Splashes of Watercolor

I just love fairy tales!  So I was thrilled when I found out I would get to use Fairy Dust is a Must for the Our Craft Lounge blog hop.  These little darlings are so cute, aren’t they?!

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I went for a rustic, woodsy feel for my card today.  But I can’t wait to try this out with a sweet & glittery feminine theme too.

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Mushrooms and sparkly sentiments~

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Here’s the deal.  I’m giving away the Fairy Dust is a Must set.  The winner will be chosen randomly from all the comments left on yesterday’s sneak peek post HERE and on this post.  Be sure your contact information is in your blogger profile or in your comment.  You have until 11:59 p.m. Friday (11/20) to leave your comments.

Now go visit all the other blogs to see all the fantastic new releases!

Bird and Groom  - Beth
Hang it Up Cupid - Carol, Vicki
Hearts & Hugs - Holly, Joy
The Journey - Charmaine
Life Is -Amber
Love Notes -  Heather, Beate
Out for a Spin - Pam
Fairy Dust is a Must - Cami, Broni
Granny’s Truffles - Val
Jungle Love - Deb, Kendra
Shamrock Blessings -Cindy
Sweet on You -Kisa
Wanted - Lila

If you get lost anywhere along the way, all the information and links can be found at The Lounge.

Check out the fun Our Craft Lounge birthday bash challenges HERE!

• Stamps: Fairy Dust is a Must (Our Craft Lounge) - also can be purchased at eclectic Paperie
• Paper: Neenah white, chocolate chip, magazine page, Nutmeg Mini Deck (Cosmo Cricket)
• Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Ranger Distress brushed corduroy
  
• Other: Dahlia Nestabilities, sponge dabber, ribbon, Tombow mono aqua glue, Martha Stewart luster glass microbeads -clear, foam tape, DecoArt Glamour Dust, Ranger Glossy Accents, button, twine, Copic markers:

Hey, everyone!  Today is day 2 of the Valentine release sneak peeks for Our Craft Lounge.  I’m showing you a peek at Granny’s Truffles.  Everybody loves Granny!

I’ve used the MOJO113 sketch, which worked perfectly for Granny and her chocolate heart sentiment.  And this also fits the Splitcoast Monday TLC247 for cutting “Outside the Box” - her hair and the sentiment.  Hehe…check out her cheek full of chocolate and her fuzzy red slippers (made with Sparkly Fluff)!

You can see more of today’s sneak peeks by linking to the ladies at the Lounge blog. While there you can also find out how you can win some blog candy!  Woo hoo!

Check out the fun Our Craft Lounge birthday bash challenges going on all week HERE!

Thanks for stopping by and be sure to come back tomorrow for the blog hop!!

• Stamps: Granny’s Truffles (Our Craft Lounge)
  
• Paper: Neenah white, chocolate chip, Nook & Pantry 6×6 pad (Basic Grey)
• Ink: Memento tuxedo black & rich cocoa, Ranger Distress worn lipstick & antique linen
  
• Other: scallop heart & rectangle Nestabilities, May Arts ribbon, sponge dabber, foam tape, Quickie glue pen, Sparkly Fluff - Rockstar Red, rhinestone heart sticker, Copic markers:

Welcome to the November Angels Landing Blog Hop. If you missed the beginning, head over to Judi’s digital stamps blog and follow the links. Today the Design Team is introducing two new digital image sets for November, Polar Bear Cubs and Button Bugs.

I love the wonderful, sweet expressions that Judi gives her images and this polar bear is no exception.

**ETA - For those of you asking, the cocoa mix in a cone came premixed and prepackaged.  I did however find a mix recipe at the Nestle site HERE.  The only thing my prepackaged mix had that’s not mentioned in the recipe is some chocolate chips layered between the cocoa and the mini marshmallows. 

I decided to make a tag for this hot chocolate mix that I’ll give as a gift.  I added loads of sparkle  with Star Dust Stickles and also added Ranger Glossy Accents to the little cub’s eyes and nose to make them shine.  The words come as one sentiment but I cut them apart to place them on the tag.  As an added bonus, the tag can be removed and used as an ornament.

Your next stop on the Blog Hop is >>Cheryl’s blog<<
If you get lost along the way, check the master list on Judi’s digital stamps blog. Thanks for visiting, and I hope you’ll enjoy the rest of the hop.

And if you get a chance, you should really check out the fun Our Craft Lounge birthday bash challenges HERE!

• Stamps: Polar Bear Cubs (Angels Landing)
  
• Paper: Neenah white, real red
  
• Ink: computer
• Other: Labels 4 Nestabilities, Star Dust stickles, Tim Holtz Idea-ology grungeboard snowflake, Claudine Hellmuth Studio blank canvas paint and paintbrush, Ranger Glossy Accents, foam tape, rhinestone brad, Copic markers:
  

Our Craft Lounge is celebrating it’s FIRST BIRTHDAY this month!  If you go on over to The Lounge  or The Forum and you can join in on the fun scavenger hunt they are hosting!

In honor of the birthday party, I decided that Granny from the Shop ’til Ya Flop set needed to go shopping!  But of course, who do you think she ended up shopping for!??

I had a blast creating Granny’s paper-pieced outfit - the jacket, shopping bags, and hat…complete with a Minnie Pearl tag on her hat!!  (Now I know there are a few of you out there that are old enough to remember dear Minnie Pearl!)

All the patterned papers are from the Early Bird Mini Deck from Cosmo Cricket.  Everything else was colored with Copic markers.  The layout is from this week’s sketch challenge SC254 at Splitcoaststampers.

Be sure to stop by the OCL Lounge for all the details on the scavenger hunt.  It’s going on through Sunday (11/15/09).  Good luck!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a fantastic weekend!

• Stamps: Shop ’til Ya Flop ( Our Craft Lounge)
• Paper: vintage cream (Papertrey Ink), not quite navy, Early Bird Mini Deck - Cosmo Cricket
• Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Versafine onyx black
  
• Other: long rectangle Nestabilities, foam tape, rhinestone stickers, Copic markers:
  

A total of 25!  At least I hope that will be enough!

This week’s challenge from Judi at Angels Landing to the design team was to create something 3″ or smaller.  Little did I know that something so small could turn into such a big project!  Whew!

Here are the 6 different designs:

Here they are individually:

4 of the designs were created loosely using Kazan’s Sketch 39 from the 2S4U blog.   (Sorry about the “loosely” part, Kazan.  It was a little hard to work in such a small space!)

Here’s a group shot of all the tags:

Please check out the other designer’s creations of 3″ or less by linking to them from the Angels Landing blog.  I can’t wait to see what they come up with!

Do you have your Christmas tags or your Christmas cards finished yet?  I’m still working on my cards!

Thanks so much for visiting!

• Stamps: Penguin Checks, Ho Ho Hollydays, Season’s Tweetings, Pierced Tags (Angels Landing)
• Paper: Neenah white, real red, Beautiful Morning - Ooh La La (MME), Winter Wonderland - Colorful Christmas (MME), Sunshine Girl - Abbey Road (MME), Best Buddies - Abbey Road (MME)
  
• Ink: computer, Ranger Distress antique linen
  
• Other:  Copic markers, Atyou Spica glitter pens, square Nestabilities, sponge dabber, corner rounder punch, Cropadile, rhinestone stickers, ribbon

This week I’m hosting the Color Throwdown challenge.  Simon Says Stamp! is our sponsor and when I received my package from them I was excited to see that there was some beautiful handmade Washi paper included.  So that’s what I based my color choices on.

I love the bright colors and they worked so well with this adorable We Are Family Dolls stamp set.  I even used a small strip of the Washi paper to create the tiny fan that the Mom is holding.  I simply used a fan fold and then tied it together at the bottom with black quilting thread.  And how cute is that little puppy??

We’d love for you to join us this week.  The colors are fun and you could win a prize or become our next Featured Stamper!  You’ll find all the challenge details at the Color Throwdown blog.   C’mon over and play with us!

Here are links to the talented designers.  Check out their creations!

Barbara * Cathy *Danielle

LeAnne * Tammy * Elise (Guest Designer for November)

• Stamps: We Are Family Dolls (Simon Says Stamp!)
  
• Paper: Neenah white, black, crushed curry, classic orange (Prism), Handmade Japanese Hana Washi Paper - Spring Bloom (Simon Says Stamp!)
  
• Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Versafine onyx black
  
• Other: Labels 2 and petite ovals Nestabilities, Hero Arts art flowers (Simon Says Stamp!), foam tape, brads, white gel pen, Copic markers:
  

This week the Angels Landing design team was challenged to finish the inside of our cards.  That’s always fun!

There’s a lot of sparkle on this card and it was so much fun to make.  The kitten from Ho Ho Hollydays was colored with copic markers.  The grungeboard ornament was painted white with an acrylic paint dabber then coated with blue topaz glitter.  Both the ornament bow and the flourish were covered with stickles, and the fur trim on the kitten’s hat is made with Sparkly Fluff.

Inside, the tiny bird’s fur trim is made with stickles and the piercing at the top of the white layer was made using one of the Faux Stitched Borders.

Here are some close ups.  You can click on them to see them larger.

There’s lots more to see from the wonderfully talented design team.  Please check the links our HERE.  Thanks so much for stopping by to check this sparkly cutie out!

• Stamps: Ho Ho Hollydays, Faux Stitched Borders (Angels Landing)
  
• Paper: Neenah white, kiwi kiss, Colorful Christmas Bright Stripes (My Mind’s Eye)
• Ink: computer, Ranger acrylic paint dabbers - silver & snow cap, Versafine onyx black
• Other: sewing machine, Martha Stewart blue topaz glitter, Tim Holtz Ideology grungeboard ornament & swirl, piercing tool & mat, stardust & lime green & pink stickles, raspberry fizz satin ribbon (Papertrey Ink), foam tape, sugar Sparkly Fluff, yellow metallic Sakura gellyroll pen, 1-1/4″ circle punch, Copic markers:
  

Sadly, I have decided to step down from the Rubbernecker Stamps design team.  I’ve been with them for 3 years and it was time for me to move on and grow in another direction.  I will sorely miss Dave, Pat and all the wonderful, special ladies on the design team.  They’ve been my family for 3 years and will continue to be some of my closest friends.  I love them all!

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The fun announcement??  I’ve been invited to be on the Our Craft Lounge design team!!  Of course, it took only a few seconds to say yes!  It’s been a dream of mine to be able to work (play) with all of the super-talented ladies already on the team and I love all of their fun and playful stamp sets!  But most of all, I really, really love Cambria and Joy and couldn’t wait to work (play) with them!

So thanks for inviting me ladies, and I can’t wait to get into the swing of things with you all!

To start things off, I’ve made my first card.  Well, I’ve made several when I previously participated in the OCL blog hops for new releases but this is my first card as a DT member! (Yippee!)

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I used the For the Love of Birds stamp set for this card.  The images are so delicate and beautiful.  I immediately thought to pair this love bird image with the Spellbinders eyelet pendant die and add the new Martha Stewart double loops border punch to the mix.  Great match, don’t ya think?  Some vintage cream satin ribbon, half-back pearl stickers, and some Cosmo Cricket Earth Love paper complete the package!

Thanks so much for visiting me on this beautiful Sunday!  Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

• Stamps: For the Love of Birds (Our Craft Lounge)
  
• Paper: vintage cream (Papertrey Ink), Earth Love (Cosmo Cricket), soft suede
  
• Ink: Memento - rich cocoa
  
• Other: eyelet pendant & scallop circles Nestabilities (Spellbinders), tiny tags die (Cuttlebug), double loops border punch (Martha Stewart), vintage cream ribbon (Papertrey Ink), linen thread, pearl stickers, foam tape
  

Would you just look at that precious face??  I just can’t stop looking at it and smiling!  This little fella has complete stolen my heart!

He’s one of the adorable Penguin Chicks from Angels Landing.  And I chose him to be on my Color Throwdown card this week.  The colors that LeAnne presented us with just seemed perfect for a warm woolen hat and scarf.

The blue background layer is covered in sparkly snowflakes as is his snowy fur.  The snow on his little sign is liquid pearls with a touch of glitter as well.  The sheer, sparkly edged ribbon was heated just enough to crinkle the ends.  He’s colored with several different shades of grey markers (and qualifies as an entry to this month’s Copic Creations challenge - coloring black with copics).

We would just love it if you would play along with us!!  We don’t have a sponsor this week, but you have a chance at being chosen Featured Stamper of the week!!  You can find all the details on the Color Throwdown blog and then there’s so much more inspiration here:

Barbara * Cathy *Danielle

LeAnne * Tammy * Lisa Kind (Guest Designer for October)

I can’t believe this is already Lisa’s last week as Guest Designer!  Thank you so much, Lisa, for joining us and allowing us to showcase your gorgeous creations!

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I’ll have a new Angels Landing creation for you at 9 a.m., so please come back!

• Stamps: Penguin Chicks - Angels Landing
  
• Paper: white, bordering blue, razzleberry, eggplant
  
• Ink: computer
  
• Other: curved rectangles - Nestabilities, foam tape, white opal liquid pearls, 3/4″ circle punch, ribbon, CB snowflakes folder, Stardust stickles, heat tool, Copic markers:

I’m just finishing up my Halloween cards.  Good thing too, because some of them have to go to Virginia and some to Florida.  They’re all going in the mail today!

These first 2 cards are for the 2 youngest granddaughters - ages 15 months and 6 months.  The 6 month old is dressing up as a ladybug, so this Pink Cat Studio digi stamp Itty Bitty Betty - Ladybug Costume is just perfect!!  I know red is not your usual Halloween color, but it’s certainly appropriate here.

How about those gorgeous tissue paper flowers??  (You really have to click on the photo to make it larger so you can get the full effect of how pretty they are.)  Mona Pendleton did a fantastic video on how to make them.  You’ll find it HERE on the JUGS challenge blog, because that’s this week’s challenge - to make something with one of Mona’s flowers on it.

I followed Mona’s instructions, but used the Dahlia Nestabilities because I don’t have the Blossom ones.  My white tissue paper was brayered with real red ink.  I may not have let the brayered tissue paper dry long enough because when I took the eight layers out of the die, they were kind of melded together and I had to take my piercing tool and carefully separate the layers. I did try it again later with precolored pink tissue paper and did not have the same problem.  Another time saving hint: instead of cutting 8 squares for each size die, I just folded my tissue paper until there were 8 layers.  Much easier!!

Individual photos:

Now here’s the last of my Halloween creations.  It uses the MOJO109 layout and the Rubbernecker Stamps Halloween Set 2 cute little “Witchie Poo”.  Don’t you just love the Skull Trick or Treat paper from Fancy Pants?

All 3 of these cards qualify for entry to the Copic Creations challenge #14.  Check it out!

Thanks for visiting me today!  See you soon!

CUTIE PIE HALLOWEEN SET:

• Stamps: Itty Bitty Betty - Ladybug Costume digi stamp - Pink Cat Studio
• Paper: Neenah white, red, Boo to You from Bewitching Webs - My Mind’s Eye
  
• Ink: computer, red
  
• Other: brayer, tissue paper; Dahlia, circle, scallop circles Nestabilities; paper piercer & mat, white gel pen, rhinestone brads, foam tape, Distress stickles - rock candy, sewing machine, Copic markers:
  

WITCHIE POO:

• Stamps: Halloween Set 2 (474), sentiment - Halloween Set 1 (473) - Rubbernecker Stamps
  
• Paper: Neenah white, Fresh Paint glitter paper pack - K & Company, Skull - Trick or Treat - Fancy Pants, Monster Mash - Boo to You - My Mind’s Eye
• Ink: Memento - tuxedo black
  
• Other: classic rectangle, circle & petite oval Nestabilities, ribbon, stickles - black diamond, starry nights, corner chomper - deco, foam tape, white gel pen, Copic markers: