Strength & Hope thumped butterfly card for 411 challenge...

Yes, another butterfly card. I'm really pushing the Strength & Hope stamp set, available now, because sales of the set raise funds for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. This time around I inked the butterfly in Baja Breeze ink and then thumped it with an Early Espresso marker. Then I added 2-way glue all over and dumped on Dazzling Diamonds glitter. It's gotta sparkle, right?

I decided to add a few buttons too. The little blue flower button is adhered to the brown one with mini glue dots, then there's a big rhinestone adhered to the middle of the blue button. I like it!

I used the sketch challenge at Stamping 411. If you're up for a new challenge, try http://alacardmonkey.blogspot.com/. You can combine both this sketch and the theme challenge of Nature at my new challenge blog, A La Card Monkey.

Stamps: Strength & Hope;

Ink: Baja Breeze pad, Early Espresso marker;

Paper: Baja Breeze, Early Espresso, Whisper White card stocks, Greenhouse Gala dsp;

Accessories: 2-3/8" Scallop Circle Punch, 2-way glue pen, Dazzling Diamonds glitter, Sweet Stitches designer buttons, Brights Designer Buttons, Basic Rhinestones, Baja Breeze seam binding, Scallop Border Punch.

Lucky Shamrock with Woodland Walk dsp for Stamping 411...

With St. Patrick's Day only a couple of weeks away, I figured it was time to get my Lucky Shamrock inky. I used a Stamping 411 sketch and Woodland Walk dsp with a couple of glimmer brads and this is what I got.  

See how much that clover sticks out in the photo below? It's three (count 'em - not 1, not 2, but 3!) dimensionals stacked on top of each other. I used the 1" and 1-3/4" circle punches for this.

Love Impressions Rub-Ons for Stamping 411 sketch...

I've been in valentine-making mode lately. I found a sheet of Love Impressions Rub-Ons and set about creating a card for the Stamping 411 sketch challenge this week. I used scraps from my Valentines class last week to create the card above. I added the three heart rub-ons before running the Whisper White layer through the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder. The "Love You" is also a rub-on that I rubbed on Whisper White, punched out and adhered with dimensionals. The only stamp on the card is the XOXO background in Pretty in Pink ink. I plan on doing two more sketch challenges today, so come back later this afternoon to see those! Have a great day.

Plane & Simple for Stamping 411 sketch challenge...

I had fun creating this birthday card using the Plane & Simple stamp set in the Occasions Mini Catalog. You can see how I punched part of a scallop circle below to sponge the clouds. I used Bashful Blue ink for the sponging, and Not Quite Navy ink for the plane and compass. The designer paper is from the Blueberry Crisp package.

I used the Stamping 411 sketch shown below. This card takes me back to when I was new to stamping - I used sponging and tearing a lot because these techniques are cheap and easy!

Easter Blossoms on Sunny Days dsp

I love silhouette stamps, so when I saw Easter Blossoms in the Occasions Mini Catalog, I had to have it! I think it pairs well with the Sunny Days dsp. I used the sketch challenge from Stamping 411 to create this card in Poppy Parade, Pear Pizzazz and More Mustard. If you'd like to order this or anything else from the Occasions Mini, today's the first day you may order from it! Please email me with your order, or you may place it directly here: http://therubberroom.stampinup.net/.

Stamps: Easter Blossoms, Tiny Tags;
Ink: Poppy Parade and Pear Pizzazz pads;
Paper: Whisper White, Pear Pizzazz, Poppy Parade, More Mustard, Sunny Days dsp;
Accessories: Modern Label Punch, Regals Brads, 1/8" Daffodil Delight taffeta, Eyelet Border Punch, dimensionals, Medium Jewelry Tag Punch.

Greeting Card Kids square card for 411 sketch...

I used more Springtime Vintage dsp for this square card sketch at Stamping 411. That paper is in the upcoming Occasions Mini Catalog, which starts January 4. The card is Very Vanilla and there are layers of Rose Red card stock. I used this girl stamp from Greeting Card Kids and watercolored it, adding a sentiment from All Holidays. It's my second square card in two days.

Guess what? The Stamping 411 operators selected my card for their showcase! Whoo hoo!!!



A Cute Christmas sparkly snowman card...

It's good to be stamping! Tree limbs snapped off and hit power lines, knocking out power in our area from Monday around dinner time (I know because my lasagna was only half cooked) till Tuesday around 10 p.m. Wednesday was used to catch up on dishes, laundry, and returning things to "normal," including picking up turkey and some other groceries for today's big meal.

This card followed a Stamping 411 sketch (the link is already closed, so I missed that challenge). I used some Candy Cane Christmas dsp with a spiral-punched strip of Baja Breeze across the bottom with silver tinsel on it. The snowman has Dazzling Diamonds glitter on him, along with clear rhinestone buttons. For some odd reason, those little suckers photograph like silver brads! Anyway, take a peek at the sketch below.

Courage card a bit early for Veterans Day...

Veterans Day is coming up Thursday, Nov. 11, and I thought the Courage stamp set would be a good one to note the day... albeit a few days early, because I wanted to use the Stamping 411 sketch for it.


A little history about Veterans Day: It started out as Armistice Day in 1919, but in 1953 was expanded to celebrate all veterans, not just those who served in World War I. It's "a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace...."


I hold a special place in my heart for our troops - not just the ones who have served, but the ones serving now. One niece is married to an Air Force guy, another to a Marine. I'm glad our kids have an assembly to learn about our veterans and why we honor them so that the holiday means more than just four days off of school! That's why the "Thanks Big Time" sentiment on the card. I stuck to the sketch pretty well, except for moving the curly label sentiment to the side where there was more room.


A note about the stars - I punched them out, inked up the Sanded background stamp and pressed them onto that, then sponge-daubed around them before adhering them with dimensionals.


On another note, don't forget to turn your clocks back an hour. Have a wonderful Sunday!


Stamps: Courage, A Word For You, Sanded;
Ink: Pacific Point, Real Red markers, Daffodil Delight;
Paper: Whisper White, Real Red, Daffodil Delight, Pacific Point;
Accessories: Curly Label Punch, 5/8" Real Red satin ribbon, sponge dauber, dimensionals.

Using My Digital Studio for Stamping 411 sketch...

It's a cold, rainy day here and my kids are playing Wii games. So to spend time in the same room with them (because they like to point out to me what's happening as they play), I grabbed my laptop computer and decided to do a sketch challenge from http://stamping411.blogspot.com with My Digital Studio.


The colors are Early Espresso and Peach Parfait, with Garden Green. The stamps I used are from Razzle Dazzle and Always. I haven't done much with MDS as far as building cards go, but I have done a few scrapbooks I think turned out awesome!


The one problem I had with this card is that I was trying to use a flourish stamp from Always as a background in Early Espresso on top of the Peach Parfait layer and it was showing through the top few layers. Anybody know how to do it? I kept trying to move the flourish behind, but it wouldn't go! I know the others layers were solid, and not opaque... so I'm not quite sure what I was doing wrong. I'm open to suggestions here!


It's a good day to stay indoors. I hope you get some stamping done! In addition to this sketch challenge, there's a color challenge at http://fridaymashup.blogspot.com - so go for a 2-in-1 card and enter both! And have a great weekend.

Stamping 411 sketch challenge with Christmas Postcard...

I'm always up for a challenge, especially when it's with a simple sketch like this one from http://stamping411.blogspot.com/. First, I turned the sketch sideways and grabbed my Christmas Postcard stamp, Shimmery White and Rich Razzleberry card stocks. Of course I felt the card needed some texture, so I ran the Shimmery White card stock through the Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder, then used a sponge dauber to rub Crumb Cake ink over the top. I used an aqua painter and the Crumb Cake pad to color in the letters.

Stamps: Christmas Postcard (Holiday Mini);

Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Crumb Cake pads;

Paper: Shimmery White, Rich Razzleberry;

Accessories: 5/8" Rich Razzleberry satin ribbon, aqua painter, sponge dauber, Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder, Stampin' Dimensionals.

Stamping 411 Sketch with Blowing Kisses...

I've liked the stamp set Blowing Kisses from the first time I laid eyes on it in the catalog. I've only used it once before, so the Stamping 411 Sketch 170 was the perfect opportunity to get more ink on it.

I started with a Whisper White card, and added Poppy Parade card stock that's been punched with the scallop trim border. On top of that is some Pawsitively Prints II dsp and a knot of Poppy Parade ribbon.

I stamped the rabbit in Basic Gray and used an aqua painter and Sahara Sand on him, and Poppy Parade on the hearts. To give the bubble hearts that wet look, I added Crystal Effects.

If you want to use another great card sketch, visit here.

Stamps: Blowing Kisses (118740 wood, 120603 clear);
Ink: Poppy Parade, Pear Pizzazz, Basic Gray pads, Daffodil Delight marker;
Paper: Whisper White, Poppy Parade, Build-a-Bear Workshop Pawsitively Prints II (117396);
Accessories: Crystal Effects (101055), Scallop Trim Border Punch (118402), 1/2" Poppy Parade stitched-poly ribbon (119263), Stampin' Dimensionals, aqua painter.

Stamping 411 Sketch 169: Merry Crittermas card...

I enjoy the Stamping 411 card sketches because they are quick and easy to do. For Sketch Challenge 169 I started with a Whisper White card and added a little Candy Cane Christmas dsp with Real Red card stock and Blushing Bride ribbon. I sponged Baja Breeze around the card front and the main image, which is from the Holiday Mini stamp set Merry Crittermas.

I used markers, as well as an aqua painter and ink pads to color the bunny image, then layered it on a Baja Breeze decorative label embellished with a few rhinestones. Of course the snow has to have some Dazzling Diamonds glitter on it too.

Check back here Thursday for an exciting announcement!

Stamping 411 sketch with Long Fellows hostess set...

This is my take on the Stamping 411 Sketch 168 this week. I started with a Crumb Cake card and added a 5-1/4" x 4" piece of Garden Green card stock that was covered with VersaMark ink and embossed with Clear Embossing Powder after using a bone folder to freehand the lines (Faux Alligator technique).

I inked up the alligator from Long Fellows (a Stampin' Up! Level 2 hostess set - FREE with a $300 order) in Garden Green Craft ink and clear embossed again. Then I used an aqua painter and Garden Green pad to color the gator. The final touch is the button (Holiday Mini) with 1/8" Early Espresso taffeta knotted in it. I adhered it with dimensionals. Thanks for visiting!

Stamping 411: Midnight Raven jeweled card...

I get so excited about Halloween! And the upcoming Holiday Mini Catalog has so many fabulous products in it - these black jewels, the single Midnight Raven stamp and Spooky Night rub-ons, to name a few.

I created this card for the Stamping 411 challenge today. It's a Cajun Craze card with a Top Note die-cut from Wicked Fun dsp.

I used the Cutter Kit to distress the raven layers, and added two Vintage Trinkets button brads. The "Spooky" rub-on is on the bottom part of a Curly Label-punched piece of Basic Black card stock.

Stamps: Midnight Raven (116529);
Ink: Markers - Basic Black (100082), Cajun Craze (119678), and Peach Parfait (119801 for all 5 In Colors);
Paper: Cajun Craze (119684), Basic Black (121045), Wicked Fun Specialty Paper (117400), Very Vanilla (101650);
Accessories: Vintage Trinkets (118764), Cutter Kit (106958), Curly Label Extra-Large Punch (119851), Spooky Night rub-ons (120989), Black Flourish Designer Jewels (120987), Top Note die (113463).

3rd post today! Wow... this one is Stamping 411 sketch with Nursery Suite...

Simple sketches like the Stamping 411 sketch this week lend themselves well to stamp-a-stack cards (where you stamp 10 cards in just a couple of hours).

The sentiment came from Blowing Kisses. The bunny in that set does not match the bunny on this Nursery Suite paper.

Stamps: Blowing Kisses (118740 wood, 120603 clear);

Ink pad: Chocolate Chip (100908);
Card  Stock: Nursery Suite dsp (117165), So Saffron (105118), Regal Rose (105130), and Chocolate Chip (102128);
Accessories: 1" Circle Punch (119868), 1-3/4" x 7/8" Oval Large Punch (119855).