{MTSC71} Birthday Wishes with Watercolor Trio

It's that terrific time again ~  Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge!

As far as Mercy's sketch, I've followed it almost precisely (how's that for an oxymoron?), except for the bow.  It would have hidden my flowers, so I opted for the ribbon tab on the side instead.   What do you think of the colors?  I love Certainly Celery and use it often, but Cameo Coral is a color that I've seriously neglected.  Since it will be retiring soon, I thought I would give it some love. ;)  

The floral stems and the sentiment on the front are both from the *New* Watercolor Trio set debuting in the Summer Mini Catalog and available to order on May Day!  That's this Saturday, May 1st!  Remember, you can order direct from my blog links or email me and I would be oh so happy to help you out!  :)

And here is that wonderful sketch of Mercy's

 with a challenge to join in the FUN! . . .

You are ALL encouraged to play along with our Sketch Challenge.  Simply create a card or scrapbook layout using the sketch above, and link your creation on Mercy's blog. Be sure to use the keyword MTSC71 when uploading to a public gallery, like Splitcoaststampers.

Now, for our blog viewing pleasure,

let's see what

Mercy's Muses have created this week!

Cindy Haffner ~ Cindy Haffner's Corner

Jackie Pedro ~ The Scalloped Edge

Pam Varnell ~ The Stamping Addict

Julie Lacey ~ Stamps and Taxes!

Crystal Birr ~ The Messy Stamper

Jessica Diedrich ~ The Whimsical Butterfly

Mercy Kerin ~ Lord Have Mercy {Queen Muse}

Debbie Olson~ Thinking Inking {April Guest Muse}

We all want to give the mega talented Debbie Olson a BIG applause and say THANK U so much for being our Guest Muse this month.  It has been a tremendous pleasure to have her join us!

Thank you, my friends, for dropping by today!   I hope you've enjoyed your visit!

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!



"A diplomat is a man who always remembers a woman's birthday but never remembers her age." ~Robert Frost

All Supplies are Stampin' Up! unless noted. Stamps: Watercolor Trio, Very Vintage jumbo wheel, It's Your Birthday, Linen background
Ink: sentiments and sponging with Versafine Vintage Sepia
Paper: Naturals White, Cameo Coral, Certainly Celery designer paper-polka dots
Other: Scallop Trim Border punch, Stampin' Write markers (cameo coral, certainly celery, old olive), certainly celery satin ribbon, button, linen thread, scalloped rectangle die (Spellbinders), stitching with Janome Sew Mini, tiny pearl stickers (M's)

{SSSC66} Very Vintage Vogue

It's Sweet Sketch Sunday!

I've got TWO (Count 'em ~ 2!) cards for you today!  My first one (above) is for the Sweet Sketch Sunday Challenge hosted by Karen Giron at The Sweetest Thing.  It's one of my favorite challenges . . . and I always look forward to stamping on Sunday!  :)

This is a 3-1/4" x 6-1/2" card.  The stamp set I've used is Vintage Vogue and the base cardstock is Blue Bayou.  I've stamped the flowers on Naturals Ivory, cut around them and distressed the edges. 

the inside . . .

 

 

If you haven't already done so, please blog on over to The Sweetest Thing and see what Karen's Sweet Sunday Stampers have to inspire you today~!  They always amaze me with their ingenuity!

 Now, on to my other card for today . . .

As you can see, it is quite similar to the first card.  Again, I started off with a 6-1/2" square of Blue Bayou folded in half.  On this one, I've used the Stampin' Up! Very Vintage jumbo wheel with Blue Bayou ink to roll across the polka dot background.  Both the floral vine on the side and below the sentiment are other stamps in the Vintage Vogue set. 

 inside . . .  finished to coordinate with the front.

 Have you enjoyed your weekend?   We certainly did!  The bridal shower and the 40th Anniversary party we attended were both loads of FUN!  This morning we were able to get furniture moved and two of the downstairs rooms back to normal since they laid the carpet in those rooms yesterday.   We'll be so glad to have the rest of the family room done next week.

Thanks so much for stopping by and do come back again soon, ok?  I simply *love* hearing from you and appreciate each and every comment!  :)  

{Note to Debbie & Gail ~ got your messages and wish you both the best with all the graduation plans and preparation!  I remember when our oldest, Katie, graduated and I stressed myself out preparing for the open house.  I wanted our home spotless and everything perfect for the occasion.  Well, let me tell you, from my live and learn experience ~ the little things don't matter!  They really don't. Just try to relax and ENJOY it all!    Please let me know when you're coming up to Norfolk and I'll have the craft room ready and the coffee on!! Can't wait to meet you both!} 

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U All!


 "Give your stress wings and let it fly away."  ~Terri Guillemets

 Supply List:  All products are Stampin' Up! unless noted.
Stamps:  Vintage Vogue, Very Vintage jumbo wheel, sentiment (Hero Arts)
Paper:  Blue Bayou, Naturals Ivory, designer paper - My Minds Eye, K & Company
Ink:  Blue Bayou, Versafine Vintage Sepia
Other:  antique brass anchor, brads, Blue Bayou corduroy brad, stitchine with Janome Sew Mini, Scallop Trim Border Punch

Life Happens. Love Helps.

Happy Weekend, my Friends!

Today, I've been playing around with two of my new Stampin' Up! sets ~ Vintage Vogue and Watercolor Trio.  This card is a combination of the floral stem from one and the sentiment from the other.

This is just a quick post this afternoon as I need to get ready for a couples bridal shower and after that we're going to a 40th anniversary party.  That's more "festivities" than we usually do in a month, let alone one evening!  Should be lots of FUN! 

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!

"Just living is not enough. One must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower." ~Hans Christian Anderson



Supply List: All products are STAMPIN' UP! unless noted.

Stamps: Watercolor Trio (flower stem), Vintage Vogue (sentiment)
Ink: Bermuda Bay, Versafine Vintage Sepia
Paper: Natural White, designer paper (Basic Grey- Lemonade)
Other: antique brass brads, ribbon, stitching with Janome Sew Mini, Spellbinder die

{TGIF} Happy FRIDAY!

My favorite day of the week

after Saturday & Sunday is FRIDAY!!!

TGIF!!! 

Even better yet, today I was able to take off work early so I've had a few hours to stamp it up and get a head start on the weekend chores.   It's a rainy drizzly day here in Nebraska.  What's it like in your world today?  :)

If you follow my blog regularly, this card may look quite familiar.  I posted one very similar to it last week that used the same wonderful layout by Mercy.  I also made another card last week with these designer papers and flipped the sketch horizontally.  The photo below shows the inside of the card, left blank for a handwritten note or personal greeting.

 Not much else to say about this card, but I do want to give a shout out to all my new "Followers"!  I'm thrilled to have you visiting my blog and hope you like what you see.  If you ever have any questions or need any Stampin' Up! products, I would be so HAPPY to help you! 

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U! 



"There is little chance that meteorologists can solve the mysteries of weather until they gain an understanding of the mutual attraction of rain and weekends." ~Arnot Sheppard
  
Supply List: All Supplies are Stampin' Up! unless noted.
Stamps: Close as a Memory
Ink: sponging with Versafine Vintage Sepia, flowers were colored with Stampin' Write markers direct to rubber.
Paper: Mauve Mist (retired SU color), designer paper (K & Company)
Other: oval dies (Spellbinders), white linen thread, stitching with Janome Sew Mini, baja breeze corduroy button, scalloped edge punch, corner punch, pearl stickers (M's)

{MTSC70} Another Glimpse of Watercolor Trio!

Happy Tuesday!  

Today I have another card for you

using the new *Watercolor Trio* stamp set

from the Summer Mini Catalog.

(Available May 1st!)

And the layout is from Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge!

Now, hop on over and see what

Mercy's Muses have created this week.

You'll be so glad you did!

Cindy Haffner ~ Cindy Haffner's Corner

Jackie Pedro ~ The Scalloped Edge

Pam Varnell ~ The Stamping Addict

Julie Lacey ~ Stamps and Taxes!

Crystal Birr ~ The Messy Stamper

Jessica Diedrich ~ The Whimsical Butterfly

Mercy Kerin ~ Lord Have Mercy {Queen Muse}

Debbie Olson~ Thinking Inking {April Guest Muse}

You are ALL invited to play along with Mercy's Challenge.  Simply create a card or scrapbook layout using the sketch above, and link your creation on Mercy's blog. Be sure to use the keyword MTSC70 when uploading to a public gallery.

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U All! 



"You can bury a lot of troubles digging in the dirt." ~Author Unknown


All Supplies are Stampin' Up! unless noted.
Stamps: Watercolor Trio, Linen background
Ink:  Always Artichoke, sponging with Versafine Vintage Sepia
Paper:  Naturals Ivory, River Rock, Always Artichoke, designer paper (K & Company)
Other:  Scallop Trim Border punch, Stampin' Write markers (ruby red, summer sun, always artichoke, old olive), polka dot ribbon (M's), copper swirl clip (Target), stitching with Janome Sew Mini.

I {Heart} SFYTT!

The quote on today's card reads:

Every day

brings a chance for you

to draw in a breath,
kick off your shoes,

and dance.

                             ~ Oprah Winfrey

 

Speaking of kicking off your shoes to DANCE, how appropriate is it that I used Tangerine TANGO cardstock for this card? : )  You all know I have a thing for designer paper and can't seem to get enough of it.  Well, my sweet DIL gave me several sheets for my birthday and these were included.   I'm not normally a big fan of orange, but I do like Tangerine Tango and was happy to see it will be one of the new Stampin' Up! core colors in the Brights Collection.

This unique layout is from Jen del Muro's Sketch for You to Try.   I tucked the cardstock with the sentiment under the scalloped border and zig zag stitched the edge.  The felt flowers are from Stampin' Up! and I was lucky enough to find a turquoise button in my button jar.   I've had this spool of ribbon for ages and never found a use for it . . . until today!  :)   Love it when that happens!   

Just in case you want a glimpse of the inside . . .

I've left the inside blank for now.  The flower on the bottom is punched out so the tangerine tango shows through and then I used a smaller felt flower and orange brad for the center. 

What do you think of the colors?  If this was a color challenge, I probably would have run away!  :)

I'm glad you dropped in and I hope you have a WONDERFUL week!  I'll be back tomorrow with Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge.    And I hope to have some quilt photos to share with you too!  I'm going to attend the local Quilt Guild's annual quilt auction/fundraiser and that should be fun!  

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!

"Dancing with the feet is one thing, but dancing with the heart is another." ~Author Unknown

Supply List ~ All supplies are Stampin' Up! unless noted.

Stamps:  quote (Verve - Beautiful You)

Ink:  Tangerine Tango

Paper:  Tangerine Tango, Naturals White, designer paper (My Mind's Eye-Bloom & Grow)

Other:  Felt Fusion Flowers, Scallop Trim Border Punch, embroidery thread, ribbon (M's), stitching with Janome Sew Mini

{SSSC65} From the Heart

Happy Sunday, my Friends!
I hope you're all enjoying the weekend!   I sure am!  We got some yardwork done, got the downstairs ready for new carpet, last load of laundry in the dryer and now I have a few hours to stamp it UP!  :)  Sundays are such a blessing!

This card was created using one of of the NEW Stampin' Up! sets ~ Watercolor Trio.  It makes it's debut in the Summer Mini Catalog on May 1st.  I was able to preorder and give it a try and now I think I've found my favorite new floral set!  You'll be seeing more of this one, for sure!   

Today's layout is from Karen Giron at The Sweetest Thing and it's #65 in her Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge!   This will be another terrific "go-to" sketch for future cardmaking!  Love it~! 

Be sure to hop on over to Karen's blog and see what her Sweet Sunday Stampers have created this week!  They will surely inspire U, as they do me each and every Sunday! 

For those of you that are bloggers yourselves, have you noticed how sometimes you see your cards differently after you post them?   Such is the case with this one today.  I really liked it, but now I'm thinking the background paper is too much and distracts from the floral image?!   Oh well, here it is anyway! 

Thanks soooo much for blogging by today and for all your sweet comments lately!   I wish I could reply to each and every one of you and let you know how you make my day!  

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!

"It is only when we silent the blaring sounds of our daily existence that we can finally hear the whispers of truth that life reveals to us, as it stands knocking on the doorsteps of our hearts." ~K.T. Jong


Supply List ~ All products are Stampin' Up! unless noted.
Stamps:  Watercolor Trio (new Summer Mini Catalog coming May 1st!)
Ink:  Rose Red,  Versafine Vintage Sepia (sponging)
Paper:  Very Vanilla, Rose Red,  designer paper (Basic Grey Lemonade)
Other:  Linen Thread, Stitching (Janome Sew Mini), Scalloped Rectangle die (Spellbinders), Pretty in Pink button - Sherbet, Stampin' Write markers - rose red, pretty in pink, old olive, certainly celery.

With Heartfelt Sympathy

Sadly, there are often times we need a special sympathy card and it's good to be prepared with a supply on hand.  It seems that I'm usually creating them as I need them, and such is the case this evening.   This is for a dear friend who lost her sister to cancer. 

Do you recognize the layout?  It is Mercy's Tuesday Sketch that I used yesterday, but I've flipped it to put the sentiment in the oval.   I love this layout and you'll probably be seeing more of it! 

Not much to chat about tonight and I've got some things to accomplish so I'm making this brief.  Thanks soooo much for stopping by!   

Have a blessed day!


"For some moments in life there are no words." ~David Seltzer

Supply List:  All Supplies are Stampin' Up! unless noted.
Stamps:  Close as a Memory
Ink: Baja Breeze, Versafine Vintage Sepia, flowers were colored with Stampin' Write markers direct to rubber.
Paper:  Mauve Mist (retired SU color), designer paper (K & Company)
Other:  oval dies (Spellbinders), white linen thread, stitching with Janome Sew Mini, buttons

{MTSC69} The Road Less Traveled

Today's card was created especially for

Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge!

With the help of Mercy's super sketch,

 my card came together in minutes!

First, I selected this designer paper by Basic Grey.  It's appropriately named Sun Dress from the Lemonade series.  The base cardstock and the oval are barely banana cardstock by Stampin' Up! 

The stamped quote by Robert Frost is from a Verve set that I won last year. I've stamped it with Bermuda Bay on naturals ivory and sponged the edges with Versafine vintage sepia.

If you have the time, please hop on over and see what

Mercy's Muses have created this week.

You'll be so glad you did!

Cindy Haffner ~ Cindy Haffner's Corner

Jackie Pedro ~ The Scalloped Edge

Pam Varnell ~ The Stamping Addict

Julie Lacey ~ Stamps and Taxes!

Crystal Birr ~ The Messy Stamper

Jessica Diedrich ~ The Whimsical Butterfly

Mercy Kerin ~ Lord Have Mercy {our Queen Muse}

and last, but certainly not least,
our oh SO talented Guest Muse
Debbie Olson
~ Thinking Inking!

You are ALL invited to play along with Mercy's Challenge!  Simply create a card or scrapbook layout using the sketch above, and link your creation with Mister Linky on Mercy's blog. Be sure to use the keyword MTSC69 when uploading to a public gallery.

I'm glad you stopped by today and I hope you've enjoyed your visit! 

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!



"No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow." ~Lin Yutang


Supply List:  All products are STAMPIN' UP! unless noted.
Stamps: quote (Verve)
Ink:  Bermuda Bay, Versafine Vintage Sepia
Paper:  Barely Banana, Natural Ivory, designer paper (Basic Grey- Lemonade)
Other:  linen thread, button, stitching with Janome Sew Mini, Spellbinder oval dies

{SSS64} A Bit Too Much!

It's Sunday and time for another Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge hosted by Karen Giron at The Sweetest Thing!   I almost didn't post this card because it's just a bit too much! : )  Maybe it was MW's eye rolling that did it?? ; )  The leaf placement was bugging me, so I tried to take them off and that made a bigger mess of things!  It wasn't my best day of cardmaking, that's for sure! 

Although, I don't care for the finished card, there are a couple things I like about it, so I'm showing it to you anyway.   How about the cute scalloped border on the bottom?   I got this idea from a video tutorial on Stampin' Connection using the Stampin' Up! scalloped edge punch.   

As for the scrunchy flowers, there are many different ways to create them, but one of my local stamping buddies {Hi Sara!} shared this particular technique with me.   Using the scalloped circle punch, select your cardstock and punch 5 circles.  Stack them up and poke a small hole in the center of all of them.  (I use the piercing tool from my SU tool kit)  Then, get them WET!  Seriously!  I took them to the bathroom sink and dipped them in for a few seconds.  After the bath, towel them off slightly and take a large brad and put it through all 5 of the scalloped circles.  Taking the top one first, scrunch it all up around the brad.  Then do this same thing to the remaining 4 "petals".   It really doesn't take that long for them to dry and they are ready to use!   Obviously, this would not be a card that I could mail as the flowers are simply too poofy.  But, don't you think they would be perfect on a gift box or basket?  Maybe I can salvage them by doing that instead!  :)

Below is the super Sweet Sunday Sketch!  Be sure to blog on over to Karen's blog and check out all the incredible creations by her Sweet Sunday Stampers!  Oh my, they are awesome this week, as always!

It's a lovely day here and I really should get outside and enjoy it!  

Later Peeps!  :)

"Never say, "oops." Always say, "Ah, interesting." ~Author Unknown

Supply List:  All products are Stampin' Up! unless noted.
Stamps:  sentiment (Hero Arts)
Ink:  Melon Mambo
Paper:  Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, So Saffron, Certainly Celery, designer paper (Basic Grey - Lemonade)
Other:  Scalloped Edge Border Punch, Scalloped Circle Punch, Swiss dots embossing folder (Cuttlebug), leaf from the Two-Step Bird Punch, large brads, Janome Sew Mini.