Unity Challenge Wednesday!

It's Wednesday- and this week I am your challenge hostess. I am very excited to share with you our challenge. It is to make a card with Unity stamps and using the technique paper-piecing. I am also excited because I am going to attempt to do my very first blog tutorial. Aren't you so glad you are my guinea pigs today? ;) (keep in mind I did not invent this technique- this is just my personal description of how to do it- I don't want to step on anyone's toes). Also, please check out the other Unity Challenge girls' blogs. (see side bar on right) You don't want to miss any of their fantastic creations. I am sure they will amaze you- they amaze me every week. Also, you can play along with us too. Just link your creations here on my blog or upload them on Split Coast using the keyword USC5. We will also be haning out all day in the Unity Forum tomorrow for Hip Hop Thursday. Start hopping at the Unity Blog and follow it to the end where there is sure to be some YUMMY Blog Candy! It all starts at 11 AM EST. :)

This is a very fun yet easy technique. First thing I did was choose my main image stamp which is the flower from Unity's Spring has Sprung. (notice my well-loved Unity handle) I stamped it three times. Once on my white cardstock which will be attached to my card; second on the pink designer paper; and third on my green designer paper.

Next I cut out the pieces from the Designer paper that I wanted to use on my main image. For this card I chose the flower from the pink paper and the leaves and flower center from the green.

Then I glued the the pink down first. Then I put the green center on top and also glued the leaves.

Here is my finished card. It is a very easy way to add interest to your image. It is a lot of fun too.

I made another card with the Unity set Giggle Grove. The bird was stamped three times also and the wing is popped up on a dimensional. I added buttons to this card because frankly, I don't use enough buttons.

Here is something fun I thought I would share with you that has nothing to do with stamping. There are other things, right? I know- not many but there are a few. :) My son has recently started driving his grandfather's old pick up truck. I had to put my foot down on the condition of his truck. It was dirty, filthy and disgusting. My boyfriend was over and thought he needed some help. Since he is the pick up expert (at least when it comes to Chevrolets) he pitched in and showed my son how it was done. Here are some photos I caught while they were working. Fortunately, neither one of them had the idea to turn the hose on me! Phew! But now that it is clean, it is hard to believe it is the same truck! Wow! I guess I need to wash my car now. yuck! Thanks for stopping by! Check back on Friday for my Friday Fun Challenge!! :) (I am hosting that also!)

It's Time for Some Friday Fun!

It's the second week of the blog challenge I am doing with three of my Sassy Sistahs! Jimmi is the hostess this week and you can get more details on the challenge on her blog The Stamping Shopper. You can also play along with us. When you upload your creations just use the key word FFC2.

This week's challenge was to use some bling on our cards. Since my Sassy friends consider me the "Queen of Bling" this should be easy, right? Well, I don't know if it's because I have been working too much or something else but I had a hard time coming up with an idea for this one. Crazy, I know! If any of you have been following my blog lately you may have noticed that I have become a serious Unity Stamp lover. I rarely use anything else these days. To get my creative juices flowing I dug through my "Unity" drawer and found this gorgeous butterfly that hadn't even seen ink yet. GASP!! I had to correct that situation right away!

I inked the butterfly first with SU Kiwi Kiss. Then I "rock'n rolled" it in Pacific Point ink and stamped it onto white cardstock. The sentiment Daydream is from Unity's August KOTM, Remember Happiness. (how can you forget what happiness is when you are using your Unity rubber??) The card base is Pacific Point layered with Baja Breeze and an embossed layer of Kiwi Kiss (I used my CB for this). The stamped images were cut out using my Large Circle Nestabilities and layered with the Large Scalloped circles in Pacific Point. I added ribbon and my bling is in the form of Lime Green Stickles.

Anyway, I hope you like my card and I hope you will play along with us. You can see more Friday Fun Eye candy at Kim and Katherine's Blogs. Thanks for stopping by!

It's Unity Challenge Wednesday- on Thursday??

Oh, I am a day late on my Unity Challenge. I have been working non stop, 14 hour days and on-call and I just didn't have the energy to get it posted on time. What do I do may you ask? Well, I work for a Regional trucking company that just happens to haul gas and fuel. If you have listened to the news lately you might be aware that there is a gas shortage due to the recent hurricanes on the gulf coast. My job is to find out where I CAN get the gas and get my truck there and to the station before they run out. Unfortunately, the past few days that is a lot easier said than done. BUT I am off today and ready to play with my stamps!





Our challenge for this Wednesday (yesterday) was to make a black and pink card. I love these colors together so this wasn't that hard. :) I used the newly released Unity Single Sweet ZZZs. This little bird is sooo sweet! I love her (or him?) You can check out more details on the challenge in the Unity Forum here and play along. Just use the keyword USC4 when uploading your creation. Also, don't forget to check out the other Unity Challenge Girls' blogs for more eyecandy AND visit the Unity Hip Hop thread today for great fun, challenges and lots of prizes!

Stamps: Unity Sweet Zzzs

Paper: SU: Pretty In Pink, Regal Rose, Basic Black, Pretty in Pink Prints; PTI White

Ink: Black Stazon, Markers: Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, and Gray

Accessories: Black Brads, Black Satin Ribbon, Nestabilities, Swiss Dots CB Folder, Cuttlebug

Friday FUN!!

It's Friday! Yippee! I don't work regular hours at my job so Fridays are typically just like any old day- except for this week. This week is the beginning of the Friday Fun Blog Challenge with some of my Sassy Sistahs. This week's hostess is Kim Muhl (SCS Name Nutsymuhl). You can check out all the challenge details on her blog PaperTastic Creations so you can play along and have some Friday Fun. Other blogs to check out are Jimmi and Katherine. They have some really great eye candy for you. Now for my card.....

Stamps: Unity- Remember Happiness (August KOTM)

Paper: SU Kraft, Pretty in Pink, Chocolate Chip; PTI White

Ink: Brown Stazon, Pretty In Pink, Close to Cocoa, Creamy Caramel, Rose Red

Accessories: Brown Brads, Pink Tafetta Ribbon, , Clip, Stickles

Thanks for checking out my blog! I hope you play along and have some Friday Fun!!

Unity Challenge Wednesday- and some Extra Eye Candy

I will apologize in advance for my blog post. I have just finished working a 12 hour shift plus on-call (that's the "working" part of my blog...yuck!) and I am exhausted. I might not make total sense today, but I am very excited to share this week's creations with you.

It's Wednesday again and it's time to get ready for Hip Hop Thursday in the Unity Forum on SCS. What better way to do that than to participate in Wednesday's Unity Challenge. This week it was Latisha's turn to host and pick the challenge and she chose a Sketch Challenge. It is a great layout perfect for many different kinds of card and many images.

The sketch is a square card with panel on the lower half. The main image is a square with a scalloped border on one side. Here is my card:

I made this card as a going away card for our mechanic at work. He is transferring to a different terminal. We will miss him- he's a really nice guy and a good mechanic too. :)

If you want to play along, just use your Unity stamps and make a card with the same layout. Then upload your card onto SCS using keyword USC3. Be sure to check out the other Unity Challenge Girls' blogs for more eye candy. You won't want to miss their challenge cards! Then be sure to hang out with us on Thursday for a blog hop of all the DT members, prizes and chatting with everyone.

Stamps: Unity Remember Happiness

Paper: SU Chocolate Chip, Sage Shadow, Creamy Caramel, White, DSP

Ink: Brown Stazon, Sage Shadow, Chocolate Chip, Creamy Caramel

Accessories: Aged Copper Brads, SU Scallop Border Punch

Next I have a card that I made just because I wanted to. I got this idea in my head and couldn't get rid of it. It is not my "normal style" but I think that's why I like it. I am trying to get out of my stamping rut. Just so you know- that is all Faux-stitching. I do not, cannot and will not sew. I wish I could and I love cards that have real stitching on it, but I am challenged in the sewing department. I cut out each tree from Tiny Trinity and popped them up on dimensionals. I also accented them with crystal effects. One reason is because they look prettier, the other is so that when it dries it will make the trees a little sturdier.

Stamps: Unity Tiny Trinity

Paper: SU Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze, Hawaii Papaya DSP, White

Ink: Brown Stazon, Old Olive, Kiwi Kiss

Accessories: Wide Chocolate Grosgrain Ribbon, Crystal Effects, Oval Punch, Sponges, Paper-Piercing tool

Unity Challenge Wednesday!

It's the Second Unity Challenge Day today. If you missed it last week, we had a blast! Everyone's cards were fantastic! I can't wait to see what everyone comes up with this week.

This week's challenge is a Color Challenge hosted by CATDIDIT. The colors she chose are the Unity's Colors. I used the Stampin Up Colors Taken With Teal, Close to Cocoa, Creamy Caramel, and Chocolate Chip to make my card. You can play too. Just upload your Unity Color Challenge Card to the gallery using the keyword USC2. You can also post it on your blog and link it in the challenge thread.

I opened my mailbox on Tuesday and what was in there? My August Kit of the Month! I was so excited that I did the Happy Dance. My neighbors think I am crazy- they are right. The reason why I am excited is because there are soooo many stamps in this kit- the possibilities are endless. You should definitely check out September's Kit. Wow!! I can't wait to get that one in my hands.

Ooops...got a little distracted there (new stamps do that to me sometimes, LOL!) My point is that I decided to use the Coffee stamps from August's Kit Remember Happiness for this week's card because Creamy Caramel reminds me of coffee (which I really LOVE):

I stamped the image three times. Once on Creamy Caramel, another on white, and another on Taken With Teal. I then cut out the tablecloth in the Teal image and glued it onto the caramel (main) image. Then I colored in the coffee on the white image and colored the swirly hearts red. JUST the coffee (inside of the cup) was cut out and popped up with dimensionals on the main image. I also colored the spoon with a grey marker and accented with a Sakura Gelly Roll pen and cut it out. It is also on dimensionals on my Teal "tablecloth." I added dots to the table with my marker to mirror the polka dots in the Unity banner. I also chose Chocolate Ribbon with Teal dots for the same reason.

Be sure to check out the Unity Challenge Girls' Blogs for more Color Challenge cards. Play along with us on Wednesday and"Indulge" in some Unity stamping. I can't wait to see what you create!

Stamps: Unity Remember Happiness

Paper: Stampin Up: Taken With Teal, Close to Cocoa, Creamy Caramel, Chocolate Chip, and White

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Taken with Teal, Real Red

Accessories: Cuttlebug, Ribbon

Hey, Chick! It's Unity Challenge Day!

There's a new challenge for you to try- It's Unity Challenge Day. Today is the very first one and it's easy so anyone can play. All you have to do it CASE a card or project of a Unity DT Member. If you are not familiar with the team or the products be sure to check out Unity HERE. They are a talented bunch of stampers so normally it would be hard for me to choose who to CASE. Fortunately, my BFF is on the team so I am CASING her!! I love her cards and she also let me borrow the set so I could make my card. Love ya, Jimmi!

The card I chose to case is Blue Chickie. To make the card my own to some degree, I changed the colors, added paper-piercing in the corner, changed the ovals to circles minus paper-piercing and I added some stickles to my chick. Here's my version of Jimmi's card:

Stamps: Unity Hey Chickie

Paper: Riding Hood Red CS and DSP, Shimmer White (SU)

Ink: Brilliance Graphite, SU Riding Hood Red, Kiwi Kiss, Pink Pirouhette

Accessories: RDH Ribbon, Threaded Water Punch, Paper-Piercing Tool, Circle Classic and Scalloped Nestabilities, Cuttlebug, Stickles, Dimensionals

Be sure to check out the other Challenge Bloggers (see sidebar). Someone has some really good Blog Candy- but I can't tell you who! ;) You have to play to find out! Have fun and create something beautiful!! TFL!

Thanks Kim and Kath!!

Thank you so much! I stamped today because of your blog challenge. I forgot how much I love to stamp- but I remember now. :)

You challenged me to make a card using at least one color from EACH SU color family (not including IN Colors) and a neutral. That was harder than it sounded I can tell you.

The colors I used were Bashful Blue- Soft Subtles; Real Red- Bold Brights; Pumpkin Pie- Earth Elements; and So Saffron- Rich Regals. I used the Prints DSP for all except the Pumpking Pie. I did not have any Prints in Earth Elements so that DSP is from Bali Breeze.

I also wanted to use some new goodies that I hadn't had much chance to play with. Those would be my new MFT stamps and Nestabilities. I love those Nesties. I wasn't sure if I would but they are great. I think I have to have them ALL now. hehe.

Anyway- thanks for the challenge and thanks for looking!!

Stamps: My Favorite Things : By the Seashore
Paper: (all SU) Basic Black, White, Bashful Blue, Bali Breeze DSP, Prints DSP in Bashful Blue, Real Red, and So Saffron
Ink: Black Stazon, Various SU Markers
Accessories: Oval Punch, Large Rectangel Nestabilities, Blue Stickles, and lots of Dimensionals!

Poor Dixie!

Poor Dixie. While I was away having fun she was developing "hot spots." I had to take her to the Vet today and get her some medicine and a collar. In this picture you can see just how happy she is about the whole deal.

Well, after plunking down nearly $100 (that I could have spent on stamps) I hope she does start feeling better. I love her so much and I cannot deal with her feeling bad!

Another Williamsburg Shoe Box Swap!

I can't believe it's been a month since my last post! Wow! Well, I guess it's just because I have been sooooo busy lately. I have had a lot of chores around the house getting the yard ready for Summer and of course there's my job. (yuck!) But I did manage some ME time this weekend and this post is going to tell you ALL about it! :)

Yesterday was the 2nd Annual Williamsburg Shoe Box Swap. We had a blast. My friend Jimmi and I spent Friday afternoon shopping. I know- imagine that. LOL! We hit the local stamp store and the outlets. I was really, really BAD! But it was so much fun! Then we hung out at her sister-in-law's house and ate dinner.

Saturday morning we got up and headed to the SBS which Jimmi and I hosted along with Sherri Mallory (Sherristampsalot) . (Ok- I just helped and did what they told me to do.....) It was so much fun. There were 24 Shoebox Swappers and 18 3-d swappers and lots and lots of door prizes! On top of door prizes that were donated, the following companies donated prizes as well:

My Favorite Things

Hanna Stamps

Gina K Designs

Unity Stamp Co

Eclectic Paperie

Impression Obsession (had goodies for every single person!- awesome!)

Scor-Pal

JustRite stamps

I was so lucky that I won the gift certificate from My Favorite Things! Yay! My friend Stampowl is on their Design Team and I love her cards. I ordered It's a Jungle Out There and a mini set and some watercolor paints. But almost everyone received an extra prize- and they were all great.

Here is a picture of Paulette and Cyndi making my card at the swap.

We stamped the day away and had pizza for lunch. Then afterwards some of us headed out for MORE shopping! We headed for the stamp store (again) and then Jimmi and I went to Trader Joe's on the way home. There I stocked up on some wine and groceries for under $45! Wow! In times like these where everything is going up it is great to get deals like that!

The card I created for the SBS used Riley in the plane. I brought So Many Sayings (which I have separated and mounted on dominoes) and Things Hanna Would Say so everyone could choose what sentiment they wanted. I think it turned out pretty nice.

Stamps: Airplane Riley from Hanna Stamps, SU So Many Sayings

Paper: Bashful Blue, Real Red, Basic Black, PTI Stampers Select White

Ink: Black Stazon, SU markers

Accessories: SU Red Stripe Grosgrain Ribbon, Paper-piercing Tool, Silver Brads, Blue Stickles

The Door Prize I made contained a canvas bag that I stamped on then heat set with an iron on low. I also made some magnetic picture frames to match and threw in some store bought goodies.

Stamps: SU Stipple Butterfly (retired), SU Burst Into Bloom

Ink: PTI Pallette Hybrid Ink in Aqua Mist and Spring Moss

Paper (on frames) Aqua Mist, Spring Moss, Everyday Blessings DSP

Ribbon: PTI Aqua Mist and Spring Moss

I forgot to take pictures of my 3-D swap and I didn't have any extras left over. Sorry! But I do have pictures of my stamp table from when I got home and all my new stamping goodies. Want to see? I also bought a new Coach purse and some clothes and shoes also but I don't have pictures of those. I went a little crazy shopping- it has been a long time since I have let myself go and buy "luxury items." (stamps are necessities just so you know.....) Jimmi is a bad influence but what do you expect from someone whose blog is called Stamping and Shopping???? LOL! I should have known I was in trouble!

These are my stamping goodies and pictures of the mess my stamping area became when I got home with everything:

Thanks for visiting!