New Year's Eve- Think Ink Challenge

It's New Year's Eve and it's time to party. Whether you stay in or go out this is an exciting day. I am really looking forward to the New Year. 2009 was filled with many challenges but I see a brighter future in 2010.
The current Think Ink Challenge on the Artful Inkables Blog is to make a card based on your New Year's Resolution. By playing along, you have a chance to win a grab bag of Artful Inkables stamps! Now that is a great way to start the New Year, don't you think? ;)
I try not to make resolutions but there are some things I want to be different in the New Year and so I based my card on that. First, I want my life to be more simple. I want to enjoy the simple joys and pleasures like spending time with my friends and family more. I also want a whole lot less drama. Second, I want my life to have more FUN in it. So I made a Clean And Simple card (which is really hard for me, mind you) and I used the super fun images from South of the Border.

Stamps: Artful Inkables South of the Border
Paper: Kraft; Basic Grey Lime Rickey
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: Prismacolor Pencils, Ribbon, Button, Dimensionals

Thanks for stopping by today- I won't be posting until Next Year! he he....Have a Happy and Safe New Year's Eve!!

Holiday Recovery and Preparing for the New Year

I hope you have recovered from the Christmas rush- I may need a few more days before I am fully functional again. LOL I had a wonderful and blessed Christmas filled with family, love and lots of food.
New Year's is coming up and it is time to think about the future. Birthdays, Anniversaries, and other special occasions will be coming up sooner than you think. If you are crunched for time and can't spend hours in a mall but think a gift card is too impersonal- don't worry. A hand made gift card holder will let the recipient know you were thinking of them- and it only takes a few minutes and minimal supplies to create. For a step by step tutorial on creating this gift card, you can visit the Rubber Romance Blog HERE.

Stamps: Rubber Romance
Paper: Baja Breeze, Cosmo Cricket Girl Friday and PTI White
Ink: Taken With Teal; Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: Ticket Corner Punch, Scor-Pal, Nestabilities, Prismacolor Pencils, Summer Sunrise (PTI) Ribbon

Thanks for stopping by- I hope you have a wonderful day and enjoy the rest of your Christmas vacation!

Merry Christmas! The most Fun Friday of the Year!

Merry Christmas! Believe it or not we DO have a Friday Fun Challenge today however this week it is purely optional (ok, it is every week) But Jimmi challenged us to show you last year's Christmas card and then this year's Christmas card.
Last year I made several Christmas cards. Here is one using Unity's Tiny Trinity

Here is another card using stamps from Inkadinkadoo (I believe)
And another one using Tiny Trinity from Unity:
This year, I didn't make ANY Christmas cards. Crazy, I know! This year was all about the gift card holders and here I have two to show you. One uses Artful Inkables Holiday Treats and Tails and the second one uses an old Unity set Batch of Bitty Fun. All patterned paper is from My Mind's Eye (love their stuff!)

Thanks for stopping by today and have a Merry Christmas. Be sure to pop by the other Friday Fun Girls' blogs to see their Holiday Cards!
Jimmi
Kimme
Sara
Christi

Christmas Countdown

I am a last-minute kind of girl. I never get ahead no matter how hard I try or want to. Honestly, on the rare times I do get something bought or done ahead of time, I forget where I hid the present so last minute works for me even if it does work on my nerves.
Today I am showing you some gift card holders I made using the Artful Inkables set Holiday Tails and Treats. Boy, was I glad to have this set on hand in my last-minute rush. Just last week I received my Christmas miracle which also created the need for more last-minute gifts. I'm not complaining- I am very happy to have this "problem." But this set is so versatile that I could easily pick out images and sentiments for my projects.
I needed a tutorial for a Gift Card holder that had easy to follow instructions (my brain is already on stress overload) and didn't take too long to create. I found both with Gina K's tutorial on Stamp TV HERE. Gina has just the sweetest voice and it was fun watching her tutorial- but most importantly, it was EASY.
Here's a view of the inside:


Here's a close up of the outside of one of the cards:
Stamps: Artful Inkables Holiday Treats and Tails
Paper: SU Riding Hood Red; PTI White; Basic Grey Wassail and Figgy
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black; SU Riding Hood Red
Accessories: Fiskars Corner Punch, Nestabilities, Mounting Tape, Ribbon, Stickles, Prismacolor Pencils, Glue Dots, Sticky Strip

Let's Go to the Movies...at Home!

Happy Wednesday. Monday I shared with you the gifts I made for my female co-worker and some others but today I am going to show you what I made for the guys at work. This is my version of "Night at the Movies." I found these cute little Popcorn containers at Target and I filled them with candy that you would find at a movie theater like Whoppers. There is also a package of microwave popcorn- EXTRA butter. :) I am also putting a Blockbuster gift card in it- I still have to go pick those up. (yikes!)
The card is made using several Kits of the Month from Unity and some Stampin' Up. I am trying to get over my hang up of using only one kit or one stamp company on a project.

I've got to run and get some stuff done. Thank you so much for stopping by today- I will have more for you tomorrow AND on Christmas. :) Happy Festivus! ;)

A Thrifty Christmas Gift

It's getting "crunch time" on those Christmas gifts. I had a wonderful surprise last week that resulted in needing more gifts than I had planned or budgeted for. Yikes! I did what any smart stamper would do- I pulled out my stamps and got to work!

I was on a mission at Office Max for some adhesive when I came across these note card boxes in the Clearance aisle. (clearance is my BEST friend lol) I saw them and immediately thought that I could alter them to make an inexpensive gift that someone would still appreciate.

Since the cute notes inside have butterflies on them I decided to stick with that theme.

First I stamped off once my French Script background stamp (retired from Stampin' Up) in Basic Gray ink. Then I stamped Stipple Butterfly (also retired from SU) in Tuxedo Black ink from Memento. I used my Nestabilities to cut and emboss around the butterfly. The sentiment is from Unity's November 09 Kit of the Month Simply Magical. I love this kit and I have not had any time to play with it. Hopefully when 2010 starts I will have more time on my hands to stamp with my neglected stamps.


I added ribbon, rhinestones and a key to finish the box up. I think they turned out great and each one cost less than $4 to create. I am hoping that the recipient doesn't realize that little fact.

Thanks for stopping by today, I am so glad you did. I hope to have more projects to show you before Christmas but in case I don't have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

I'm Back Online and Stamping!

Last week I switched from DSL to Cable High Speed Internet. Everything was wonderful for the first few days....and then it was out.....and out.....and out. They couldn't send anyone until this morning so I was out for nearly four days. Yikes! That's like an eternity to a stamper/blogger. LOL. But we are back up now and I can FINALLY show you the project I made for Artful Inkables this week. I hope you love it!
I made this ornament for someone very special. I used two AI sets to create it. The front side is a farm scene using Down on the Farm. I stamped the tractor and masked it with a Post It and then stamped the fields and barn. Then I colored them with Prismacolor Pencils. I added Frosted Lace Stickles to make it look like a dusting of snow. Usually if we do get snow around here it is only a dusting so this is the perfect Southern VA winter scene.
For the back side I used the AI set Holiday Treats and Tails. I added a Prima Poinsettia and Holly Berry Leaf for accents.

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope to have so much more to show you the next few days- especially now that I have internet service back up (yay)!

It's a Special Day!

Today is a special day, indeed! Today is Kristin's (at Artful Inkables) birthday today and I want to take this time to wish her a wonderful day. I didn't get a chance to make her a card, BUT I do have a new card to show you that I created for a recent Artful Inkables swap. I think the sentiment on this card says it all when it comes to how I feel about being on the design team. I am grateful to Kristin every day that she chose me to help showcase her wonderful products. I am most certainly "Tickled Pink" over it.

I hope you will take the chance to stop by the AI blog and wish Kristin a wonderful day and see the other cards from the swap. Thanks for stopping by!

Friday Fun # 61- It's a Sketch!

Happy Friday!! It's time for another Friday Fun Challenge brought to us by Jimmi. This week it is a sketch challenge. I love sketch challenges and this one is a fun one.

For my card, I flipped it to work with the images I wanted to use. The stamps are from Unity's October Kit of the Month: ...wherever you go. The patterned paper is Cosmo Cricket Earth Love.

If you want to play along with us, just use keyword FFC61 when uploading to Splitcoast and/or link back to one of the Friday Fun Girls' blogs. Be sure to check them all out for more inspiration:
Sherry
Kimme
Sara
Christi

Thanks for stopping by- have a great day!

Love Ya Lots Sketch Card

Happy Thursday. Today I made a card for the current Sketch Challenge over on Splitcoast. (#258) I used the stamp set Love Ya Lots from Artful Inkables. This is a fun set for Valentine's Day cards or any occasion you want to let someone know you care.

I still feel like my card is missing something, but I am not sure what. I paper-pieced the rose and even added just a hint of Stickles.....I don't know what else to add but it doesn't seem complete to me. Let me know what you think. Depending on suggestions, maybe I will revise the card and post it again. :)
Thanks for stopping by today- I hope your day is completely fabulous!

It's time for a NEW Think Ink Challenge!

There's a new Think Ink Challenge on the Artful Inkables blog and that means a new chance to win a grab bag of Artful Inkables Stamps. How cool is that?? This week, Emily has challenged us to make a Clean and Simple card. I love CAS cards but I rarely make them. Actually, I'm not sure that this card qualifies for CAS, but for me it is probably as close as I can get. I am going to send this card to my Dad to let him know that I am thinking about him and appreciate everything he has done for me. I hope he likes it!

Stamps: Artful Inkables A Friendly Light
Paper: Martha Stewart CS and PTI White
Ink: Memento Rich Cocoa
Accessories: Nestabilities, Circle Punches, Prismacolor Pencils, Hemp Twine and button

Thanks for stopping by today- I appreciate all of my readers!

Friday Fun # 60 - It's All About the Food!

Happy Friday! Are you ready for the weekend? I am. Sure, I am right in the middle of mine, but when I go back to work it's for 3 days and then I am off for 5! Woo hoo!

The Friday Fun challenges for the Month of December are brought to us by my BFF Jimmi. This week's challenge is perfect too- because I have gone way off my diet the past couple weeks. It's all good- I still lost 2 lbs....go figure. LOL.
So this week's Challenge from Jimmi is: Just because November and December are all about eating (for me at least!) and I can't stop eating or thinking about food...lets make a card about food or with anything relating to food or cooking on it.

For my card I decided to use the Diva Chef from Rubber Romance. I just love this girl- she is sooo Sassy! The patterned paper is from My Mind's Eye that I picked up on an accidental shopping trip the other week (don't you hate it when that happens??). I apologize for the poor quality of the picture- I am having lighting issues. My wonderful desk lamp broke and Wal-mart doesn't carry that lamp anymore. I am trying different replacements without any luck.

If you would like to play along with the Friday Fun girls- just use keyword FFC60 when uploading to SCS or link back to one of our blogs. Be sure to check out all the Friday Fun girls' Blogs for inspiration!
Jimmi
Kimme
Sara
Christi

Thanks for stopping by- I hope your Friday is super fun!

Fun With Chipboard!

Happy Thursday! Today I made a project for the Artful Inkables Think Ink Challenge- to use chipboard. You can get more details on the challenge and learn how you can win a some stamps from Artful Inkables on their blog HERE. You can also see some great samples from the Awesome AI Design Team.
For my project I decided to use a chipboard coaster to make a Christmas Ornament. I am going to try and put my tree up this week, and this little guy from License to Chill is going to go on it! Isn't he cute?
The ornament was very easy to make- I basically glued some designer paper (I used My Mind's Eye paper) and cut it to size and sanded the rough edges with a sanding block. From there it was just attaching the ribbon and my images. Voila- a fun ornament to give away or keep for yourself!
Thanks for stopping by today- I hope you have a great day!

Friday Fun # 59- It's Black Friday! Woo hoo!

TGIBF!! This is my favorite day of the year. Black Friday- the best shopping day of the year! My best friend Jimmi and I are running around like maniacs hoping to get some great deals at all our favorite stores.
Today's Challenge is brought to us by Christi Snow and in honor of my favorite Holiday she has asked us to make black and white cards with one accent color. I made my card with images for Rubber Romance using the Glitter Window Technique. If you would like to see a tutorial on how I made this card please visit the Rubber Romance blog.
We would love for you to play along- just use keyword FFC59 when uploading to SCS so we can find your card. Be sure to check out the other Friday Fun girls' blogs for more inspiration:
Jimmi
Kimme
Sara
Christi

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great Holiday weekend!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope everyone is having a wonderful day with their friends and family. I have so many things to be thankful for and my best friend is one of them. I am going to her house for dinner this afternoon and she is even going to let me help cook. (ok, really I am just going to do what she tells me to do...lol)


I just have a quick card for you today. This card literally took about 10 minutes to create (minus drying time). I saw this paper from Memory Box and knew I had to use this little guy from the Artful Inkables set, License to Chill. It looks like he's tubing down the hill! I covered him with Crystal Snow and I used Crystal Effects on the tube to give a shiny look

I hope you like it! Thanks for stopping by today and have a great Thanksgiving!

Think Ink Challenge- Time is running out!

Artful Inkables Think Ink Challenge is coming to an end tonight at Midnight Pacific Standard Time. You still have time to play for a chance to win a grab bag of Artful Inkables stamps (and who wouldn't want one of those??).
The challenge is to make a tag. Easy, right? Yes it is- so get to stamping! If you don't have AI stamps, that's ok too. Play along and you can win some! You can find more details on the Artful Inkables blog HERE.
For my tag I used the newly-released AI set, Love Ya Lots. The paper is from My Mind's Eye - have I mentioned I did a little retail therapy? It's the best kind, especially when you find a GREAT sale, and I got a great deal.

Thanks for stopping by today- I hope you get a chance to play the challenge. Have a great day!

Merry Christmas Card Tin

Happy Sunday! It's been a crazy week for me and my days off have been super busy- but with FUN stuff. I got to go out with my best friend and do some much-needed retail therapy along with eating fattening and delicious food. Sometimes you just have to be bad to feel good, kwim?
I actually made this project last week but didn't have time to take a good picture and blog it. Can you believe it? This tin wasn't that hard to alter, but due to my work schedule it took me several days- but in total maybe a little over an hour (not including drying time for the Flower Soft and Stickles and picking out the designer paper which always takes me forever...)

I used some Christmas Stamps from Rubber Romance to make this tin. I just love this Diva in the Santa hat and the sentiment.....get your mind out of the gutter! LOL. It's a cute and fun sentiment for Christmas. Robin has put some GREAT new stamps in her store including this Sassy Diva.
The tin is the perfect size to organize Christmas cards or give away some Holiday treats. I'm not sure if I am going to give it away or keep it.....I kind of like it.

Thanks for stopping by today- I hope the rest of your weekend is totally FABULOUS! :)

Friday Fun # 58- It's a Gift Tag!

Happy Friday! This is the second post of the day- if you are here for the Twilight Blog Hop, Please scroll down to the next post.

Today's Friday Fun Challenge is brought to us again by Christi. We are to make a Gift Tag or a small card. We would love for you to play along- just use keyword FFC58 when uploading to SCS or link back to one of the Friday Fun Girls blogs- which you can check out using the links below:
Jimmi
Kimme
Sara
Christi
Here is the front side of my tag- I used Unity's Trinity Trio and paper-pieced the trees.

On the back side of the tag is a special message for anyone who might get an ideas about peeking ...hehe. This is Unity's Do Not Open stamp.


Thanks for stopping by today- I hope you have a fantastic weekend and some Friday FUN!

Twilight/New Moon Blog Hop!

Welcome to our Customer and DT Twilight Artful INKables blog hop! Make sure you start at the Artful INKables Blog, so you don't miss a single thing!
To celebrate the release of NEW MOON today, we're highlighting the AI Twilight inspired sets: Into the Moonlight and Fictionally Inspired. AI also has a set of Vampire Romance Themed Charms available! Artful INKables is also sponsoring Twilight Tuesday’s Hop that include Twilight Prizes, so be sure to check them out today as well!

Here is my card for the hop. The image is colored with my Prismacolor pencils and I accented the flower with my Stardust Gelly Roll pen. I kept everything simple since the images speak for themselves.

Your next stop on the hop is MICHELLE! She is sure to have something so fantastic it will knock your socks off!

If you get lost along the way, here is a list of all the blogs on the hop (Make sure to leave a comment on each blog along the way for your chance to win your choice of 2 AI sets! Please leave your comments by Midnight, November 23^rd!)

Kristin Soboloski http://artfulinkables.blogspot.com/


Margie Cortina http://ohbumbleismemargie.blogspot.com


Alison Heikkile http://alisonsrandomthoughts.blogspot.com


Jen Shults http://deconstructingjen.com


Lois Bak http://clownmomcreations.blogspot.com/


Michele Lourenco http://enchantedstamper.blogspot.com


Jodi Collins http://stampingalatte.blogspot.com


Jennifer Olauson http://wannabecr8tive.blogspot.com


Jen Pahoulis http://jen-pjpants.blogspot.com/


Juanita Gillen http://stampintwilghtmom.blogspot


Donna Wardle http://donna-wardle.blogspot.com/


Joy Stagg http://daiseyfreak.blogspot.com/


Cathy Cunningham http://cathy-cunningham.blogspot.com/


Sherry Campbell http://workingandstamping.blogspot.com/


Michelle Woerner http://stopandstamptheroses.blogspot.com/


Crystal Irwin http://www.crystalkbk.blogspot.com/


Kathy Jones http://inspiredtostamp.blogspot.com/


Dani Chapman http://countyourbeautifulblessings.blogspot.com/


Tamara Bennett http://scrapcationgetaway.blogspot.com


Tonya Klar http://www.stamphappens.com


Jackie Rakoski http://stampingsister.blogspot.com


Holly Endress http://www.hollybeary.com


April Davis http://mousekemom.blogspot.com/