calendar on each one. I added a pocket on the inside cover to hold stamps. I used Baroque Motifs again and the alphabet set is Outline Alphabet. I added a little shading to the letters with my blender pen. The 'for you' sentiment, All Holidays, is punched with a small Oval Punch and layered inside the oval frame from the Styled Silver Hodge Podge Hardware kit.

I hope my Cupid liked her gifts as much I as enjoyed receiving my Cupid gifts! What a fun swap!

Cupid Gifts Day 3!

Wow! What a lucky girl am I - My Cupid spoiled me in this swap and I had SO MUCH fun! Today I opened my last gift set and found this gorgeous Fifth Ave Floral card with beautiful glitter and shiny paper and more of that beautiful Organza Ribbon. There is also a bag of assorted Jelly Belly candies (nearly all gone already!) and that box with the striped Riding Hood Ribbon is filled with a Card Set of these super cute Birthday cards!

AND...my Cupid was Sara! I really enjoyed this Cupid Exchange and was so excited to find out who had been giving me such thoughtful and generous gifts! Thank you Sara for a wonderful Valentine!

Cupid Gifts Day 2!

Sweet! What fun it is to anticipate and then to open these Cupid gifts each day! My Cupid is spoiling me! ♥ Today I opened my Day 2 bag to find this beautiful Stampin' Up! Statement of the Heart - I am so in love with this decorated stand!

"To LOVE what we do and SHARE what we love, as we help others enjoy CREATIVITY and worthwhile accomplishments... in this we make a DIFFERENCE."

{The Stampin' Up! Statement of the Heart is so true for me as I truly LOVE stamping and scrapping and SHARING my ideas and projects. Especially the sharing part. So I am going to treasure this decorated stand with a daily visual of what Stampin' Up! means to me.}

The other two little boxes in my Day 2 bag are made from the beautiful Bella Rose Designer Series Paper - one is wrapping two boxes of Necco Sweethearts candies, tied off with another piece of the sumptuous Pink Pirouette ribbon. The other box is one of the Big Shot die cut boxes, tied off with Pretty in Pink Taffeta ribbon and filled with.....several samples of goodies! There is a bag of the new Latte Buttons, Jumbo eyelets and Rhinestone Brads - these are some of my favorite hardware items!

Happy Stampin'!

Cupid Gifts Day 1!

I chit chat with a group of Stampin' Up! Demo's who are Swap Addicts and some of the gals organized a Cupid Gift Exchange. So fun and such anxiety at the same time! lol - I was worried that my box of Cupid gifts arrived or didn't arrive to my Cupid and then I worry that the gifts aren't nice enough or the right colors or just enough! lol

My Cupid gift box arrived on my doorstep today. There are three days of gifts and so I got to tear into one package right away! woo hoo - my Cupid knows me and she loves me! ♥ See this adorable round tin? It not only is beautiful to look at - with the Chocolate Chip Decor Element flower on the lid and the Bella Rose DSP wrap - it is FILLED with Peanut Butter Cups! So I started on those (before my kids find them!) and opened the rest of my Day One gift to find this adorable little Valentine that is covered with chocolate glitter from the new Super Nova Glitter Stack and a swatch of the yummy new Organza Ribbon!

Did you notice how cute the packages are, too - the pretty bags with the scallop punched top and the luxurious Pink Pirouette Ribbon bow? I'm so excited to open another gift tomorrow!

I'll share the gifts I made for my Cupid on Sunday, after she's had a chance to open each of them. On the third day is the Cupid reveal when we find out who has been making all of our lovelies. ♥

And if that isn't enough - look what my Sweetheart hubby gave me this week! So pretty and I am enjoying them so much this week - Fresh Flowers are one of my favorite things! I can count on one hand the number of times he has bought flowers for me in the last twenty years - so these were a wonderful surprise! Yay me for a fun Valentine's week!

Branchin Out

Another card with my new catalog set, Branch Out. I also used a few sheets of the new Specialty paper, Parisian Breeze, which is a thick cardstock weight, double sided pattern paper with texture! It's so yummy! It features Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip, and Kraft colors. Because it has so much texture on all the sheets, I used Naturals White card stock for my mat and Whisper White Textured card stock for my sentiment piece.

First, I stamped the tree image from Branch Out in Whisper White Craft ink onto Chocolate Chip card stock. I covered it with White Embossing Powder and heated it with my Heat Gun to melt the EP. This gave it a crisp white image on the dark card stock. (Because the cardstock is inclined to catch tiny extra bits of embossing powder and every stray fleck is so stark on the dark card stock, I always make a swipe with my Embossing Buddy pillow first. That removes the static and any fingerprints that the embossing powder wants to stick to beside the craft ink. The result is a nice crisp, fleck-free, embossed image.)

I layered the Chocolate Chip piece onto a mat of Naturals White and then punched the ribbon slots with the Horizontal Slot Punch. I stamped 'a note for you' sentiment from Sweet Little Sentiments, a level I Hostess Set, in Chocolate Chip ink onto Whisper White Textured cardstock and punched it out with the Word Window Punch. This is adhered to the main image and wrapped to the back. The remainder of the card front is three pieces of Parisian Breeze Specialty Paper layered on another piece of Chocolate Chip pattern paper from the same pack and all layered onto a narrow mat of Kraft cardstock. I threaded two pieces of ribbon, the White Grosgrain over the Chocolate Chip 5/8" Grosgrain, through the slots and wrapped them around the card front. The main image is mounted with Stampin' Dimensionals.

The Parisian Breeze paper is such a heavy weight paper that I used it for my card base as well. This piece is a more muted one with a Kraft pattern on one side and small Kraft flowers on the other side. The inside of the card has a piece of Naturals White card stock stamped those tiny butterflies from Branch Out in Baja Breeze ink.

Stamps: Branch Out, Sweet Little Sentiment
Ink: Whisper White Craft, Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze
Card Stock: Chocolate Chip, Naturals White, Whisper White Textured, Parisian Breeze Specialty
Accessories: White Embossing Powder, Horizontal Slot Punch, Word Window Punch, Chocolate Chip 5/8" Grosgrain, White Grosgrain, Stampin' Dimensionals

Square cards - I love them!

Here's another 5x5 square card - I am loving this size card - it's so fun to create in square! I took this layout straight off of this Friend card by Amy Sheffer. If you are prepared to e completely blown off your feet, check out Amy' blog Pickled Paper Designs - she is amazing!

I started with a 5x10" base of Blush Blossom and added layers of Textured Whisper White and several papers from the SAB Delicate Dots Designer Series Paper. This SAB pack of paper is 16 sheets of 4 different double sided pattern papers and it's FREE with a $50 order from Stampin' Up! I stamped the flowers and leaves from SAB Botanical Blooms (also FREE!) in Bashful Blue, So Saffron and Certainly Celery. The brads along the side are Soft Subtle Brads. I stamped Congratulations, a sentiment from the SAB Congrats stamp set (FREE!) in Basic Gray ink and punched the end of it with the My Way Punch to create the banner. This banner is attached by a white Latte Button, threaded with Linen Thread and tied to a scrap of SAB Celery Twill Ribbon Bundle (FREE!) I distressed the edge of the Whisper White Textured cardstock with the Cutter Kit and paper pierced a line with the Mat Pack.

Here's a peek at the inside - I love sentiment sets and this SAB one is going to get a lot of use!

Stamps: SAB Botanical Blooms, SAB Congrats
Cardstock: Blush Blossom, Whisper White and Whisper White Textured, SAB Delicate Dots DSP
Ink: Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery, So Saffron, Basic Gray
Accessories: SAB Ribbon Bundle, Cutter Kit, Mat Pack, Soft Subtles Brads, Latte Buttons, Linen Thread, My Way Punch

Kristina Werner's CI #40

Kristina Werner posted a new Color Inspiration Challenge and I had a chance to play with her colors this afternoon - So Saffron, More Mustard, Taken with Teal, Old Olive and Whisper White.

I mounted another one of my new stamp sets, Cheep Talk, and used a few of the many stamps in it here. The set has several pieces to build a scene on the curvy branch or on the ground with some flower elements. There are a couple of birds and several other pieces as well as curvy sentiments to match the bend in the branch.

I sponged the edges of the Whisper White in So Saffron and then in More Mustard with a Sponge Dauber. The Old Olive Eyelets (Earth Elements - retired) were added in a row below the branch, using my Crop-A-Dile. (I love how easy it is to add eyelets and especially how easy it is to add a straight row of eyelets with my Crop-A-Dile!)

A few layers, some ribbons with a knot, Stampin' Dimensionals and I called it a card. Here's a peek at the inside.

Stamps: Cheep Talk
Cardstock: Taken with Teal, More Mustard, So Saffron, Old Olive, Whisper White, Delicate Dots DSP
Ink: Taken with Teal, Old Olive, So Saffron, More Mustard
Accessories: Earth Elements Eyelets, So Saffron Grosgrain SAB Ribbon Bundle, Stampin' Dimensionals, Sponge Dauber

Branch Out

Here is another swap card, using one of the new catalog sets, Branch Out. It has the most adorable little accessories to go along with this tree. There are a tire swing, a pair of galoshes, a smattering of snowflakes, as well as the bird, leaves, and bird house that I used on this card.

The base of this card is a 5x10 piece of Bordering Blue card stock to create a 5x5 card, just the right size for the Medium Square Envelopes from Stampin' Up! (The postage on any square envelope is the regular rate plus 20 cents - so 62 cents this week.) After I scored and folded this card base, I opened it again and cut one inch off the front of the card. This gives a sneak peak to the strip of Bella Birds Designer Series Paper that I used inside the card. By cutting after I folded, it was easier for me to fold the cards at the right place.

I stamped the tree image from Branch Out in Close to Cocoa ink on the Whisper White piece. Then I added some leaves in Old Olive ink and finally some blossoms in Pretty in Pink ink. The bird is stamped in Bordering Blue, and the bird house in Chocolate Chip. The corners are punched with the Ticket Corner Punch and layered onto Chocolate Chip card stock.

The Chocolate Chip Textured card stock band at the middle wraps from the front all the way across the back of the card. I snipped a little right on the crease of it to thread my Pretty In Pink Grosgrain Ribbon underneath. There is also a layer of Bordering Blue Textured card stock on this band. The pattern paper on the front and on the inside of the card are from Bella Birds Designer Series Paper - in fact this is the same piece, one pattern from each side. I added some Antique Brass Brads (Vintage) to frame my main image and then popped the main image up on Stampin' Dimensionals.

I stamped 'a note for you' from Sweetest Little Sentiments (a Level I Hostess Set) in Chocolate Chip ink onto Whisper White Textured card stock and punched it out with the 1 1/4" Circle Punch. Then I layered it onto a 1 3/8" Circle Punch of Bordering Blue card stock. I used the paper piercer and Mat Pack to add a single row or holes just above the words. This is adhered directly to the main image panel.

Stamps: Branch Out, Sweet Little Sentiments
Cardstock: Bordering Blue, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Chocolate Chip Textured, Bordering Blue Textured, Bella Birds DSP
Ink: Close to Cocoa, Old Olive, Pretty in Pink, Bordering Blue, Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Vintage Brads, Pretty In Pink Grosgrain Ribbon, 1 3/8" Circle Punch, 1 1/4" Circle Punch, Ticket Corner Punch, Mat Pack, Stampin' Dimensionals

SAB Swap Card

This card uses several of the new Sale-A-Bration product - the paper is Delicate Dots Designer Series Paper, the ribbon is the Saffron 5/8" Grosgrain from the Ribbon Bundle, the heart image is from Polka Dot Punches stamp set and the 'with love' sentiment is from Yummy stamp set. Any one of these are FREE with a $50 order from now until March 31st.

I used an Almost Amethyst card stock base for this vintage-card. The layers of Delicate Dots DSP are sponged and crimped and wrinkled. The new Eyelet Border Punch is across the bottom of the center strip and the Trio Flower Punch with some Silver Brads to add a few extra flowers here and there. I sponged the edges with a Sponge Dauber and So Saffron ink.

I stamped the heart image from Polka Dot Punches in Whisper White Craft ink on another piece of the Delicate Dots DSP and then heat embossed it with White Embossing Powder. The image is punched out with the new Full Heart Punch and layered over the same piece stamped on Almost Amethyst cardstock. I used Stampin' Dimensionals between these layers and pierced the hat pin with pearls/beads from the Pretties Kit through one of the Stampin' Dimensionals to anchor it. The sentiment is also stamped in Whisper White Craft ink and heat embossed with White Embossing Powder and comes from another Sale-A-Bration set called Yummy. I punched it out with the big 1 3/4" Circle Punch and tucked it behind the center strip.

Another element of texture on this card is the Whisper White Textured cardstock that is layered under the So Saffron Grosgrain ribbon. The ribbon is one of the two rolls from the Sale-A-Bration Ribbon Bundle. The other roll is a Certainly Celery Twill ribbon.

The inside of this card is just a piece of Whisper White Textured cardstock with a strip of the coordinating heart print pattern paper, again from Delicate Dots DSP.

Stamps: SAB Yummy, SAB Polka Dot Punches
Cardstock: Almost Amethyst, Whisper White Textured, SAB Delicate Dots DSP
Ink:Whisper White Craft, So Saffron
Accessories: SAB Ribbon Bundle, Pretties Kit, White Embossing Powder, Full Heart Punch, Trio Flower Punch, 1¾: Circle Punch, Eyelet Border Punch, Crimper, Silver Brads, Mat Pack, Sponge Dauber, Stampin’ Dimensionals