Friday, April 30, 2010

Missing You

My card today is for Operation Write Home Stars & Stripes sketch challenge #14 and Copic Creations Challenge #26 Black Hair.  We used this stamp from The Greetings Farm in the Copic certification class and I fell in love with it.  I like the "big hair" to practice coloring and she's just cute. 

I chose the card stock colors to coordinate with the Copic markers I used.  The markers are:  C0, C4, C6, C8, B99, E0000, E00, D02, YG 11, YG13 & YG17, card stock:  Stampin' Up! Blush Blossom & Cameo Coral, Via Vellum's Leaf Green and of course Neenah Solar white. 

Operation Write Home is having a Memorial Day weekend blog hop, I've already signed up!  If you'd like to be part of it click on the link above, the information is in the side bar on Sandy's blog.

Have a great day, I'm going to go color and work on some cards!  

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

April Showers Bring May Flowers

This time I got it right!  I made my April Showers theme Scrappy sketch challenge card again for the Catch The Bug challenge blog.  This cute turtle is one of the first free digital images I collected from the Bug A Boo stamps online store. 

I've been practicing my coloring with Copic markers, the colors I used are:  B23, E21, E25, C2, BV00, BV08, Y13, Y15, Y19, YG01, YG03, YG05 & YG17.  I'm working on doing more with my background scenes so I used the C2 marker and chisel tip of the blender pen to make another cobble stone path.  One day I'll get brave and make some grass and flowers, maybe...  The card stock colors are Papertrey Ink True Black, Summer Sunrise, Via Vellum Leaf Green, Stampin' Up! Lovely Lilac & Neenah Solar White.  I applied SU Crystal Effects to the rain drop and puddle for some shine, used two different Cuttlebug embossing folders for more nice texture and a long neglected Quickutz flower die with half pearls added to the centers.  The stamped "Spring Greetings" is from the Papertrey Ink Take Three Spring stamp set. 

My card today also qualifies for Creative Card Crew's Challenge #49 April Showers Bring May Flowers.

Spring and April showers are kind of difficult for me to wrap my mind around living in Arizona, the high temperature today is supposed to be 96 degrees.  I suppose that's spring in Arizona!  I hope you're having a fabulous day where ever you are.

Monday, April 26, 2010

Did You Hear?! I Won - Twice...

I checked my e mail last night and had some exciting news, I won the Copic marker wallet at Sharon Harnist's blog Paper Fections!!   How cool is that?!  I have several blogs I visit on my home page and thought I'd see what's new at Colleen Schann's blog Distinctive Touches and saw that I'd won the Copic marker wallet on her blog too!  I never win anything, now I've won the same thing on two blogs!   What are the odds of that?

I hope you had a good weekend, I've been coloring and stamping with my kids and their friends.  My daughter asked if I'd put the pictures of their cards on my blog too and I said, yes!
We spent a few hours Friday after school and Saturday working on cards for their stash.  They didn't seem to mind me trying out my Copic marker teaching skills on them.   We colored digital stamps with Copic markers, I think their cards came out really nice!
This is the card I made yesterday afternoon, it was for a challenge at Bug A Boo stamps which was a sketch challenge with the theme of April showers.  Well... I got the April showers part right just not the sketch.  I used Scrappy's sketch from last Sunday instead of this Sunday.  Hey... I like it!  If  I have time this week I'll try it again with the right sketch, I need the practice coloring with my Copic markers.  Did you notice I made a cobblestone path for the bear to stand on?  I learned how to do that at the Copic certification class last Monday.  I also used Stampin' Up! Crystal Effects on the rain drops and puddle so they look wet.

Friday, April 23, 2010

Serindepity Stamps, Copic Certification, Etc.

This week has flown by, I can't believe it's Friday!  I went to the Copic certification in Phoenix Monday, it was really fun and informative and overwhelming and...  you know how you feel when you've spent the day with a bunch of other stampers talking excitedly, a bit creatively overloaded?!  I was even able to go to Hobby Lobby with one of the gals from class on my way home, I'd NEVER been to one before.  We had fun!  Traveling home was pretty peaceful thinking about everything I'd taken in during the class, I needed that two and a half hours to process it all.  I arrived home just in time to tuck my kids in bed and spend an hour with my husband before it was time to call it a day.

Tuesday I needed to do the prep work for a class, Wednesday was the class.  Thursday was a treat to spend mostly by myself coloring and practicing some of the things I learned Monday.  I've been coloring my images backwards, dark, medium, light instead of using the lightest color first, medium color second and darkest color last then going back to blend with the lightest color.  That took some practice to turn around for me, I think I've got it! 
I used the same Copic markers on both cards but changed the card stock to see how it would look.  I'm not  thrilled with either card but I had fun coloring the images, one of the first rubber stamps I bought back in 2004 from Serindepity stamps, a nice size to practice blending colors.   Copic marker colors  used:  R32, R35, R37, BG11, BG13, BF18, YR00, YR61, YR65, W0, E31, E33.

I almost forgot!   I met Marianne Walker at the Copic ceritification, she was assisting Jennie Black with the class.  Both Jennie and Marianne were a lot of fun - I'm so glad I went!

Hey... what are those yellow boxes for?!!

Monday, April 19, 2010

Stampin' Sister's In Christ Challenge #35

Blogger is working for me today on auto post while I'm in Phoenix for a Copic certification class.  I thought these cards would be perfect for the Stampin' Sister's In Christ challenge #35, the challenge was to use flowers.    The cute digital image is from last Friday's freebie at Bug A Boo stamps.  I used Copic markers to color this image and made a simple card base to put it on.  I'm enjoying the Stampin' Up! Taken With Teal and Papertrey Ink Summer Sunrise together.
My second card is also a Bug A Boo digital stamp that's part of a new flower set.   The card layout is an Operation Write Home sketch challenge from a few weeks ago that I really liked.
...and I had to try that sketch just one more time!

Okay, here I am writing a blog post from my hotel room in Phoenix the night before going to a Copic Certification class with Jennie Black and Marianne Walker, I'm excited!  Keep me in your prayers for the 2 1/2 hour drive home and I'll talk with you soon!  

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Thinking of you

Happy Saturday - I'm out of sync on blog posting this week, my Mon., Wed., Fri. went out the window!  I have a couple of cards for you that I made yesterday afternoon.  I checked in with Bug A Boo stamps blog to see Jodie's freebies and couldn't wait to acquire them so I could color them. 

I've also been getting ready to go to Phoenix for the Copic Certification class, I've been organizing and cataloging my Copic markers so if I have the opportunity to shop for any I won't  come home with duplicates.  Do you ever like something so much you buy it twice?  

I used Y38, Y35, Y32, C8, C3, C0,YG17, YG13 & YG11 to color this image because the yellows go beautifully with Papertrey Ink Summer Sunrise and Stampin' Up! Barely Banana card stock.  I also used a Cuttlebug embossing folder, Papertrey Ink ric rak die, sentiment from PTI Spring Take Three and some black half pearls.  The sketch is SC249 from Splitcoaststampers. 

My second card is also SC249 and the only Copic markers I changed were BG11, BG13 & BG18 for the flower.  I used the Papertrey Ink medium scalloped border for this one and I think it's too big for the card but it's attached so there is no going back.  I also used one of their embossing plates for the SU Taken With Teal panel.  I combined Papertrey Ink Aqua Mist and Stampin' Up! Taken With Teal card stock for this sample, I like the combination but in the future I'll use the ric rak die for the border! 

I'm not sure if I'll have a blog post for you Monday, I do plan to take my laptop with me.  It all depends on if I have time to make something fun to show you!

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Stampin' Sisters In Christ Challenge #34

Oh my it's April 15th...  So glad that's all behind me - check's in the mail!  When my Mom was alive she was a partner in a major tax preparation franchise and always did my taxes.  She's been gone ten years now and I still don't understand why I can't just hand my stuff over and presto it's ready, no charge.  I would imagine the answer to that is:  Time to grow up my dear! 

Today's card is for the Stampin' Sisters In Christ Challenge #34, the challenge is to make a card reflecting  prayer or peace.  I used this cute little angel from Karen's Doodles and colored it with Copic markers V12, V15, V91, B41, C0, E00, E02, E04, E25, E29, & E31.  Before I colored it I cut a mask and sponged Palette Seascape ink around it so my clouds would look more white and fluffy.  To frame the image I cut a 3 3/4" square,  rounded the corners and cut the center out with a Spellbinders circle die.  I embossed it too but you can't see that. 

I wanted some Scripture on my card so I found the chapter in Psalms I needed and starting typing in my Publisher program and printed it on Papertrey Ink Lavender Moon and layered that panel on Papertrey Ink Plum Pudding. 

I added white half pearls to the corners of my frame and felt like it still needed something.  My youngest son walked in the door from school about then so I asked him if he'd mind being my "bow easy".  He said, "sure" and didn't even ask what I was going to have him do, I love that!  Two of my stamping friends were over last night and one brought the Bow Easy for us to play with, it's a great idea that gave me a great idea. 

Oh, I almost forgot, I added some sparkle with the Copic Spica clear glitter pen to the clouds, the underside of the angel wings and the blue in her (?) eye.  Unfortunately you can only see it at my kitchen table under the bright lights or outside if you hold it just right.  Enjoy your day, I'll see you soon!

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

COPIC BLOG CANDY ALERT!!!

ABC Toys & Crafts has BLOG CANDY!!  Check this out -



Ciao markers feature a Super Brush nib on one end and a Medium Broad nib on the other. The alcohol based inks are permanent, non-toxic, low odor and acid-free. They will not damage paper when blending and layering colors and can be used on many surfaces such as paper, leather, wood, plastics and more. Ciao markers have a 3-year shelf life and are guaranteed for color consistency. They are not compatible with the Copic Airbrush system.

Colors include:YG06, G17, BG09, B29, E29, 100, BV08, V09, RV04, R29, YR07, and Y06.

If you are interested in winning this set of markers that includes a case all you have to do is advertise this Blog candy on your Blog with a link back to this Blog.

I know I'd like to win this blog candy, how about you!  Good luck~

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Operation Write Home Stars & Stripes Sketch #12

My card today is for the Operation Write Home Stars & Stripes sketch challenge #12.  Jodie at Bug A Boo stamps gave a free digi image last Friday that I just had to color.

When I printed and colored the first digi stamp (below) it was 4 1/2 inches tall, I had a hard time fitting it onto a quarter fold card so I had to go back to my computer and re-size a little! 

It was a lot of fun to color the digi stamp that was so big, good practice blending colors too. I also had time to think about what I wanted my finished image to look like.  That lady bug is in a jar and I wanted my jar to look real! 

After coloring the lady bug in a jar a second time and carefully cutting it out I applied Stampin' Up! Crystal Effects to the jar area.  As I picked it up to make sure it was smooth and even I dropped it.  You guessed it - it landed wrong side up.  After picking it up I waited for it to dry and applied a little more Crystal Effects to smooth out the damage. 

Supplies used:  Copic markers R59, R29, R24, E27, E31, YG11, YG13, YG17, C8, C3, C2, C0 & B00.  Card stock:   Kraft, Nut Brown, Leaf Green, Red Linen and Neenah Solar White.  Cuttlebug leaf embossing folder, Papertrey Ink ric rak die (the parts you usually throw away) and black half pearls. 

Here's one more picture to try to show the shine on the jar. 

I almost forgot I have fun news to share with you!  I'll be leaving Sunday and traveling to Phoenix to go to a Copic Certification class Monday morning.  I've been signed up and had hotel reservations for about six weeks now.  Since it was so far off I've just kind of put it out of my mind,  I need to bring it back out and get excited!! 

Monday, April 12, 2010

Happy Monday, I hope you all had a nice weekend.  It's getting warm in Arizona, I've  had to turn the air conditioning on in the afternoon for a few days now.   I'm not looking forward to having the house all closed up for the next six months.  On a happier note - I still have stamps, markers a computer and lots of fun paper crafting stuff to play with!

My project today is a four drawer box I made over the weekend.  I made a similar one for the Waltzing Mouse blog hop on St. Patrick's Day here and I also gave a link to where I found the tutorial in that post.  Kirsten did a fabulous job on it!

This  four drawer box is a little different than my first one.  I used my Quickutz Silhouette machine to make the drawers.  They are a match box pattern that I bought at the on line store, downloaded and enlarged using the Silhouette software.  

The designer paper is from My Time Made Easy, it's called Fresh Fabric and Fresh Flowers and goes really well with the Cranberry card stock I have.  I almost forgot to mention it's digital, I printed it!  I used the Waltzing Mouse Labels 4 stamp set, Fourishes Tag Lines stamp set and Spellbinders Labels 4 dies along with a Quickutz butterfly die and the new Papertrey Ink medium scalloped border die.  Oh, and how about those drawer pulls?  They are a Tim Holtz product.  To attach the pulls to the drawers you punch an 1/8th inch hole, slip the back through the hole and the knob goes onto the front, they are threaded so they screw together for a nice tight fit. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Friday, April 9, 2010

My New Purse

How do you like my new purse?!    I hope you can tell it's made out of paper, I bought the pattern from Becky Roberts over at Inking Idaho and had some time today to make it.  You should see the mess I need to put away now...  

I printed my own designer paper from the Fresh Fabric paper pack you can find at Lauren Meader's store, this color goes really well with Stampin' Up! Groovy Guava card stock.  I'm fortunate to have one last package! 

This was a totally fun project to make and I plan on making a few more in different colors.  Did I tell you that it's just the right size to put cards in for a gift?  Cool!  ;)  

Have a great day!

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Look what Ami and I made!


My friend Ami and I got together last week and made some little projects for our kids for Easter.  We used my Quickutz Silhouette machine to cut out the little bags and decorated them with die cuts we made, filled them with candy eggs and hid them from the kids!
The paper for this bag is from Lauren Meader's store, it's a digital paper pack called Fresh Flowers.  It goes well with a ream of Cranberry card stock I have so I think you'll be seeing a lot more of it!
The paper for this one is also from Lauren's store and it's called Fresh Fabric, I just love being able to print my own designer papers!

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Did you say BROWN & BLUE?



Did you say brown and blue??  I just happen to have the perfect card for the color challenge at Stars & Stripes blog today!

This is my last card in a set using three different pups from BugABoo stamps.  I colored this cute pup with Copic markers E27, E31, E33 & E04 and matted it on basic black.  My card stock colors are SU Creamy Carmel, PTI Dark Chocolate, PTI Spring Rain and Neenah Solar White.  It's a pretty simple sketch so I dressed up the center panel with a PTI embossing template.  I added three Dew Drops from the Cowboy collection after I touched them up a little bit with my E27 Copic marker.  

I thought this set of cards might be fun for an Operation Write Home get together with my stamping friends.  OWH is a community of card makers that make hand made greeting cards for our military troops to send home to their loved ones.  If you'd like to know more about it I have a link for you HERE, check it out!

To Bug You...

This is my card for the Stars & Stripes Sketch challenge #11, whew -  that was difficult for me!  I was trying to use a couple of different patterned papers I'd printed and they just weren't "it".  I had to go back and pull the colors out of the image to get it right.   I'm very happy with my finished card and happy I kept trying too.

I used another cute digital stamp from BugABoo stamps, colored it with Copic markers R29, Y13, C8, G14 & W1 while looking at the colored image on their website.  I really like the combination of red and black together.  Next I layered it on Neenah Red Linen then Basic Black, the card body is Neenah Red Linen with a panel of Astro Brights Solar Yellow Cuttlebugged with the Spots & Dots embossing folder and a strip of ric rak from my new Papertrey Ink die.   I added three extra large black half pearls and stamped "To bug you..." from the Clear Dollar Stamps set Sometimes You're The Bug (?).  I'm guessing because I have four CDS sets in the storage box. 

You might have noticed all the digital stamps I've been using lately.  I really like being able to make my "stamped image" any size.  The sketch I used today had a really big blank space in it and needed the perfect image.  By resizing and printing this flower image to the exact size it became the perfect image for the sketch.  Have a great day!

Monday, April 5, 2010

Who could resist that face?

There's that sketch again, I told you I really like it!  I hope you had a wonderful Easter with your family and are refreshed.

This is another BugABoo digital image along with a few additions from my Stampin' Up! collection.   I colored this pup with the same Copic markers that I used on Friday's pup, I just mixed them a little differently.  These are the colors I used:  C8, E27, E3 &  E33.  The papers are PTI Spring Rain & Dark Chocolate with SU Creamy Carmel, Black and  Neenah Solar White.  The Dark Chocolate panel was done with a Papertrey Ink embossing plate and of course I used my Nesties circles and ovals.

I know all put together my card looks very straight forward but I had to let it sit on my desk overnight before it was finished.  I had to change the card base from Aqua to Spring Rain and I had to stamp something on that SU Creamy Carmel square & I didn't have the bone yet.  Do you ever need to walk away and come back for another look before you put it all together?   Funny how the next day it simply falls into place.

I think this card would be a nice one for Operation Write Home,  missing you would be perfect for the inside!

Friday, April 2, 2010

More Challenges... the fun kind!

I've been finding sketch challenges lately that really intrigue me!  This card is a sketch challenge from Tuesday Morning Sketches #39!  It also qualifies for the Midweek Throwdown at Operation Write Home Stars & Stamps blog, the challenge is to do one of our favorite challenges.  I really like sketch challenges but I missed doing their 4 Legged Friends theme challenge and this pup is too cute not to use.  

This cute pup is a digital image from Bug A Boo Designs, I colored it with Copic markers.  The papers I used are PTI Spring Rain & Dark Chocolate, SU Creamy Carmel, Basic Black and Neenah Solar White.  The Dark Chocolate Panel has been run through a Cuttlebug embossing folder.  I added a strip of Dark Chocolate Ric Rac to the Creamy Carmel panel, it's a new die from Papertrey Ink.  Wishing You The Best is from the SU Riveting set and the dog paw print is from SU Canine Capers - a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do!  I added 3 Cowboy colored Dew Drops after touching them up slightly with my Copic E27 marker.
...and here's what the inside looks like.  I couldn't resist this pup either!  One more little strip of ric rak and the birthday stamp and it was finished! 

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Digital Tuesday Challenge #52

Happy April Fools Day!

I'd like to share the card I made for the Digital Tuesday Challenge #52.  The challenge was to go through your scraps and find something to make a card from.  I just cleaned out my scrap drawer a few days ago and got reorganized so I knew I had something.

 In my cleaning I'd come across this patterned paper that I'd printed from Fred She Said Designs and a couple of already printed images from my FSS pre colored Cherry Blossoms set, perfect!

I cut out the image with Nestie's circles dies, used Via Vellum Purple card stock for the body of the card and the 3" medallion in the center as well as the 1/4" strips and matted them with black.  The birthday wishes is a Papertrey Ink stamp from the Mixed Messages set on a Nesties Oval die.  I found the sketch for this card on Mo's Challenge Blog, it's 3-25-10's sketch challenge #24.  I really like this sketch!