I've got a secret... Wanna know what it is???

It all began a couple of months ago when I fell in love!!!  hehehe.... with whom or what do you ask?  There She Goes Stamps of course!!!!  Guess who's getting Inky and Fabulous???? ME!!!! I'm one of the newest Trendsetters!!!! Can you tell that I am beyond excited??? 

I admire so many of the ladies on the team. I stalk many of them... Just kidding - I stalk their blogs for inspiration.  I'm so excited to have the opportunity to  be on a team alongside many of my stamping idols.  I am looking forward to getting to create with the fantastic DT of There She Goes stamps!!!!

The Senior Trendsetters are:

*Jessica Knutsen (Knutsen24) Owner, Illustrator, and DT Coordinator

*Holly McMillen (TOY) TSG Blog Coordinator

*Jessie Rone (knightrone)

*Jodi Collins (kharmagirl)

*Julie Lacey (juliemlacey)

*Kim Teasdale (blondie090277)

*Sandra MacLean (B-gin-R)

 There's a great group of us coming on as Junior Trendsetters.

*Alex Maldonado (InkyFairy)

*Angela Thomas (jellybean74) <--- That's ME!!!!

*Corinna McGregor (corinnamcgregor)

*Iwona Palamountain (Chupa)

*Natalie Dever (dougnat)

*Piali Biswas (Piali)

Is this not a Rockstar DT or what??? I am in absolute awe of the talent on this team!!!! I keep thinking I'm not worthy!!!! 

MTSC89 From a Withered Tree

I can't believe the month of August is already gone....  :-(  It makes me so sad!!!!  It's my last week as Mercy's Guest Muse for her Tuesday sketch challenge and all I can say is I have enjoyed this month so much stamping with such an amazing group of ladies!!!!!  Mercy - you know I love your sketches!!!! Thanks for allowing me the opportunity to create for you.  I've always found you and your Muses to be such an inspiration!!!

For my card, I've flipped the sketch on it's side so that I could use the blossom from the There She Goes set called "The Journey" illustrated by Chris Dark.  I'm so loving this set (can you believe it's the first time I've used it).  I've stamped both the image and sentiment in Versafine Vintage Sepia - I love the look of it because it's not so stark as black.  I've watercolored the image with my Tombow Markers and around the edge to highlight it I used one of my blue Tombow Markers.  Each layer of DP has been dry embossed using a variety of Cuttlebug embossing folders and each layer as well as the Chocolate Chip layers have been sponged with Close to Cocoa.  Hope you like it!!!

Check out what Mercy and her Muses have created today.

Mercy Kerin
Cindy Haffner
Crystal Birr
Jackie Pedro
Jessica Diedrich
Julie Lacey
Pam Speidel
Pam Varnell

CDS Sneak Peek - Measure of a Man

It's that time again... It's Clear Dollar Stamps Sneak Peek time for the September 1st Release. It feels like I've been gone forever from Clear Dollar Stamps but I'm now back after a 2 month DT vacation. Oh how I've missed my CDS. This month there are a ton of great sets and one of my favorites is Kim Teasdale's new set called Measure of a Man. It has a great sense of humor and sass that any man would appreciate!!! I know for myself that I find I struggle with masculine cards and have very few masculine sets so I had to have this set. 

For my first card, I knew I wanted to use the TV from the set because I just had to use the sentiment.  It's just so cheeky.  I've watercolored the image with my Tombow Markers as usual.  Each layer of the Oliver Basic Grey DP has been dry embossed with my Cuttlebug Embossing Folders for a bit of texture.  Of course with it being a masculine card, I tried staying away from ribbon (I gotta tell you it was hard considering almost all of my cards have ribbon on them). 

For my second card, I decided I wanted to go with a more CAS look to make the remotes stand out. I've stamped them with Basic Black ink.  Check it out... I went with ribbon for this card... exactly what I had been trying to avoid!. 

Make sure you check out what the ladies from the team have for you today for eye candy (see sidebar for links)

Whooo Loves you: Laurie, Candy, Katie, Christi, Lisa, Barb, Cassie, Shell
The Measure of a Man: Katie, Kim, Angela, Nancy, Barb, Cassie
Handstamped Label: Candy, Katie, Lisa, Barb, Laurie
Merry Christmas 3: Katie
You are Special: Katie

CDS Sneak Peeks - Winter Critters

Told you I'd be here today!!! It's Clear Dollar Stamps Sneak Peek Time for the September 1st release.  I'm so glad to be back designing and creating after a two month break - oh how I've missed my Clear Dollar Stamps.  Laurie Wilson has hit it out of the park with her new set called Winter Critters.  I absolutely love the images from this set.
 

For my first sample, I decided to decorate this gift tin that could be used for a gift certificate or gift card, a piece of jewelry (hint hint honey..) or any other small item.  Believe me when I say you don't want to see my wrap a present (it's pathetic I'll admit).  I wrapped some ribbon around the bottom and added a bow with a button on the front.  The image has been watercolored with my Tombow Markers.  I really wanted to try to keep this simple. 

I have so many friends who love to read so I decided to make a Corner Bookmark.  They are so incredibly easy to make.  I think I'll be making a pile of these to put in stockigngs at Christmas this year.  I've watercolored the image with my Tombow Markers.  The DP is from Basic Grey (it's an old one from a few years ago).  Hope you like it!!!

Check out what the team has for you today: (please see sidebar for links)

Christmas Mouse & All God's Creatures: Laurie, Katie, Trudy, Barb, Shell
Winter Critters: Laurie, Katie, Angela, Tricia, Cassie

CDS Sneak Peeks

Just thought I'd let you all know that the September 1st Sneak Peeks at Clear Dollar Stamps has begun!!!  I don't have anything to show you today but I'll be back tomorrow with a great sneak peek. In the mean time, check out what the girls have for you today. 

Jesus is the Reason: Laurie, Candy, Katie, Cassie, Lisa, Shell

Blooming Background: Candy, Katie, Cassie, Lisa, Shell
Our Saviour's Birth: Laurie, Katie, Tricia, Shell
Our Saviour's Scriptures: Laurie, Katie, Tricia, Shell, Stacy
A Season of Wonder: Laurie, Katie, Nancy, Christi, Shell, Stacy
Christmas Inside Sentiments (psalm): Candy, Katie, Nancy, Stacy, Shell
Christmas Inside Sentiments (John): Laurie, Candy, Katie, Cassie, Stacy, Shell

TSG69 Bee Happy

You've probably noticed that I've fallen in love... in love with There She Goes Stamps that is...  I love how Jessica and her team come up with the most amazing sets for every budget and for every style.  Let's just say I loaded up during the August release- I couldn't help myself because I loved them all.  This week's challenge (TSG69)  is to create an ATC (Artist Trading Card).  I've only ever made one of them but remember enjoying it so of course I had to participate.  I've used the new set called Bee Happy and have stamped everything using Versafine Onyx Black and then clear embossed it all so that I could watercolor it all with my Tombow Markers.  I then used some Diamond Stickles on the wings of the bees. Easy Peasy I tell ya!!!

So what's a girl to do once she's made an ATC?? Of course I had to make a full size card.  I've had this Urban Prairie Basic Grey DP that I've never used (if you saw my DP stash, you'd be amazed).  The Yellow DP is some Sugar-coated DP from Doodlebug Designs (it doesn't show the sparkly glitterness very well in the pic).  I've used the layout from Sketch Challenge 293 at SCS) but left a few bits of it out.  I really like how everything came together in this card. I know I'll be pulling this cute set, Bee Happy, out quite often.

Bee HAPPY!!!

MTSC88 Dog-gone Cute

I know I said this last week but I really can't believe how quickly the month of August has gone. After this week, I only have one week left as Mercy's Guest Muse this month. I've absolutely loved working with all the gals and Mercy always has the most amazing sketches each week. 

For my card this week, I've used one of the new sets from There She Goes called Puppy Love. I fell in love with this set as soon as I saw it, so as soon as it was available I ordered it and then for a couple of weeks.... I stalked my mailman!!!  He knows when I ask... do you have any packages that he should be expecting to deliver one any time.  I've drawn my inspiration from this "Ducks in a Row" DP from October Afternoon.  For the main image panel, I decided to create a little scene so I sponged in some clouds for the sky using Soft Sky Ink (SU). I then used my Martha Stewart Grass Punch and my MS Fence punch as well.  For the actual images, I've watercolored them using my Tombow Markers and then popped them up using Dimensionals.  Each layer of DP has been dry embossed using a variety of my Cuttlebug Embossing Folders (Divine Swirls, See Spots, Kassie's Brocade).  I've added the ribbon treatment because I wanted to fit one of the sentiments from this stamp set in. 

Check out what Mercy and her Muses have for you to look at today:
Mercy Kerin
Cindy Haffner

Crystal Birr
Jackie Pedro
Jessica Diedrich
Julie Lacey
Pam Speidel
Pam Varnell

Have a great day!!!!

SFYTT One Martini too many...

Jen del Muro always has fantastic sketches on Saturdays so I decided I wanted to play ( I realized it's been almost a week since I've updated my blog... OOPS).  I've flipped the sketch so that I could use the image I wanted to - which is Addy'tude Loves her 'tinis from Stamping Bella. 

I've watercolored my image using Tombow Markers (my go to marker).  I then sponged around the edge with Canteloupe Memento Ink.  All of the DP is from Bo Bunny - I've been hoarding it a little so I decided I just needed to use it (to make way for some of the new CHA releases of course!!!).  My card ended up with a bit of a shadow so it has distorted the brads a little bit but I do promise they are there!!!!

MTSC87 Does my Butt look big?

WOW! I can't believe we are over half way through the month of August - where has this month gone?   It's Tuesday already - wowza! And we know what that means this month right??? It's Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge (MTSC87).  This sketch had me so inspired and I had a ton of fun making this card!!! I know that I'll be using this sketch again and again! Mercy always has amazing sketches that allow for CAS or nice and fancy. 

I made this card with a set from Skipping Stones Design called Sassy Snow.  It was a special offer a few months ago but I have a feeling you'll be able to find it once we start getting closer to Winter.  Now I have always loved snowmen so when I saw this set, I knew I wanted to play with it again.  This snow"woman" is just too funny?  How many of us ladies stand with our hands on our hips and ask our hubbies if we look big in what we're wearing right?  And thankfully, we have smart husbands who know what the right answer is!!! The clear dew drops are meant to be part of the "thought bubble" extending out to the sentiment. The main image has been watercolored with my Tombow Markers - if you haven't tried them you really should. I know that Copics are all the rage but Tombows are so much fun.  How many of us have a stash of DP that we don't want to dig into and we just hoard?  I've been hoarding this My Mind's Eye DP since it came out (I looked on the back of it today and realized it's from 2008).  I absolutely love the colors in the DP because I'm a non traditional girl when it comes to Christmas colors.  You won't see me with much red and green but instead fun colors. Each layer of DP has been run through my Cuttlebug with different folders for a bit of texture and the edges have been sponged with Soft Sky. 

Mercy and her Muses have great eye candy for you today so check them out. 

Mercy Kerin (our awesome leader)
Cindy Haffner
Crystal Birr
Jackie Pedro
Jessica Diedrich
Julie Lacey
Pam Speidel
Pam Varnell

3 Christmas cards down... and many more to go!

TSG68 Dance

Dance.... this is one of my favorite sets from There She Goes.  It can be used for so many things and what I like most about it is that this quote is so inspirational.  Who couldn't help but smile when you read it?  It's a mantra we should all live by.  I've made this bookmark for this week's challenge at There She Goes and it was so much fun to make and talk about easy peasy!!! It's one of the corner bookmarks that we've all seen popping up lately on SCS and in blogland.  I've used Old Olive and Real Red for my cardstock and then the October Afternoon Thrift Shop DP.  The sentiment has been stamped in Versafine Onyx Black and embossed with clear detail embossing powder. With my Blossom Nestabilities Die still in place, I've sponged with Brushed Velvet and Worn Lipstick Distress Inks.  The leaves were created using one of the Flower Nestabilities dies which I have sponged around the edge with Old Olive.  So cute I tell ya- I've just popped this bookmark into the book I am currently reading. 

Lying in a Glass... Bellarific Friday

It sure has been a busy week... Yikes!!! But it's a great day because it's Bellarific Friday at Stamping Bella and this week's challenge is all about adding a little bit of "BLING".... You know I was all over this challenge! I've used "Stella with an Olive on Top" for my image which I have watercolored with my Tombow Markers.  I then added some Fruit Punch Stickles on the red portion of the olive and Stella's lips.  Yellow Stickles was added to Stella's Crown and the Star on her wand. See....I added bling!!  Around the main image, I have sponged Canteloupe Memento Ink to frame.  The Black matting around the Nestabilities was done by cutting on the outer edge of the same size nestabilities. I like doing this because you end up with a smaller border rather than a large one.  The DP is October Afternoon "Thrift Shop" - I think it may be my new addiction!!! I've finished off the card by adding three black brads in the upper right hand corner and the ribbon embellishment at the bottom of the card. 

See.... I love my Sparkle and Bling (and I think Stella does too.....)

Have a great day!!!

TSG67 Yummo!!

 I'm so glad that my BFF, Kim Teasdale introduced me to There She Goes!! I don't know what my life would be like without their stamps!!!  There are so many different stamp sets ranging from whimsical and fun to elegant and beautiful. They definitely are a great company with great versatility.  I've been having so much fun playing along with the weekly challenges at TSG so when I saw that this week was a sketch by Pam Varnell I knew I wanted to play!!! 

For my card, I've used the set appropriately called Ice Cream, a super cute yet very inexpensive set.  I've had it for about a month now and was waiting for the right opportunity to use it on a card.  This week's sketch just seemed so appropriate and with my DP from Bo Bunny that I've used, I love how it turned out. As usual, I've watercolored the image with both Tombow and SU markers.  I've been trying really hard lately to get shading etc into my watercoloring and this is one of few cards that I feel like I've hit it spot on.  Yeah me!!! Not much explanation with this card, just followed the sketch, cut up some DP, watercolored the image and threw on a button (as the cherry on the ice cream).

Have a great day!!! And while you're at it.... Enjoy some ice cream!!!

MTSC86 Out of the Box

 

 

Hey there everyone!!! I know I've been a bit quiet on my blog this last few days but it was a busy weekend and I needed to play catch up around the house.  I'll tell you though it was well worth the wait because I have some fun cards to share with you this week.  This is my second week as the Guest Muse for Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge (aka MTSC).  As soon as I saw this week's sketch, I had this image called Allboxedup-abella from Stamping Bella in mind. I bought right after it was released and life got busy and you all know how that goes.... Who doesn't have rubber that hasn't seen ink yet? Tell me I'm not the only one please!!!

 

 

Do you ever have DP that you absolutely love but it was so hard to find - so you just don't use it???  Well that's the case with the floral DP on this card. I'd seen it for months on everyone's blogs and I finally found it!!! It was hard to cut into it for this card I tell ya but at the same time it was the inspiration for the color scheme for my card.  I've combined it with DP from October Afternoon.  The image has been stamped in Versafine Onyx Black and then embossed with Clear Detail Embossing Powder.  I've watercolored the image with my Tombow and SU Markers and a waterbrush.  I've been pulling my SU markers out more lately so that I have a few more colors to work with.  Each of the layers of DP have been embossed with some of my Cuttlebug embossing folders to add more texture. 

Check out what Mercy and her Muses have for eye candy today!!!
Mercy Kerin (The Head Muse)
Pam Speidel
Cindy Haffner
Jackie Pedro
Julie Lacey
Crystal Birr
Jessica Diedrich
Pam Varnell

 

 

Hehehe... I've made this card for one of my friends for her upcoming birthday.... I know she'll see it in my blog and love it!!! 

 

She's cute and loves her Cherries - Bellarific Friday

Isn't she just too cute?? Her name is Cherryblossom Bittybloom - it's my favorite Bittybloom from Stamping Bella.  As you know, I love my Bellas, Stellas, Bittyblooms so when I saw that Stamping Bella is looking for a new "Bella Babe" I thought why not throw my name into the hat?  And all you have to do to apply is participate in all of their Friday Challenges this month.  This week's challenge is Paper Piecing - and yes I have paper piecing on my card if you were trying to find it!!! (See the cherries??).  My BFF Kim and I were at Michael's recently and found these Kraft colored journals (they had different fruit all over them) so we each picked up a few to alter.  I wish I had more of them!!! But they're all gone now... I'd been waiting for this October Afternoon "Thrift Shop" DP to arrive in the mail for awhile now so as soon as I had it on my hot little hands, I HAD to use it. (the pink polkadotted paper and green polkadotted paper are from their "Fly a Kite" line.  I really think this DP matches the image so well - soft and airy and cute.  It's definitely girly that's for sure.  Cherryblossom Bittybloom has been watercolored with my Tombow markers and then I paper pieced a small bit of the pink polkadotted paper onto the cherries.  With my Spellbinder die in place, I sponged around the edges with SU Pink Pirouette ink.  Each of the layers of DP have been dry embossed using either Cuttlebug or Tim Holtz folders. 

Wouldn't this journal be cute for a little girl?  Hope you like it.  You'll be seeing more journals in the future from me (I have 10 of them if I remember correctly).

Have a great day!!!

I apologize for the lighting in my photo - it's the first day of rain here that we've had in over a month and I couldn't get a photo bright enough before heading to work. 

TSG66/MOJO150 Just a note

When I saw this week's challenge at There She Goes hosted by Mercy, I was all over it!!! After all, I'm a girl who loves to watercolor!!!  I find I'm continually learning more about it and trying new things.  I don't think I'll ever perfect it but I'm getting there - don't ya think?  I've used the TSG set called "What's up Buttercup" (unfortunately it is out of stock right now) and have watercolored with my Tombow Markers.  I then went around the edge of the image with a soft blue Tombow marker to highlight the image.  If you've never tried watercoloring, I really suggest trying out Tombow markers - I always use a waterbrush rather than the Tombow blender pen.  It provides a totally different look.  It's all about practicing just as it is with any coloring medium.  I love the look as you can get really vibrant or make things look really soft as I have done with this image.  For my layout, I've used this week's Mojo Monday challenge (although I tweaked the bottom of it as I didn't like the idea of using a border punch (nothing I tried was working quite right).  The DP is from Basic Grey and unfortunately I'm not sure where I got the blue DP from (it's a scrap and no longer has the name on it). 

Have a great day!!!

MTSC85 Such a little Monster...

OMGoodness!!!! I've been waiting for August to roll around for months... and of course there's a reason!!! You're probably wondering why I'm posting my Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge card along with  all of Mercy's Muses!!! Guess what - I'm MERCY's GUEST MUSE for the month of August!!! I'm so excited to be working alongside such a wonderful group of ladies who always provide so much inspiration every Tuesday.  Mercy - thank you so much for inviting me to play along this month. 

So on Saturday I made my way to my local Stamping store, Crafty Capers just to "take a look around" and had no intention of buying anything until I saw this cute set from Hero Arts called Monster Fun. I knew I couldn't leave the store without it and that I'd be needing a kid's birthday card soon.  I've watercolored the monsters with my Tombow Markers and then of course, I had to add the googly eyes. What little kid doesn't love googly eyes right?  I wanted to make the card a little more fun so I added the "balloons" and used Embroidery floss for the ribbon of the balloons.  It's hard to see but I've used the "Seeing Spots" Cuttlebug folder on the polka dotted layer to add a bit of dimension. Hope you like it!!!

Make sure you check out what Mercy and her Muses have for you today for inspiration:

•Mercy Kerin (The Head Muse)
•Pam Speidel
•Cindy Haffner
•Jackie Pedro
•Julie Lacey
•Crystal Birr
•Jessica Diedrich
•Pam Varnell

Have a great day!!!

Anni-VERVE-sary Love

Welcome to the Anni-VERVE-sary Blog Hop! Verve turns three today and we’re celebrating with a hop, hop, hop! If you've already been hopping along, you arrived here from Angela's (yes there are two Angela's in a row on the blog hop) blog. If not, head on over to Julee's Blog (owner of Verve), for all the info on how to win prizes (after all, what's a party without presents?), and to start hopping from the beginning. If there's a hiccup along the hop, you can always head to the Master Hop List to get the full list of links.

I had so much fun making this card!! I used the set called "Love's Flower" which I have been in love with forever.  Right after I signed up for the blog hop, I started going through all my Verve sets and realized I wanted something new so I popped on over to the Verve store and into my cart this set went. I'm so glad it arrived this week otherwise I would have been using one of my older sets.  For the sentiment, I've used Versamark and Basic Black ink and then embossed with Clear embossing powder.  With my Spellbinder's die still in place I sponged with Bermuda Bay ink for a bit of color.  I love how you can get that white border around the die.  For the black matting, I used the same die but went around the outside edge with my craft knife because I didn't want a big border.  The flower has been watercolored with both Tombows and SU Markers.  To be honest,  in real life it looks a lot softer than the pic.  I added a small rhinestone in a matching tone to the center of the flower. 

Thanks for hopping by! Now it's time to hop on over to Kathleen's blog, for a little more Verve-y goodness.
 
You'll want to make sure you leave comments along the way because there will be prizes for lucky commenters somewhere along the hop!!!