I'm in LOVE....

My wonderful blogger friend Martha sent me these adorable images and I finally got a chance to sit down and make a couple cards with them last night. Ahh, I really do love these images from The Greeting Farm. They are just the best. I love the way they are made just perfectly to color and the size is great too -- a lot of room to really get creative with coloring. On a side note, they are have a DT call that ends Sunday and I'm busy, busy, busy trying to put together a great submission for them b/c it would just be TOO awesome to be part of such a fabulous company (and I have to admit, pretty cool b/c it's local and Marie just seems super sweet). But it's not up to me and I'm not going to get my hopes up b/c I did that with a previous DT submission and learned that it's not fun when it doesn't work out! LOL Like my hubby told me last night, just have fun with it and make something I love and no matter what happens at least I've enjoyed myself. He's so right sometimes (ok, a lot of times) LOL.

ok, so I used a combination of Copics and Bics to color the images (still working on perfecting that thing called shading!) I also used glossy accents on the star on Ian's shirt, wheels on the skateboard and on Mermaid Anya's tail. I also used Bella Baubles on Ian's card. (it's hard making boy cards!) For the bling in Mermaid Anya's hair I used stickles (stickles RULE).

I really need to start keeping track of what I use on my cards to give more detailed info! LOL

So, I've created a card maker it seems....

Every day since my daughter made her card for the Club Anya Kids challenge, she has asked to make another card and another card and another card! LOL So she found some of my RAK TGF images and wanted to make a card with Mermaid Anya. Well, I work from home so I needed some quiet time so I let her have at it and this is what she created:

OMG, is it not the cutest? LOL Yes she put sunglasses on mermaid anya's head and that's her beach bag there she's holding which my daughter managed to stuff full with other little stickers like shovels, etc. And you can sorta tell that there is a sandcastle behind her and a beachball and of course a palm tree. So apparently mermaid anya came out of the water to play for a bit - oh and yes those are her beach sandles. *giggle* I seriously love it. This card she said she made for her Uncle Neil so we'll have to mail that out when we mail the other card she made for Nanny. How she decides who gets a card is totally on her. She decides beforehand though! LOL And oh, here is a pic of her holding her creation (which she managed to put clothes on for picture purposes only! LOL)

My Daughter's First Anya Card!

I have just fallen in LOVE with this new stamp

company - The Greeting Farm. OMG, to die for stamps and as I found out yesterday, AWESOME customer service and they are LOCAL to me! I love the Anya line and they have awesome challenges and recently posted for a kids challenge. My daughter is 3.5 and I didn't really think she was old enough but she LOVES to color, right? So, why not? Of course, mommy didn't have any of these fabulous stamps yet but they do have some digi stamps so I let her pick her stamp and let her go. Her favorite color is RED so there is a LOT of red on this card! She ALMOST colored the entire image red but I sorta

talked her out of that! LOL Of course my camera died after only one pic of her (OMG, so embarrassed b/c my craft supplies are ALL OVER in total disorganization).

So fun, I hope those of you with little ones will let them have fun with the challenge. Like I said, even if you don't have any of their stamps, they have some digi stamps avail that are incredibly reasonable!

If my daughter happens to win, I know she will choose Princess Anya b/c she LOVES being a princess (as you can see in the pic, LOL).

My FIRST Blog Award!

Look at that, my first blogger award! Thanks Martha! How fun....Take a look at her fabulous blog, I am just in awe of her work. She is such a sweetie and when I asked her for some images I got them so fast. Thanks lady!

So here's how it works:

1. The winner may put the logo on their blog.
2. Put a link to the person who sent you the award.
3. Nominate 5 blogs.
4. Put links to their blogs.
5. Leave a message for your nominees.

Here are the blogs I nominate in no particular order (hard to choose just 5):
1. Angela
2. Leanne
3. Michelle
4. Laura
5. Paula

Be sure to visit these ladies fabulous blogs and leave some love for them!

SCS - Virtual Stamp Night

This weekend at Splitcoast Stampers was Virtual Stamp Night. It's two nights filled with hourly challenge and fun with fellow stampers while we stamp & create in our own homes. I am in awe with the people that manage to create a project for each challenge. One of my goals this year is to do that but it wasn't to be this weekend! However, I did get 5 cards completed before the challenge ended at 10p EST tonight. It's so much fun and for me, just the best b/c even though I love going to crops at my LSS, sometimes it's just a pain to pack everything up just to realize the ONE thing I wanted I left at home! LOL

A look at the five cards I created this weekend! All in 45 mins or less (one of the requirements of VSN, I think that is the HARDEST part.)

No Fair Girl

LOVE this stamp (although, I have to admit when I got her I was surprised at how tiny she is). She is part of the Tiddly Inks line at Stamping Bella. I finally had the desire to ink her up for the first time for myself (she'd already been sent out as images to friends, of course!). I just love the expression on her face, oh how my daughter Tolla often looks at me this way!

This card started with a scrap of DP that caught my eye as I was placing things on my table and just grew from there. I'm very pleased with the finished layout as it's always fun to make a card from scratch when I normally use a sketch for beginning inspiration. She was a bit of a pain to color, I think I'll try to paper piece her next time and those curls!!! OH MY, those were a....., well, you know. LOL I left the inside blank as I'm sending her with a swap I'm in as a thank you to the hostess so I want her to be able to use it if she wants for whatever.

Of course, I'm going to complain about my camera and the lack of sufficient lighting in my house to take good pics of my cards. So she's a bit blurry and the colors are greatly muted.

Some recent projects

I lost my mojo over the weekend and sat as I did in front of my craft table, nothing was created. Even with my beautiful new scor-pal I had nothing. Hate those days! So, good thing I had some things I created the week before that I hadn't shared yet.

This I made for my friend Dee's sketch challenge. I love this sketch and made this card for my girls to give my parents for valentines.

I also made some more Mwah Bella bday cards b/c I just love her and for some reason after this DP sat for a year and I thought I'd never use it I finally like it! On these I paper pieced her shirt and gave her some blingy boots. I love these and have 2 for upcoming bdays! Yay.

So it was my bday yesterday....

I turned the big THREE-OH! I had a nice day. Still had to work b/c I never thought of taking my bday off even though my hubby takes his off every year. My girls woke me up screaming happy bday right away and then my parents gave me their gift which was a CD (Robert Plant & Alison Krauss - Rasing Sand...SOOO Good!) and$30. So I had gotten a 40% off coupon to my LSS the night before and decided instead of saving that money I would spend it, LOL, and I got a Scor-pal finally! I also got some bazzill paper other small things I needed for a project I'm working on for a friend. I did great b/c I also got 15% off for coming in on my bday and I had a coupon for the free cardstock as well - Spent $29.50! My hubby gave me money to put toward saving for my laptop so I'm stoked about that too.

On CafeMom, I'm in a group called Addicted 2 Bellas and we're having a month long challenge for our hubby's to make us a card using a bella stamp. My hubby took this challenge and made me my bday card this year:

Isn't it great? He actually paper pieced her dress and wings, used my copics and glitter pens and my nesties on this! I was not at home when he started the card and I called him and he was too cute b/c he was so frustrated -- I'm very proud of him b/c I never thought he'd go to such details on it. He had our girls sign the inside and needless to say this card will be kept forever when normally I toss store bought cards out before the week is done.

I also snuck some pics of him finishing and showing his hard work when I got home:

Isn't he cute? So I had a great 30th bday! I have some other projects I need to share but will do so later on.

Mwahbella Birthday!

Made for the Bella Favorite Stamper Challenge at SCS. The featured bella stamper for February is Pinky66 (Lori). Each month there is a featured Bella Stamper and we all browse thru the sistah's gallery and CASE a card. Fun stuff! Here is her card I drew my inspiration from. Take a peek at her gallery and you are sure to find some inspiration as well.

PTI - Bitty Dot Sketch Challenge

I created this card using the sketch from PTI's anniversary challenge. This card is for my BIL and SIL (Tolla's godparents). I should take a pic of the inside b/c I think it's cuter than the outside. My girls drew all over. :) I really just adore these images. This is the first year in ages I'm sending out Valentine's but I just can't stop making them!

Sealed with a Kiss

I made this card for my mom's boss. They wanted a funny card, not too froo froo I suppose. The image is an Inkadinkadoo clear mini stamp (muchas gracias set) & the inside says"My dog licked it!" Thank goodness for SCS Sentiment Thread - There is actually a fabulous google doc here with all sorts of sentiments for cards. It is definately bookmarked for next time I'm at a loss for words!

I also tried to pick some colors from PTI's color scheme challenge as I don't have all those fabulous colors yet and it also kinda sorta fits our Rubber Bombshells unconventional Valentine color challenge.

PTI - It's in the bag challenge

If you haven't heard or seen, check out PTI - they are having a fabulous anniversary party complete with challenges and way cool prizes - like FREE stamps for a year & this challenge to make an altered bag and enter to win a super cool PTI shopping bag with a $100 gift card tucked away in a pocket - now can we all say COOL!!! I knew I wanted to make these treat bags for my girls for Valentine's Day with this DaisyDs treat bag kit my MIL gave me for Christmas. I also used these fabulous Lilly & Billy Sweetheart images my dear Internet friend Dee sent me. Gosh, I love these little stamps. Super cute! You can find them here.

Yes they are 2 and 3 now so I'm starting to incorporate my love of stamping into all the holidays for them. Tolla, most nights as I tuck her into bed says to me, "mommy, are you going to make cards now?" How cute is that? And then in the morning I will leave what I've made on the table for her and I love to hear her praise b/c really, there is nothing like my little 3 yr old running around the house showing everyone the cool card mommy made!! LOL I am looking forward to when they are both a bit older and start to enjoy my hobby with me. Of course, these particular projects will have to be hidden in my closet until Valentine's day!

These two, I made for my niece and nephew. I just couldn't stop making these cute little gift bags!

Some cool blog candy

Now, this blog won't turn into a place where I scope out blogs to find blog candy to redirect you to, I promise! ;) But I a friend did point me to this one and it's pretty huge. A cricut! I know a lot of people that would love to have one of these bad boys but the expense is just too much. (me included!) so here you go, check out this blog and leave a comment -- maybe you'll end up winning! And if you mention I sent ya, maybe just maybe, we'll both win something!

Oh and since I'm posting some cool contests, I may as well tell you about papertreyink too! Now, what stamper wouldn't LOVE free stamps every month for a year? I mean, I wouldn't say no, right?!?! So check it out - just a simple entry with your name and info and it could be YOU! How cool would that be? I just love their stamps and their paper for that matter. If you've never used papertrey's white card stock, OMG, you are missing out! It's absolutely brilliant and thick. You won't be disappointed! It's pretty reasonably priced too.

Ok, so that's enough about giveaways and blog candy for now! I just haven't made a new card or anything to post so had to post SOMETHING!!! :)

Totally Awesome Custom Blog

Shout out to my girl over on SCS Elizabeth (screen name arles). She made this beautiful awesome blog background that totally incorporates my love of faeries and ink. My blog would have been totally boring without her! Check out any of her free templates here and when you fall in love with her designs contact her for a custom blog - you won't be disappointed! If you have a business she can also do a custom website, check it out here.

She is the bestest to work with and was so responsive and patient with my constantly changing mind! LOL

Mwah to my girl Elizabeth, you rock woman! Thank you SOOO Much!

valentine card for my hubby

I got this stamp (Stamping Bella)specifically for making cards for my hubby! I saw it and immediately knew it was a must have. This card turned out exactly how I imagined. I wasn't sure about the DP at first but as it came together I love it. I paper pieced the shirt and dress and colored the skin and hair with copics and the pants with bics. I added some bella dots and glitter pen for some sparkle. I used my TH paper distresser to rough it up a bit on the edge.

The sketch follows BSC66 on SplitcoastStampers.

Goddess Within

I LOVE this stamp -- I think she's just beautiful and I love the inner goddess in every woman. I especially felt my goddess come out when I was pregnant and birthing my daughters. When was the time you felt your inner goddess?

I colored her with Copics and used Stickles on the flowers in her hair (not particularly happy with how that turned out though). I used glossy accents on the butterfly and a glitter pen on the stars. I used the Bella Sketch #65 on SCS. I don't have the SU Ticket Punch (on my must-have list) so I use my Crop-a-Dile when I want that particular corner - it's not exactly the same but it works! LOL Of course, I have to have bling somewhere on my cards so I framed the sentiment with purple rhinestones and used big silver bling as accents as well.

Changito Love - CAS Style

Ahhh, Changito! I love my little Changito stamps though I don't use the little guy as much as I would like. These two love monkeys were so fun to color. I used Liquid Applique on the balloon to add texture and I ran just a section of the card with my cuttlebug embossing folder to add a fun element to it and then I used some bella baubles for just another dimension. This is my favorite CAS card so far.

Load of Love - CAS Style

I love this loads of love set and believe it or not this is the first time I've used it since aquiring it last summer! I took up the Friday Challenge on SCS to make a CAS card, aka Clean An Simple. When I browsed thru the gallery I found that I really liked the look and essence of these cards. They really took on a clean, elegant feel. I think I still have some growing with this style of cardmaking but I'm excited to try more of this style of card.

Mother & Baby Card

Perpetual Whiteboard Calendar

I had this old magnetic white board calendar laying around not being used and one day I thought, hey, wouldn't it be cute to alter it with magentic days & months and then not have the messiness of the whiteboard to be bothered with. So, after thinking about it for about 3 weeks I finally got to it. I absolutely love how it turned out. I used my nestibility rectangle and scallop rectangle sets for each day and then my long scallop rectangles for the month. I also added the birthstone color to the month with rhinestones (I was so happy when I thought of that clever idea, LOL). I will make up special holiday magnets as the months come up and eventually have a special birthday one for each of my girls, myself, my hubby and then sort of generic ones for other birthdays that come up. It took me a full day to work on but I had a blast doing it!

beerafella altered pocket calendar

Birthday Card for my little monkey, Teagan

balloonabella

loveybella

cruisabella