Make a Difference

I saw this layout when looking through Featured Stamper nitestamper’s gallery yesterday. I knew it would be perfect to showcase this awesome new set by Kim Hughes called ‘Sweet Thang’. It will be available next week at Cornish Heritage Farms! It’s just one of several that you will love!

 I have stamped all of my images on Curious Iridescent White Cardstock. The complimentary colors are Azalea and Flame from the Curious line and Taken with Teal from SU! I used a Sukura Quickie Glue Pen  to adhere the glitter. I love that I can get that fine, fine detail line with the glue pen. The scalloped circles behind the lollipops are cut with my Nestabilities. 

I’ve been busy, so I have some more ’sweet thangs’ to show you! I’ll try to get them up tonight…more in this same color scheme..yummy! And, jump back because ‘Copics came to the Craig house’ today!  Tonight is trick or treating on the ’square’ in our little ‘mayberry’. So, it will be a late night of stamping, coloring and chocolate galore for momma!

My girls are 5 & 7, and their fall parties at school are so fun. Especially the kindergarteners, it is their first official school celebration, and they are so excited. This is a game that I have used since my oldest was in kindergarten, so I am not sure where I go the idea. I just put the balls in a zip-lock and get it out from year to year.

 The relay is played with plastic spoons. The kids line up, and carry their ‘pumpkins’ down the lane on the plastic spoon and drop in the cauldron. The team with the most pumpkins in the cauldron at the end wins. If you are on a tile floor, you’ll have ping pong balls going every which way. So simple, so fun.

I’ve been home bound with sick or hive covered children for 2 full weeks, so I’m looking forward to my night out with Wes and some friends. Have a wonderful weekend!

While in Portland, LeAnn brought these beautiful Santa images from Rubber Stampede to share with the group.  Today is posting day, and I can’t wait to see what Jami, LeAnn and Sharon did with their Santa and Mars Metallic Cardstock. 

My Santa is stamped on watercolor paper with black StazOn and colored with Pomegranate and Soft Sky re-inkers and Antique Linen and Broken China Tim Holtz distressing inks. Jami had graciously sent me some extra images this week because I knew I would mess the first one I tried up. True to form, I colored Santa’s lips Pomegranate in the first one….not good. But, I had already shaded the skin so prettily. What to do? I took a second image and colored the beard, cut it out, distressed a bit with my Tim Holtz inks and then layered it on the Santa. It was perfect to give me clean distinction between the Santa suit and the beard.

It’s so hard to capture in the photo, but I used a Sukura Clear Glaze pen on the lens of his glasses. I love that effect! Of course, the glitter on the snowflakes and Santa’s trim was a given. Cardstocks are all from CutCardStock.com. The sentiment is from SU! Gorgeous background snowflakes are from Lizzie Anne! The Santa layer and the caramel layer are both cut with my Nestabilities. I love this tool!

Now, that I have posted….late, of course, I get to go check out the other girls cards! I do have another post that is on time cue for later today 5:00 CST. It’s a quick and fun idea for all you moms who are scrambling for a fun game to play in your elementary school parties this week. Have a wonderful Saturday!

This is for Beate’s weekend sketch challenge.  It was the perfect layout to show off Thomas Kinkade image, Silent Night. These stamps are so beautiful, and so easy to use. I know that upon first glance, you would want to watercolor, but really, with impressions this detailed, monochromatic is just fine.

I’ve used some of my new cardstocks that I have been collecting. The card base here is shimmery cappuccino…oh my!  Topped with a shimmery ivory, layered on shimmery chocolate. You can find all of these Curious Iridescent cardstocks at CutCardStock.com.

First I stamped the Silent Night image in Pomegranate onto the ivory cardstock and  sponged the edges with Tim Holtz distressing inks. Next, I masked off the house and snow in the front yard. Then I stamped over the whole image with my Silent Night background stamp using Palette Burnt Umber ink. Some glimmer and shimmer with the Sukura Clear Stardust pen and a quick Merry Christmas tag finishes it up.

I’m just waiting for the word to sneak you a peak of some new CHF rubbah. Maybe later today!  Until then, make sure you check out the other WSC25 samples, too! Stop by to see what Beate, Jenn, Sharon, Charmaine, Laurie and MaryJo have up their sleeves.

I love Fridays!

Just in time for many upcoming family and friendly get-togethers, the Splitcoast Tutorial this week is Bagalopes. Here’s the sample that I put together with those oh-so-Pretty Birds by Kim Hughes. You can check the tutorial out in this week’s Weekling Inkling. (I am pre-posting, so I’ll have to add a link later today.) They are so quick and easy! This one will end up holding a candle. Isn’t that the standard issue housewarming gift?

I’m off to do that job called, Domestic Engineer…you know the one where you shuffle children to the dentist, pick up a mountain of fundraiser stuff that no one really wanted to buy in the first place, deliver it all because you don’t have freezer space, take 8 loads of clean, wet laundry to the laundromat because your dryer is broken, pick up and deliver meat tray and rolls for the PTO Teacher Appreciation lunch, dinner at church and Girls in Action activities…oh yeah, DH is travelling..forgot about trash day and taking care of his dog…let’s see if I can squeeze a Route 44 Diet Vanilla Coke ~ easy ice in there somewhere. WHew…it’s too early in the day to be this tired.

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My friend, Sharon is the guest hostess for the Splitcoast Color Challenge today! Good times! You can see the challenge directions (including substitute colors if you lack any of these) by clicking this link. The challenges are a wonderful way to stretch your brain and do something out of the ordinary! You can see Sharon and Jessica’s samples by clicking their names.

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Until 2004, I was blessed to have a relationship with and love all 4 of my natural grandparents. That February, I lost my grandpa…. Baling and hauling hay are part of  my earliest memories of my grandpa’s life. His hay hook now hangs on a shelf in my ’studio’ (term used loosely). It reminds me of hard work and love.

When I saw this Anna Wight Whipper Snapper stamp, I knew it would be mine. Though my grandpa produced square bales, the image takes me back to young summers at the farm. I would stand on a chair at the kitchen window to catch a glimpse of the tractor & hay wagon on the hill, the smell of alfalfa in the air… I miss my grandpa.

This came to me when I was thinking about the Queen’s Fan Club challenges this month. The theme is Autumn Harvest. If the link doesn’t work for you, you need to sign up for the Fan Club by clicking here first! So timely, since corn was harvested about a month ago, and now our fields in Central Missouri are littered with large round bales. It’s so pretty to see the changing seasons from a field’s perspective. Back to the card….the sentiment is hand written.

• Stamps: Hay Bale by Anna Wight for Whipper Snapper Designs
• CS: Daisy D, watercolor paper, Creamy Caramel, Chocolate Chip & Ruby Red
• Ink: Palette Burnt Umber - various dye inks for watercolor
• Accs: linen thread, aged copper brads, Prima flowers, sponge daubers, aqua painters (various sizes)

I think I’ve lived a year in the last month…It’s cards like this one that keep you going! Sharon is one of those rare breed stampers…she actually sends the cards she creates. LOL! She’s used the emboss resist technique and several layers of ‘color’ to give this depth and dimension. It’s just gorgeous! As if the card wasn’t enough….it came with this inside:

Samples of all the shimmery cardstock from CutCardStock.com! OH my gorgeous! Now, you can see a SU! color comparison and recommendations over on Trudee’s blog. There is no need for me to re-invent that wheel. What I can tell you is CutCardStock is AWESOME! I ordered from them again on Wednesday this week, my order arrived on Friday. Cindy and the staff there are so nice, shipping is fast, prices can’t be beat and service is king.

Have a wonderful weekend!

That’s right, Thanksgiving will be here before you know it! When I took a look at Beate’s sketch for the week, I knew I wanted to get inky with another brand new set from Cornish Heritage Farms ~ Kim Hughes has been so busy, and it has paid off in a big, big way. These images are from Let’s Get Stuffed. CHF gives you incredible value with 15 adorable, deeply etched images for $14.99. You will love them!

Make sure you check out the other WSC24 samples, too! I have already sneaked a peek, and these girls will NOT disappoint you! Stop by to see Beate, Jenn, Sharon, Charmaine, Laurie and MaryJo. Lots of pretties to look at for inspiration, today! Have a wonderful weekend!

Another  Asela image from the recent Cornish Heritage Farms release! I just love him and his sparkly lightbulb. This is one of my all-time favorite card layouts. The rikrak is adhered with Tombo Multi-glue. It’s awesome! Holds well, dries clear, easy to dispense…great stuff! And just an FYI ~ the background is stamped with an adorable backgrounder I found while poking around CHF one day…Paisley Bandana, must see - must have!

Tomorrow is Beate’s sketch challenge. You won’t be disappointed! Samples go live at 8:30 a.m. Central! You won’t want to miss that! Have a wonderful day!

• Stamps: Penguin Lightbulb & Paisley Bandana (Cornish Heritage Farms)

• CS: Green Galore, Shimmery White, Black and Turquoise

• Ink: Turquoise and Basic Black

• Accs: White Mini Brads, White RikRak and Nestabilities