SPARKS Challenge- You're Brrr-fect!

Hello friends,

Just popping in to share my Paper Smooches SPARKS challenge card for this week's Anything Goes Challenge.

For my card, I used Chilly Chums to create a little snowball fight scene between the fox and the seal.  Originally, I thought about using the "Take Risks" sentiment from Group Hugs inside the word bubble, but I settled on You're Brrr-fect from Chilly Chums.  I die cut the snow drifts using the Borders 1 dies. 

You have until Saturday, January 4, 2014 at 11:59 PST to link up your Paper Smooches project.  Remember, anything goes! :)

These lovely ladies are playing along with this week's challenge, you should check out their amazing work, or visit the SPARKS blog for more inspiration!  

Erin
Isha

Karin
Katie
Taheerah
Savannah

Thanks for stopping by!
Katie

Fresh Squeezed Stamps- Best Wishes for 2014

Hello and Happy Saturday!  

I am on the Fresh Squeezed Stamps blog today sharing a colorful card I made perfect for celebrating 2014. Every year, we ring in the New Year at our friend's house and I love being able to give our hosts a special New Year card.

First, I used the ray from Weather Through to stamp a colorful sunburst on white cardstock.  I matted the stamped panel with black cardstock and adhered it to a white cardstock base.  Next, using Take a Number, I stamped 2014 on a circle I punched from white cardstock, matted it on black cardstock and adhered it to the card.

Lastly, I stamped a sentiment from Inside Scoop: Holiday on the bottom of the card front. 

Oh, and I hear that Fresh Squeezed Stamps is having a little sale to ring in the new year. 20% off all in-stock items until January 1 with the code JOY13!  Click here to start shopping now! :)

Well, that's all for me today!  Thanks so much for stopping by!  

Katie 

Neat and Tangled- Black Tie Wine Tag

Hello friends!  

Happy Friday! With 2013 winding down, my thoughts are turning towards New Year's Eve.  I am on the Neat and Tangled blog today with a super simple idea to make any bottle of wine "black tie" celebration ready. 

Stop by to see what I have been up to! 

Katie

Moxie Fab World- Petite Pretties

Hello friends!

Happy Monday! Today I am guest hosting at the Moxie Fab World sharing some thoughts and ideas about Petite Pretties, tiny accents and embellishments that we paper crafters love to use and hoard on our projects.

My post highlights several awesome cards from some amazing paper artists, plus one of my own....Here's a sneak preview:

This card is smaller than it appears.... 

See, it's tiny!  

I made this card by stamping and die-cutting the elephant (Hero Arts) onto gray polka dot paper.  I scored the second die cut and adhered it to the front of the card with score tape.  I added a party hat, teeny pom-pom and small balloon to this party-going elephant! 

Please stop by the Moxie Fab World to check out some other inspiring approaches to incorporating petite pretties onto your projects!

Thanks for stopping by!

Katie

Fresh Squeezed Stamps- Graphic Santa

Good morning!  

I am on the Fresh Squeezed Stamps blog today sharing another clean and simple Christmas card idea. You may have heard of a little movie from a few years ago called Bad Santa. Well, let me introduce you to Graphic Santa. 

While Bad Santa wasn't very nice, Graphic Santa is graphic, but in a good way.

For this clean and graphic card, I incorporated some color blocking by heat embossing the bottom portion of the Hey Santa button from Hello December in white onto red cardstock and lined it up with the image stamped with red ink on white cardstock.  A bit of baker's twine and matting the tilted panel with black cardstock helps to draw out the contrast between the red and white.

This card makes great use of scraps of red cardstock which may be floating around your craft table this time of year, plus it's practically flat for easy mailing. 

Well that's all for me today!  Thanks for stopping by!   

Katie

SPARKS Challenge- Season's Greetings

 Hello friends! 

Just popping in to share a card I made for this week's Paper Smooches SPARKS challenge.  This week's theme is Anything Goes.

I used the Snowflakes dies to create a card that I am calling monochromatic with a twist.  I started my covering a white card base with strips of pink, red and gray cardstock.  Next, I die cut the snowflakes and adhered them to the card.  I affixed a gem in the center of each snowflake. 

I stamped "Season's Greetings" from Fresh Snow in Versamark and heat embossed it with white embossing powder. 

You have until 11:59 PST on December 21st to link up any Paper Smooches project to the  SPARKS blog. Be sure the check out the inspiration offered up by the other team members playing along with this week's challenge: 

Rachel

Taheerah

Trisha

Savannah

I can't wait to see what you create! Thanks for stopping by! 

Katie

Get your elf on!

Happy Saturday friends,

My regularly scheduled Saturday blog post for Fresh Squeezed Stamps has been "elfed" by this guy...

Meet Robbie, our Elf on the Shelf.

He's all about spreading a "wee bit of holiday cheer!"

(This card is smaller than it appears.)

He's pretty proud of his creations and would love for you to stop by and say hello! 

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by!

Katie 

A pair of thank you cards

Hello and TGIF friends,

I am just popping in today to share a few thank you cards. First up is this little number created with some of of my Paper Smooches favies (Word Bubbles dies, Many Thanks, and Teen Routine- smile).

Kim reached out to me earlier this week about sharing this card on the December Paper Smooches Patrol and I realized that I never shared this card here- whoopsie!

Next is a card created with Avery Elle's Laurels set.

I am not much of a flower girl... somehow they never seem to work for me, but I find this set from Avery Elle so well designed, that even I can make pretty flowers.

Both of these cards were among my non-winning entries for this year's World Card Making Day contest. I was working on my entries late in the evening before the deadline and didn't even get a chance to properly photograph my cards.  On the day of the deadline, I snapped pics of my entries with my iPhone before sealing up the box and running to the post office on my lunch hour.  (The background may or may not be my cubical....) :)

Well, that's all I have for today.  I will be back tomorrow with some Fresh Squeezed Stamps inspiration!

Have a great day! 

Katie

SPARKS Challenge- Home for the Holidays

Hello, hello!

I am so super excited to be sharing inspiration today for my very first Paper Smooches SPARKS Challenge as a member of the Sparks design team!

The theme this week is Picture Perfect and we are creating projects based on this gorgeous inspiration photo:

via

And here is my take on the inspiration photo: 

First, I die cut white cardstock using the Borders 1 die.  Next I stamped and die cut some of the cutie houses from Bitty Bungalows, colored them with markers and adhered them too the snowy hills.  I added some glistening snow to the houses and hills using Stickles.  I stamped the sentiment from Merry Motifs on white cardstock, trimmed the edge with some pinking shears and adhered it to my the card. 

Here's another look at the houses covered with glittery snow. 

You have until 11:59 PST on December 14th to link up your take on this challenge on the SPARKS blog.  Be sure the check out the inspiration offered up by the other team members playing along with this week's challenge: 

Katie 

Rachel

Taheerah

Trisha

Savannah

I can't wait to see what you create! Thanks for stopping by! 

Katie

A Fresh Squeezed Holiday Photobomb

Hello and Happy Saturday!  

I am on the Fresh Squeezed Stamps blog today with a #HolidayFun card using Arctic Friends.  

I heard that the word of the year for 2013 is "selfie," so my card represents what might happen if the cutie penguin from Arctic Friends attempted a selfie...

....he gets photobombed by his friend, the walrus!

I covered my card base with a panel and strip of patterned paper.  I then die cut a photo frame from patterned paper and on a piece of white cardstock, I stamped the penguin, masked the penguin and stamped the walrus.  I added the shading to the walrus along with a pale background with markers. 

I stamped the sentiment from Hello December onto the photo frame. A button and bit of twine added a finishing touch.  I have to say, with a face like that, I would welcome a walrus photobomb any time!  

That's all for me today!  Thanks for stopping by and have a great Saturday! 

Katie

Winner- Create and Share Cardmaking

Hello!

Just popping in today to share the winner of the free spot in Kim Kesti's Create and Share cardmaking class at Big Picture Classes.

I consulted Random.org and the Random Number Generator told me that the winner was number 11- Virginia Lu! Congrats Virginia!  I will be in touch!


True Random Number GeneratorResult:11

Virginia L. said...

Sounds like a SUPER fun and fabulous class to take! Congrats on being a part of the teaching staff! PS: I went back to Target again today...we do have the SAME decorations...I guess I wasn't paying attention to them yesterday since it was SOOO crowded (LOL)!

NOVEMBER 30, 2013 AT 3:49 PM 

Thanks for stopping by!!
Katie

Shopping for inspiration- the holiday edition

Hello lovelies!

I am on the Neat and Tangled blog today sharing a holiday card inspired by my latest round of errands. It's no secret that I love shopping for inspiration when I am out and about, and I am popping in today to share a card I made inspired by holiday decorations at (my favorite store, like, ever) Target!

Last weekend, I was picking up the items on my Target list and somewhere between the kids clothes and shoes departments I looked up and saw this.

Those colors, the circles, the shine!  I was inspired!  I snapped a picture with my iphone trying not to look too conspicuous.  When I returned home, I pulled out some of my Neat & Tangled stamps to make a card based on this Target decor, and here's what I created... 

I stamped Sunburst with green ink on green cardstock and punched out the center of the image with my circle punch.  Party Dots was stamped with gold ink, and I punched a couple of small circles from the larger stamped image.



The stars from Merry and Bright accent the red circles and the sentiment is from Simple Christmas. A few circles punched from bronze shimmer cardstock added some depth and shine.

I think this card is pretty on Target with the inspiration (pun intended), and it's flat for easy mailing!  Next time you are out and about in all the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, don't forget to look around. Your next spark of inspiration could be hanging from the ceiling!

Thanks for stopping by!

Katie :)

Introducing Take a Number!

Hello!

Happy Wednesday!  Today, I am previewing another new set from Fresh Squeezed Stamps called Take a Number.

I used Take a Number and added the onesie from String Me Along to create a baby card.  I made a card from kraft cardstock and covered it with a panel of starry patterned paper from Studio Calico.  I stamped the sentiment and onesie image on a piece of white cardstock.  I added a border of teal, orange, yellow and aqua cardstock and a couple of black enamel dots. 

Be sure to stop over to the Fresh Squeezed blog to check out the other amazing projects created by the design team and for a chance to win this set.

Take a Number and Arctic Friends will both be available for purchase tomorrow morning in the Fresh Squeezed store!  Yay!

Thanks for stopping by!

Katie   

Introducing Arctic Friends!

Hello and good morning friends!

It's release week at Fresh Squeezed Stamps and today I get to introduce you to a darling new set called Arctic Friends.  Arctic Friends is a builder set where you can create your own chilly chums including a penguin, polar bear and walrus.

For my card, I decided to focus on the walrus and the accompanying sentiment. (I just love a good pun!)

I stamped and masked and masked and stamped the walrus again and again on a piece of white cardstock. The walrus/polar bear body was very simple to cut out and I made 3 masks from post it notes to create this group scene.  Once the stamping was complete, I outlined the walruses with a pale gray Copic Marker and added a pale blue shadow below the front line.

Next I stamped the sentiment, mounted the stamped panel on a piece of red cardstock and added some red and white baker's twine.  I adhere the matted panel onto a piece of aqua cardstock.

I love this design for a group card and will likely be using this for my daughters' teachers this holiday season. See that guy in the back row- there's one in every group, right?  I was thinking it would be super cute if each kid in a class decorated their own walrus for their teacher's card?  Hmmmm....

Be sure to stop by the Fresh Squeezed Stamps blog to check out the rest of the design team's creations! This set will be available for purchase on Thursday morning!  I will be back tomorrow with a sneak peak of another new Fresh Squeezed Stamps set.

Oh, before I go, this is the last week to enter your name for a chance to win a free spot in Kim Kesti's Big Picture Class: Create and Share Cardmaking. I am a guest designer!!  Leave a comment on this post (click link) for a chance to win!

Thanks for stopping by!

Katie

This Man is a Super HERO!

Hello friends!

Happy Monday!  Paper Crafts Magazine has a new special issue available this week called Card Creations for Him. Card Creations for Him is filled with oodles of clever card ideas for the special guys in your life.   I was lucky enough to get an advance copy as I have a couple of cards appearing in this issue.

This issue is, in a word my friends, AMAZING and it's only $5.99!  As I flipped through this issue, I had a huge grin on my face looking at all the fun and smart cards.

I wanted to share one of my cards that appears in this issue.  When I was creating for this publication, the movie Man of Steel was number 1 at the theaters, so I was trying to channel a Superman vibe.

I die cut a couple pennants and embossed this fantastic sentiment from Waltzingmouse Stamps. I trimmed one of the pennants and folded the pennants over a hanger clip (by Tim Holtz) to make a cape.   

You can check out a sneak peak of the issue here or purchase your issue from the Scrap and Paper Shop here.

That's all for me today!  Thanks for stopping by!

Katie 

A CAS Christmas Card

Hello friends,

Just popping in today to share a card I have posted on the Fresh Squeezed Stamps blog today. I am sharing an idea for a clean and simple (CAS) holiday card using Trendy Triangles and Hello December.

I stamped 3 triangles from Trendy Triangles with green pigment ink on a piece of white cardstock and transformed them into Christmas trees with the addition of a tiny truck created from strips of brown cardstock and teeny wood stars.  I added a fun polka dot border using washi tape and stamped "hashtag" Christmas from Hello December. I rounded the corner of the white cardstock and adhered it to a kraft card base with foam tape.  My final step was to round the corner of the kraft cardstock base. 

I think the key with CAS Holiday cards (for me at least) is finding the balance between simplicity and easy production with accents, tools, and techniques that keep it interesting for the card maker and the recipient. The addition of the washi tape and those wooden stars add a lot of interest while not taking a lot of time. 

Well that's all for me today! Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!

Katie

Introducing Warm Wishes

Hello and TGIF!

Today's the big day!  All of the sets we have been previewing this week at Neat and Tangled are now available for purchase in the store!

The last item we are showcasing today is a digi called Warm Wishes.  I don't have a lot of experience working with digi sets, but I was truly surprise how easy it was to work with, resize, print, and use on my projects.

First up, I printed the sentiment on white cardstock, die cut it with a stitched circle die, mounted it on a doily and adhered it to a card.  I printed the cup on pink cardstock, trimmed it out and affixed it to the card with a bit of foam tape.  

You can also use this digi to dress up your holiday gifts.  Here the I created a tag to adorn a coffee bag. Before adhering the tag,  I stamped the bag band with the snowflakes from Santa's Notes.  Do you want to know what else? The Warm Wishes Digital Stamp is only $2.50 if purchased on its own, but it's FREE with any order placed from today, November 22- December 1 using the code WARMWISHES at checkout. 

Stop by the Neat and Tangled blog to check out the other projects using Warm Wishes. 

That's all for me today.  Thanks for stopping by!

Katie

Introducing You + Me

Hello, hello!

I am back again today to share another fabulous set from Neat and Tangled.  All the products previewed this week will be available for purchase at the Neat and Tangled store on Friday, November 22 at 8 a.m. ET.

Please meet You + Me... 

For this card, I stamped the woodgrain boarder from On the Strip 2 on brown cardstock. Next I stamped and embossed the adorable heart with red embossing powder.  Next I stamped and heat embossed the arrow and sentiment with white embossing powder. 

Love how this tree turned out!  This is another crazy clever and versatile set. I adore all the possibilities from creating Venn Diagrams to flower petals to cutie hearts. 

Be sure to stop by the Neat and Tangled blog to see what the design team created and to enter for a chance to win this fun set.  

That's all for me today!  See you tomorrow! :)

Katie  

Introducing On the Corner

Hello friends,

I am back today to introduce another new stamp set from Neat and Tangled. All the products previewed this week will be available for purchase at the Neat and Tangled store on Friday, November 22 at 8 a.m. ET.

This one is called On the Corner, designed by the ever talented Miriam Prantner.  

For my card, I stamped the street post on white cardstock, and named my streets "Freaking" and "Amazing."  I stamped "You are on the corner of" on an aqua speech bubble. The patterned papers and wooded shapes are from Studio Calico.  

I can see so many possibilities with these stamps.  It's a seriously clever set!  (Plus everyone needs a stamp that says "freaking" in her stash.) :)

Be sure to stop by the Neat and Tangled blog to see what the design team created and to enter for a chance to win this fun set.  

That's all for me today!  See you tomorrow! :)

Katie   

Introducing Everyday Lables

Hello friends! 

Happy Monday and WELCOME to release week at Neat + Tangled.  Over the next couple of days, the Design Team will be showcasing the newest addition to the N+T collection. All items will be available for purchase at 8 a.m. on Friday, November 22 at the store.  First up is Everyday Labels.  Inspired by Danielle's love of her label maker, a love I also share, Everyday Labels features lots of words that you can mix and match to create sentiments perfect for many occasions. 

For my card today, I created a thank you note in black and white.  I stamped "thank" on white cardstock with black ink and "you" with Versamark on black cardstock and embossed with white embossing powder. (TIP: to ensure that your labels line up correctly, start with panels of cardstock a bit longer than what you need, and trim the excess once your images are aligned.) 

I added a couple enamel dots for a bit of contrast and interest, matted the card front on black cardstock and adhered it to a white cardstock base. 

Well that's all for me today.  Be sure to stop by the Neat and Tangled blog for more inspiration from our team! 

Thanks for stopping by!

Katie

Fresh Squeezed Thanksgiving Swag

Hello and Happy Saturday!   

I am on the Fresh Squeezed Stamps blog today to share a little project that will be gracing my holiday table this year.

I offered to host Thanksgiving for my family at my house. This is a first for me and it involves my family making a 2+ hour drive over the river and through the woods to my house. I sent out an invite and in trying to figure out who was going to be able to attend, my younger brother (jokingly - sort of...) suggested that I needed to provide a little something to entice guests to make the journey.  :)

While I can't offer my guests gift bags filled with the latest designer goodies, I thought it might be fun to offer them a little something in the form of treats for the long drive home. I used the Subway Series: Holiday set to pull this project together.

To create my project, I first cut a piece of 12 x 12 kraft cardstock to 8 x 7.  I then used a Candy Box punch board to punch diamonds and notch both of the 7" sides of the cardstock. Next, I stamped the Thanksgiving subway stamp onto the cardstock multiple times.

Then I scored the stamped paper. 

I folded the paper into the candy box shape securing the edge with strong adhesive tape and tying the ends closed with some twine. I stamped the Thanksgiving subway tile onto cream cardstock, trimmed it out and matted it with maroon cardstock before adhering it to the candy box with foam tape.

The small box on the left was made from leftover cardstock that measured 5" x 7".  Perfect size for the kiddos!

Here's my Thanksgiving swag - striking a pose with a pumpkin.  After all the pictures I took, they may think that they have risen to celebrity status.  :)

Subway Series: Holidays

That's all for me today!  Thank you so much for stopping by and have a great weekend! 

Katie

SPARKS Challenge: Welcome 2014!

Hello friends!

Is is too early for New Year's cards?  I hope not because I made one this week to play along with this week's Paper Smooches SPARKS challenge.  This week's challenge was to create a card based on a Designer's Draft sketch, and here is my take:

First I covered a kraft card base with some fun striped cardstock. I cut a panel of cream cardstock and stamped 2014 from the Digits set and then topped it with "welcome" from Simply Said in red ink. 

I stamped a strip of red cardstock with the polka dots from Geo-Graphic before rounding the corners and adhering the panel to the card with a bit of foam tape.  A strip of washi tape, a banner and a button with a glitzy center finish off the card. 

Here is a look at this week's inspiration sketch. 

That's all for me today!  Thanks for stopping by! 

Katie

Introducing Create and Share Card Making + Giveaway

Hello sweet friends,

A few months ago, the super talented Kim Kesti sent me an email asking me to be a guest designer and contribute a card design to a class that she is teaching this winter at Big Picture Classes. After I recovered from my initial shock, I learned that Kim's class is called Create and Share Cardmaking.  It is a 6 week course starting on January 2, 2014.  Here is the course description from the Big Picture Classes website.

Create & Share Cardmaking

Happy Handcrafted Greeting Cards for All Year Long

In a world dominated by digital communication, handmade greeting cards slipped into real paper envelopes and mailed the old-fashioned way have become more special, more rare, and more important than ever.

Start your year off right, getting the inspiration and the instructions you need to create 36 handcrafted cards in just 6 weeks! You'll also learn a proven system for organizing your finished cards, and you'll create a "happy mail kit" that makes it easy to share them with the people you love throughout the year.

    

Cardmaking all-star Kim Kesti will kick things off with a handy checklist to help you outline a year's worth of card needs. Then she'll inspire you with 12 videos, 12 card sketches, 12 cards from her guest designers, and 12 colorful handouts (each featuring step-by-step instructions by Kim for completing two cards as well as step-by-step instructions by a guest designer for completing an additional card).

Whether you're a beginning papercrafter, a seasoned cardmaker, or a scrapbooker looking to get more mileage from your stash of supplies, this interactive online workshop will reconnect you to the joy of cardmaking...and cardmailing, too.

WIN A SEAT IN THE CLASS!

Registration for the class is open right now.  I am super excited to be attending the class AND Kim is giving away a free seat to one of my blog readers!!!  To be entered for a chance to win a spot in the class, leave me a comment telling me your favorite type of happy mail to send or receive. I will accept comments through midnight ET on November 30, 2013 and announce the winner on my blog on December 2, 2013. Please make sure that through your comments or blogger profile, I have a way to get in contact with you if you are the lucky winner. :)  The contest is now closed. Good luck! 

My thanks to Kim for including me on this adventure! I can't wait for you to see the amazing cards that Kim and her team of guest designers created.  This is going to be a blast! 

Thanks for stopping by!

Katie