{MTSC50} Merry Wishes!

Another Tuesday has rolled around and it's time for

Mercy's Sketch Challenge!

Today, I decided to create another card with my new Snow Buddies set from Stampin' Up! It is such a fun little set with 12 different images that you can earn with a Stampin' Up! workshop or order of $300 or more. I've used designer papers from the Holiday Mini Catalog ~ both the Night & Day and the Christmas Cocoa Specialty Papers. The snowman's scarf and hat are both paper pieced. Now that I'm posting the photo, I realize that I forgot to color his nose and I had planned to add glitter too. Oh well, you get the picture. ;)

It was back to work for me today and it took most of the day just to catch up on all the emails! Ugh! Oh well, enough whining! I'm sure you're all on the edge of your seats with anticipation, so let's get on with the wonderful works of art Mercy's Muses have for you today!

Mercy's Muses
Mercy Kerin (Queen Muse)
Jessi Rone A very warm WELCOME to our December Guest Muse! :D
Cindy Haffner
Pam Varnell
Julie Lacey
Crystal Birr
Jackie Pedro
Jessica Diedrich

Shannan Tuebner (Welcome back!! :D)

I want to encourage you all to participate in Mercy's Challenge this week as she's got a super cute holiday set to giveaway! Also, each month she selects someone to be the "Guest Muse" and have their cards featured on her blog ~ Lord Have Mercy!

Thanks so much for blogging by today!

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!

Quote for Today ~

No one needs a vacation so much as the person

who has just had one.

~Elbert Hubbard

{SSSC46} Sweet Sunday Snow Buddie

We're back from our FABULOUS Thanksgiving vacation to Nevada! The weather was PERFECT and it was SO FUN to spend time with FAMILY! I only wish I could have hit the *pause* button to make it last longer.

Today, I'm doing laundry and catching up on things around here, but I couldn't wait to stamp something! What better way to get back in the groove than the Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge hosted by Karen Giron! Once I view all the cards created by her Sweet Sunday Stampers, I'm *so* inspired! If you haven't already done so, please check them out...you'll be so glad you did!

Believe it or not, it's time to start thinking about our next Holiday! Yes, only 26 days 'til Christmas! :D

For this card, I've used my new Stampin' Up! hostess set ~ "Snow Buddies". I just *love* this set and was so happy to get it! :D What do you think of this color combination? I know, it's different for a holiday card. The cardstock is basic gray and sage shadow and I've used a piece of designer paper from "Nouveau Chic". I've used this same paper to paper-piece the snow buddie's hat and scarf and the sage shadow marker to color his buttons. It's hard to see in the photo, but I used the small snowflake stamp and frost white Shimmer Paint on the grey background. Also, I couldn't refrain from adding a bit of dazzling diamond glitter to make him sparkle! :)

All products used on this card are from Stampin' Up! If you ever need any Stampin' Up! products and don't have a demo in your area, I would *love* to help you! Please feel free to order via my blog 24/7. Another idea is to put together a Wish List for Christmas and let your family or friends know how to contact me. :D It would be my pleasure to help them do their shopping!

I'm happy you stopped by today and hope you'll come back again soon!

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!

Quote for Today ~

The best things in life are the people we love, the places we've been, and the memories we've made along the way. - unknown

{MTSC49} So Grateful for All of You!

Happy Tuesday Everyone!

It's time for another splendid sketch challenge by the one and only Mercy Kerin of Lord Have Mercy fame! :) She is such a sweetie and unbelievably encouraging to all of us who participate in her weekly challenges! I'm so grateful for Mercy and for each and everyone of YOU bloggers and readers. It has been such a blessing to get to know you. You've inspired me with your creations, motivated me with your words of encouragement, and more than anything ~ you've warmed my heart and made me *smile*. :)

Mercy's Muses
Mercy Kerin (Queen Muse!)
Viv Holden (November Guest Muse)
Cindy Haffner
Pam Varnell
Julie Lacey
Crystal Birr
Jackie Pedro
Jessica Diedrich

If you want to join the sketch challenge FUN, simply create a card or scrapbook layout using Mercy's sketch and then link your creation to the post on her blog.

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!

Quote for Today ~
Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving. ~W.T. Purkiser

{SSSC45} Sweet Sunday Serene Snowflakes

Today's title is a bit of a tongue twister! :) If you haven't already figured it out, this card was created especially for Karen Giron's Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge using her wonderful layout below...


This is the first time I've used the new Stampin' Up! set ~ Serene Snowflakes ~ from the Holiday Mini Catalog. Other than this terrific sketch, my inspiration for this card came from an unusual source. Yesterday when I was at the salon getting my hair colored & highlighted, they had it beautifully decorated for Christmas in shades of purple with white trees, garland and glittery snowflakes. I sat there and thought about creating a purple and white snowflake card. :) The colors I've used are two of the new in-colors ~ Rich Razzleberry and Melon Mambo. Aren't they pretty together?

The snowflakes and the sentiment were stamped in Versamark and embossed with white powder. I've used one of the pink rhinestone brads to give my large snowflake some extra glitz. The polka dot ribbon is rich razzleberry.

Serene Snowflakes by Stampin' Up! (115438) $20.95

It's always such a pleasure to participate in these challenges! If you haven't tried it yet, I highly recommend you do! If you need a little inspiration, just blog on over to Karen's blog The Sweetest Thing and see what she and the Sweet Sunday Stampers have created for your viewing pleasure!

Tomorrow, MW and I leave for Nevada and are *so* looking forward to spending the week at our daughter's home. My sister and her family are flying in from California, so we're going to have a mini family reunion with lots of laughter, food and FUN! :) I think this is the first time in my life that I've ever been out of town for Thanksgiving. I wasn't so sure about traveling during one of the busiest times of year, but we're doing it! :)

I'm planning to create one more card today for Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge and will set that up to post automatically while I'm gone.

Wishing you all a very blessed Thanksgiving! Be sure to eat whatever your heart desires and don't even utter the "d" word. :)

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!

Quote for Today ~
Thanksgiving dinners take eighteen hours to prepare. They are consumed in twelve minutes. Half-times take twelve minutes. This is not coincidence. ~Erma Bombeck

{MTSC48} It's all Black & White!

YaY, it's time for Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge!

Whatzup with all my monochromatic cards lately? I've been *trying* to use only Stampin' Up! designer paper and that is difficult for me because I love ALL the different dp's and enjoy using them! Little my little, I'm getting some new ones from SU and this one is my new favorite! Check it out in the Holiday Mini Catalog, page 11! It's the Night & Day Specialty Designer Series Paper ~ all black and white prints with elegant, symmetrical designs.

For this card, I cut a 6-1/2" square of whisper white for the base, lfolded it in half and layered on basic black and the designer paper according to Mercy's sketch. (well, similar anyway! ;) I stamped the Upsy Daisy flowers and sentiment in black and clear embossed. What do you think? It's just seems a little blah to me.

For some real stampin' inspiration, click on the links below and hop on over and see what Mercy and her Muses have created for you this week:

Mercy Kerin (Queen Muse!)

Viv Holden (November Guest Muse)

Cindy Haffner
Pam Varnell
Julie Lacey
Crystal Birr
Jackie Pedro
Jessica Diedrich

If you want to join the FUN, simply create a card or scrapbook layout using Mercy's sketch and then link your creation to the post on her blog.

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!

Quote for Today ~

I've decided that the stuff falling through the cracks is confetti and I'm having a party!

~Betsy Cañas Garmon

{SSSC44} MERRY & bright!

Aaaah . . . today it is Soft Suede and Sweet Sketch Sunday! :)

How can you go wrong with a sketch like this?! Thanks *so* much to Karen Giron at The Sweetest Thing for dreaming up this wonderful circular layout. She and her Sweet Sunday Stampers always come up with ideas I would never imagine! My inspiration for this card came from Vicki B at It's a Stamp Thing. Last week, she created a card using this gorgeous flocked snowflake paper from Stampin' Up!'s Christmas Cocoa Specialty paper pack (116770). How ingenious to use this giant snowflake on a card! Once I saw her beautiful creation, I knew I had to try it too! :)

The base of my card is a 5 x 10" piece of whisper white folded in half. I've used my circle cutter to cut out the flocked snowflake, layered it on the soft suede textured cardstock and zigzag stitched around it. The shimmery horizontal snowflake strip is another print from this same designer paper pack. I've embellished with clear buttons, linen thread and soft suede polka dot ribbon. The Simple Snowflake is a new single stamp from Stampin' Up! Don't miss it on the very last page of the Idea Book & Catalog! (115554 $7.95) It's stamped in soft suede on whisper white and punched out with the fabulous Jumbo Snowflake Punch (116628 $15.95). Oh, I almost forgot to mention the sentiment ~ MERRY & bright (115556 $6.95). Contact your local Stampin' Up! demo if you *need* any of these supplies. If you don't have a demo in your area, I would *love* to help you! :)

Thanks so much for blogging by today! I hope you're all having a SWEET Sunday and finding time to do what you most enjoy! Your comments are the highlight of my day and I appreciate you all so much! A couple of you have mentioned that the photo of my dachshund Lilly makes you *smile*. That's so sweet! She really is a blessing and keeps me company when I'm stamping. :)

Smiles 2 U!

Another Quote for Today ~

Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole.

-Roger Caras

Photos from my Stampin' Up! "Stamp-a-Stack"!

It was a *STAMP-TACULAR* day here at my home yesterday as friends gathered for a Stampin' Up! "Stamp-a-Stack"! I thought you might enjoy seeing a few photos. With inspiration from many of you ~ my blogging buddies ~ these are the projects I finally went with . . .

The next photo below is of the dining room table all set and ready for the stampers to arrive. Everything was cut and ready for them to create 13 Christmas cards. 3 each of 3 designs and 4 of another. I had planned on 12 (3 ea of 4 designs) but had a last minute change of plans so they could use both the red/white flocked paper from the Christmas Cocoa series (116770) and the Textured Impression Folder Petals-A-Plenty (116824), both from the Holiday Mini Catalog page 21.

The Thanksgiving treat bags were for snacking, but I don't think one person opened theirs as they were just too busy stampin' it up! :) I did bake a yummy raspberry butterbraid to serve as well. :) Have you ever tried those? Off topic, I know, but I bought a couple of them from a local fundraiser and they are DELICIOUS and oh SO easy to make! I took it out of the freezer the night before to rise (raise?) and baked it the next morning. It doesn't get much easier than that! :) I wish I would have thought to take a photo of it before slicing as it was almost too pretty to eat!

The Thanksgiving Mix treat bag was an idea I cased from Lynn Put's blog ~ The Queen Scene. I just loved her idea and decided to make some up for the gals attending. So often we move on to Christmas without thinking of Thanksgiving and this was just a little reminder of how much we have to be grateful for. Here is what is printed on the inside of the tag:

Thanksgiving Blessing Mix
Bugles - shaped like a cornucopia or “horn of plenty”, they symbolize our nation's abundance.
Pretzels – represent our arms folded in prayer, a freedom sought by those who founded our great country.
Candy Corn – reminds us of the pilgrims first winter. Food was scarce and they survived on just a few kernels of corn.
Nuts – represent the promise of a bountiful harvest if seeds are planted and tended with care and diligence.
Dried Fruit – (raisins & orange slices) to remind us that Thanksgiving is a celebration of the harvest.
Chocolate – For the love of family and friends that sweeten our lives! God’s Blessings!

I just love this photo of Karmen as you can tell by her big *smile* she's having a great time! She's a big Husker fan and came inspite of the fact the game was on TV yesterday and we couldn't get it at my house. That's my friend and neighbor Vicki beside her working very diligently on her cards. :) Vicki was the lucky recipient of the Door Prize ~ the Patterned Pines stamp set from the Holiday Mini! Good times!

It's really a JOY to get everyone together and see creativity in motion. They come up with ideas I would never dream of and I love it! The photo below is of my coworker and good friend Sara. We weren't going to mention that four-letter word...{WORK} but it did come up anyway. : / Sometimes, you just need to vent a little. Anyway, Sara is not only *extremely* talented at cardmaking, she bakes award-winning cakes that are out of this world gorgeous and delicious!

Goodness, I'm sure a Chatty Cathy today, huh? I enjoyed the day so much I wanted to share it with all of you. Sure wish ALL of you could have joined us!! THANK YOU to those attending for your generous orders and most of all for your friendship and support!

Have a Happy Sunday! Thanks so much for stopping by today. I'll be back later with a card for the SWEET Sunday Sketch Challenge!

Smiles 2 U!

Quote for Today ~

There are two ways of spreading light:

to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it.

-Edith Wharton

{MTSC47 Patterned Pines} 'Tis the Season!

'Tis time for Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge! It simply amazes me how Mercy continues to dream up these unique and ingenious layouts each and every week!

Today I've used the Patterned Pines set from Stampin' Up! This is a Level 1 Hostess Set, so it cannot be purchased, but it can be earned for FREE! That's right! With a $150 personal order or workshop, you can choose this stamp set for FREE! In addition to that, Stampin' Up! currently has a promotion called Sweet Rewards. From September 1-November 30, host a $250 workshop and choose any one item from the Holiday Mini Catalog for just $10!

I *love* this stamp set and thought I would show you a photo so you can see how versatile it is! Using Versamark ink, I've stamped the old olive cardstock with the star and snowflake to create the perfect backdrop for the patterned pines. They are stamped on very vanilla cardstock using old olive ink and then clear embossed for added texture and shine. The red brads were added to give the trees a touch of "Merry"! :) As you can see, I really took Mercy's sketch literally and stitched the ends of the ribbon. Something a little different and I hope you like it! :) By the way, the "Sleigh Bells" ribbon (116795) is also from the Holiday Mini catalog ~ it's a soft cotton twill ribbon that has a fine stripe of old olive and real red stitching. It's 5/8" wide, 10 yds for $7.95.

Now, if you want to be *inspired*, click on the links below to see what the other Muses have created for you this week:

Cindy Haffner
Pam Varnell
Julie Lacey
Crystal Birr
Jackie Pedro
Jessica Diedrich
Viv Holden (November Guest Muse)

Now it's your turn! All you need to do is create a card or scrapbook layout using Mercy's sketch and then link your creation to the post on her blog. Come on and join the FUN!

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!

~ Quote for Today ~
Between every two pines is a doorway to a new world.

~John Muir

{Inspire Me #3} Stamp Away With Me Color Challenge!

I *love* color challenges almost as much as sketch challenges, so when Dawn from "Stamp Away With Me" suggested that I participate, I said "Sure, I will plan on it!" That was a week ago and I almost spaced it off entirely! That is, until today, when I saw her fabulous "Tag It Template" and her tag sample using these yummy colors ~ Rich Razzleberry, Night of Navy and Bashful Blue.

For this card, I got out my much neglected jumbo Bold Snowflake wheel (105957 - $8.50) inked it up with white craft ink and rolled over the top of the Rich Razzleberry and Bashful Blue cardstock. The "Simple Snowflake" (115554 - $7.95 ) is one of the single stamps on the last page of the 2009-2010 Idea Book & Catalog. I inked it with Night of Navy on Whisper White cardstock and punched it out with the Jumbo Snowflake punch (116628 - $15.95). The 1/2" polka dot grosgrain ribbon is also Rich Razzleberry (115613 - $9.95 - 15 yds). My *JOY* sentiment is from a retired set ~ Small Script.


The deadline for this challenge is today at 9:00 p.m. so I'm really sneaking in under the wire! Next time, I'll post and let you all know about it sooner, I promise! Dawn says she'll keep posting challenges and maybe eventually someone will want to play along! :)

Thank U Dawn for thinking of this fabulous color combo! You've *inspired me*!

Gosh, two posts in one day! It's been a GREAT weekend! I'll be back late tomorrow night with my creation for Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge. Hope to see you all then!

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!

~ Quote for Today ~

A snowflake is one of God's most fragile creations,

but look what they can do when they stick together!

~Unknown

{SSSC43} Sweet Sketch Sunday!

Gotta love Dasher and Sweet Sketch Sunday!

I didn't realize until I opened Blogger to post this, that the last card I posted was with DASHER too! Oh well! I've made a few other cards this week preparing for my Stampin' Up! Christmas Stamp-a-Stack next weekend, so I want you to know it isn't the *only* stamp I'm using these days! :) It is one of my favorites and there are *so* many ways you can use it! Again, it's DASHER (116816) by Stampin' Up! . . . a single stamp that sells for only just $8.95.

The specialty designer paper is another favorite of mine and you can find it in the HOliday Mini Catalog ~ Christmas Cocoa Specialty (116770) $11.95. I've used the Stampin' Up! Textured Impressions Folder Petals-A-Plenty (116824) $7.95 on the top half. Just an FYI...I don't have the Big Shot die cut machine, but have found the dies and folders work in my Cuttlebug.

My inspiration for this layout came from the SWEET SUNDAY Sketch Challenge layout below. And I got the idea to use the Top Note Bigz die cut from Vicki ~ one of the Sweet Sunday Stampers! These gals are all *so* creative and always inspire me! Stop on over to Karen Giron's blog "The Sweetest Thing" where you'll find all the details on how to participate in her FUN challenge!

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I haven't been posting as much lately and I appreciate you hanging in there with me while I figure out which direction I want to go with my stamping and my blog. As much as I *love* STAMPIN' UP! stamps and products, I'm feeling a bit limited in my creativity and really do miss using all the different designer papers and stamps of other companies. : /

Have a SUPER DUPER enjoyable Sunday, my friends! I'm off to wash the bedding and bake the apple pie I promised Mr. Wonderful! (He's buying groceries now... yes, I'm spoiled, but so is he! :)

Happy Stamping and Smiles 2 U!

~ Quote for Today ~

"Stressed" spelled backwards is desserts.

Coincidence? I think not!

Unknown

Holiday Gift Giving Guide!

Make Stampin' Up! your one-stop shop for all the special people in your life! Use our Holiday Extravaganza Gift-Giving Guide to find gifts for kids, teens, neighbors, card makers, scrapbookers, and more--or to find the supplies you need to create special handcrafted gifts!

Plus, from November 1 to December 31, receive a FREE Decor Elements piece (up to $16.95 value) when you spend $50 on products in this guide. Click on the image below and start your Christmas shopping today! :)

If you have any questions or need assistance in ordering, please don't hesitate to contact me! It would be my pleasure!

I'm working on projects for my upcoming "Christmas Stamp-a-Stack" and will be back later with a card to share with you!

Have a WONDERFUL weekend, my friends! Smiles 2 U!