Taylored Expressions Cupcake Challenge #44

Good morning everyone! It's time for another one of Taylor's Cupcake Sketch Challenges! I made this card while visiting my mom this week since I didn't have a chance before I left! :) Mom and I had a good time! She gives great ideas! Hehe! Anyway, I stretched this sketch out a little since I don't have square envelopes and am trying to get my Christmas cards made! The picture is a little weird because I struggled to find a good place to set it up in my parents' house! I am going to keep this post short because my mom, hubby, and I want to do some shopping! Woohoo! I love being home with my family! It's so fantastic! Anyway, before I close I want to make sure you stop by Taylor's blog along with the rest of the cupcake crew! You also won't want to miss this week's featured sampler! This week Taylor has picked Karen Giron! Take care!

Jami Sibley: More is More
Monika Davis: M.A.D. Stamper
Jackie Pedro: The Scalloped Edge
Donna Baker: Serenity in Stamping
Sherrie Siemens: Card Creme
Ana Wohlfahrt: Ink A Stamp
Vicki Chrisman: This Art that makes me Happy

Just Another Thanksgiving Card

I made another gorgeous Thanksgiving card using my new Verve stamps! Can you tell that I am in love with them??? :) Anyway, I used Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge for this card! I pulled out my nesties for this card as well! I can't get enough of them! They are just fabulous! Well, I don't have much to say about this card. It's all pretty self-explanatory. I am finishing up my conferences today and then we are headed to Iowa! We are going to drive straight through the night so it could be another LONG day! If I don't have a chance to post again, have a wonderful Thanksgiving (those of you in the U.S.)! I am hoping to stamp with my mom so we will see what happens!

Recipe:
Stamps: Verve Stamps (Tall Oaks)
Paper: More Mustard, Really Rust, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Autumn Vine dsp
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Brown StazOn
Accessories: Crayola Pencils, Ribbon, Nesties, Dimensionals

Paper Pretties Monday!

Good evening! Today has been one long day for me. We had conferences after school and I didn't get home until 7:30. I have also had a migraine all day long so that didn't help things much. Anyway, I still wanted to share this card with you tonight. I used my Cuddle Me Sophia set from the Paper Pretties store to make this card! I just love how cute she looks! The paper is another sample from The Paper Studio set that I got over the weekend. I used Jen del Muro's Sketch for You to Try as well! Well, that's all I will write tonight. Hopefully I feel better tomorrow. I have conferences from 8-3 and once I am done, we are headed for Iowa. I am really looking forward to seeing my family! Take care!

One other side note:

Cutie Pie Contest!!

How would you like to be Paper Pretties Cutie Pie? I thought you would!! All you have to do is make a card using your Paper Pretties stamps and upload it to the Cutie Pie Contest gallery on the Paper Pretties forum, and Christie will chose a winner from the entries. Besides being able to call yourself a Cutie Pie, you will also win the entire release!! You have until November 30th at 8pmCDT to get your entries in!! Good luck!!

Also, on Monday December 1st, Paper Pretties will be having their monthly Stampin In Your Jammies party!! The party starts at 6pm CDT and will last until 9pm. We will be issuing a challenge every hour so be sure to come and play along!! Besides the challenges, chatter, and all around fun, we will also be releasing Trim the Tree to the public as well as re-releasing Snowflake Kisses in RUBBAH. Hope to see you there!!

Recipe:
Stamps: Paper Pretties (Cuddle Me)
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze, So Saffron, Certainly Celery, Whisper White, The Paper Studio dsp
Ink: Black StazOn, Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Crayola Pencils, Ribbon, Felt Fusion Too, Dimensionals, Brads

I'm Here For You

I just have to say that I am tired of battling with my camera and my computer just so I can get a decent picture! I am definitely requesting a photo tent for Christmas! I absolutely LOVE this card and hate how it looks in the picture! Grrr! Ok...I'm done whining! Thanks for letting me vent! I feel better now! Haha!

This card uses two of the There She Goes sets. The image is from the set Branching Out and the sentiment is from the set Here For You. Both of these sets are absolutely fabulous! I can't explain to you enough how talented Jessica (the designer) is! She has designed such gorgeous sets! :) Anyway, make sure you stop by her store to see what I am talking about!

The sketch I used is a remix of Julee's Mojo Monday Sketch. I loved the original sketch but forgot to make the image panel big enough for the three brads to be at the top of it. Instead of redoing it, I just decided to add them to the top of the card! I still like the look of it so I am not disappointed. The image panel was actually cut with my new Nestabilities! Can you tell that I am in love with them??? :) The designer paper on this card is by The Paper Studio! The collection is called Serendipity and it is absolutely beautiful! I love every single piece in it! I was shocked at how close the blue matched Stampin' Up!'s Baja Breeze! Woohoo!

Well, I guess that's all I've got for you today! I will be sure to post another creation tomorrow! Enjoy the rest of your evening!

Recipe:
Stamps: There She Goes
Paper: Very Vanilla, Close to Cocoa, Baja Breeze, The Paper Studio dsp
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa, Baja Breeze
Accessories: Nestabilities, Scallop Edge Punch, Blender Pen, Brads, Ribbon, Dimensionals

Taylored Expressions Cupcake Challenge #43

Good morning everyone! Sorry this post is a little late today. I have been unusually exhausted and took advantage of the day off by sleeping in! I haven't slept that hard, for that long, in a really long time! It felt wonderful! I think it must be my body's way of telling me that if I don't take it easy, I am going to get sick!

Anyway, today is Friday which means it is time for another Taylored Expressions Cupcake Challenge! Woohoo! I have to tell you that today's sketch stumped me at first but once I had it figured out, I fell in love with my card! :) I have decided that since Thanksgiving is next week and I only have 2 cards made, I need to get crack-a-lackin' on them! What set do I have for the perfect Thanksgiving cards??? My new Tall Oaks set from Verve Stamps! It's perfect! :D I pulled one of the pumpkins from the set, stamped it a few times, colored it with my Crayola pencils and OMS, popped it up on some circles I cut with my Nestabillities, and attatched it! Perfect! The big center panel was the reason for my confusion with this sketch. I finally decided that the best thing for it was designer paper! I added some pearl brads to it and glued my card together for the finishing look! I really like how it turned out, I just don't like the picture. I am going to try to get a better one when the lighting is better.

Now that you have seen my card, head over to Taylor's blog (if you haven't already been there) to check out her card as well as this week's featured sampler! This week Taylor choose the fabulously talented Laura Fredrickson! I have been a long admirer of her work so I admit that I was quite giddy when I found out she had been picked! :)

Also, don't miss the other cupcake challenge girls' cards! They will amaze and dazzle you! :)
Jami Sibley: More is More
Monika Davis: M.A.D. Stamper
Jackie Pedro: The Scalloped Edge
Donna Baker: Serenity in Stamping
Sherrie Siemens: Card Creme
Ana Wohlfahrt: Ink A Stamp
Vicki Chrisman: This Art that makes me Happy

Well, I hope you all enjoy the rest of your Friday! Nick went snowboarding with a couple of guys today so I guess I will be home alone for most of the day/evening. I actually plan on getting a lot done though so I am sure I won't be bored! :) I may even start decorating for Christmas since we will be gone most of next week!

Recipe:
Stamps: Verve Stamps (Tall Oaks)
Paper: Very Vanilla, More Mustard, Really Rust, SU! dsp
Ink: Brown StazOn, Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Crayola Pencils, OMS, Blending Stump, Nestabillities, Pretties Kit, Dimensionals

Matthew 11:28

So I am completely in love with Verve Stamps! :) I showed them to my husband and he agreed that they were stamps I should have! Hehe! The Plain Jane stamps each have a Bible verse on them and I have found each and every one of them to hold some form of meaning in my life! I also fell in love with the Tall Oaks set (along with MANY others) that was just released and purchased it as well! This card features both a Plain Jane stamp and the Tall Oaks set. I used Jen del Muro's Sketch For You to Try as well! On top of using my new stamps, I also was able to use my new Nestabillities (which is actually supposed to be a Christmas gift)! I never could have began to imagine just how wonderful they really are! The acorns were again colored with my Crayola colored pencils and odorless mineral spirits (I still can't get over this cheap technique). Anyway, if you are looking for some fantastic Bible verse stamps, check out Verve! They are amazing and super cheap! :D Thanks Julee! You rock girl!

An Older Card

I made this card a while ago and wasn't happy with it but have finally decided to just share it with you! I used one of Julee's old Mojo Monday sketch challenges for it and was not able to find an image that would fit that big back panel so I used a piece of S.E.I dp for it. It looks ok, but it definitely is not my best work! I guess I don't have a lot to say about this card except that I used the fabulous Martha Stewart butterfly punch to accent the dp and the "Life" sentiment.

I hope you all had a fantastic day! It has been so incredibly warm here in Colorado. It's hard to believe that we are almost through the month of November! I keep forgetting that Thanksgiving is next week! I wonder if winter will ever arrive here! :) Well, stop back tomorrow for a card that I made with some of my new goodies! I am pretty excited about it! Until then, take care!

Paper Pretties Monday...err...Tuesday!

So I may just be a tad late for my usual Paper Pretties Monday post! Hehe! I promised to be back last night and then completely forgot! I am such a ditz some days! Anyway, I had the card finished but had failed to take a picture so my wonderful husband offered to (while I worked on a project for school) and he did a fabulous job! I think it turned out better than mine usually do and he only took ONE! He even edited the picture and it looks really good (in my opinion)! Anyway, when I asked him what he thought of this card he said "I like the coloring but the background paper looks like something my grandma would wear!" I was appalled because I happen to think that this Bella Rose paper is gorgeous! Now it actually does surprise me that I like it because I would normally agree with him! Haha! This paper is just different I guess! Anyway, he said that I should send it to his grandma so I probably will! Hehe! She could probably use a pretty card! :)

For those of you who are wondering, this amazing image is from the Paper Pretties set "Simply Special". I couldn't find a place to squeeze on a sentiment without it looking too cluttered so I stamped it on the inside. The layout I used is Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge from Friday! I absolutely love this layout and wish I had some bigger brown brads to use on the side but have to make due with what I have!

Well, that's all I have to share with you tonight! Stop back tomorrow for another hand made creation from me! :) Until then, enjoy!

Recipe:
Stamps: Paper Pretties (Simply Special)
Paper: Whisper White, Kiwi Kiss, Riding Hood Red, Bella Rose dsp
Ink: Black StazOn
Accessories: Crayola Pencils, OMS, Blending Stump, Ribbon, Brads, Dimensionals

A Fall Flowers Thank You

Good morning! How was your weekend? We spent the weekend at a Dare 2 Share conference in Denver with our group of 100. It was a great weekend but I am exhausted! Anyway, this is a card that I made for the Verve Stamps Holiday sketch challenge. I can't seem to get a decent picture of this card and finally just decided to stop trying! Haha! Anyway, I will be back later with another card but until then, have a great day!

Taylored Expressions Cupcake Challenge #42

Good morning! Today is Friday and I have to work! Boo! We have a teacher in-service today because it is the end of the trimester. Anyway, that means I am typing this post early so that it can go live while I am at school. After I get done with my meetings we are then headed up to Denver for a youth conference called Dare2Share. There are 100 of us going and only 20 of us are adults! It should be a very active weekend!

Well, when Taylor sent us this sketch last week I was really excited to play with it because I LOVED the squares on the side. Well weren't we shocked when we saw this week's SCS sketch challenge too! They are almost identical! The only difference is that Taylor's sketch is vertical and the SCS sketch is horizontal! Haha!

I knew that I wanted to incorporate this adorable image from the Season's Sweetings set since it is a perfect fit for that center rectangle. I stamped it with StazOn ink and then used my newly discovered coloring technique: colored pencils with odorless mineral spirits and a blending stump. I am in love! :) I originally wanted to buy all the Primsacolor pencils but decided I wanted to just test them before spending all that money. I bought a few from Hobby Lobby (at $1.50 each) and was then curious to see how they compared to a regular box of Crayola colored pencils. Well, to be honest, I don't see that much of a difference so I am going to be using the Crayolas for a while! :D I colored the same image using both the Primas and the Crayolas and then tested my husband and my friends. Most of them actually thought that the image I colored with my Crayolas had been colored with the Prismas! Now that spoke loud and clear! Now I am not putting Primacolor Pencils down because I will admit that it was much easier to slide the color around, but for the price and for the time being, the Crayolas are going to do just fine! After I colored my image, I then added some crystal effects for a little shine. To finish up this card I punched out a snowflake and stuck him on the corner of my image!

Now before you close this page, make sure you head over to Taylor's blog to see the sketch and her card. You are also going to want to check out this week's Featured Cupcake Sampler, Stephanie Kraft. She has been creating some adorable cards using Taylor's newly released SASI stamps so I am sure her card is going to be fantastic! :D

Also, don't miss the other challenge girls' cards! I am sure you will agree that they are absolutely fantastic!

Monika Davis: M.A.D. Stamper
Jackie Pedro: The Scalloped Edge
Donna Baker: Serenity in Stamping
Ana Wohlfahrt: Ink A Stamp
Vicki Chrisman: This Art that makes me Happy

Recipe:
Stamps: SASI Season's Sweetings
Paper: Tangerine Tango, Close to Cocoa, Whisper White, Frosty dsp
Ink: Black StazOn, Close to Cocoa
Accessories: MS Punch, Brads, Dimensionals, Crayola Colored Pencils, Blending Stump, OMS, Crystal Effects

Just Another Card...

That I don't have time to write about! Sorry! I'll be back later with details!

ETA:
Sorry again for not giving you the details on this card sooner! If you haven't noticed, life has been insanely busy here in the Hargis household! I am so ready for a day off! I am not sure I will be able to relax until our Thanksgiving break though!

Anyway, this card is one I made using another one of the Verve sketch challenges! I just can't get enough of this Scandinavian Season stamp set! It is a must have set, that's for sure! I really love how clean this card looks though. It's a look that I have been trying to achieve on most of my cards lately. Whether I have or not, that's another question! Hehe! I hope that you all enjoyed your Thursday! I have to work tomorrow and am not looking forward to that but I will have a card to show you for Taylor's Cupcake Sketch Challenge! Woohoo! Oh...I will also have a project posted on Jessica Knutsen's blog "There She Goes". Make sure you check it out!

Recipe:
Stamps: Scandinavian Season
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze, Whisper White, Kiwi Kiss, Ski Slope dsp
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Real Red
Accessories: Brads, Ribbon, Dimensionals

Birthday Hats!

Good morning everyone! The card I am sharing with you today is one that I made for the Verve Stamps Holiday Stamp Release Sketch Challenge #2! I really love the bold, bright colors of this card! I am sure you have it figured out by now but I can't get enough of these new In Colors! They are so vibrant and they look great with Chocolate Chip which is why I love this Hawaii Papaya dsp! :) Anyway, I decided to use this birthday hat stamp from the Party Heart set and the circle sentiment from the Wow Flowers stamp set! I cut out each little hat and popped it up on dimensionals so that the card would have a more 3D look. I then did the same with the flower in the sentiment. I hate flat cards and this is not one of them! :) Well, I think that about sums it up for my card! If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask! Enjoy your Wednesday!

Recipe:
Stamps: Party Hearty, Wow Flowers
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Tangerine Tango, Whisper White, Kiwi Kiss, Hawaii Papay dsp
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Tangerine Tango, Kiwi Kiss
Accessories: Punches, Ribbon, Brads, Dimensionals

SASI Blog Post!

It was my turn to post on the Stamp a Sweet Impression blog today and I am pretty proud of my project! :) Make sure you stop by there to see what I came up with!

Strawberry Thanks!

Good morning everyone! It's another chilly day here! Did I tell you that it snowed most of yesterday? Yeah! I actually really enjoyed it because I was inside teaching the entire time. I had hoped it would snow more! I am sure it is coming and I will regret that comment at a later time but for now I would like to enjoy it! :) For some reason it helps to put me in the Christmas spirit! Anyway, this card has nothing to do with snow or Christmas but I wanted to share it with you anyway! I made it for one of the Verve Stamps Holiday Release Sketch challenges last week! I just love the clean and simple feel that this card has. It was really easy to make too! I just don't feel like I use the fabulous Tart & Tangy set enough! It's such a great set! I also pulled a sentiment from the Upsy Daisy set because I needed one that fit the overall look of the card. So...that's my card! I hope you enjoyed! Have a fabulous Tuesday everyone!

Recipe:
Stamps: Tart & Tangy, Upsy Daisy
Paper: Whisper White, Old Olive, Summer Picnic dsp
Ink: Old Olive, SU! Markers
Accessories: Ribbon, Punches, Dimensionals

Paper Pretties Monday!

Today's card is one that I made for the Paper Pretties Stampin' in Your Jammie's party (which I was actually unable to attend). This image is the newest Stamp of the Month! Isn't Sophia just adorable? She reminds me so much of some of my 2nd grade girls! Anyway, the challenge was to make a gate fold card so that's what I did! :)

Don't forget that Paper Pretties is having a HUGE sale right now! Make sure you stop by the store so that you can check it out!

Also, Paper Pretties has also just started a new blog called "The Paper Clip". There you can get all the latest news and updates! How exciting huh???

Rub-Ons Are Now 20% Off!

Good morning everyone! I have some fantastic news for you!

Stampin' Up! has another fabulous promotion that you are not going to want to miss out on. From now until November 30th, order $20 worth of product and receive 20% off all rub-ons! That’s only $8.76 per package (regularly $10.95). There is no limit to the number of rub-ons you can get for the 20% off! These rub-ons are spectacular too! I am amazed at how nice a simple rub-on can make a card or project look! Try them out and see! Whether you’re making gifts, cards, or tags for the Holidays, or need sentiments for your scrapbook pages, rub-ons are the perfect choice! There are so many to choose from. Order anytime here! But hurry because this offer ends on November 30th!

Item #	Page #	Rub-Ons Description
111416	178	Chateau Bella
111417	178	Word Flurries
111414	178	Hidden Garden
111277	178	A Perfect Day
110283	179	Take Note
111806	179	Chills & Thrills
111804	179	Chit Chat
111415	179	Greatest Moments
111805	179	School Days
110282	179	Anchored
112844	11*	Old Saint Nick
112843	17*	Season of Cheer
112735	39**	Hidden Garden Blossoms

*From Holiday 2008 Mini Catalog

**From Celebrando Creatividad

Retired Frosty

Good morning everyone! I hope you are all enjoying your Sunday. It is cold and cloudy here and it looks like it could possibly snow. Anyway, speaking of snow, I am showing you one of my all-time favorite sets from Stampin' Up! and that is this Frosty set. I was so disappointed when they retired this adorable little guy but I guess it was his time. :( Hehe. Anyway, I used my Top Note die with my Big Shot on this card and I absolutely love how it turned out! I distressed the edges with my edge distresser and sponge daubers. I just love the rustic look it has! I also added a snowflake that I cut with my Big Shot and Snowflakes sizzlets die. The snowman was colored in with my much neglected pastels and my blender pens. I just love the faded look that the pastels give. So anyway, that's my card and I hope you enjoyed it! :) Take care!

Recipe:
Stamps: Frosty
Paper: Ruby Red, Old Olive, Naturals Ivory, Windsor Knot dsp
Ink: Basic Black, Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Pastels, Big Shot, Top Note Die, Snowflake Sizzlets Die, Punch, Brads, Ribbon, Dimensoinals, Edge Distresser, Sponge Daubers, Blender Pens

Another Tea Bag Holder! :)

So check out this tea bag holder/card that I made! The front panel is the tea bag holder! Isn't that great??? I saw this week's Splitcoast Sketch Challenge and had this huge idea! :) Anyway, I used the There She Goes sets called Tea for Two and Tea for Two Special Blends! I can't tell you enough how amazing these stamps are!

Here is a side view of the card.

Here is a picture of the tea bag holder pulled off the card. I attached it with a magnet.

Anyway, this is going to be a short post because we are running errands today. I hope you are all enjoying your Saturday!

Recipe:
Stamps: There She Goes (Tea for Two, Tea for Two Special Blends)
Paper: Very Vanilla, More Mustard, Basic Gray dsp
Ink: Black StazOn, Close to Cocoa, SU! Markers
Accessories: Ribbon, Brads, Magnets

Taylored Expressions Cupcake Challenge #41

Good Friday morning everyone! What a great morning it is too! Today Taylor has provided us with a fantastic sketch and I had so much fun playing with it! I wanted to use one of the newly released sets from Taylored Expressions so I decided to make a small 4 x 4 card! I used the adorable little Rudolph cupcake from the set "Season's Sweetings". Isn't SHE cute??? I had to make her a girl Rudolph so that I could use these fun little jewels from Zva Creative! :) Anyway, the designer paper is from the Christmas Key Ingredients Kit that you can also get from the Taylored Expressions store.

Now that you have seen my card, stop by Taylor's blog (if you haven't yet) to read the details of the challenge and see her card! While you are there, make sure to check out this week's fabulous Featured Sampler, Dawn Easton! :) I am sure most of you have heard of her and if you haven't, check out her blog!

Also, don't miss the other challenge girls' cards! They are absolutely fantastic!
Jami Sibley: More is More
Monika Davis: M.A.D. Stamper
Jackie Pedro: The Scalloped Edge
Donna Baker: Serenity in Stamping
Sherrie Siemens: Card Creme
Ana Wohlfahrt: Ink A Stamp
Vicki Chrisman: This Art that makes me Happy

Recipe:
Stamps: Taylored Expressions (Season's Sweetings)
Paper: Very Vanilla, Close to Cocoa, Regal Rose, Old Olive, Watercolor, Taylored Expressions Christmas Key Ingredients Kit
Ink: Black StazOn, Close to Cocoa, Old Olive, Creamy Caramel
Accessories: Zva Creations Jewels, Dimensionals, Scallop Edge Punch, Gel Pen, Blender Pen

A Snowy Tree!

Good evening everyone! How is your Thursday going? Mine has been pretty crazy! I rushed around all day long! I have a bunch of planning periods on Thursday and spent all of them running around the school! I barely had time to actually do any planning! Haha! Anyway, let's just say I am so thankful that tomorrow is Friday! I can finally take the time to just relax!

Well, I meant to post this card sooner but decided to get some other things done first. Don't ya hate it when life gets in the way of stamping! :) Hehe! Anyway, today will be a slightly longer post since I am not in a big rush! For this card I used Jen del Muro's Sketch for You To Try from Saturday! I had to make the rectangular panel slightly bigger so that my tree would fit but I think it will still work! The lighting in this picture isn't the greatest but I added lots of little rhinestones to the popped up snowflakes and the big snowflake (cut by my big shot). Overall I think this card is pretty self-explanatory but if you do have a question about it, let me know! The stamps I used are from the Season of Friendship stamp set that you is in the SU! Holiday Mini. I absolutely love this set and can't believe it took me this long to actually ink it up!

That's all I have to share for today, I still have a bunch of cards that I need to show you but they will have to wait! :) Make sure you stop by tomorrow for a fun Taylored Expressions Cupcake Sketch Challenge! I have to admit that I really like my card for it! Hehe!

Recipe:
Stamps: Season of Friendship
Paper: Whisper White, Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze, Pink Pirouette, Ski Slope dsp, Bella Rose dsp
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Pink Pirouette, Baja Breeze
Accessories: Rhinestones, Ribbon, Punches, Dimensionals, Big Shot, Snowflake Sizzlet

Amy's Blog Candy!

The fantastically talented Amy has some fantastically amazing blog candy that she is giving away over on her blog! If you love High Hopes Stamps (which you should) then you should head on over there! :)

Celebrate You!

I made this card for Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge! It was so much fun and so easy! I just love the simplicity of this card! Thanks for looking and sorry for another super short post!

Recipe:
Stamps: Party Hearty
Paper: Pink Pirouette, Baja Breeze, Whisper White, Windsor Knot
Ink: Pink Pirouette, Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Punches, Ribbon, Dimensionals

A Merry Christmas From Mr. Twigster

Good morning! This is going to be a short post this morning because I am running late! I just wanted to share this Mr. Twigster card with you! I used Julee's Mojo Monday sketch challenge from last week for this card! I paired Mr. Twigster with my new Martha Stewart punch that I got from Leanne for my birthday (thanks girl!)! I think this card is cute but it is not my favorite! Anyway, I hope you enjoy your Tuesday! Take care!