Ring, Ring...Ring, Ring...

I know we aren't even to Christmas yet ~ heck it's not even December; however, today I have a New Year's card to share.  I really like how this one turned out using my December Diners Club set by Gourmet Rubber Stamps called Let's Celebrate! 

The card pocket is 4" x 5".  I embossed the front with an numbered embossing folder to represent the New Year's Eve Countdown!  For the stamped silver bells, I stamped them in silver pigment ink on dark blue cardstock and heat embossed using silver embossing powder to make them pop. I cut them out and popped them up with foam dots. Then I added some fun white glittery bells as a fun little touch on the lace bow and on the tag.  I just tied them on using bakers twine ~ easy peasy.   The tag just slides inside the pocket and has the same slanted look as the pocket. 

Supplies:
Stamps ~ Gourmet Rubber Stamps (December Diners Club set Let's Celebrate)
Cardstock ~ Bazzill
Pattern Paper ~ Echo Park
Lace Trim ~ May Arts
Ink ~ Encore Silver
Embossing Folder ~ Cuttlebug
Twine ~ The Twinery
Jingle Bells ~ Michael's
Edge Punch ~ EK Success

Silly Little Snowman

I have to say, the little snowdudes in this Paper Smoochies set called Swanky Snowdudes totally crack me up!  When I saw the little mustache in the stamp set & the mustache paper in the Echo Park Time & Seasons Collection ~ I knew I had to make a card using both!  Just too funny!

Supplies from i{heart}papers:
Stamps ~ Paper Smoochies (Swanky Snowdudes)
Pattern Paper ~ Echo Park (Times & Seasons)
Ink ~ Palette
Copic Markers ~ W7, E30, 31, 33, YG18
Spica Glitter Pen ~ Sand
Sparkly Fluff ~ Sugar (Our Craft Lounge)
Trim ~ May Arts Black Lace, Maya Roads Trim
Nestabilites
Twine ~ May Arts
Gems ~ Kaiser

Loads of presents...

Happy Cyber Monday!  Did you get lots of fun shopping done this weekend for Black Friday?  We went out in the madness on Friday and had some fun.  It looks like this little Stick Chick from Gourmet Rubber Stamps had some fun too with all the sales.

just because {20}...

everything happens for a reason...

even if...

it was meant to teach us a lesson.

OCL Challenge #93...Cute & Cuddly Critters

Good Saturday Morning!  I missed out on posting my OCL weekly challenge yesterday, but I've got something for you today. The challenge today is to use one of OCL's cute little animal images.

For my card, I used the adorable Circus, Circus stamp set.  I just love this set!  You can play along too and leave your link on your card. 

Supplies from i{heart}papers:
Stamps ~ Our Craft Lounge (Circus Circus)
Sparkly Fluff ~ Our Craft Lounge (That's Hot Pink)
Ink ~ Palette
Copic Markers
Lifestyle Crafts Embossing Folders
Nestabilities

December Diners Club Set... Take a peek!

Happy Black Friday!  Have you been out shopping already or are you crafting today?  Welcome to the sneak peek of the new December Diners Club set for Gourmet Rubber Stamps!   You'll want to hop around today and see what all the girls came up with.  If you want to order this great set or sign up for the Diners Club, you can find all the information HERE.

So my card today used the cool Birthday seal along with one of the two images that stamps inside the seal.  I just love how this gate-fold card came out!  Here's the outside of the card.

And here is a picture of the card opened up.

Want to know how I made this card?  How about a tutorial?  Well here are the step by step photos of how I made this (sorry for the yucky pictures ~ I didn't notice that my camera settings changed until I was almost done & by that time I was too far along in the process.

And that's how ya do it!  Super easy, despite the number of steps. 

Now take a peek at what the other designers came up with today...

GRS Blog
Deb Felts
Jeni Allen
Joslyn Nielson
Joy Stagg
Kelli Palmer
Kendra Wietstock ~ you're here
Pam Hornschu
Rose Ann Reynolds
Taylor Usry

Happy Thanksgiving!

Just a super quick post today to share with you one of the 2012 calendar pages I made.  Each year I make calendars for the grandparents and this year I used the new Basic Grey calendar kit.  It is EASY PEASY!  The most difficult part is figure out which pictures to use and to make sure they are going the right direction. 

This is the November page I made & I thought it would be appropriate to show today for Thanksgiving.  I'll have more pages to share over the next few weeks.

Happy Thanksgiving!

OCL Black Friday/Cyber Monday Sale

OCL is getting in on the Black Friday/Cyber Monday action with our FIRST EVER Black Friday Sale!  

** 25% off STORE WIDE

** Sale dates - today at Noon (EST) through Monday, November 28th, 2011.

** Coupon Code Required: OCLBLK25

** Applies to items in stock only - No Backorders for this sale.

** Does NOT apply to Gift Certificates

Shop for yourself or put together an online Wishlist and send it to your family!

Please Note: Due to the holiday weekend, shipping for this sale will begin Monday, November 28th.

IHP Black Friday Announcement

Kate is having a BIG sale this weekend! 

- Black Friday sale valid Wednesday 11/23-Sunday 11/27.
- 25% off EVERYTHING storewide (in stock items only, not valid on gift certificates) using code (min. order $35): black25dt
- 10% gift certificate bonus. IHP will add an additional 10% of the value of the gift certificate during this sale. (25% discount does not apply to Gift Certificates.)

Good Day...

Isn't this Mr. Frosty a flurt?  LOL!  Today my project is a store sample using the Mr Frosty, Mrs Frosty & Frosty Flakes singles by Our Craft Lounge.  Super Cute!

Up, Up and AWAY...

Welcome back to Monday!  Wow ~ the weekend went so fast & it was so fabulous!  Hubby made it home from China/S. Korea; spent lots of time with my family; sang in church on Sunday morning and had a great service last night too!  Oh, and my husband and I celebrated the 30th anniversary of our very first date!  WOW ~ we've been together FOREVER huh?

Anyway, I'll stop rambling on and on and get to my project!  This fun little single stamp from Gourmet Rubber Stamps and the Steam Punk collection.  I also used a sentiment from the Vintage Birthday set.  I really love how this card turned out. 

Have a great Monday!

just because {19}...

whatever you choose...

 that's what it is.

Blue Christmas...Stick Chick Style

Gourmet Rubber Stamps ~ Stick Chicks (Tiny Snowman)

OCL Challenge #92...Thankful for YOU!

Happy Friday!!!!  YIPEEEE the weekend is almost here!  Today is the OCL weekly challenge and this week we are being THANKFUL ~ it is that time of year, after all!

So for my card today, I know you might be expecting something fall looking, but I really wanted to use the Winter Wishes set and the "Thank You" sentiment included in that set.  This card will be perfect to use for Christmas gifts after the holidays.  I also used some of the new Echo Park Winter Park paper ~ LOVE IT!

 

Now it's your turn to play along ~ go check out the challenge and leave your link on the OCL Blog for a chance to win a gift certificate.

Supplies from i{heart}papers:
Stamps ~ Our Craft Lounge (Winter Wishes)
Pattern Paper ~ Echo Park (Winter Park)
Ink ~ Palette
Gems ~ Kaiser

Zooming by ...

Today I thought I'd share another class card we did last weekend at my Stamp-A-Stack.  I decided I really wanted to use an all-occasion set for a Christmas card so I pulled the super cute Out for a Spin stamp set.  Then I used the packages and the star from Merry Moose and the sentiment from Holiday Cruiser.  They all worked so well together & the ladies in the class loved the card.

Supplies:
Stamps ~ Our Craft Lounge
Cardstock ~ Bazzill
Ink ~ Palette & Copics
Pattern Paper ~ Imaginisce
Embossing Folder ~ Cuttlebug
Edge Punch ~ EK Success

a single moment...

Yesterday was a busy day on the blog so I kept it clean and simple today.  My card from Gourmet Rubber Stamps uses one of the singles in the Zenspirations line called Nobody Need Wait ~ a very touching quote from Anne Frank.  I used some cool pattern paper from Lily Bee Designs and some miscellaneous trims to finish it off.

IHP Challenge Day by Day...

It's DOUBLE CHALLENGE day for me here on the blog!  Gotta love it! 

Today for the i{heart}papers challenge, the team was challenged to use these great SRM Calendar Stickers.

The great thing about these stickers is that you can use them in so many ways.  They would be fun to use on birthday or holiday cards to highlight the date; use them for a flip calendar on your desk, or on scrapbook pages.  LOTS of options!  For my creation today, I made a wall calendar because I like have a quick at-a-glance calendar at my work desk.  Then once the year is finished, I'm going to use it as a title page for my 2012 scrapbook ~ DOUBLE DUTY!

Now it's time to see what all the other ladies have been up to with their calendar stickers ~

• Carolyn
• Deb
• Gretchen
• Kendra
• Loretta
• Lori
• Lynn
• Tracy
• Kate

Supplies from i{heart}papers:
Calendar Stickers ~ SRM Stickers (Standard Sticker Sheet)
Pattern Paper ~ October Afternoon (Sidewalks, Modern Home Maker)
Nestibilities ~ Square Scallop
Stamps ~ Hero Arts (Indie Butterflies & Wildflowers)
Gems ~ Kaiser
Ink ~ Palette (Toile Pink)

Gourmet Rubber Stamps DT Challenge

It's CHALLENGE DAY at Gourmet Rubber Stamps!  Gotta love the DT challenge day!  Today we have a color challenge and there is a really nice palette of colors to choose from on this one!  We were also asked to use a Thank You sentiment on our project. 

Here is the card I came up with for our challenge today using my absolute favorite Lizzie Anne Designs set called Garden Inspirations.

Now you'll want to check out the wonderful creations from the other girls, so start on the GRS Blog and then continue on with the rest of the girls ~

Meridith Ethington
Deb Felts
Jeni Allen
Joslyn Nielson
Joy Stagg
Kelli Palmer
Kendra Wietstock
Tricia Ulberg
Pam Hornschu
Rose Ann Reynolds
Taylor Usry

Simply Spectacular Snowman...

I adore snowmen ~ but this simple little guy is one of my favorites!  This great image is part of the November Diner's Club set by Gourmet Rubber Stamps called Season's Greetings. 

I also love this pattern paper from Echo Park (also called Season's Greetings) ~ you'll be seeing more of this stuff FOR SURE!

I'll be back with all kinds of fun for tomorrow with TWO design team challenges! 

just because {18}...

happiness is...
whatever you choose

choose to be happy.

too many people choose not to be.

life it too short for that... find your happy place

Stamp-A-Stack Card...

Hello Peeps ~  Hope you have a fun weekend planned.  I'll be teaching a Stamp-A-Stack today at my local scrapbook store in New Paris, IN.  Each class participant will make a total of 16 cards (4 designs).   Here is one of the four cards we'll be making using the Winter Wishes stamp set.

I'll share the other three cards in the upcoming days.  Have a fun weekend!

OCL Challenge #91...Once Upon a Time

Once upon a time...there was a stamp company named Our Craft Lounge and they had challenges each and every Friday on the OCL Blog!  LOL!  Guess what our challenge is this week?  We are being inspired by fairy tales and fables...

The story I was inspired by is a Christmas Classic that comes on TV every year ~ "Frosty the Snowman" & I used our Mr Frosty and Frosty Flakes stamp sets! 

This card started out as a possible sample for a class I'm doing this weekend, but it quickly became too complicated so I added some extra embellishments and here we are!

Now it's your turn ~ can you think of a fable or fairy tale that would inspire a card?  OCL has TONS of great sets that will inspire you ~ anything from the Tooth Fairy (Tooth Fairy Fun) and Tinkerbell (Fairy Dust is a Must) to Hansel and Gretel (Sweet Holiday) and Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer (Reindeer Kisses or Reindeer Games).  The options are ENDLESS ~ can't wait to see what you come up with.

Swanky Snowdudes...

Hi Peeps ~ I was just having some fun with a new Paper Smooches set yesterday called Swanky Snowdudes.  Such a cute little set and very fun to paper piece!

Supplies from i{heart}papers:
Stamps ~ Paper Smooches (Swanky Snowdudes)
Pattern Paper ~ LilyBee Designs (Jingle)
Copic Markers ~ YR09, W7, R27, YG95
Ink ~ Palette (Burnt Umber)
Crochet Trim ~ May Arts

Merry & Bright

Today's creation is another sample I made for store display boards.  I used the set called Merry & Bright along with the snowflakes from Parka Penguins.

I added some Rockstar Red & Cotton Candy Sparkly Fluff on the trees for some extra sparkle!

Krafty Christmas...

I was playing with some fun stamps from the newest Diners Club set (Season's Greetings) yesterday by Gourmet Rubber Stamps.  It was fun doing a little more paper piecing with the ornament stamp this time.  I paired up this set with the fantastic paper paper from Echo Park & this embossing folder from Quickuts.  Added in is also a little multi-colored twine from Divine Twine.

Have a great Tuesday!

Supplies from i{heart}paper & GRS:
Stamps ~ Diners Club set (Season's Greetings) (Gourmet Rubber Stamps) 
Pattern paper: Echo Park 

Embossing Folder: Quickuts

Twine: Divine Twine
Ink: Palette
Gems: Kaiser

Snowman Ornament

Monday, Monday!  I love the fresh beginning of a new week.  Today's project is a fun little ornament I made for some store samples.  I used the new singles from Our Craft Lounge called Mr Frosty and Frosty Flakes (both are now available directly from the OCL Website).  I also used some Sugar Sparkly Fluff on Mr Frosty too.  I really love how this turned out ~ I may have to make one for my Christmas Tree.

I'll have a few more coordinating samples to share in the upcoming weeks.

Supplies:
Stamps ~ Our Craft Lounge (Mr Frosty and Frosty Flakes )
Sparkly Fluff ~ Sugar Sparkly Fluff
Ink ~ Palette
Copic Markers
Nestabilities
Pattern Paper ~ Basic Grey
Cardstock & Button ~ Bazzill
Ribbon & Twine ~ May Arts

A Closer Look...

I didn't get a chance to upload photos of the State Finals last weekend, so I wanted to get some up here today.  Marching Band is a HUGE deal here in Indiana!  There are four classes that are based on the population of the school district.  Concord High School (in North Central Indiana) is in Class B ~ one of the most competitive of the four.   So here we go...

The Jumbo-tron at Lucas Oil Stadium (where the Indianapolis Colts play)
photo by Kendra Wietstock

Megan with her flute buddies before the competition.
photo by Darrell Yoder

Megan holds pinkies with Makayla (so sweet)
photo by Darrell Yoder

The 208 member Marching Minutemen enter the stadium ~ my heart was POUNDING
photo by Tim Wietstock

Ready, Set, GO...(this is their opening formation)
photo by Kendra Wietstock

COOL SHOT taken by the band's photographer, Darrell Yoder

Megan is right in the middle lunging forward.
photo by Tim Wietstock

Megan is second from the left.
photo by Tim Wietstock

I was amazed how many times we actually found her!
photo by Tim Wietstock

Their closing stance.  WOW ~ what a show!
photo by Kendra Wietstock

Getting ready for awards ~ the four drum majors
photo by Tim Wietstock

Anxiously waiting for the results...
photo by Tim Wietstock

REALIZING THEY WON!  Tears of joy and smiles all around ~ Megan is on the far left.
photo by Darrell Yoder

Winners Drink MILK!  The four drum majors with our fabulous Band Director.

photo by Kendra Wietstock

Me and my beautiful champion!
photo by Tim Wietstock

Megan and her best friend Ben back at Concord ~ pure joy even after the 4 hour bus ride home. 
photo by Brian Davis

They arrived at back to town with a police and fire truck escort (with lights and sirens), fireworks, a news crew, and hundreds of parents and supporters.

CONGRATS TO OUR WONDERFUL
CLASS B STATE CHAMPIONS!