Swaps, Make & Take and goodies!

I think I am getting back on track here. This is kind of a long post tonight. I wanted to feature all the wonderful stuff I have gotten from fellow bloggers as well as my swap and make and take for tomorrow.

Here is my swap for our March downline meeting. I am always so nervous making cards for these super stamping gals in my downline group. I hope to have another slide show of our swaps to put up tomorrow. Everyone enjoyed last month's slide show, so I plan to try it again.

Recipe:
Stamps: So Many Scallops, Curvy Verses, Friendship Blooms
Paper: Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, Whisper White, Spring Fling DP
Ink: Regal Rose
Accessories: SU Regal Rose ribbon, scallop circle punch, button from my button box

The baskets are from a tutorial by Nancy Morgan (Paper Smiles). They are so cute and so easy and I know the gals are going to have fun making them tomorrow.



This is the wonderful package I got from Chat aka nitestamper on SCS (Me, My Stamps and I) for sending her the pattern for the love notes box. Isn't it spectacular?











This is the blog candy that I got from Cindy Vernon (Creating with the Heart)















This is the blog candy I got from Wanda (My Creative Corner)



Check out these wonderful stamper's blogs, the talent out there is incredible.









Last but not least is the wonderful present I got for my birthday from my ddl Autumn and son Kelly. She knows how organizationally challenged I am and got this to help me be able to put my hands on my paper when I need it. She's the best!




Next week I am going to be paying it forward with some great blog candy, so be sure to come back and check it out. I apologize for the wierd spacing ... I'm still trying to get the hang of this blogging thing.

Thanks for visiting! ~chris

Happy Easter

I think my mojo is slowly coming back. The toe is much better today and things are starting to look up again! Got some wonderful goodies in the mail and hope to have some pix to share with you tomorrow. This card features some new ribbon from Taylored Expressions - for those of you with a similar addiction to ribbon, her shop is a must visit! See the links on the side of my page for a link to her shop. Card base is gable green and accent colors are pretty in pink, soft sky and barely banana. I used my new cuttlebug dotted swiss folder and also one of the small embossing folders for the square around the bunny. I got the bunny in a bulk buy of stamps on ebay - so many pounds for so many dollars. He's a keeper for sure and it says Eureka Stamps on the side of the wood.

Thanks for hanging in there with me as I try to get my priorities straight! Hopefully, I will get back on track now and have somethings to share every day.

Thanks for visiting my blog. ~chris

Goodies from Heaven ...

Well, maybe not that far, but Canada! I got these goodies from Corinne and wanted to share some pix with you. The first is of my gorgeous wood blocks - this is several sets (my ddl needs some too), but you can get all the details and pricing at Stamping with Roxy.


Corinne is an awesome stamper and a total pleasure to deal with. I also got one of her wonderful pull-out scrapbooks. Take a look:


If you want one too, check out this post on her blog.

I also found one of the cards I made for last week's workshop. I got the inspiration from a card on SCS and now cannot find it. Sorry about that.


Well, hopefully this week will work out better than last! The toe is still really painful, but I'm getting around okay. Have lots going this week and hopefully will have lots to share. Thanks for visiting my blog!

~chris

An Update

Well, here I sit surrounded by wonderful stamps sets and great tools, and zip to show for it. I made a bunch of things today, but none of them came out like I think they should and none are good enough to waste a photo - even a digital one - on. This week has been a bad one. I have been totally swamped at work and at a meeting on Thursday (in front of everybody) I tripped, fell and broke my toe (big toe, right foot). I managed to make some projects for my SAB party on Wednesday and took pictures, but can't find them anywhere. I gave the demo cards away too.

Tomorrow is the start of a new week though! I have a downline meeting on Thursday for which I need 16 swaps and at which I am doing a demo. No clue yet what I'm going to do, but some of my best work is still ahead of me ... right?

Anyway, I have been blurfing like crazy and picking up lots of cool inspiration and hopefully, this week will be better than last. Thanks for being patient with me and come back this week and see if I manage to stamp my way out of this creative funk I've gotten myself into. I'm off to RICE (rest, ice, compress and elevate) the stupid toe. I went grocery shopping today (dh hates to grocery shop) and it probably wasn't the smartest thing I've done lately. Thanks so much for visiting! ~chris

Kaput Krafts Blog Candy

Just a note to let you know that Wendi at Kaput Krafts is hosting a great blog candy giveaway to benefit a good cause. Go on over and check it out. Back later with some pix of last night's projects! Thanks for visiting. ~chris

I'm still alive!

I didn't drop off the face of the earth. Have just been so busy I can't see straight. Need to get through today and then maybe I can get back to normal. Thanks for visiting and come back tomorrow and I will have some images from my party tonight! ~chris

We have a winner!

Lucky number 13!

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers: 13

Timestamp: 2008-02-29 15:14:06 UTC

Our Winner is:

sgc said...

Congratulations on 2000 hits. It will build up faster now that I have found your blog! Love those baubles.

February 27, 2008 7:45 AM

SGC contact me with your snail mail address so I can send you your goodies. There was no contact information in blogger for you, so hopefully you will see this and email me! Congratulations!

Thanks everyone for visiting my blog! I'll have some new cards up later today so come back and visit. ~chris

Good Easter Egg!

I fell in love with Cambria's card and had to case it! I bought this flocking with this chick in mind. The gal behind the counter picked up the lighter, springier yellow and said how she thought it would be just perfect for chicks. I got the darker Sunshiny Yellow too and when I saw this paper I knew what I had to do!

Recipe:
Stamps: A Good Egg, So Many Scallops
Paper: Lavender Lace, Ruby Red, Amada Blu & Co. dp
Ink: basic black, markers
Accessories: ribbon, punches, flocking

Thanks so much for visiting my blog. Be sure to check out the blog candy I'm giving away to celebrate 2000 hits!

~chris

SC165

Here's my entry for today's sketch challenge on Splitcoast Stampers.

Recipe:

Stamp: So Many Scallops, For a Friend
Paper: apricot appeal, cameo coral, certainly celery, ww, really rust, barely banana, sei dp
Ink: cameo coral, apricot appeal
Accessories: brads, ribbon, punches, cb

Thanks so much for visiting my blog and be sure to check out yesterday's post for a chance to win some BLOG CANDY as I celebrate 2000 hits!

~chris

BLOG CANDY!!!!

2000 Hits! I'm so excited and wanted to share with everyone. Just leave a comment on this post and on Friday I will use random.org to select a winner.

Thank you everyone for all your encouraging and supportive comments. I was really aprehensive starting this blog. I had no clue what I was getting into. I had been blurfing for a couple of months and everyone's work was so impressive and their blogs were so full of inspiring ideas and encouraging words. It was like meeting all these new friends - virtually!

Well, I'm going to try to catch the end of the hockey game and then get some sleep. Thanks again for visiting my blog! Don't forget to leave a comment and get a chance at the candy! ~chris

Tripple Play

I am way behind on my challenge play, so I thought I'd try combining three today Julee's Mojo Monday, SCS CC155 to use river rock, basic black and whisper white and SCS TLC57 to use two designer papers we might not ordinarly use together. Hopefully it isn't too much of a mish-mosh!

Recipe:
Stamps: Sassy Stems
Paper: river rock, basic black, whisper white, river rock dp, foxy ferns dp from masterpiece studios
Ink: versamark, markers
Accessories: ribbon, punches, cb, brad, black ep

Check today's other post for BLOG CANDY celebrating 2000 hits! Never imagined I'd ever have that. Thanks to everyone for all your encouragement and support. I truly appreciate it. ~chris

Easter Card

I found this stamp and the ribbon in the $1 bin at Mikes. Seemed like an interesting combo so I messed around with it and this is the result.

Recipe:

Stamps: Mike's $1 bin, unknown sentiment
Paper: chocolate chip, blue bayou, whisper white
Ink: blue bayou, markers
Accessories: punches, cb, ribbon

Thanks for visiting my blog.

~chris

One more sympathy card

Second of two sympathy cards I really didn't want to make. I love the delicate gentleness of this stamp and think it works for this card.

Recipe:
Stamps: Riot of Petals, Sincere Salutations
Paper: soft sky, blue bayou, whisper white
Ink: versamark
Accessories: white ep, punches, watercolor pencils, blender pens

Thanks for visiting my blog. ~chris

Leadership 2008 Slideshow

Kathy Peterson was gracious enough to provide me with images of samples from the 2008 Leadership Conference in Palm Springs. Thanks Kathy! Enjoy!

A card for the unthinkable

I had to make a card for something unthinkable - the death of a child. I didn't want it to be black and somber, but ... well, this is what I came up with. I don't know if it will be okay and I might have another go at it tomorrow. My heart hurts.

Recipe:
Stamps: Double Line Doodles, Warmest Regards
Paper: Soft Sky, Blue Bayou, Whisper White, Papertrey Everyday Blessings
Ink: versamark, blue bayou
Accessories: punches, black ep, markers, ribbon

Kiss your loved ones and make sure they know you love them. ~chris

SC164 - Happy Wednesday

I've had this stamp set for a long time and hadn't mounted it. This dp really seemed to warrant pulling it out and inking it up.

Recipe:

Stamps: True Friend, Warmest Regards
Paper: mellow moss, apricot appeal, soft sky, very vanilla, dcwv dp
Ink: cameo coral, apricot appeal, mellow moss
Accessories: brads, ribbon from mike's

Thanks so much for visiting my blog! ~chris

Color Challenge and Celebration Moments Sketch Challenge

Once again this week I combined the color challenge and the challenge from Linda Black's Celebration Moments.

Recipe:

Stamps: none
Paper: dcwv dp, cloud 9 design dp, certainly celery, pumpkin pie, orchid oppulence, ww
Ink: white gel pen
Accessories: distressing tool, punches, brad

I don't usually use my distressing tool, but I thought this needed softer edges.

Thanks for visiting my blog! ~chris

Thank You Card

I got this stamp set from my friend Clela and I wanted to make a thank you card for her using it. Thanks Clela! I was inspired by this card from this week's featured stamper - Betty (aka on gbedwright Splitcoast Stampers.)

Recipe:

Stamps: Simply Said
Paper: real red textured, so saffron cs and dp, basic black
Ink: basic black, markers
Accessories: punches, CB embossing folder, brads

Thanks so much for visiting my blog! ~chris

Allison's Suggestive Sunday Challenge

Allison (Stampin' When I Can) put up this Suggestive Sunday Challenge yesterday and I immediately thought of the punch I got at a 50% off sale at HL. Thanks for the challenge Allison!

Recipe:

Stamps: Short & Sweet
Paper: river rock, basic black
Ink: basic black
Accessories: hodge podge hardware, ribbon, punches

Thanks for visiting my blog! ~chris

Yay - it's Monday again!

I have really started to look forward to Mondays thanks to Julee and her Mojo Monday sketch challenges.

I also got hooked on the challenge posted by Chat - A Challenge Just for You.

Recipe:

Stamps: Embrace Life, Fancy Florals, Friendship Blooms
Paper: mellow moss, not quite navy, blue bayou, very vanilla
Ink: blue bayou, versamark
Accessories: blue ep from Stampendous, ribbon, button, yarn, punches, white signo pen, twinkling h2o watercolors

From the first time I saw this image it screamed Twinkling H2O's. The photo doesn't do justice to the shimmery paint. Hope you like it!

Thanks for visiting my blog. ~chris

Featured Stamper Challenge

Here is my entry for the challenge using super featured stamper Betty aka gbedwright as inspiration. This is the card I chose:


I changed up the paper and stamps but I think the feel is the same. This is my first attempt at a featured stamper challenge, so there may be a bit of a learning curve here.




















Stamps: Friendship Blooms, Warm Words
Paper: real red, basic black, real red textured, whisper white
Ink: real red, basic black
Accessories: eyelets, brads, punches, yarn, ribbon from Joann's

Thanks so much for visiting my blog. ~chris

Couple Cards to Share

I put these four cards up last night and realized when I previewed after posting that I put them up on the wrong blog. About that time the grandkids arrived to spend the night and so these aren't getting up until today. I woke up Saturday morning thinking about stitching and beading and this card was the result.

Recipe:

Stamps: So Many Scallops, Seeing Spots, Short & Sweet
Paper: cameo coral, tempting turquoise, certainly celery, basic gray dp, very vanilla
Ink: cameo coral, taken with teal
Accessories: punches, beads, brads, ribbon from mike's

This was just a simple thank-you card that I made while playing with my new ScorPal!

Stamps: Wonderful Words
Paper: groovy guava
Ink: versamark
Accessories: ScorPal, CB folders, white ep, groovy guava double stitched ribbon from SU





These are two cards that I received from my son, ddl and twin grandchildren for our anniversary and Valentine's Day:

February Downline Meeting & WSC #35

Well, I'm going to try this and see what happens. I am really new to blogging, but yesterday we had our monthly downline meeting and I really wanted to share images of our swaps. Our fearless leader, Roselyn, opened her home and heart to us and even fed us a marvelous lunch. We celebrated Valentine's Day, my ddl Autumn's birthday, and the wonderful fellowship we share as Stampin' Up demonstrators. Here is a slideshow of the swaps created by these wonderful and talented women.

Added later in the evening on Friday, Feb. 15:

Here's my card for Beate's weekend sketch challenge:

Recipe:

Stamps: Warmest Regards, SU background stamp
Paper: certainly celery, cameo coral, summer sun, bordering blue, ruby red, basic grey dp
Ink: elegant eggplant, certainly celery
Accessories:robins nest dd water bling, punches, mike's ribbon, chunky sprinkles glitter from SU

I created the flower centers by putting crystal effects on some whisper white paper, sprinkling the glitter on, letting it dry and punching out circles. Instant bling!

Thanks so much for visiting my blog. ~chris

Downline Swap for February

Well, I finally finished - 16 swaps for our February downline meeting today! I sure hope they like it. I'm always so nervous when swapping with these ultra talented ladies. I'm still pretty new at this and they are all soooooo good!

Recipe:
Stamps: Essence of Love
Paper: river rock, basic black, whisper white
Ink: river rock, basic black, versamark, wild wasabi, summer sun, groovy guava, soft sky, blue bayou
Accessories: punches, ribbon, brads, black ep
Techniques: stipple, sponge, emboss, stencil, mask

I got inspiration from this card from Beate on Splitcoast Stampers. Take a look - it is gorgeous!

Well it is snowing and my ddl Autumn, who is also a demonstrator (and it's her birthday today to boot) will be heading up the mountain with me to our meeting. You gotta love the weather in Colorado - 56 degrees yesterday and 4-6 inches of snow before the day is out today! Yikes. I'll put up some of the swaps later today so you can see what a talented group we have.

Thanks for visiting my blog! ~chris

SC163

Here's my attempt at the sketch challenge today on Splitcoast Stampers.

Recipe:
Stamps: Seeing Spots, So Many Scallops
Paper: really rust, summer sun, more mustard, chocolate chip, very vanilla, pumpkin pie, scrap dp
Ink: really rust, so saffron, basic black
Accessories: punches, brads

Thanks for visiting my blog! ~chris

CC153 & CMSC305

I tried to combine a couple challenges on this card, today's color challenge on Splitcoast Stampers and Linda Black's Celebration Moments challenge.

Recipe
Stamps: Lots of Thoughts, Friendship Blooms
Paper: sahara sand, tempting turquoise, green galore, ww, flowers for you dp
Ink: green galore, taken with teal
Accessories: punches, brads, ribbon from mikes

I'm hoping to put up a sample of my swap for Thursday's downline meeting tonight - come back and check it out! Thanks for visiting my blog!

~chris

Mojo Monday #24

I never used to like Mondays, but now with Julee's Mojo Monday sketch challenges, that's all changed! Here's my entry for this week's challenge.

Recipe:
Stamps: Lots of Thoughts
Paper: empting turquoise, cameo coral, soft sky, heidi grace dp
Ink: taken with teal
Accessories: punches, brads, mike's ribbon, cuttlebug

Thanks so much for visiting my blog.

~chris

One more sketch challenge

I am still loving the pink/green combo! This is for Beate's weekend sketch challenge.

Recipe:
Stamps: So Many Scallops
Paper: pretty in pink, mellow moss, ww, making memories dp
Ink: pretty in pink
Accessories: punches, mike's ribbon, buttons, yarn. flower brad

I raided my button stash and dug out some really, really old punch needle embroidery yarn from my infamous closet. Someday I will get organized, someday ....

Thanks for visiting my blog! ~chris

SFYTT - Happy Sunday!

This is my attempt at Jen's Sketch for You to Try.

I think it is a little too busy, but it was a fun sketch to do.

Recipe:
Stamps: For a Friend, Short & Sweet
Paper: pretty in pink, choc. chip, old olive, making memories dp and misc dp from Archiver's bargain bin
Ink: basic brown, markers
Accessories: punches, eyelets, mike's ribbon, stickles

It's been a busy weekend and I am working on some swaps for a downline meeting on Thursday. Hopefully, I'll have a sample to post here later. Thanks for visiting my blog! ~chris

Inspired by Amy

As I was reading through some of the blogs I regularly haunt, I saw a card by one of my favorites Amy Westerman. She made a wonderful card using a cute little stamp that I picked up but haven't put ink to yet. Seeing her card, I just had to pull it out and ink it up for a little thank you note to a friend that I needed this morning. Isn't he just so cute! Amy's idea to paper piece the sentiment really got my wheels turning - this little guy can say anything you can fit on his sign!

Recipe:
Stamps: $1 bin at Mike's
Paper: creamy caramel, classic k dp, ww
Ink: basic brown, markers
Accessories: punch

Thanks Amy for helping start my day off right! ~chris

Blog Candy Winner!

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

8 

Timestamp: 2008-02-07 12:22:44 UTC

And the winner is:

Megan said...

those stamps in the blog candy are way too cute!!

February 5, 2008 8:02 PM

Congratulations - I'll get your candy to you right away!

Mom's Birthday and SC162

My mom's favorite color is purple and her birthday is coming up this weekend. I used just about every shade of purple that SU has on this card. I hope she likes it.

Recipe:
Stamps: Favorite Greetings
Paper: lovely lilac, elegant eggplant, almost amethyst, lavendar lace, very vanilla, paper pizaz purple sponged dp
Ink: elegant eggplant, lovely lilac
Accessories: punches, brads, stickles, holiday ribbon from Hobby Lobby

She lives in Florida and I always try to send her live plants with purple flowers - she has a lot of azaleas and violets! We'll see what she thinks of it.

Thanks for visiting my blog! ~chris

Blog Candy Reminder!

Just a reminder - click the here to leave a comment to enter for a chance to win this blog candy:

Another Birthday Card

Another birthday card to add to the pile that I need for February birthdays. I'm having so much fun making these that I think I'll get started on March birthdays too!

Recipe:
Stamps: So Many Scallops, Friendship Blooms
Ink: Sage Shadow, Pretty in Pink
Paper: Sage Shadow, Pretty in Pink, Whisper White, Apricot Appeal
Accessories: punches, stickles, ribbon from Mikes

I got this ribbon in the $1 bin at Mikes a while ago and really wanted to use it. Thanks for visiting my blog! ~chris

Happy Birthday

February is a big birthday month for me, so I needed a couple of cards for some special folks. I saw this layout on the Just Johanna site and really wanted to give it a try.

Recipe:
Stamps: Favorite Greetings
Ink: bravo burgundy, bordering blue marker
Paper: bordering blue, bravo burgundy, whisper white, cloud 9 designs blueberry wine sorbet dp
Accessories: flowers from joann's; punches

Thanks for visiting my blog! ~chris

SCS Color Challenge #152

Today's color challenge on Splitcoast Stampers was to use real red, ballet blue and apricot appeal. I broke out one of my new hostess sets to play with and here's the result.

Recipe:
Stamps: For a Friend
Paper: real red, ballet blue, apricot appeal, basic grey blush dp
Ink: basic black, markers
Accessories: punches, real red ribbon, ballet blue brads

I really like this color combination and I think I'll experiment with it again.

Thanks for visiting my blog! ~chris

Don't forget there's blog candy to give away on Thursday. Leave your comments on this post for a chance to win.

Table Scraps

I wanted to make one more card before closing up shop tonight. This was made from bits and pieces still on my table from the last couple nights work (I'm not the world's tidiest stamper).

Used here are:
Stamps: Fancy Florals from Verve Visual
Ink: basic black, bravo burgundy, summer sun
Paper: certainly celery, garden green, bravo burgundy, basic grey phoebe
Accessories: punches,wild wasabi striped grosgrain ribbon

Thanks for visiting! ~chris

My Favorite Things Sketch Challenge #16

This is my entry for the Splitcoast My Favorite Things sketch challenge #16. I just got my first set of MFT stamps - Boho Blossoms and what fun they are! Here's what I used on this card:

Stamps: Boho Blossoms, Short & Sweet
Paper: blush blossom, barely banana, sage shadow, my mind's eye dp
Ink: sage shadow, versamark
Accessories: stampendous red dragon ep, punches, ribbon from Mike's, bling from Joann's, decorative scissors

Thanks for visiting my blog. ~chris

Mojo Monday #23

Here is my card for Julee's Mojo Monday #23 sketch challenge on her blog Poetic Artistry:


Used in this card:
Stamps: VV Fancy Florals
Ink: garden green
Paper: certainly celery, garden green, regal rose, cloud 9 design pear wine sorbet dp, misc dp scrap from Archiver's bargain pack
Accessories: punches, ribbon from Mike's

I have been attempting to do as many challenges as I can. I especially like the sketch challenges and am finding that it is really stimulating my creativity. Julee's Mojo Monday challenges are always so much fun and a great way to start the week. Thanks Julee!

Remember, I posted blog candy yesterday and will use random.org on Thursday to pick at winner. Check it out and leave a comment!

Thanks for visiting my blog!
~chris

A couple more before bed

Well the Patriots lost - my husband is sad. But the Giants WON and my dad is happy. I'm just glad it's all over. Here's a couple of cards I made today in between a SU party and the Superbowl.

I have had this idea for using eyelash yarn for a while and this morning I decided I would just go for it. Needs some work, but it was fun. I am so totally loving this Cloud 9 Designs paper and how it looks with the SU grays and the burgundy (see the next card)

On this card I used:
Stamps: Mike's $
Ink: regal rose
Paper: going gray, basic gray, regal rose, ww, Cloud 9 Designs Razzberry Swirl DP
Accessories: eyelash yarn, misc ribbon, punches, stickles.

On this one I used a wire heart embelishment that I got at Hobby Lobby when they were on sale. I'm not sure about it though. The card is missing something.

Stamps: none
Paper: going gray, baroque burgundy, whisper white
Ink: some going gray and regal rose sponged on the circle
Accessories: punches, wire heart, misc ribbon

I am approaching 1000 hits and so I'm putting up some BLOG CANDY - just leave a comment below and get some nice spring colored ribbons and some stamps to use on those Easter cards! I'll use random.org on Thursday, Feb. 7 to select the winner.


Thanks so much for visiting my blog. Here's the candy!

Another card for the Verve Visual Challenge

Here's another card I made for the Verve Visual Honored Guest Sketch Challenge:

This card uses:

Stamps: Verve Visual Fancy Florals
Ink: Groovy Guava, Blue Bayou, Basic Black
Paper: Groovy Guava, Blue Bayou, Confetti Cream, Classic K Bailey Red & Blue Daisies DP
Accessories: Punches, ribbon from Mike's, brads

Thanks for visiting my blog! ~chris