Sharing Quilt Show Photos Today...

Last Sunday, my sister Susie and I took our mother to the Tilden Prairie Days "Pieces of the Good Life" Quilt Show at the beautiful Tilden Public Library.  Mom had two quilts of her own on display.

The one pictured above/below is titled "Circle of Life".  Isn't it incredible?  I love the bright colors and the design is amazing.  What is especially worth noting is that the quilt pattern was in metric and Mom had to convert it herself.   Not surprising, this quilt won the People's Choice Award for Favorite Wall Hanging Quilt.

Mom's other quilt on display was this FUN and "punny" purple cow quilt.  The title of this is "Escaping the Herd" and you have to see it to get the full effect of the humor stitched into each adorable block. 

 A few years ago, my sister found this quilt pattern book at a garage sale and gave it to Mom.  So it's not her original design, but she's certainly added her own flair to it!

I took a few photos of the individual blocks

so you could see and appreciate all the detail.

{You should be able to click on the photos for a larger view.}

This is my favorite block.

 It says:  "High heels make my calves look sexy". : )

"High on Grass"

I hope you've enjoying these!  I'll be back soon to share some stamped card creations with you! 

Have a smile-filled wonderful weekend, my friends!  ♥

Quote for Today ~
In the crazy quilt of life, I'm glad you're in my block of friends. ~Author Unknown

{MTSC84 & CTD102} Double Your Pleasure, Double Your FUN!

I'm a "day late and a dollar short", but I'm going for it because these are two of my FAV challenges!  The terrific sketch is from the one and only Mercy Kerin of Lord Have Mercy, and the beautiful color combination is from last week's Color Throwdown Challenge, hosted by my friend LeAnne Pugliese.

This is a standard 4-1/4 x 5-1/2" card with Not Quite Navy as the base.  I've layered on the beautiful blue Marina Mist and a piece of Basic Grey designer paper from my stash.  The second Marina Mist layer has been rolled with the Very Vintage jumbo wheel and the piece of Wild Wasabi was embossed with the NEW Stampin' Up! textured empressions embossing folder.

The stamp set is Watercolor Trio ~ one of the most versatile floral sets!  This set includes three sentiments and "From the Heart" is one of them.  There is also "Birthday Wishes" and "Thanks so Much".  If you don't have this lovely set, you really should!  ;)

I thought you might like to see

 how I've finished off the inside too...

How's your week going so far?   The days fly by for me, that's for darn sure!  I have an ongoing "Want To Do" list that never seems to end, but then that's what makes LIFE worth living, right?  : )   

In my next post, I'll share a few photos I took of my mother's quilts at the Tilden Prairie Days Quilt Show on Sunday.   Stay tuned!

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!

Quote for Today ~
It takes time to save time.  ~ Joe Taylor

{cQc #42} Grateful Monkeys!

Once again, I deserted you all week, but I haven't been totally slackin' off!  I've been working some longer hours and there's just been lots happening that keeps me out of my stampin' room!  Trust me, I would much rather be making cards and blog posting all day!  In my perfect world ...

Check out this bright color combination

for the ColourQ Challenge for this past week!

This fairly simple card took me *a l l * week to create!  Seriously!  The cool leopard print specialty paper was one of the items our daughter brought back from her recent trip to South Africa.  My intention was to create a thank you card for her, but it took me awhile to find the right stamp set and "work" with this color combination.  I colored three images before I was happy with the results!  Silly me!  

I showed it to my best critic, the hubster ~ aka MW (Mr Wonderful) ~ and he said: "it looks African to me"!  : ) 

The Changito monkey stamp set is from Stampendous

and the inside sentiment is an oldie from PSX.

Besides the unique South African safari style specialty papers, our daughter and her fiance brought us a few other souvenirs.  I want to share a photo of the beautiful scarf they gave me.  I *love* it and have worn it several times already!   Hey, I think I may even coordinate with today's color challenge!  hee hee  : )

  

Thanks soooo much for stopping by today! I love hearing from you and sincerely appreciate your comments!  It's great to know you're "out there". ; )   I've got a busy day planned...my sister and I are taking our mother to a quilt show this afternoon.  If I have time, I'll be back later with a card for the SWEET Sunday Sketch challenge! 

Have a GREAT day & be sure to SMILE!

Quote for Today ~
I would thank you from the bottom of my heart, but for you my heart has no bottom. ~Author Unknown

{MTSC83 & CC39} Enjoy the Journey!

One glance at Stacey Schafer's Curtain Call Color Challenge this week and I was IN!  After all, according to my dear Shackie friends, I am the "Queen of GREEN"!   I didn't realize how much green I used in my cardmaking until someone commented on it one day.  And then I looked at my ribbon stash and it was obvious that I had far more green than any other color.   Look at this delightful room that Stacey chose as the inspiration photo for this week's color challenge.   I could make myself right at home there! 

This is a 4-1/4" square card with kraft (crumb cake) cardstock as the base.  The fun layout is for Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge ~ the inspiration of Mercy Kerin of Lord Have Mercy.  Isn't it great?!  I love the unique open circle as the backdrop to the image.   I can't wait to see how everyone else interpreted this~! 

The cute little turtle image is from It's the Thought ~ a Hostess set in the Summer Mini Catalog. (see link on sidebar)  There are 7 stamps in this set ~ all just as sweet as this one! 

It looks like Mercy's Muses are all at it again!

Check them out by clicking here:

Cindy Haffner ~ Cindy Haffner's Corner
Crystal Birr ~ The Messy Stamper

Jackie Pedro ~ The Scalloped Edge

Pam Varnell ~ The Stamping Addict

Julie Lacey ~ Stamps and Taxes!

Jessica Diedrich ~ The Whimsical Butterfly

Mercy Kerin ~ Lord Have Mercy {Queen Muse}
and last, but not least,
our special July Guest Muse...
Peggy McCurry
from Artfull Journey

I hope you can find time this week to play along in either one or both of these challenges.  Just head on over to Stacey & Mercy's blogs for all the details and we'll see you there! 

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!

Quote for Today ~   (wouldn't this be a perfect sentiment for the inside of my card?)
A birthday is just the first day of another 365-day journey around the sun. Enjoy the trip!  ~Author Unknown

{SSSC78 & CTD101} The Bluebird of Happiness!

Once again, I'm combining two of my favorite challenges ~ Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge and the Color Throwdown Challenge.   When you have limited time for stamping, consider using the challenges to give you the inspiration you need to get started!

First of all, I pulled out a sheet of each of the Color Throwdown Challenge colors . . . oh yeah!  I *love* these colors together! 

Next, I printed off Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge layout and contemplated which stamp set to use for the main image.

The stamp I chose is from All Holidays by Stampin' Up!  It was stamped in black on whisper white cardstock and clear embossed.  The base is kraft cardstock or "crumb cake" is the yummy new name for it.  I used crumb cake ink to stamp it with the linen background stamp.   The baja breeze piece was stamped with the polka dot background stamp and the Kiwi Kiss piece was stamped with the Very Vintage Jumbo wheel using inks of the same color.

This color combination presented a challenge as to what to do for embellishments.  While blog surfing this morning, I saw some fabulous creations using the Two-Step Bird Punch and it reminded me that I haven't used this punch much at all since I purchased it.  So....a bluebird it is!  : )  You wouldn't believe how hard I tried to add ribbon, but it just didn't work for me.   I also thought it could use some brads or buttons, but for once I simply left well enough alone!

Below is how I finished off the interior using the same colors.   The sentiment is from a Whimsical Words, which was a Sale-A-Bration set.

This has been a busy day and I didn't get to spend as much time stamping as I would have liked, but it sure feels good to have the car washed, the lawn mowed and the laundry done!  Yes!  

I hope you've had a great weekend!  Thanks so  much for blogging by to see me and I do hope you'll stop back again soon!  

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!

Quote for Today ~

There is no effect more disproportionate to its cause than the happiness bestowed by a small compliment. ~Robert Brault

Happiness is... meeting Nancy Riley!

Today I had the great pleasure of meeting one of my stamping/cardmaking idols ~ Nancy Riley of iSTAMP.   Nancy lives in Phoenix, but she's in Iowa this week visiting family, so I drove over from Nebraska and met her for lunch.  Oh my goodness, what an awesome time with a special friend!  Nancy is just as sweet and fun and friendly as you would imagine.  Her teenage son, Drew, came with her and was unbelievably patient as we talked non-stop for 3 hours about stamping, blogging, family, etc, etc.  :)

What a blessed day!  I'm still smiling...  :)

Quote for Today ~
If you're alone, I'll be your shadow. If you want to cry, I'll be your shoulder. If you want a hug, I'll be your pillow. If you need to be happy, I'll be your smile. But anytime you need a friend, I'll just be me. ~Author Unknown

Announcing Winners in Color Throwdown #100!

Thank you SO much for making our Color Throwdown #100 Celebration such a smashing success!  There were 357 participants who created a card or papercraft project and posted the photo on the Color Throwdown blog.  In addition to that, there were thousands of comments left on all the prize-giving blogs!   Woo Hoo!  Here's to the next 100!

All the random numbers have been drawn for the Color Throwdown #100 prizes and a complete list of all the winners can be found on the Color Throwdown blog.

As for MY blog prizes, the winners are:

{ d r u m  r o l l  p l e a s e }

#1  Wilfreda
from Wennie in Wonderland
Below is the cute card Wilfreda created for the color challenge:

Wilfreda, you have won Birthday Bliss by Stampin' Up!

and

#2 Savitri
from Savitri Wilder: This is My Life
Below is the beautiful card Savitri entered in the challenge:

Savitri has won Picture This by Stampin' Up!

Congratulations to both of you

and to ALL the Color Throwdown prize winners!

Winners have until Monday, July 19th at 11:59 p.m. EST to respond and collect their prize. You should email colorthrowdown@yahoo.com. Please put YOUR name and the prize you are claiming in the subject line. (example: Wilfred/Birthday Bliss or Savitri/Picture This)  Also, it may be helpful to mention you are the winner at Stamping with Serendipity! 

Special thanks to ALL of U who left comments on my CTD #100 blog post.  I was amazed and sincerely appreciate all your kind and thoughtful comments.  You're the BEST!

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!  :)



Quote for Today ~
Don't aim for success if you want it; just do what you love and believe in, and it will come naturally. ~David Frost

{MTSC82 } Thank You for Your Friendship!

 Happy Tuesday, My Friends!

I'm back with yet another challenge card today and this one is for Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge!   Isn't this a terrific layout?   Do I say that every week?  ;)

Once I figured out the dimensions to cut the designer paper, this card was super quick and easy to create!  You'll notice there is very little stitching on this one.  I felt like the background paper was "busy" enough and stitching would only take away from it.   But then, when it came to attaching the tag sentiment, I couldn't resist a little zigzag stitching around it.  : )

This is a standard 5-1/2 x 4-1/4" card with Soft Suede cardstock as the base.  This sunny chic designer paper is by Basic Grey.  It has a naturally distressed look to it, but I've added a little extra distressing around the edges with Versafine Vintage Sepia.  The big yellow "Squash Blossom" is from Imaginisce and the coordinating decorative center brad is from Basic Grey.  The inside is finished with a strip of the same designer paper and natural ivory cardstock.

I'm not so sure that my photos do this card justice.  It really is a bright and sunny creation! 

Now, let's see what Mercy's Muses have to inspire us this week!

Cindy Haffner ~ Cindy Haffner's Corner
Crystal Birr ~ The Messy Stamper

Jackie Pedro ~ The Scalloped Edge

Pam Varnell ~ The Stamping Addict

Julie Lacey ~ Stamps and Taxes!

Jessica Diedrich ~ The Whimsical Butterfly

Mercy Kerin ~ Lord Have Mercy {Queen Muse}
and a warm-hearted WELCOME to
our special July Guest Muse . . .
Peggy McCurry
from Artfull Journey

 I want to encourage you to play along with the challenge this week!  For all the details, please hop on over to Mercy' blog!  

 Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U!   

Quote for Today ~

If you have an apple and I have an apple and we exchange these apples then you and I will still each have one apple. But if you have an idea and I have an idea and we exchange these ideas, then each of us will have two ideas. ~George Bernard Shaw

{SSSC77 & Curtain Call Act 38} Have a Blooming Good Day!

First of all, I want to say THANK YOU SO MUCH for all the sweet comments left on my last post!  Holy Moly!  I had no idea there would be this much excitement over our Color Throwdown Challenge #100!  But, we all love stamping and when you toss in the chance to WIN stamp sets for FREE, that's cause for jumping up and down and leaving a blog comment or two!  : )  

Please know how very much I've enjoyed reading each and everyone of the 271 comments and wish you all GOOD LUCK in the random drawing for the prizes!  If you haven't got in on the action yet, there is still time...until 11:59 pm tonight (EST).  Please visit the Color Throwdown blog for all the specifics!

Now, please allow me to TOOT my own horn a little.  The card I posted last week for the Curtain Call Color Challenge Act 37 was chosen as a Top 5 Show Stopper!  This is proof that "you just never know" and when you least expect it...Woo Hoo!  :)  

 

This is one of my favorite challenges and I play along as often as time permits. Soooo, today's card is for Curtain Call {Act 38} using the following colors:

 

You'll notice I've combined these flowery colors with the

Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge!

Check out this unique card design by Karen Giron!

 

My card is a 6-1/2" square, folded in half to make a rectangular card 3-1/4" wide. The base cardstock is Certainly Celery and I've layered on the other challenge colors and a snippet of Basic Grey designer paper.  The sweet Pure Innocence image is a digital stamp I bought on Etsy from the artist ~ Heather Ellis. 

I'm so glad you've stopped by today and I want to wish you all a wonderful HAPPY week!  : )

If I can ever be of assistance to you with any STAMPIN' UP! products, please don't hesitate to email me.  Remember, you can always order 24/7 via my blog!  Just click on the link in the upper right hand corner.

That's all for now, but I will be back again tomorrow with a card for Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge!

Stay Tuned!

Happy Stamping & Smiles 2 U, My Friends!

Quote for Today ~
Everybody needs a hug. It changes your metabolism. ~Leo Buscaglia