Excuse me...

...but, is that my trash can in your yard?  Five houses down?  

If you don't live in Texas, let me tell you, it has been a tad windy this week.  With "a tad" meaning that I fully expected at any minute on Monday to look out my window and see Dorothy and her little dog flying by, minus the tornado.  We had gusts of over 50 mph the entire day.  This made life interesting in all sorts of ways.  Like the fact that my garbage can ended up 5 houses down from mine, and my favorite tree in my backyard is now stacked and sorted on my firewood rack.  

At least it had the decency to just lay down and not blow into anything when it went.  

I decided that this week I would pull out one of my favorite vintage sets for our Stamping Challenges sketch, here: 

I paired it up with Raspberry Ripple, Old Olive, and Pretty in Pink to make this:

I started with embossing the flourish image with Raspberry Ripple ink and Clear embossing powder down the left side and onto the bottom to take place of the element on the left of the sketch.  The medallion was stamped on Whisper White, with some Early Espresso ink sponged on the edges.  My favorite part of this card is the flower.  I stamped it using the Raspberry Ripple on vellum card stock, then I heat embossed it with Clear embossing powder.  I mixed some Frost White shimmer paint with my Pretty in Pink reinker and painted in the flower to make it shimmer.  

Finally, the Celebrate from "Feeling Sentimental" and a couple of pearls finished it off.  

I feel much less wind-blown now.  

I hope that you will take the time to play along with us this week!  And, feel free to leave me a comment to tell me what your favorite set to stamp with is.  Have a great week, and until next time, Happy Stamping! 

Kim

It's the Most Wonderful Time...

...of the year.  

Well, for me at least.  Now, I know that many of you would say, "Hey, Kim, that song is about Christmas, and that is the most wonderful time of the year."  Truly, I do agree, and no one loves all of Christmas more than I do.  However, for those of you who do not dwell in allergy-ridden Central Texas, just go with me on this little adventure for a minute and I will explain.  

Christmas is amazing, but it is hard to appreciate all the beauty and wonder of a season when you are sneezing.  And, thanks to our version of cedar (which is actually Mountain Juniper...stop giving REAL cedar trees a bad rap!), I spend the greater part of December through February sneezing non-stop.  I can't see because my eyes are so watery that I look as though I am in mourning.  I walk around chewing anti-histamines like most people enjoy Tic-Tacs. 

So I look forward to the end of cedar season they way most kids look forward to Christmas morning...with wild abandon and the hope that the cedar-killing fairies will come along and just make the pollination stop.  Make.  It.  Stop.  

I figured that if I did happen to catch one of those little fairies I would want to give her a thank you card for making my home town the beautiful city that I love instead of the yellow-pollen filled gauntlet that it has been for the past three months.  

I started with this week's sketch over at Stamping Challenges: 

then I pulled out the "Oh, Hello" stamp set and made this:  

If you want to make your own little thank you cards, here is a list of the supplies I used for my card, which you can find in my online store:

Stamps:  Oh, Hello (130730)*
Cardstock: Very Vanilla (101650), So Saffron (105118), Calypso Coral (122925)
Tea for Two Designer Series Paper (129311)*
Ink: Calypso Coral (126983)
Accessories:  5/8" Flower Trim (126869)*, Honeycomb embossing folder (129378)*, Natural 7/16" Trim Ribbon (129287)*
Items with an * are in the Spring Mini Catalog.

Let me know what you are thankful for this year, and feel free to play along with us at Stamping Challenges!  I love to see what everyone is making.  Until next challenge, have a great week and Happy Stamping!  

Kim

Look Kids, Big Ben!

If you have known me for any amount of time, you know that I enjoy a good laugh as often as possible.  I have been the cause of many laughs, some intentional (like during every Stampin' Up trip I take), and some not (like when I trip over my shadow and fall in public places).  

One of my weaknesses is pretty much any of the National Lampoon "Vacation" movies.  I loved when poor old Clark took the family to Europe and got stuck in a roundabout, or as we call them, traffic circles, in downtown London.  As he kept going around and around he would call out to his kids, "Look Kids, Big Ben!  The Tower of London!", like some poor tour guide who was stuck in a nightmare. 

So, what does this have to do with this week's Stamping Challenge?  Let me make the connection for you.  I don't do heights.

Really, I don't.

I am convinced that my innate clumsiness coupled with the Laws of Gravity multiplied by anything taller than my natural height of 5'5" equals certain death, or at the very least, another fractured ankle.  This means that while I love the idea of Ferris wheels, you won't ever see me on The London Eye.  As beautiful as it is, I know my limitations.  So, rather than have a panic attack trying to ride one, I just decided to stamp a death trap, er...Ferris wheel, instead.

I started with this week's sketch, here: 

And grabbed my Sale-a-Bration set, "Feeling Sentimental", and came up with this:  

Everything I used:  Stamp Set--Feeling Sentimental, Card stock--Soft Suede, Summer Starfruit, Rich Razzleberry, Sycamore Street DSP, Ink--Soft Suede, Extas--Sycamore Street buttons, linen thread, Adorning Accents edgelits, Needlepoint Border embossing folders

Nice and pretty, and safe, too!  I can attest that my feet never had to leave the ground, and I did not require the use of pharmaceutical interventions to be able to enjoy this little Ferris wheel.

I hope you enjoy this card, and that my tales have brought an intentional laugh to you today.  Now, go make your own pretty card and load it up to the Stamping Challenges website, and leave me a comment to let me know you decided to play along this week.  Until next time, Happy Stamping! 

Mirror, Mirror

 

Hi Stampers!

 

 

Have you ever wished for a magic mirror like the one the Evil Queen in "Snow White" had?  You know, just go up to the mirror, ask it a question, and it gives you an answer with a little mini-movie right there?  While I admit I think I would love one I know I would abuse it.  My day would probably sound like this:

 

"Mirror, mirror on the wall, where are my keys for once and all?"

 

"Oh smart mirror, hanging there, take the pollen out of the air."

 

And, every now and then:

 

"Mirror, mirror, you're really spiffy.  Show me a card in a jiffy!"

 

POOF!

 

I wish it were always that easy, but I have to say that sketches make it easier.  Here is this week's sketch from Stamping Challenges: 



 

And here is how I flipped it:



Stamp Set:  Moving Forward, Cardstock:  Summer Starfruit, Raspberry Ripple, Whisper White, Print Poetry,  Inks:  Raspberry Ripple, Summer Starfruit, Primrose Petals, Basic Gray, Old Olive markers, Accessories:  Raspberry Ripple Stitched Satin Ribbon

 

 

So, now it is your turn.  Hop over to Stamping Challenges and take a turn at our Sketch of the Week.  You never know how it will motivate you, and remember, you can copy it directly or show us your take on the sketch.  The biggest rule is to have fun with it! 

Have a great weekend, stampers, and until next time, Happy Stamping!  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 





Ooo La La!

Hi Stampers! 

I was feeling a little French this week when I designed my card for Stamping Challenges.  Our sketch for February 1st was this:

I have been just waiting for a chance to play with the new Collage Curios set a little more in-depth, so I put on my beret, grabbed a croissant, and did this:

Stamp Set:  Collage Curios  Cardstock:  Marina Mist, Whisper White, Gumball Green, Print Poetry designer series pack, Silver glimmer paper  

Inks: Marina Mist, Midnight Muse Classic pads and markers

Accessories:  Gumball Green ribbon, Framed Tulips embossing folder, 1" circle punch, 1 1/4" scalloped circle punch, Island Indigo baker's twine

I love the color combo of the Marina Mist with the Gumball Green.  It reminds me of the beach.  And since I am embracing being En Francais this week, I'll pretend I am taking off for St. Tropez tomorrow, instead of running errands and packing lunches.  So, if you see me around town with a big pair of Chanel sunglasses on make sure to say "Bonjour!".  I promise I will give you a kiss on each cheek!  

Have a great week, stampers!  Go make something pretty and be sure to share it for a chance to win our challenge this week (just click the link to Stamping Challenges at the top of the post).  Until next week, Happy Stamping and au revoir!