Hey Batter, Batter.....Swing!

Meet Alyssa! She's a sneak peek for tomorrow's release over at InStyle Stamps. Isn't it fun to see a baseball girl image? I think she's super cute and when I saw her name I just HAD to have her! This little cutie shares my sister's name....but my sister spells her's Alissa!

I knew as soon as I saw Alyssa that I wanted to make a card shaped like a baseball glove. I am pleased with how the shape turned out. I free hand drew the glove, and just had to put Alyssa in pink and black. I know this card is pretty plain and simple for me....but I didn't want to take away from the glove shape and the cutie patootie Alyssa image. I also used my Twinkling H2o's on Alyssa's hat and uniform shirt which you can kind of see in the below picture. She shimmers a lot IRL.

Recipe:

Stamps: Alyssa from InStyle Stamps (to be release tomorrow)

Inks: Momento Tuxedo Black, Copics

Papers: Stampin' Up cardstock,

Tools: Just my trusty Cutterbee Scissors

Embellishments: Roses, baseball charm from Joanns, and Twinkling H20s.

Don't forget to check out the Summer Sale over at InStyle Stamps! There are some very cute papers and a couple stamps at a great discount!

Thank you to everyone who voted for my Cowboy project!! You are all the greatest, I hope I truly did inspire you! :)

Again, I want to say how sorry I am that I haven't been able to stop by all of your blogs and say hi. Only 4 more weeks after this week and I will be done with classes and can get back to bloggerland! :) I truly do miss you all!!! All of the wonderful comments you have been leaving me are really cheering me up after I come home from my long stressful days at school!

Thanks for stopping by!

Double The Fun!

This week over at Embellish-Online we have 2 Friday challenges for you! First Danni is hosting the normal weekly DT Friday Challenge which is to "Bring on the Fireworks!" Make a creation to celebrate the 4th of July!

I have used this cute Sarah Kay - Picnic of Daisies stamp! I love how the little girl is looking over her shoulder....so when I created the card I made it as if she is looking over her shoulder to see the fireworks! Cute? Every year friends of ours invite us over to their house to watch the annual fireworks in their city. We always have a great time, and after the fireworks they have a campfire with lots of treats and goodies. For their kindness I have made this thank you card for them!

A close up of my Copic Coloring:

The 2nd challenge is put together by the whole design team! We snuck around behind our Head DT IT-Girl's (Suzy) back and surprised her for her Birthday! We gave her, her very own challenge! So, our second challenge this week is: Happy Birthday Suzy! (Create a Birthday card for Suzy! ) Happy Birthday again hun...I hope you had a wonderful day!

Here is my Birthday card that is going postal to Suzy:

Bring On the Fireworks Card Recipe:
Stamps: Picnic of Daisies by Sarah Kay, Oval All by SU, Background stamp by Inkadoo

Inks: Momento Tuxedo Black, Copics, Versamark Dazzle in Champange

Papers: Misc. cardstock and dp from my stash

Tools: SU scallop oval punch

Embellishments: Ric Rac by May Arts, Holographic embossing powder (used on the background stamp), Flowersoft, Ribbon by Walmart, and Firework brads and glitter stars from Archivers

Suzy's Birthday Card Recipe:
Stamps: Swiss Pixie Heidi by CC Designs, SU sentiment
Inks: Momento Tuxedo Black, Copics
Papers: Stampin' Up cardstock, Basic Grey Urban Prairie Collection dp
Tools: MS butterfly punch, EK Success border punch, SU label punch
Embellishments: Roses, Primas, tulle from HL, and diamond stickles used on pixie wings

Don't forget that if you go to my side bar and click on the Embellish-Online link you can get to the shop to get your goodies, and by using the code: GLITTER you will get 20% off your total order! Happy Shopping!

I hope you are all enjoying your weekend!

Thanks for stopping by!

Can I Get A YEE-HAW!!!

Put on your boots...
Grab your cowgirl hat...
and yell YEE-HAW!

Welcome to the InStyle Stamps June Blog Hop!

Our Theme this month is:

"Cowboys"

We have lots of fun in store for you today! The DT put on their cowgirls hats and went to work on all the cowboy projects! There are many new releases over at InStyle Stamps today so make sure you head over to the store to check them out and place your order....let me tell you they are ALL AWESOME and you definitely don't want to miss them (besides the fun cowboy/girl images you see today there are also new sports, and school images as well)!!! Like last month, after you go and view all of the other DT's projects (their links are in my side bar), make sure you head on over to the InStyle Stamps Blog to vote for your favorite project (I hope it's mine...hee hee)! The DT member who gets the most votes will win a prize....AND YOU CAN WIN A PRIZE JUST FOR VOTING!!! All you have to do is place your vote; then leave a comment on the post with the poll to be entered for a PRIZE! You need to leave a comment to be entered into the drawing. The contest will remain open until 11:59pm EST on Saturday, June 27th, and winners will be announced on Monday, June 29th.

Now....onto my project:
I picked Cowgirl Kimmie as my image for this month....of course I loved that she had my name!!! She is so darn adorable, and when I saw these Debbie Mumm papers at my LSS I knew they would be perfect for my project! When I think of cowboys, I think of the western theme of cowboys with the sheriffs. I immediately knew I wanted to do something with a star to represent the sheriff, so I found this fun wooden star keepsake box and the rest is history!(Please click on any pictures to see them bigger.)

Here's my Cowgirl Kimmie card and star keepsake box:

Close up of the card...aren't these papers so adorable?
A close up of Kimmie, she's a darling:
Here's the keepsake box. I painted the edges of the top and inside of the box with a metallic white paint and it's so pretty and shimmery IRL!

Another view of the keepsake box so that you can see the fun paper:

The top of the keepsake box....again, look at that awesome paper...love the cowgirl rodeo paper, and of course it's PINK!!! Woo-Hoo!

The inside of the keepsake box. I shurnk Cowgirl Kimmie so that she would fit on the inside. She's about 1" x 1" here.

A close up of Cowgirl Kimmie inside the keepsake box:

And then some more detailed pictures:

Now....Don't forget to go vote for my project....I mean your favorite DT member's project (LOL) over at the InStyle Blog!

Recipe:
Stamps: Cowgirl Kimmie from InStyle Stamps

Inks: Momento Tuxedo Black, Copics

Papers: Stampin' Up cardstock, Debbie Mum dp

Tools: EK Success leaf punch

Embellishments: Roses and Cherry Blossom, other flowers from my stash, tulle from HL, Diamond stickles, white metallic paint

Hope you are having a GREAT Friday!
Thanks for stopping by!

School Bells Are Ringing!

I have a new image from InStyle Stamps to share with you today! Meet Janice....she is our cute school girl new to our anime collection! Seeing how my summer classes just started I thought it would be fun to make a school gift set! I decided to try my hand at making a mini backpack (found Becky's wonderful tutorial here) to go along with my Janice the School Girl card! Janice is so adorable with her cute messanger bag....wish I could carry one of those to class with me...instead I am lugging along my HUGE backpack with a gazillion books. I thought it would be sweet to have Janice carrying flowers so she could surprise her teacher with them. Janice will be available for sale at InStyle Stamps this friday! Make sure you mark your calendars because there are a BUNCH of cuties being released and I can tell you they are a MUST have!!! A close up of my card with Miss. Janice. I adore her big eyes....she definitely looks like she is ready to go and learn.

And of course we have the backpack. This would be so adorable to fill with fun goodies for your child....or to put some treats in and give to a teacher or even a friend!

We certainly can't have a backpack without straps! Make sure you wear both shoulder straps! I sure do or else my back would hurt!

Recipe:
Stamps: Janice from InStyle Stamps (she will be available to purchase Friday)
Inks: Momento Tuxedo Black, Copics
Papers: Stampin' Up cardstock, MME Penny Lane Collection dp
Tools: Oval Nesties, EK Success border punch
Embellishments: Roses and Cherry Blossom, ribbon and lace from my stash, and school charms from Joanns.

School is keeping me very busy, so I want to appologize for not getting to your blogs and commenting lately! I go to school from 9-4 with an hour drive each way, then by the time I eat supper it's time to do homework and then go to bed so I can do it all over again the next day! During my class breaks I do sneak on my blackberry to check out what you all are creating and I have to say I have seen some GREAT projects in blogland! I can't wait to stop in at your blogs and say hi again! Hopefully once we get the 1st week of school out of the way things will settle into place (I doubt that will happen with these accelerated classes, but it's wishful thinking!) Plus I am missing my craft room LOTS!!!! I daydream in class about things to make while I am supposed to be learning....ooopppss! :) Hope you are all enjoying your week! Miss you all!!!!

Thanks for stopping by!

Diploma Style Graduation...

I wanted to share with you the graduation card that I made for my cousin. This was for his high school graduation. Most of the paper used was right from his invitation....when I saw it I immediately knew I would use it to create his card! Plus his school colors (red, black, and silver) were so much fun to work with!!! I had to use the diploma style card again, which I used before HERE. I love shaped cards!

Had to create a stand on the back so that the card could be displayed:

I really wanted to personalize this card as much as possible, so that is the reason for the charms. Of course you need a graduation cap for a graduation card....but the other charm is of a guitar....why a guitar you ask??? My cousin plays guitar in a band so I thought this would be a perfect, and suit his style! (Click any picture to enlarge for a better view.)

Recipe:
Papers: DCWV cardstock, CM metallic,
Tools: Scor-Pal, scissor
Embellishments: flowers (primas) and others from my stash, charm from HL, brad, and metallic floss.

Tomorrow is my 1st day of my summer school session classes! Eeekk! I am nervous as I have 3 classes to complete in 6 weeks! Hopefully they go smoothly! I'm not used to going to class all day...4 days out of the week! LOL! Hope I still get crafty time in the next 6 weeks.

Thanks for stopping by!

Pixie Dust and Fairies...

Here is a card that I made while the Stampin Out Alzheimer's was going on, and I forgot to share this one with you (oopppss)! This was a sketch challenge that my dear friends Suzanne and Susana put together! I love this Fairy Song Art stamp with this awesome dovecraft paper which you can get both at Susana's store. I used another of my favorite color combos....pink and black, I always think these colors look so great together!

Close up of my Fairy colored with Copics:

The finished inside of my card:

Recipe:

Stamps: Fairie Song Art - Lost In Thought

Inks: Momento Tuxedo Black, Copics

Papers: Stampin' Up cardstock, Dovecraft Hint of Pink Collection dp

Tools: Labels 4 Nesties

Embellishments: Roses, other flowers and ribbon from my stash, tulle from HL, flower soft in Shamrock Green, stickles on fairie's wings, charm from Michaels, and custom made hat pin made by me.

Since this is a scheduled post because I am away on my camping trip....I hope everyone is having a great weekend! See you all when I get back!

Thanks for stopping by!

In Memory Of...

Here is a card that I made for our friend's family. His Grandma passed away a week ago after battling cancer for 5 years. Joyce was such a lovely lady and we miss her dearly, however, we are glad to know that she is no longer suffering anymore. My hubby and I are very close to the whole family so there was a lot of love put into making this card. If you look close I made an angel hatpin in the collection of flowers on the left. I love how the BG Wisteria paper looks so elegant. The sentiment was a verse that I found on the internet and made on my computer.

The finished inside of the card:

And the finished back of the card:

Recipe:
Stamps: Handmade by
Inks: Momento Rich Cocoa
Papers: Stampin' Up cardstock, Basic Grey Wisteria Collection dp
Tools: Labels 4 Nesties, Scallop Circle Nesties, MS border punch, EK Success border punch, MS monarch butterfly punch, MS branch punch, EK Success leaf punch, Janome Sew Mini
Embellishments: Rose by Prima, other flowers from my stash, tulle from HL, pearls from HL, stickles, and custom made hat pin made by me.

Well yesterday we got back from our mini vacation for my hubby's convention. Now, today we leave for my family's yearly camping trip! YAY....it's going to be so much fun!!!! We borrowed our friend's camper and got it packed last night. Now it's just to finish packing my clothes and bathroom stuff. Oh how I hate packing, especially because I hardly even got unpacked yet! Hopefully the weather is good for this weekend. We are supposed to get some big storms tonight (EEEEEKKKK)!!!! Hopefully after tonight all the storms are out of the way! Talk to you all on Monday!!! I will try to get another post scheduled for this weekend to keep you company while I am away! :)

Thanks for stopping by! Enjoy your weekend!

CBCC are Back!!!

YAY...the Created By Courtney Challenges are back!!!! With that announcement I have some good news and some bad news. The good news...........this week Courtney has a fantastic color challenge for us! Here are the colors you need to use:

And for the bad news....I don't have a sample to share with you! My hubby has a funeral director's convention that is going on so we made a mini vacation out of it and we are out of town. I haven't been crafting since last friday....I know how scarey huh?! I am surviving my lack if crafting by shopping...LOL! We are in Wisconsin Dells, WI and they have my FAVORITE outlet mall....the Tanger Outlet....I already raided the Coach Outlet store and bought 2 new purses (one was my birthday present from my hubby and the other was on clearance and just begged me to bring her home with me.....so I couldn't pass her up)...purses are my next addiction to crafting! :) We are having a wonderful time on our trip...tomorrow is spa day! Woo-Hoo! Gotta love that!

Even though I don't have a card to share with you please hop over to the other chickies blogs and give them some love (you can find their links in my side bar)! Also make sure you link your creation to Courtney's blog for your chance to win a prize!

Hope you are having a wonderful week! We get home on Wednesday....but Thursday we leave again through the weekend for a family camping trip (no computer and no crafting for 4 days...eeekkk how will I manage)! This week sure is a busy one...and then on the 22nd my summer classes start. :(

Thanks for stopping by!

Embellish Friday Challenge #46 - Fabulous Fathers

This week's challenge over at Embellish-Online is hosted by my fabulous friend Michelle....we actually get together regularily and craft together! She's an AWESOME teacher!!! Michelle challenged us to create a card, project, or layout that celebrates the Fathers (or other men, be they tall or small) in our life!

Normally masculine cards are VERY hard for me....but it is my Dad's Birthday Party tonight (his birthday was yesterday) so I had a lot of fun making him his extra special birthday card. I used the faux bleaching technique with my color washes for this card. I also used the lollipop tutorial from The Next Level challenge blog to create the "masculine" looking flower for my card. We all know how much I love my flowers! I had a regular flower on the card to start out but it just did not look right...then I remembered the lollipop technique and thought that would be the perfect addition to my card.

And of course the finished inside of the card:

Recipe:

Stamps: Peterbilt Truck Stamp, Stampendous word Stamp

Inks: Momento Rich Cocoa, Adirondack Color Wash in Denim & Espresso

Papers: Stampin' Up cardstock, Basic Grey Granola Collection dp

Tools: Curved Rectangle Nesties, MS ribbon punch, EK Success leaf punch

Embellishments: Roses, Glimmer Mist - Iridescent Gold (used on lollipop "flower"), ribbon, tulle, brad, and custom made hat pin made by me.

Now, head on over to the Embellish-Online Blog to get the rest of the details. We would love for you to play along.

Thanks for stopping by....hope your Friday is WONDERFUL!

A Gorjuss Graduation!

We had a friend who recently graduated from college and she was also promoted to 2nd. Lt. in the U.S. Army! I incorporated the two major accomplishments into a card for her! I altered this Gorjuss Girl to hold a handmade diploma instead of her letter, gave her a graduation cap and she was all ready to go! Our friend's college colors were red and green, hence the colors of the card! Then on the inside of the card I incorporated the U.S. Army seal (that I found by searching the internet and printed it on cardstock)!

Recipe:
Stamps: Sugar Nellie Gorjuss Girl from Collection 1; Stampendous Graduation Words
Inks: Momento Tuxedo Black, Copics
Papers: SU cardstock and dp, DCWV Congratulations dp
Tools: WOW - another card with no tools (besides my scissors)
Embellishments: roses, Primas, other flowers from HL, ribbon, tulle, floss and brad from my stash.

I will be leaving for vacation on Saturday! Woo-Hoo! I will schedule some posts for while I am gone to keep you inspired! :)

Thanks for stopping by!

InStyle Challenge - Summer

Mary has cooked up another fantastic Wednesday challenge over at the InStyle Stamps blog. This week we want to see your summer cards! To get all the details for the challenge, click HERE!

I decided to use the digis Leila and Ariel for my summer card. When I think of summer I always think of the beach....I am a total tropical girl.....don't know why I live in the midwest.....but I do love to go on vacation to the ocean/beach! These two girls are so much fun and so summery to me! I wanted to create a beach scene so I put Leila on the beach watching Ariel swim in the ocean. TH distress inks and cosmetic sponges were used to create the sunset.

A close up of Leila:

A close up of Ariel:

Now let's see your summer card! Make sure you link it to the InStyle Stamps blog for your chance to win a wonderful prize!

Recipe:

Stamps: Digis - Leila and Ariel from InStyle Stamps; Palm Island from StampScapes

Inks: Copics, Twinkling H2Os, TH Distress Inks - Mustard Seed, Fired Brick, Spiced Marmalade, Dusty Concord, Worn Lipstick, Broken China, Tea Dye, and Vintage Photo

Papers: SU cardstock, dp from Archivers, label from office max

Tools: WOW - I didn't use any tools on this card....very weird for me! LOL!

Embellishments: roses, other flowers, ribbon, from my stash, seahorse charm from HL.

Thanks for stopping by!

Willow Post It Note Holder

Here is another creation that I made during Stampin' Out Alzheimer's! This was Jacqui's challenge to design a post it note holder. What a fantastic challenge and I had a lot of fun with it! I used a tutorial by Tina. I decided to use one of my favorite Willow stamps! She is so precious, this is Willow with flower basket. This post it note holder matches my card from yesterday. I them as a gift set. I am selling my creations on my FOR SALE blog. This set will be posted there soon. If you see something on my blog that you would like to purchase, please email me, and if you would like to place a custom order I would be glad to help design something specifically for you! :) Now here is my cute post it note holder:

The side and back view of my post it note holder.

And the inside view.

Recipe:
Stamps: Willow with flower basket from WOJ
Inks: Momento Tuxedo Black, Copics, Twinkling H2Os
Papers: SU cardstock, dp from my local craft shop
Tools: MS monarch butterfly punch, MS branch punch, EK Success branch punch, Janome Sew Mini
Embellishments: ribbon, flowers, pearls, and flower soft from my stash.

Thanks for stopping by! Hope you are having a blessed Sunday!