Feeling like fall...

Good morning friends! It is time for another challenge over at Mo's DP challenge and the hostess this week is one of the most awesome, beautiful and talented people I know. Yep, that would be me hahahha! I truly am very modest but heck, if I can't write it on my own blog where can I write it?

Anyways, our challenge for the next two weeks is "Fall", I can feel it here in the air in lovely Western Pennsylvania and I love this time of year, just wished it lasted longer. It seems like the trees are full of beautiful leaves then it rains and blah. Enough of my babbling, here is my card.

This is Elke and bear and I have wanted to color her for awhile and thought the peaches reminded me of fall. I just got this paper at my lss and fell in love with it so don't be surprised if you see it again.

Okay, we love to see what you come up with and don't forget our "Anything Goes" challenge over on our facebook page all month long. You have the chance to win both places if you play along!

Kit and Clowder September challenge

Hello everyone! Woohoo its the weekend and guess what I am gonna do this weekend? Make up my creations for the Heartfelt Creations semifinalist try out! I got my goodies today and I tell you, they are all lovely but that paper is amazing, I will use every sheet in it and I rarely say that.

Okay, I know that isn't what you are here for but I am excited and wanted to share and thank everyone that has been generous enough to vote for me and leave me such wonderful comments, I am truly appreciate them all.

Today starts the September challenge for Kit and Clowder and we are being sponsored by the ever adorable The Greeting Farm stamp company and we have a color inspiration this time, you will have two palettes to choose from and they are offering a $25 gift card to the store for the winner.

I chose to use the coral one cause I have fallen in love with this color over the summer and here is my card using Dollie with bow.

I will list my copic colors below if you would like them. The tag is by Penny Black and the sentiment is by Little Darlings rubber stamps. I added the foliage at her feet with a stampendous set I believe then some stickles for a little glitter and color.

Skin E000-00-11-13 R20
Hair N3-5-7-9
Dress R01-02-05-08 E08

Heartfelt Creations semi finalist!

I was up early this morning because I knew they were going to post the semi finalists for the Heartfelt Creations dt entries and lo and behold, there was my name! I love the stamps and dies from this company and am tickled pink to be given a chance to try out for the dt. They are asking fellow crafters to vote for their top five and I will list all of the links for the other participants below. I went thru and checked them out and I am up against some wonderful crafters! I want to wish all of us good luck and if I make it then I am thanking you for voting for me also!

DT Semifinalists: Today we are pleased to announce the Heartfelt Creations Design Team Semifinalists. Choosing from such great talent and diversified submissions is very difficult and we appreciate all the applicants that participated in the design team call. Without further ado, here are the semifinalists: Karen Conner, Maureen Russell, Karen Letchworth, Susan Smit, Joyce Erb, Amanda Reed, Shellie Geigle, Debbie Seyer, Jolande van Oosterhout, Archana Joshi, Shona Ratliff, Robin Tharaldson, Candy Slabaugh, Mallika Kejriwal, Marzena Ziuziakowska, Tracey Fehr, Susannah McManus, Anne Harada, Shena Garton, Sandie Dunne, Nupur Priya and Gloria Stengel

Vote for your favorite Semifinalists: We would love to have you particpate and vote your 5 favorite semifinalists. Review each one of their blogs and then CLICK HERE to submit your vote. When you vote, you will also be entered into a drawing to be eligible to win a $50 HC Gift Certificate. You can only vote one time and you have to select 5 or more to be eligible to participate. Voting ends on September 30th, 2014.

Thanks so much and hope you are all having as great of a day as I am!

Back to School!

Wow! I can't believe it has been two weeks since I posted last! Lots going on in the Reed household lately, some good, some not so much but hopefully I will be able to do a bit more crafting soon. I am actually on vacation this week but my husband is not listening to me when I say I need some crafting time, I believe he will regret that decision as the week progresses haha!

Today is time for another new challenge over at Mo's DP challenge and the so very talented Tracy is our hostess and she has asked us to use the theme "Back to School" for our projects this week. I have chose to use the image Bye Bye for my card.

I have to confess I was really trying to put lots of pleats in her pants and made them way too dark so I took my colorless blender pen to lighten them up and think it almost looks more like denim that way! I am taking the classes over at Kit and Clowder if you are looking for some great coloring techniques you should check them out!

Okay, don't forget that Mo is giving away a voucher to the store for the random winner for each challenge so make sure to play along, she has just added some great images and I know more are coming!

Girls Birthday!

Okay, so is this an easy challenge over at Mo's DP2 challenge or what? Elaine is our awesome host this time and she would like to see a "Girls Birthday card from us. Well, seeing as how I didn't pay attention a couple of weeks ago for the boys birthday challenge I was all set for this one!

I have been wanting to color this image up for awhile now and am really happy with it except the glittery Happy Birthday, just not sure about it but it is stuck so guess I am gonna have to be! She is called Fabulous and I absolutely agree!

I have added one of my shrink art butterflies on the bow, I think it adds a cute touch! Okay, lets see your creativity in action and you just might win a credit to the store. Also make sure you pop over and check out our facebook page, there is a lot of interaction and inspiration going on there!

August Challenge for Kit and Clowder

Hello everyone! It is time for the August challenge at Kit and Clowder and this month we want to see unusual hair colors. We are being sponsored by the East Wind company, they have some fabulous images.

I decided to make a bookmark with this image, she just seemed perfect for it. This is Lucy Loo bookaholic and I am in love with this image. Will definitely color her up again!

A bit different for me but I love it! I have always loved to read but tend to do more audible books nowadays but this will be perfect to mark my artbooks as I flip thru them. The sentiment is one I found on Pinterest and I also used embossing paste for the birdcage. The challenge will run thru the end of the month and the prize being given away is 3 free digi images of your choice from the East Wind store.

Copics

Skin E000,00,11,21,04 and R20

Hair Shinhan markers  BR103,93,92 and B66, 63 and 64

Book YG61-63-67

Creative Bloggers hop!

I have been asked by my friend Pam Henness to join in with the Creative Bloggers Hop. Its a continuous Hop Every Monday with a host of Different Inspirational Bloggers taking part each week.

Pam and I were on my first design teams together, Ladybug Crafts and I have to say Kerry, the ownder of LCI, certainly set a high standard for any dt leaders to follow, to say she is awesome is an understatement and I am forever thankful for the fellow designers I met there and am still friends with. Is this craft wonderful in so many ways or what?

So I am suppose to just answer a few questions for you to get to know a bit about me.

What am I working on?

I have just ordered a set of watercolors from the Billy Showell website and would love to learn to do botanical images. I have always loved anything botanical and I will never know if I don't try right? I am also dabbling just a bit in mixed media, I need to be more "free" with my art which is difficult for me. I like everything nice and orderly.

 

How does my work differ from others in my genre?

I think my cards tend to be a bit simpler then a lot of others I see now, the trend seems to be "card overload". Although I admire people that can do this, it isn't my style and frankly, I don't like to hide the pretty paper I am using! I tend to focus more on my coloring then the embellishments although with the stash I have I better start using some more!

 

Why do I write/create what I do?

I have always had my hands busy in some type of art form, I can quilt, do stained glass and now of course cardmaking but I love cards most of all. First off, no pricked or cut fingers from sharp edges haha! And a card comes together much faster then a quilt or stained glass. I love being able to make something to give to someone that I am proud of and to make their day just a bit better. Cause really, isn't that what we are here for? To make it just a bit better in our little area of the world?

 

How does your creative process work?

Well, I normally have a card due for a team or find a new image I really want to color up to begin. Then I pick out my papers, I like to pull my colors off of them to color with and it also gives me the "feel" of the card at that time. Then off to Pinterest for some layout and embellishment ideas.

 

Okay, now I get to pick three bloggers to answer the questions and my choices are: 

 

Elaine


 

 Elaine is my best friend in the world. Everyone should be so lucky to have a friend like her. She was one of my first followers and I had the best time visiting her in England this summer. Her creations are always gorgeous yet elegantly simple and I thank God everyday for putting her in my life.

 

      Sheri

 

I met Sheri while I was on the Kraftin Kimmie dt and we have been fast friends ever since. She is my go to person for anything Silhouette related, she can use that machine like nobodies business! I love the themes she uses on her cards and her projects go beyond the simple cards I tend to do. Love her to bits!

 

 

Alyce

 

My coloring friend extraordinaire! Have you seen her classes over at her website? If not, you don't know what you are missing out on! She is my go to person for coloring questions and just being silly. She constantly amazes me with not only her coloring but her generosity and true concern for all of her friends and students. Like Elaine and Sheri, we all have an immense love for our cats and this is frequently a topic of conversation.

 

I am so thankful for all of my friends in the crafty world, they are my second family and I don't know what I would do without them. Thanks for popping by!











 

Things with wings

Hello everyone! Today starts a new challenge at Mo's DP challenge blog and Anja is hosting our challenge this time. Also, if you haven't seen her tutorial on using colored pencils she just posted it to her blog and the facebook page. Our challenge for the next two weeks is "Things with Wings" and here is my sweetie.

This is one of the images in the 3 baby fairies set, I just love her holding the little ladybug. Papers are Graphic 45 and the sentiment was a gift from my BFF Elaine, I believe it is Stampin Up.  I have also added some wink of stella to her wings but of course it doesn't show in the photo. The foliage at her feet is a clear stamp I used the added some stickles to.

Alright, please make sure to check out the dt creations, we always have such an awesome variety of things to show you and we love seeing what you come up with in return! Of course Mo is giving away a $5 credit to the store for every 25 entries and you can always enter your card into our Facebook challenge, it is always Anything Goes!

Power Poppy

Hello everyone! I am on a roll, three cards in the past week and another one tomorrow if you care to come back! This card was made for the Power Poppy challenge which is a Peep of the Week, basically it can be anything as long as you use one of their images. Well, I have almost all of the digis and a friend recently put out a request for some cards for a friend that wasn't feeling well so I thought it was the perfect time to color another one up.

This is the Gerbera Daisy image and I printed it off in a pale gray ink so I could try the "no lines" technique. Not too bad I think!

I hope everyone is staying cool and enjoying their summer!

Bluebird of Happiness

Hello everyone! I have a card I made just because I love the image, this is called The Buzzard from Art Impressions and it was one of the images I won from the challenge I played along with a few weeks ago, he is hysterical!

I would like to enter this into the current challenge which is an easy one, "Happy Birthday".

Thanks for stopping by!

Lavinia stamps

Good morning! Another different project for me today, this is one of the digital images from Lavinia stamps called Zen Bryony. I am entering this into the Lavinia challenge blog which is to use "Summer Colors".

She is colored with copics and I made all of the orange flowers to coordinate with her. A bit of white paint on her drops in her hair and some stickles on the bubbles floating around her for a bit of bling.  A simple easy card today!

Boy birthday!

Hello friends! It is time for another challenge at Mo's DP2 challenge and our challenge for the next two weeks is a "Boys Birthday" hosted by the wonderful Elaine. Please remember, it is a "boys" birthday and not a "girls" birthday as err...someone else did haha!

I have used a newer image today called Blast, it also comes in a girl version too.

Papers are older MME I believe, I am trying to use older paper pads up as I can. He is colored with copics and the sentiment is included with the image. We love to see what you have to share with us and please make sure to join us over on our facebook page, we have occasional sales, lots of inspiration and some awesome camaraderie going on. Plus every month is our "Anything Goes" challenge so you can enter your card on the challenge blog and on facebook! Woohoo!  Hope to see you there!

Trying colored pencils

Good morning everyone! Since I have cut back on my dt obligations I have had some more time to play a bit with all of the crafty stuff I have and one of those is my colored pencils. And I have always loved anything botanical so I decided to play along with the latest challenge over at Power Poppy (love these floral images!) and try out my pencils for the first time without copics. So be gentle okay?

This is one of the latest releases called Countryside Bouquet and is a digi image, my fav! The challenge this week is to go with your countries colors, I was shooting for red, white and blue but think mine ended up being more pink, yellow and purple. Still pretty though and the thought was there! The sentiment is a freebie from the site. I have used my spectrum noir pencils for this and they blended together really easily so I am happy so far. More practice just like anything else though to get better highlights and shadows but it was fun to try something different. Oh, papers are Pion that my BFF Elaine gave to me and I have been hoarding.

I would like to enter this into the Power Poppy challenge.

Art by Miran

Good morning everyone! We have a new sponsor over at the Kit and Clowder blog for our monthly challenge and this month we are all coloring images by Art by Miran and here is a link to her etsy shop and her facebook page.

Our challenge this month is "clothing" to correspond with the awesome newly released clothing class at Kit and Clowder and I have tried my hand at the "dip dye" look Alyce has taught in the class.

My image is Rosy cheek Emma, I have never been a big Manga fan but I LOVE her images! I will list my copic colors below, papers are by LOTV and the butterflies are MFT dies I believe. I have also added a small portion of a diecut from La La Land at the bottom with a touch of flower soft across the grass portion. A smidgen of light blue frantage around the edges and she is done.
The winner of the challenge will get three free images of their choice from the store. Please make sure to link up your cards at Kit and Clowder challenge for us to see them, we love to see how people are coming along with their coloring!

Copics

Skin  E000-00-11-04  R20

Dress B12-14-16-18 and Y11-13-15-17 YR24

Hair  Y21 YR23-27  E59

Leaves  Shinhan  GY48  G46-54  BG52

Rose RV63-66-69



Its a girls world!

Hello everyone! It is time again for Mo's DP Challenge and the lovely hostess this week is Mau, she would like us to use the theme "Its a Girls World". That worked out perfectly for me as I was commissioned to do a girls card for her 16th birthday.

This image is Jordan Multitasking but I have colored her to be Caucasian to fit my needs.

Okay, so my card says "Congratulations" cause I misunderstood what she needed but pretty sure I can fix it lol! My papers are older MME and the flowers are WOC.

Okay, we love to see you play along with us and I know Mo has recently released several new images so what are you waiting for?

Lavinia stamps challenge card

Alright everyone, stepping outside of my comfort zone a bit here! I came across a webshop for Lavinia stamps and really would love to play along in their challenge blog to win some of their images so here is my attempt.

I have used the digi Zen butterfly on my card and the challenge is beads or gems so I have added small gems to the wings of the butterfly. They are actually for on fingernails but hey, they fit so I used them!

I have used a heart stencil and applied a mix of glitter and embossing paste for some glimmer and a frantage embossed chipboard word in the corner. A bit of stickles on the tips of the wings and it is done. Oh, the image is only glued down along the body so the wings are floating and I colored the back of it with a blue copic so it doesn't look odd from the sides. Alright, wish me luck! I want some of those stamps haha!

Art Impressions birthday card

Good morning! Today I wanted to show you a card I made for my moms birthday, I have a feeling I might enjoy it more then her though! I have a few Art Impression stamps and have never got a chance to use them so today is the day. This image is called Fire Out!

I have used a mix of both copics and Shinhan markers, some embossing paste for the clock (time flies ya know!) and some metal corners from Wild Orchid Crafts that I painted white. I was going to add some candles or her age on it but thought I best leave well enough alone.

I would like to enter this into the Art Impressions challenge which is "Hip to be Square".

Tiddly Inks release

Good morning! It is a beautiful day here in Pennsylvania today and Happy Fathers Day to all the dads out there. Mine is in heaven now but I still chat with him most days. I just look up and blabber away!

Today the Kit and Clowder dt have the fun of joining in along with the Tiddly Inks girls for their latest release! I use to be a Tiddly Inks girl a couple of years ago and Christy is one of the nicest people you will ever meet on top of having really cute images! Make sure you hop over to the Kit and Clowder website as I believe there are some giveaways happening this weekend!

I have used Beary Sweet for my image today and here she is...

Papers are by LOTV, I bought several pads there this summer, they are really nice! Sentiment by Whimsy stamps and I white embossed a butterfly image onto vellum and cut it out for the embellishment plus some little jewels for its body. Copics are listed below.

Copics

Skin  E000-00-11-04  R20

Dress  YG23-25-67

Shoes  N3-5-7

Panda  N1-3

Hair  E53-11-23-57



Summer flowers

Happy Thursday friends! It is time again for a new challenge at DP2 Challenge and the lovely Nela is our hostess this time and she would like to see us use the theme of "Summer Flowers". I have playing with making my own flowers recently so this challenge was perfect for me!

I have used the image Imke and Mama today, her dress looks a bit bright in the photo but it isn't quite that vibrant irl, I was trying to match the roses in the paper.

I also love the sentiment on this card, it is definitely my life's motto. I will list the copics I used at the bottom of the post. My flowers are colored with distress inks and I used microbeads for the centers. I have also lightly colored in the sky with a light blue pencil. My flowers are a bit glittery even though you can't see it, I have added dots of metallic pen on them for some dimension. Don't you wish flowers were glittery irl too? Haha!

Okay, we love to see you play along and have you checked out our facebook page? We have lots of fun over there and love to see your projects there too. Plus we have monthly GDT calls so come join in!

Copics

Skin  E000-00-11-23  R20

Dress (Shinhan) R8-3-2

Apron  W1-3-5

Shirt  RV21-23



Shabby chic!

Good morning everyone! Today is the start of the June challenge for the Kit and Clowder website and this month we are being sponsored by Live and Love crafts and CC Designs and CC Designs has been generous enough to give us some of their new release stamps to play with and our theme this month is "Shabby Chic".

Here is my card:

I have used one of my new Go Kreate dies and added some lace, flowers, white paint, pearls and glitter which in my mind equals shabby chic! I just can't rip paper, I just can't!

Our winners will be given a $20 voucher for CC Designs and one will get a 10 pound voucher from Live and Love Crafts. Make sure you post your entries at the Kit and Clowder site for your chance to win!

Copics

Skin  E000-00-11-23  R20

Dress YG01-03-63-67

Hair YG21-26  E35-59



Sentiment tutorial

Good morning! I hope you are having a wonderful day wherever you are in this great big ol world we are in! We had gorgeous weather this weekend and we managed to get a lot accomplished in the yard so that always makes me feel good.

Today I have a short tutorial for you on how to dress up your sentiments. It is super easy but I think adds a nice touch. You can use any punch or spellbinders die etc for this technique. Okay, here we go!

First off I punch out the paper I will use for the sentiment itself, normally I stamp first but for demonstration purposes (and laziness) I skipped that part.

At this point you can also ink the edges, add glitter to them or anything else to jazz them up if you want.

Next I punch out the cardstock I want to use for the matting.

 

Then I cut these in half, smack dab down the middle as best I can manage.

 

Then I add adhesive to the back of my blank sentiments, I normally use clear liquid adhesive so I can move the back parts around a bit.

And attach the matting to the back of the sentiments with them pulled apart in the center a little bit. I did have to trim the points off of the center of the black matting because it looked odd on the front. I always turn them over to make sure the matting is even all around the edges, this is where the liquid adhesive is handy.

And voila! Instant matting for your sentiments!

New Beginnings

Good Morning my friends! As you are reading this post I am taking in the beauty that is England, yep, I am in EUROPE! This has been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember and to be able to share it with my best friend Elaine, well,  I just can't ask for anything more, truly.

Anyways, hopefully this post goes up when it is suppose to and our challenge for the next two weeks for Mo's DP2 Challenge is hosted by the lovely Elaine and she is asking us to us the theme "New Beginnings". So my card today is the one I made for my niece's upcoming wedding.

 

I have once again attempted to color pleats, not too bad but still could use a little work. This image is called Ragged Romeo, my papers are MME and the sentiment is from LOTV. The butterflies are ones I made with shrink plastic.

 

Okay, we love to see your cards, projects etc, you can post them on the challenge blog and also at our facebook group. We have lots of stuff going on over there, monthly challenges, tutorials and right now a chance to be a guest designer! 

Jenny's birthday

Well, my little sister is hitting the big 40 next week and I won't be here to celebrate with her but I am sending her a card to let her know I am thinking of her! I also wanted to start playing with some of my LOTV images since I have so many!

This image is called Friends Forever and I like how the two fairies are holding hands. My sister and I are very close so this really reminded me of her and I.

My sentiment is also from LOTV and my image is colored with copics and just a smidge of colored pencil for the clouds, grounding and to highlight the images. I am trying to work on my hair skills and am following along with the awesome videos at Kit and Clowder. She does it totally different then I did so it is taking me some time but I will get there!

Okay, I would like to enter this into the LOTV challenge and the fun part is I will get to visit the shop next week cause I am going to England to meet my best friend Elaine! I will be leaving in just about 5 hours so I need to get off of here and finish packing.

Happy Mothers Day!

Hello and Happy Mothers Day to all of my fellow moms out there, even though I only have cats they  were very thoughtful and "bought" me a couple of hanging baskets. They know who manages the treats around this house haha!

I wanted to show you the card I made for my mom today, it is from a new to me website called Power Poppy and I am in LOVE with these images! I have always loved floral images and am managing to find the time to color some of them up now. This definitely won't be my last card with their images.

Here is my card, very simple so the image is the main focus.

I have used a combination of copics and Shinhan marker son this, my ribbon is from the Stamp Simply ribbon store and the pearl center is a gift from my BFF Elaine.

I would like to enter this into the Power Poppy color challenge.

1500 followers giveaway!

Happy Saturday everyone! I wish that title was for my blog but it is for an awesome giveaway starting now over at the Kit and Clowder facebook group. You need to join both the facebook group for Kit and Clowder and the facebook group for Saturated Canary and you will be in the running for a free digi from Saturated Canary.

Alyce is also generously offering a giveaway for her copic coloring site (which is AWESOME!). If you purchase the skin and hair class in the next 24 hours she will give you the Whimsical class free! I have done them all and trust me, there is so much on there. I have done other classes before and honestly, I am like, "uh, I know that" but not with Alyce. Hers are so detailed and so much I had never thought of. Great for a beginner and an experienced colorist too!

So here is my latest card using one of the new Saturated Canary releases, this is Ellie Awesome Sauce.

My papers are Prima lyric and the sentiment is from LOTV. I will list my copics below. Hope you get a chance to play along and have the chance to win some goodies or take advantage of the sale at Kit and Clowder.

Copics

Skin  E000,00,11,21,04  R20

Dress RV1,23,25,29

Shoes W1,3,5,7

Hair is Shinhan markers



Whimsical characters needed!

Hello everyone! Its time for another challenge at Mo's DP2 Challenge and our hostess for the next weeks is one of the sweetest people I know, Tracy. And she would like to see us use whimsical or fairytale images this time.

I have been wanting to color up this image but was a bit intimidated by it but I tell ya, I am tickled pink with the way it came out! Just one section at a time and before you know it, I was all done! This is Dragon Hugs and it also comes in a little boy version.

Papers are by Graphic 45 and the sentiment is by Whimsy stamps. I have been playing around with different color combos and am really liking this green one. I believe it is YG03, 07 and G29, the pinks are R20,22 and 24. She has just a bit of sparkle on her waist and the banner on her hat.

Okay, lets see some inspiration from you and make sure to check us out on Mo's facebook page, we have lots of fun, a new challenge each month and right now we are also having a guest dt call!

Swirly glitter accent tutorial

Hey everyone! We have started doing weekly tutorials for Mo's facebook page and we are going to try to do them on Tuesdays so you know which day to watch for them and today is my day, lucky you! I have decided to show you how to make those little swirly things that people use in their flower arrangements, I don't know what they are called but anything with glitter grabs my attention!

Okay, lets get started! First of all you will need white glue which I thinned out a bit with some water, just enough to make it not overly thick. I use coated wire from the floral section of the local craft store, I think the glitter sticks to it better then plain wire, some wire snips, something to wrap your wire around (I use a knitting needle but a paintbrush handle, pen etc would work fine) and glitter. I have used both Distress Glitter and MS glitter so you can see the difference in the two.

So first I cut a length of wire about 5 or 6 inches long, doesn't have to be specific, and wrap it around my knitting needle leaving a tail to hold onto.

Dip it into my glue and let the excess drip off then sprinkle with glitter and let it dry. I set mine on a non stick craft mat to prevent it from sticking when I go to pick it up. And here is what they look like, the Distress Glitter is on the left, you can see it is a bit more matte looking and the MS glitter is on the right, I prefer it as it really sparkles.

Okay, doesn't get much simpler then this. Just make sure you let most of the glue drip off before you add the glitter or you will have a lump of glitter instead of a twirly thing!

Playing along with Chi Chi Memories

Hello everyone! Today I have a new card to show you featuring an image from the cute Chi Chi Memories and they are also sponsoring the May challenge at Kit and Clowder this month which is "flowers". Easy right? Flowers on your card, in the papers, whatever, just show us some flowers! Chi Chi Memories is offering a free digi and 15% off your order to the winner.

I have used this little cutie today, here is the how she looks from the site.

And here is how I have colored her up for the challenge.

 

I will add a list of my copics at the bottom. I have been trying to do something a little bit different here and there just to push myself a bit so the little silver flourish in the corner is embossing paste covered while wet with glitter. It adds a little texture to the card but doesn't overpower it. I have also just noticed it looks like a cat hair is sticking out of my flowers across the image, just a little gift from Wimbly I guess!

 

Okay, enjoy your weekend and hope to see you play along at the challenge. Don't forget the awesome classes available at Kit and Clowder with more to come very soon!

 

Copics

Skin  E000.00.11,21,04 and R20

Hair YR21, Y20, E99

Shirt  R20,21,22,BV23

 



A sad goodbye

Happy Saturday everyone! I am so glad it is the weekend, this was a heck of a busy week and I need a breather. The sad part is that today is my last post as a Kraftin Kimmie girl. I have a lot of other things I want to do around my home and I needed to find some time to do them but I am truly sad to step down from this amazing team, they are a second family to me.  Kimmie and the girls are nothing short of AWESOME to be involved with so if you ever get the chance to be a Kimmie girl or guest, jump on it!

Our challenge this week for Kraftin Kimmies is a bingo which I absolutely adored, and the amazing Stephanie is our hostess for this. Here is the bingo card, it is a little challenging but a great inspiration!

And here is my take on it.

I have used one of the newer releases, Show Stoppers and I have gone with the stickles, vintage, wood accent (birdcage), dark accent (ribbon) and recycled which is the paper I tore from an old book. Whew!

Okay, lets see what you can make with this awesome challenge and you have the chance to win a stamp from the store!

CAS is the theme!

Good morning everyone! Today's post is for the newest challenge at Mo's DP challenge blog and this time the amazing Franz would like us to go CAS. This can be a little challenging for me, although I don't use a bunch of embellishments normally, this is less then I am comfy with.

So I decided to print my image out pretty big to cover a lot of cardspace and I am pretty happy with it. I haven't added a sentiment as I figure it can be used for a lot of occasions and will pop something on when I decide to use it.

This image is called Rustic Windowbox and I have always thought it was so pretty. I would love to have turquoise windowboxes full of geraniums on my house so that is the direction I went. Just a few glitter dots was the only accent I used and honestly, I really love this!

Okay, lets see what CAS means to you and now you have the chance not only to win a voucher to the store but we are also picking our top three favorites and you can add the gadget to your sidebar if we pick you! And we are having lots of fun on facebook so try to stop by and check us out!

Kraftin Kimme and Kit & Clowder blog hop!

We're so excited! It’s our APRIL RELEASE Day at KRAFTIN KIMMIE STAMPS!! And we’re celebrating with a KRAFTY HOP!! So grab yourself a cuppa joe, sit back and be prepared for some krafty eye kandy! We're going to inspire your creations with our fun, new stamps! OH and we've got some EXTRA SPECIAL things going on for you this month!!

Over the last few days in our Krafty Peeks, we have shared lots of AMAZING new stamps from all our artists for our April release! We’ve got something for everyone!! We’ve got an adorable new spring set from Cheryl called RAINY DAY FUN! There's an awesome new MONSTER set from Thais called MONSTER HUGS! Lastly, we are SO excited to share a GORGEOUS new Moonlight Whispers stamp set from Annie called....BLOOMIN WONDERFUL!
You will get to see ALL of the new images today as you sit back and enjoy our APRIL Krafty Hop! We are SO thrilled to have the Kit and Clowder design team joining us in our hop!! They have done a great job with the new stamps and are helping us to launch this fabby new release!!! We are so excited to have them join us!!
Well, aren't I the lucky one? I am on both Kraftin Kimmies team and the Kit and Clowder design team!

I have chosen to use another one of the Bloomin Wonderful images on my card today and have added some sequin butterflies and a little photo frame I made out of some air dry clay.

As you hop from blog to blog, be sure to leave a comment at each and every stop because some lucky stampers will win packages of these incredible stamps from the new release!! AND we've got an extra special HOP this month!! We've planned a KRAFTY EASTER EGG HUNT in our hop!!! There are eleven letters hidden along the way and they spell out a two word phrase! Find all the letters, unscramble them and post your answer on our Facebook page wall!! One lucky winner will receive a KKS goodie package and you have until Monday night to enter!!
When you’re done hoppin’, be sure to head over to the Kraftin’Kimmie shop, because ALL the new images are available NOW! And don't forget...if you NEED it all, we have a Gimme Kimmies Kit which features ALL the new April stamps at a discount!! But only for a limited time!
One more super fun thing!!! We are sponsoring a Kustomer Kompetition over at the Kit and Clowder site!! Submit your creation featuring a Kraftin' Kimmie Stamp and YOU could WIN the ENTIRE new release!!!! (If you can't wait and plan to order the new release stamps, no problem! If you WIN, I'll let ya choose your own stamps!! )
 

Check out the list of Krafty Girls and our Special Guests below who each have a project to share with you using all sorts of the NEW APRIL release stamps that are all NOW AVAILABLE!  Be sure to leave some love at every stop because one lucky stamper will WIN a package of stamps from this release!  Happy hoppin'! And happy shoppin'!!

1.	Peggy Toole	9.	(K&C) Alyce Keegan	17.	Amanda Reed
2.	Karen Hanson	10.	Colleen Schaan	18.	(K&C) Rita Edwards
3.	Stephanie Beauchemin	11.	Melanie Holtz	19.	Sheri Wilshire
4.	Tangii Crain	12.	Deborah Deruyck	20.	(K&C) Faye Wynn-Jones
5.	(K&C) Tracy Payne	13.	Diana Pickering	21.	Jessie Rone
6.	Marilyn Provost	14.	Sharon Caudle	22.	Tracy Valure
7.	Becky Pearce	15.	(K&C) Andrea Tully	23.	Jenny Peterson
8.	Cheryl Alger	16.	(K&C) Elise Dinolfo	24.	Sarah Gough

(Linkup closed)

Monster Hugs!

Welcome back to day THREE of our APRIL Kraftin' Kimmie Peeks!!! The awesome new stamps just keep on comin'!!
We are SO thrilled to share the newest set of FOUR images with matching sentiments from THAIS! Could this set of furry friends BE any cuter?? This fabulously fun new set is called MONSTER HUGS!!

This week our challenge hostess is SHARON! And her challenge is ANYTHING GOES!! So create a card, scrapbook page or altered item with a Kraftin' Kimmie stamp with no restrictions! Use any sketch, any design, any embellishments because Anything Goes! 

I have used an older paper pad on this one, I just wanted to use some bright colors for this guy!

Have some krafty fun and join us this week because we'd LOVE to see your KKS designs. We hope you can play along for your chance to WIN some NEW Kraftin' Kimmie rubbah!!!

Are you join us for our LIVE ONLINE RELEASE PARTY!!! Hope you can join us for all the fun and excitement and prizes!!! We'll be releasing all the new stamps you've seen this week after the party at 11am EDT!! You can read all the details about how you can join us RIGHT HERE!
All the Krafty Girls listed below have lots of super FUN designs to show you featuring these sweet new stamps from Thais! And while you're hopping around, be sure to leave a comment because we are giving away some stamps!!! You could WIN this new set of stamps!!!!! {All of this week's winners will be announced later this week!}
So come and hang out with us in a couple of hours for all the LIVE action krafty fun at the release party and then come on back here tomorrow to check out the release day blog hop! The design team over at Kit and Clowder are helping us to launch the new stamps this month! We'll have lots of surprises for you, including an Easter Egg Hung, a Customer Competition and ALL the new stamps will be available TODAY at the KKStamps Shop!!
Happy hoppin'!

 

Thanks for hopping around with us today!  Below is the list of Krafty Girls who have a project to share with you featuring the new MONSTER HUGS! stamp set! Leave a little love at every stop to qualify for a chance to win some blog candy! Prize winners will be announced later this week and all the new stamps will be released later today (Saturday)!!!

1.	Sharon Caudle	7.	Becky Pearce	13.	Colleen Schaan
2.	Deborah Deruyck	8.	Peggy Toole	14.	Sarah Gough
3.	Karen Hanson	9.	Jenny Peterson	15.	Tangii Crain
4.	Stephanie Beauchemin	10.	Jessie Rone	16.	Marilyn Provost
5.	Sheri Wilshire	11.	Melanie Holtz
6.	Amanda Reed	12.	Tracy Valure

(Linkup closed)

Bloomin Wonderful!

Welcome back to Day TWO of the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps APRIL previews!!! We are back with a fabulous new Moonlight Whispers stamp set by Annie Rodrigue!! You'll love these two gardening ladies along with the THREE fun sentiments!!

Today the Krafty Girls and I are thrilled to share with you.....BLOOMIN' WONDERFUL!! There are lots of gorgeous creations on today's hop featuring both new images and sentiments from the set!! We know you are just going to LOVE these springtime ladies and be inspired by all the fun designs!!

I have to say these are two of my all time favorite Moonlight Whispers images, these I can see myself using over and over for sure!

I have been using a lot of coral lately, just such a happy color ya know?

Below you will find all the Krafty Girls who have goodies to show you today and while you're visiting their blogs, be sure to leave some love at each stop because one lucky stamper is going to WIN a package of today's stamps!! Woohoo!!!
ALL of our APRIL stamps will be available on Saturday morning at the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Shop!!! We'll be celebrating at our LIVE ONLINE RELEASE PARTY!! It's over at our KKS Facebook fan page! Join us for all the fun!! You can find more details here!!
Happy hoppin'!!

Thanks for hopping around with us today!  Below is the list of Krafty Girls who have a project to share with you featuring the new BLOOMIN' WONDERFUL! stamp set! Leave a little love at every stop to qualify for a chance to win some blog candy! Prize winners will be announced at the LIVE Online Release Party on Saturday morning!

1.	Stephanie Beauchemin	6.	Karen Hanson	11.	Becky Pearce
2.	Amanda Reed	7.	Tracy Valure	12.	Sharon Caudle
3.	Sheri Wilshire	8.	Deborah Deruyck	13.	Sarah Gough
4.	Jenny Peterson	9.	Peggy Toole	14.	Colleen Schaan
5.	Jessie Rone	10.	Tangii Crain	15.	Marilyn Provost

(Linkup closed)

Rainy Day Fun!

Welcome to day ONE of our APRIL Kraftin' Kimmie Previews!!! Today we are excited to share a supah cute new set featuring Lulu, Lexi and Lucas! It's by artist Cheryl Alger and will help us welcome spring! We are sharing samples today featuring.......RAINY DAY FUN!!

I love Cheryls images and this is no exception. I kept it pretty simple with just a layered Prima hydrangea flower (I also have like 6 jars of them!) and a sentiment which of course comes with the images.

I added a touch of glossy accents to the raindrops which you can't see in the photo but looks pretty irl.  

All the Krafty Girls and Guests listed below have lots of super FUN designs to show you, so be sure to hop over to each of them! And while you're there, be sure to leave a c...omment because we are giving away one of the new sets and YOU could WIN!! {All of this week's winners will be announced at the online party on Saturday morning!}

Then come on back tomorrow to check out MORE fun new stamps we have to share with you! And ALL the new APRIL stamps will be available on Saturday morning at the KKStamps Shop!!
Happy hoppin'!

 

Thanks for hopping around with us today!  Below is the list of Krafty Girls who have a project to share with you featuring the new RAINY DAY FUN! stamp set! Leave a little love at every stop to qualify for a chance to win some blog candy! Prize winners will be announced at the LIVE Online Release Party on Saturday morning!

1.	Deborah Deruyck	7.	Karen Hanson	13.	Peggy Toole
2.	Amanda Reed	8.	Tangii Crain	14.	Jenny Peterson
3.	Sheri Wilshire	9.	Sharon Caudle	15.	Marilyn Provost
4.	Stephanie Beauchemin	10.	Becky Pearce	16.	Colleen Schaan
5.	Tracy Valure	11.	Jessie Rone
6.	Sarah Gough	12.	Melanie Holtz

(Linkup closed)

Pinkalicious!

Hello my crafty friends! Hope you are all doing well, we are expecting sunshine today so I am a happy camper! Todays card is for the latest challenge at Mo's DP 2 Challenge and our hostess this time is our fabulously talented dt leader, Pat! She has chosen another easy challenge for us, use "Pink"!

I was asked to make a sweet 16 birthday card for a friend so I chose to use Cara Chatting for her and added lot of bling!

I cut the Happy Birthday and the 16 out on my silhouette, then added glitter to the numbers and glossy accents to the sentiment, I wanted it to be a little stiff since it hangs off the edges. My papers are from Authentique.

Okay, you have two weeks not to play along with us for your chance to win a store voucher, $5 for every 25 entries and we are now picking our fav's and you can get a badge to put on your blog!

Blue challenge

Hi everyone! Welcome to the Kit and Clowder April Challenge! Every month we will be doing a fun new challenge over on the Kit and Clowder website where you can win a prize from one of our amazing sponsors.

Our fabulous challenge sponsor this month is Whimsy Stamps. Whimsy Stamps also sponsors the K & C website and have generously donated a $15 gift certificate to the winner of this challenge! You do not need to use a whimsy stamps image to participate but there are some fabulous images over in the store to inspire you.

This month we want you to show us your Blue creations! We just require any part of your project to be blue. We would love for you to experiment colouring Blue but if it's in your papers or embellishments that is ok too! The design team has some fabulous inspiration this month and have even listed what colours they have used in their favourite mediums to create some beautiful blue hues.
The challenge will remain open until the first Saturday of the next month. Hope to see you all playing along!

I have used two stamps from Whimsy stamps, the first is rubber and is called Emily for my main image. Her blue shades are  B00, B02, B04, B06 and B09 for her dress. I have also used one of their digital sentiments, this is Animal Companions.

I have used some ribbon on my card, I was inspired by this card by Rhea Weigand, really like the dimension and flow it adds. Some blue frontage and misc flowers to finish her off.

Wonderful Wednesday

Welcome to another Wonderful Wednesday challenge and the first one for April!! And as always....it's ANYTHING GOES!!
Your submission must use at least one Kraftin' Kimmie Stamp but can be any theme, any style, any design and it can be a card, a scrapbook page, an altered item....you name it!! It must be a NEW creation and you can enter on this post until Tuesday, April 8th!! What do you think.....wanna WIN??

**Please note that you are more than welcome to combine this Wonderful Wednesday Share to Win challenge with other challenges, BUT not our regular weekly challenges. This must be a new and different creation than anything you create for our Saturday challenges.

I have used one of Cheryls images, this is from the Together is Better set and my sentiment is from the Happy Birthday Trinkets set.

 I tried to do a little shading with a black chalk pencil like Jenny does, not too bad I guess?

OH and HEY....did you hear?? ***We are having a FLASH SALE at the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Shop!!! How about you MAKE YOUR OWN SALE??? This is no joke!!! For Tuesday and Wednesday ONLY, save 20% OFF any stamp sets YOU choose!! Use coupon code APRILFOOL to receive your discount at checkout!!! (This is for stamps only....please place any other products you're ordering in a separate order.) What stamps will YOU be choosing?? Happy shoppin'!!!

Shrink art butterfly

Hi everyone! This week is my week to post a tutorial and I have a new found "obsession", shrink art embellishments! I have one on my card below and have made another one to show you step by step. I have found free printable images online for my butterflies.

The first thing you need is Shrink art plastic, the one I prefer is the one for inkjet printers but it also comes in sheets you can stamp and color on.

Then I print out my images onto a sheet.

Then cut out your image.

Now comes the fun part! You can either put the image into your oven and bake it or or heat it up with an embossing tool. It shrinks up really fast, within 20 seconds or so but it gets HOT! so be careful. I do hold mine down with a metal pokey tool very gently because it can poke a hole in the material. It will also fold over onto itself but normally will flatten back out, if not, just pull it open while warm. Sometimes I will take an acrylic stamping block and smush it down to flatten it but sometimes I let it cool just a bit and hold the wings up on the sides to give it some dimension.

Here is a comparison of one just cut out and one heated.

And here is one on my finished card.

Have fun!