Happy Memorial Day Weekend!!!

I hope you all have a wonderfully happy and relaxing Memorial Day weekend!

I am sooooo exhausted!! I have been up since 3:30 AM today and the day is ALMOST over!!!  My son had to be at school by 4:30 AM for a band trip to Minnesota.  They marched at Valley Fair and had SOOOO much fun!!!  He just arrived back home about 30 minutes ago and although HE is in bed... I am still tying up a few things before heading in myself. 

We are heading down to the lake for the weekend in the morning as soon as my hubby arrives home from work. 

I had such an issue all week with my computer at work and ended up with a new one which (because of the OLD one) the technician was having a heck of a time getting it all installed and information transferred over. 

I will not be posting this weekend but come back on Tuesday when I am hopping along with Creative Clear Stamps CCST Design Team 4 Introduction Hop!!  I am so thrilled to be working with Laura and her images.

Then I will be back on schedule with a daily post as always! *smile*

Relax and have a GREAT weekend!!! 

Good Advice...

Today's card means a lot to me to give.  I made this for my son's counselor at middle school.  She is one truly awesome lady!!!  My son just loves her and I do as well.  She has been a truly motivating, inspiring and supportive friend to Steven for the last two years.  She told me a couple weeks ago that she may have to split her time between two schools next year and I cannot even begin to imagine how!!  She stays at the school now until 7 PM MANY MANY nights!!  I KNOW she is a huge driving force in our school and I can't believe the kids won't benefit from her all day, every day.  So, I made this card for Steven to give her at the end of the year, as I normally do for my kids' teachers every year.

My card was created using Gina K's Stamp TV Kit, "Picture It" and my sentiment is from Gina's "Thanks a Million Stamp Set".  I colored my image with my Copic markers.

My card base is from Gina's Pure Luxury Heavy Base Weight card stock.  I used one layer of "Vibrant Violet" on top of my card base of "Lovely Lavender".  These are my FAVORITE purple shades of card stock EVER!!!! 

On my Vibrant Violet card stock I used my Cuttlebug and the Textiles embossing folder.  I really like using this folder... it goes so well with feminine cards.

I hope you remember your teachers and counselors this year and thank them for the support they give your child.  Have a great day! *smile*

School is Ending...

Today I am sharing some Magnolia love and some teacher love.  My daughter's 2nd grade Teacher, Mrs. E.J. is such an AWESOME AWESOME teacher and my daughter just thinks the world of her!!  I created this card for my daughter to give her at the end of the school year.  She had purchased an adorable little "Teacher Angel" pocket coin for her awhile back when we were on Spring Break and that will be her little gift. *smile*

I might add that Mrs. E.J. is probably the most "loving", caring, kind-hearted teacher I have EVER met.  She told me one day she just really HAS to take time to connect with each of her students and give them individual attention.  This after a long day with a new student who did nothing but cry all day.  :-(  She is just a blessing in my daughter's life. 

My image is none other than one of those darling Magnolia gals, "Tilda with Tag" which I purchased from 7 Kids College Fund.  I just adore these little gals.  I used my Copic markers to color her in and perched her on the Magnolia's "School Desk".  I made sure to color Tilda's hair much the same coloring as my daughters.... she will like that. 

I used papers from the October Afternoon, "Report Card" as a background.. PERFECT for those thank you notes to teachers all year long!  Gina K has several wonderful paper packs and this is just one I HAD to have!!!

My card base is also from Gina K's Pure Luxury Heavy Base Weight, "Turquoise Sea".  LOVE that color!  Seem to snag it up a lot when I want to create a card these days and I have to stop myself. Ha Ha!

I hope your children all have wonderful teachers and they develop a special bond with them every year just as Mrs. E.J. has my daughter!

Have a great day! *smile*

A Little Tea for Honey and Me

Summer is HERE!!! I went out for lunch today and it was 91 degrees out there!! Who knew?? Not me, stuck in my air conditioned office. Hee Hee But.. I refuse to EVER complain about the heat this summer. The winter was sooooo awful and I will not wish for cold anytime soon!!

Today's card was made with two things in mind... summer and my darling husband. We have had quite a "ritual" of sorts for years. After the kids go to bed.. usually.. we share a drink together. NO, not liquor! We started out with espresso. We bought a small machine... made our own, got perfect espresso cups and enjoyed it in the silence of the kids being in bed. But.. we got older.. and decided staying up until 1 AM wasn't ALWAYS a good idea anymore so, we switched to tea.

Mostly it started out with just this... cold iced tea. Then, as winter came, we switched to hot tea. We found a wonderful new shop that specializes in only loose tea and I can't tell you the adventures we've been on buying and trying new tea lately. Yummy yummy!!

When I flipped through my stamp sets I spotted the glass of tea from Gina K's, "You are my Sunshine" set.  Not only did it look refreshing, it also reminded me it was almost time to head home from my shop and before long... HAVE my tea with my DH.

I decided to go completely clean and simple with this card.  Since I wanted to focus on the glass of tea, I knew how much my husband loved very simple cards and I decided to just stamp it, color it and tie a single knotted ribbon on it.  He will LOVE it!  I did add some Crystal Lacquer to the glass just for added oomph. *smile*  So, he didn't get his card last night, but he will... all in due time. *smile*

Have a great day and wherever you are, if it's 91 degrees outside... go... grab some iced tea!!

Another Adventure

Well, once again I ventured into the "unknown". LOL  I had canvases... didn't know what to do with them so... I thew on some paint and grab some stamps and ... TA DA!!  I don't know what it is!!! Do you??? LOL

Honestly, I was thinking of my son's grandma when I started.  She loves everything old... antique, books, etc.  Soooo... I grabbed Theresa Momber's, "Timeless Treasures" and  started coloring!! 

The paint was acrylics and I made sure I used her favorite colors... red and black.  Now I DID stamp each item and color them with my Copic markers but afterwards I mounted them on the canvas using Crystal Lacquer just to make sure they would hold. 

I have no idea what I was thinking when I scribbled on the acrylic... and no idea what I was doing when I painted the heart then decided to add the wire shaped heart over it.  But... I flooded it with more Crystal Lacquer just to .... oh... I don't know... ummmm make it shine??? LOL  My sentiment came from Melanie Muenchinger's set, "A Charmed Life". 

Now I must say.... I don't always go about things in such a hap-hazard way, but for what it's worth... she LOVED it! LOL  And seriously... I knew she would.  She COULD have just been being nice.  But... I will always maintain... there is just something about things you make on your own and give to someone else.  They think I'm Andy Warhol. LOL  LOL

Ok... I promise to have something worth looking at. Hee Hee But I will say... no matter what... I DO try and I DO risk it all by venturing into the unknown.  P.S.  Don't send anyone here... just pretend you accidentally opened my blog. Ha Ha

Have a great day and if you find canvas and are not sure what to do with it... I know a few illustrators who could make it worth the cost of postage. *smile*

A SAD Day's Color Challenge

*SNIFF SNIFF*  Well... what can I say.  My term has ended at Stamp TV's Color Challenge Hostess.  I have had the BEST time ever creating all the new color combinations over the last three months.  AND, I was so thrilled that soooo many of you joined in!! You all rocked BIG time!!!!

My last challenge for you will be BURGUNDY, METALLIC GOLD AND WHITE!!  Of course you may use any accent color you need (such a I did with the green here). 

I used Melanie Muenchinger's, "A Year of Flowers" to create my card.  My parents just celebrated their 46th anniversary last week and this was the card I gave to them along with a GORGEOUS orchid plant.  My basis for the card was the fact that my mom loves gold... my dad loves tulips and "I" love the burgundy lace that my dear Stamp TV friend, Nina Brackett, sent to me all the way from Croatia!!  Isn't is beautiful??  I HAD to use it in a color challenge and this was my last chance!  Thanks again, Nina, for being so kind and sending me this.

The white I used is actually Gina K Designs Pure Luxury Metallic card stock, "Mother of Pearl".  I know it's hard to see here, but this white is just fabulous and I actually stamped my tulips on them and colored with my Copics.  It really made them shimmer as well.  Love it!!

Be sure to upload your creation to the STV gallery, using the tag STVCCTG13. You do not need to use Gina K Designs stamps to participate, although we'd love it if you did! In fact, if you use Gina K Stamps in your entry, that your name will be added to the prize drawing TWICE! Please be sure to create a new project for the challenge versus linking up something you've created before.

You have until next Sunday, May 30th, at 8pm CST, to upload your sample. One winner will be drawn at random to win a Gina K stamp set valued at $24.95 or less!

Another Card Book

WOW, this pink from Gina K's Pure Luxury Heavy Base Weight card stock, "Passion Pink" is FABULOUS!!! I love it... so bright and cheery!!

Yet again I have created another card book that I can keep and display all my cards in for either show or sale.  My book was purchased at Stampers Dream and came with covers for ten cards. 

I used Nina Brackett's, "Lovely Labels" and stamped in Memento ink.  Then I colored the image with my Copics.

These are so fun to put together!  And even better when you already have tons of cards lying around and you put them in and it's done!!  The cover and back don't take long at all to do and it's a quick immediate gratification when you can slide the cards in and set it aside.

Hope you are having a wonderful weekend!! *smile*

Inspirational Butterflies

Ahhh Friday!  I just love it.. my favorite day of the week.  It means... last day of work (at my dad's business) and FIRST day of work at MY stamping/scrapbooking shop!!!  I LOVE the weekends!!!

My card today was done for Gina K's Inspiration Challenge over on StampTV.  Gina posted a picture of a bedroom done in soft greens and lavenders with butterflies everywhere!  Easy enough for me since purple IS my favorite color and who can resist butterflies????

I used the butterfly from the StampTV Kit, "Spring Mix" and the butterfly from Melanie Muenchinger's set, "A Beautiful Life".  Though I didn't seen any flowers in my room they just seemed like the perfect mix with the butterflies.  My background green paper didn't show up to well in my photos and believe me I took LOTS of photos of this.  Apparently it's just one of those colors that is difficult to shoot?? 

I colored my butterflies with my Copic markers.  The deep purple one was stamped using Purple Vivid Ink. 

I simply LOVE satin ribbon and I'm pretty sure this was a girl's room with the colors so what better portrays a girlie item then satin! *smile*

I hope you stop over to Stamp TV and join in on all the challenges.  There is a new one posted every day and you could win a free stamp set valued at $24.95 or less of your choosing.  How fun is that???!!!!

Have a great weekend and may you see butterflies and flowers! *smile*

Steven's Traveling... withOUT ME! *sniff*

Today's card was made with so much emotion. *sniff sniff*  My "little" boy is growing up and it makes me sad to think of him going away forever.  But, luckily, THIS time he is only going away for five days.  Though I am sure I will cry when he goes... he WILL be back. Ha Ha!  He's taking a trip with his school to Washington, D.C. and he is soooo excited.  This will be the first time he will be away from me for any length of time at all.  So... being the typical sappy mom, I am going to slip this card in his duffel bag so he can find it on the long drive.  They are heading out at 5:00 AM and will be spending the whole day AND the first night on the bus.  After that they will have hotels to sleep in.  Boy.... are they making a ton of stops and visits though.  I am happy for him and know he will have a load of fun.

Ok... on to my card.  I used my Diamond Plate Cuttlebug embossing folder with Gina K's Silver Lining Metallic card stock. 

My image is from Rupa Shevde's "Welcome Home" set.  No, he won't be driving, but he will be riding and I just KNOW that bus driver has keys! LOL  Oh! and I be they have a DC tag on them. HA HA... Kidding!!

And, of course, I had to add the patriotic ribbon since he is heading to our Nation's Capital.

I hope you have a good day and if any of you live along the path of Iowa to D.C., give me a call when you see their bus go by.... I certainly can't be calling him to check on him with all his friends around. Hee Hee

*smile*

Anything But a Card Challenge

I think as stampers, card makers and scrapbooking people, we sometimes need to expand our creativity to areas that we sometimes "forget" we can use it on.  Such is the case with the "Anything But a Card" challenge that Karen Knegten offered up to us over on StampTV.

Karen's challenge was to take a cheap napkin holder and "spice it up".  Cover that dollar store purchase with some card stock and stamped images and WOW!!, a whole new appeal to that otherwise bland table accessory.

I could not wait to get my hands on this wire napkin holder I have had for a few years now.  First... it was from a friend who I told (while visiting her one day) I really needed a napkin holder.  Well... apparently she was at a dollar store of such and found me a wire designed holder.  Now, don't get me wrong, I was thrilled.  But... when she handed it to me and we sat it on my table,we both looked at each other and said.. "Uhh is that crooked?".  YEP!  Sure was.  But... as I said.. dollar store purchase.  So... I kept it and figured, what the heck.. it will serve it's purpose for now. 

I was sooooooooo happy to cover it.  Now... though it still appears a bit crooked, it will definitely keep one's eye from seeing that with the new "cover" Karen asked us to create.  I LOVE it!!

I used the cup from a StampTV Kit, "Signs of Autumn" and colored it in with my Copic markers.  Mounted it on my Nestabilities Labels 1 and sponged on some ink.

My DP is from the October Afternoon's, Farm Fresh pack.  Since my dining room table sits in the back half of the Family Room in our house... my husband INSISTS that is HIS room and I can't change a thing in it.  Well.. needless to say it has that ucky wood paneling, dark green carpeting and green plaid valance over the window.  So... my napkin holder was designed to match HIS room.  *HUGE EYE ROLL*  What's a girl to do. Hee Hee  But hey, it's all good... he can't say a thing when I put FLOWERS in our bedroom.. the rest of the house is MINE... ALL MINE! *BIG grin*

If you think you've stamped everything you can... look around... perhaps YOUR husband can use a new DP in HIS room. Have a great day! *smile*

Shake Your Groove Thing...

Who wants to get "jiggy" with me? *smile*  Ok... I am not sure "jiggy" was a term used in the hippie era... but... I know tie-die and lava lamps and beads sure were! LOL

Sharri's Blast from the Past Challenge over on Stamp TV was just this... to make a shaker card!  I just couldn't resist using Nina Brackett's, "Hearily Yours" and the "Heartily Yours Additions" to make this groooovy card. 

My background was created using my circles Impressabilities and sponging on my colors.  For the "shaker window", I used my Big Scalloped Rectangles.

Throw in a few beads and wah lah... we got a "groove thing" going on! Ha!!

If you don't know how to make a shaker card, Gina K has an awesome video on this over at Stamp TV.  You'd be amazed how many fun things you can put into a shaker card and make cute "interactive" card for a friend or loved one.

Have a great day, see you tomorrow and thanks for stopping by!  *smile* 

Casing Melanie Muenchinger

My dear friend, mentor and first first illustrator to introduce me to Gina K Designs AND ask me to design for her, Melanie Muenchinger, has challenged us to CASE a card she created.  I can tell you this, THAT was NOT an easy choice.  First... if you follow Melanie on her blog or on Stamp TV, you know that EVERY card she creates is totally jaw dropping!!  EVERYTHING Melanie creates if FIRST CLASS!!!

I chose a recent design of Melanie's simply because I LOVE her newest set and because the card she designed was for my recent Color Challenge over on Stamp TV.   I can see this card in soooo many colors and I had a hard time picking which to use.  I didn't change anything with her card other than the colors.  How can you better PERFECTION???!!!

Melanie's card was designed using her "Gifts from the Sea" set.  She also included Nina Brackett's, "Lovely Labels" to showcase her shell.

Melanie will be picking one of the entries that CASED her to guest design for her new set coming out in 12 days at Gina K's Release Party.  I am positive that whoever she picks will be honored and thrilled to work with her and her awesome illustrations.  She hasn't disappointed yet. *smile*

Have a great day!!

March 17th Color Challenge!

To quote one of my daughter's favorite shows... (High School Musical)... "What time is it? Party time!".  Nope... not a party... but a new Color Challenge time!!

Today I am challenging you to go patriotic!  Let's use that RED, WHITE AND BLUE and get geared up for  the 4th of July!  It's really NOT that far away!! Eeeek!  Amazing how time flies when it's summer and we think of all the fun things we do during that time!

For my card today, I used Tami Mayberry's, "Oh Boy!" set for my boat, waves and sun.  Every time I see a sail boat, I think of The America's Cup.  Have you ever watched those on TV?  Wow... what work.  I think sailing should be so slow.. easy going and relaxing.  But somehow... I don't see what these guys do as relaxing at all!!! LOL

I used a my Copic markers to color in my images and on the grunge board, I used some of Tim Holtz Alcohol Inks.  I am having so much fun playing with these and I love how they make things look so "distressed/antiqued".

I hope you have time to play along this week.  It has been so much fun seeing all the awesome creations that are being posted on Stamp TV.  You could be the lucky winner of ANY stamp set you chose from Gina K Designs valued at $24.95 or less... how cool is that???   Stamp, play and WIN!!!

I'll be back next week with a whole new color pallet.  Until then... stop over and join in on the fun!

Purple Purple!!!

You surely knew I'd HAVE to color these fabulous shells PURPLE sooner or later, didn't you?? Hee Hee

I LOVE these shells from Melanie Muenchinger's, "Gifts from the Sea".

My card was created using Vicki's Sketch Challenge over on StampTV.  Vicki has done an amazing job on all the sketch challenges and I have been crazy busy and not had nearly enough time to join in as often as I would have liked.  I was pleased I had all day today to catch up on several of the challenges and even did a few "extra" cards for other occasions. 

My images were colored with Copic markers and, of course, I also colored those wonderful white pearls to match my design.  Sorry my ribbon never appears to be purple, but it is!!  I think it happens mostly with the sheer ribbons and not the others so much. 

I hope you have time to stop over to Stamp TV and check out all the challenges.  There is a new one every day and ... EVERY day, if you enter the, YOU have a chance to win a free stamp set from Gina K Designs valued at $24.95 or less.  How cool is that???!!!

Have a great day and I'll be back tomorrow! *smile*

Exciting News!!!

I'm doing the "Happy Dance"!!!  Creative Vision has asked me, ME, to join their summer Design Team 4!

I am sooooooooooo excited!!  Have you seen their stamps???  They are cute, fun, and whimsical.  I cannot wait to get my hands on them and start creating!!

Stay tuned for new images... new designs and a little bit of laughter. *smile*

Have a great day and I'll be back tomorrow night with more new creations!

Window to a Seahorse

Hello faithful followers!!  Today I am sharing yet another card that I designed following that fabulous book I purchased, "Interactive Cards", which features one of my favorite illustrators, Melanie Muenchinger.  Melanie created this wonderful "swing" card and her instructions on how she did it can be found in this book that is jammed packed with great and easy cards.

For my card, I used Gina K's Stamp TV Kit, Eclectic Summer.  I love this seahorse and thought he would look great dangling around on my card front with little bubbles behind him.  I added a few star fish from yet another one of Melanie's newest sets, "Gifts from the Ocean". 

And on the inside.... the sentiment and another seashell from Melanie's set.  I sponged on some Vivid Taupe ink over the back of the starfish and the seahorse so that it looked somewhat shadowed from the inside of the card. 

I really enjoyed making this card and I confess, I will definitely be trying it again with some different images.  Thanks, Melanie, for sharing this fabulous book with us and sharing YOUR design secrets in it as well. 

Have a great day!  *smile*

Mom's Day 2010

Well, I'm back with some adventures in canvas.  I do not know what I'm doing, but what the heck... it was fun! LOL

My mom is a HUGE quilter so I wanted to make her something to hang in her sewing room.  I simply used my acrylic paint to draw some lines... nothing straight or perfect... just free-handed.  Then I laid a few strips of ribbon here and there.

I used Nina Brackett's, "Nana's Needlework" to stamp my sentiment and a few little hearts and stars here and there.

For a dimensional accent I added the bow on top and some Pure Luxury buttons.

As moms go, she LOVED it. Again, here's a close up of the sentiment I stamped.

I have to tell you though... years and years ago I was really into ceramics.  I made a plate once that had a sentiment to mom written on it.  In MY opinion, I made one major mistake.  The colors were mostly blues and pinks and greens.  BUT... on one set of flowers I (silly me) decided to make the center of them black.  Well now... if you've ever done ceramics you know when you initially paint black... it doesn't look... well... BLACK!!!  It pretty much looks grayish/blue.  Nice, huh?  Until you get it out of the kiln and it really IS BLACK!!! LOL  I was so bummed but you know... again... mom loved it.  I was recently over her house and OMGosh... she had that plate displayed on one table.  I about died! LOL

But hey... I guess in the end... moms just love us for who we are... AND for things we give them that mean something to them.  *smile*

Have a great day!!!

Gina K DT Call Challenge TWO-FERS!

Ya I know... you've seen this already. But... NOT THIS one! Hee Hee

As you know from my post earlier today... Gina K Designs is looking for a new Spotlight Design Team Member for this month. Gina asked that we chose a favorite film and using the newest stamp releases, create a project that was inspired from that movie. Well... again... I am sticking with MY old time fav.... The Wizard of Oz!

For my second card, I decided to again use my "yellow brick" road I created with my Scor-Pal and some Ultra Thick Clear Embossing powder.  (It is the one thing I always wanted to do... walk the yellow brick road! *smile*)  My trees were from Theresa Momber's, "Gone Fishing" set and my "flying monkeys" (seagulls.. ha) were from Melanie Muenchinger's, "Gifts from the Sea" as well as the sentiment. 

I decided to combine a few of my favorite scenes with this card.  The yellow brick road travels past the trees.  Remember the trees that came to life and threw apples at them?? Hee Hee Oh! And who could forget those flying monkeys coming at them!! Eeeeeek... scared me every time.  But I still watched!! HA HA  And last... "Poppies.... poppies...."!!!  Since there were no flowers which resembled the poppies in the April stamp sets, I decided to add a bit of Flower Soft to the mix.  Also... my fence... I used the FREEBIE wood grain digital paper which Gina offered up on the Stamp TV web site!  Can't beat that!!!

Since I remember this scene as quite dark...I decided to make it a cheery "safe travels" card.  I used the blue checked DP to place under my acrylic tab and threw in a quick "straw man" bow.  I also used the Green Apple Pure Luxury Heavy Base Weight card stock to give some resemblance of the wonderful Emerald City.

If you would like to play along, choose your favorite movie and make a project featuring one of the new stamp sets from Gina K Designs April release. Add your direct link to your project on Gina's Blog in the Mister Linky area. Gina will look at each one of the projects and choose a designer who will be invited to join her design team for the May release! Have your project up by this Wednesday, May 12th by 8:00PM and the winner will be announced on Friday, May 14th.

Have fun creating your favorite movie project and good luck!!

Gina K Designs Spotlight DT Call

It's that time again when Gina K does her monthly search for a new "spotlight Designer".  This month Gina has challenged everyone to create a project that is inspired by their favorite movie. I IMMEDIATELY knew what my all time favorite was.  The Wizard of Oz!  I've watched that movie every year since I can remember.  I STILL do!! It is one of my daughter's favorites as well. (I cannot tell you how MANY copies of this movie I have.. all the way from "I recorded myself"... to collector copies received as gifts... hee hee.)

"Follow the yellow brick road"... that's the FIRST thing I think of.  For my card I created my own version of the yellow brick road.  I used my Scor-Pal to create the lines of the road.  Then, I covered the entire card front with Versamark and sprinkled some Ultra Thick Clear Embossing powder over it all.  Once heated up with my heat gun... it was a HUGE come-to-life "yellow brick road" that I always dreamed of being on when I was a kid. *smile*

I wanted my card to reflect a bit of the "black and white" part of the movie as well and I chose Rupa Shevde's, "Welcome Home" set to resemble the house the movie shows as Dorothy's home.  I used only one of the houses which I thought resembled the show most.  Since in the beginning you can't see what color the house actually is... I decided to color it grey and leave the fence and porch area white.  The roof had to look a bit worn and seems to me (in that I work for my father who owns a roofing company) that most of the older homes had these gross looking "rusty" colored shingles on them. LOL  So, I used my Copic markers to create my colors and for the sky and ground (which in the movie looks like they have NO grass!) I sponged on some chalk.  I perched my image on some bright green "sparkle" card stock to mimic "Emerald City's" brilliance. 

I really wanted to use Nina Brackett's, "Vintage Backgrounds" against this but realized with the shiny surface and the slight bumpiness, it wouldn't quite look as crisp as I wanted.  So... if I can't use Nina's stamps... I used lace FROM Nina!!  She was so kind to send me this beautiful lace all the way from Croatia!!  I weaved a bit of yellow ribbon through it and added it to the side of my card.

THEN... just to make sure I got a bit of the nostalgic look with my bright and shiny card, I used some Tim Holtz grunge board and dabbed on a bit of the Distress Inks.  I stamped the "Home Sweet Home" sentiment in white which I tried not to press to hard with since I wanted it to look old and worn.  (But still readable... ha!)

If you would like to play along, choose your favorite movie and make a project featuring one of the new stamp sets from Gina K Designs April release. Add your direct link to your project on Gina's Blog in the Mister Linky area. Gina will look at each one of the projects and choose a designer who will be invited to join her design team for the May release! Have your project up by this Wednesday, May 12th by 8:00PM and the winner will be announced on Friday, May 14th.

Have fun creating your favorite movie project and good luck!!

A Lesson in Canvas

Well this was a SCARY first for me!!!  I actually painted on canvas!!!  Now I admit... it's not ALL painting, but... I thought I was just to smart to stamp and glue and paint on it. LOL

I used Melanie Muenchinger's, "Gifts from the Sea" and stamped them on Gina K's Pure Luxury Heavy Base Weight white card stock and colored the images with my Copic markers.

I then mounted them on my painted canvas.  I used acrylic paint for the ocean and for the sand, I used Tim Holtz Distress ink.  Sadly, I couldn't get it to show up well in the photo.  The cool thing about it was the Distress ink actually sunk into the "pits" of the canvas and really looked awesome.  Like real sand grains!

The hardest part was stamping the sentiment.  I did several of these and I will share them in the following days, but, to actually stamp the sentiment where I wanted it was a VERY tough task.

First, my canvases, of course, were already stretched and mounted on a frame.  Now if you had a larger canvas, it wouldn't be a problem.  But, since I used anywhere from a 4 X 6 to an 8 X 10, there wasn't much room behind to actually put a "block" to give myself a hard surface to stamp on.

Obviously, you can't just stamp it... there is a give to the canvas.  So I used a couple wooden blocks to support it before stamping.

This was fun for me but I admit I was under pressure to hurry so they didn't all come out as well as I wanted.  But you know me... I am one who doesn't mind sharing my "aack" with my favs.  Just a warning. Hee Hee

By the way, THIS was my favorite of them all. *smile*

Have a great day!!

The Latest Color Challenge on Stamp TV

Once again I am challenging you with new colors!!!  This one should be easy, right?  BLACK, GREY AND WHITE!!!  I originally was thinking of my sister when I made the first card.  This happens to be the card I gave her for Mother's Day Sunday morning.  I had plans to paint, stamp and embellish canvas to create something for everyone to hang in their house.  Her kitchen is all black and white, thus the color of her card.

I used Melanie Muenchinger's, "A Year of Flowers" and just stamped the roses in Memento Tuxedo black ink. 

The only reason I did two cards this challenge is because when I photographed it, I realized that the Diamond Stickles I used on the roses had a bit of a pink hue to it.  So, just to play fair... I added another card. *smile*

On this card, I used Rupa Shevde's, "Retro Boutique" and Nina Brackett's, "Lovely Labels".  I colored the dress with my Copic markers.

On both cards, I used Gina K's Pure Luxury Heavy Base Weight White,  Black Onyx and Moonlit Fog card stock. 

This HAS to be the easiest color challenge I have posted todate.  I know you can do it!!  Now... go grab that card stock and show me your wonderful creations. 

You could be the lucky winner of any stamp set you want from Gina K Designs valued at $24.95 or less.  You have until Sunday, May 16th at 8:00 PM CST to enter. 

Come join me on Stamp TV to enter your creation! *smile*

Key Chain Day

I had a FUN FUN day at my shop today!!!  I didn't get home until 10 PM and felt bad because my kids and my hubby were holding dinner for me for part of my "Mother's Day" celebration.  I didn't know they had anything planned.  They just asked that I call about 30-45 minutes before I was arriving.  Well... darn... I didn't realize they hadn't eaten!!  So sweet of them.

Above are some key chains I created today.  I grabbed a bunch of glass beads and just went crazy creating. LOL

See the metal tags?? I used some letter punches that my hubby got for Christmas and I decided to make a little something extra to hang from the key ring.  I colored them with my Adirondack Alcohol Inks and though some of the letters didn't quite come out right (It's a bit of a learning process to emboss metal... ha ha), I am sure everyone they were intended for will forgive me and love them anyway.

One for my mom... my sister... my sister-in-law... my ex-mother-in-law... and my son's (sorta) step-mom.  We are all having breakfast together Mother's Day morning and though it may seem weird to some... we are all a very big happy family.  I am bestest of friends with my ex-mother-in-law and as far as my ex-hubby's girlfriend... she is very sweet and I couldn't ask for a nicer "step-mom" for my son.  IF ever. LOL

Tomorrow night we have a cook-out just for my mom at my sister's house.  My mother-in-law left for Missouri yesterday to visit her sisters and so we will celebrate with her when she returns. *smile*

Come back tomorrow night to see the new Color Challenge for Stamp TV.  I'll give you a hint... it's flowery. *smile*

Have a wonderful Mother's Day to all the fabulous moms!!! *HUGS*