Copic Colour Challenge #6

Kiss, Kiss! *LOL* That's the name of my challenge piece for round #6 over at the Copic Colour Challenge blog. Here are the colors we were asked to use this time.


I had the E31, but had to do the "come close to it" boogie for the other two. The colors I used are:
C1, E00, E02, V01, E31, Y21, Y26, R22, RV11, & YR00. I also used a Stardust clear gel pen, some coral ribbon, pink rhinestones, my new EK Success wavy edge punch, my pink lever punch, an image from PC Crafter (Kate Hornavar), 2 Sakura Glaze pens, pink paper from Makin Memories, Antique Rose paper (not sure of mfr), Tattered Rose distress ink...{in a sing-song voice} "and a partridge in a pear tree!" *LOL* Here's the end result:Not my best work, but I think it met the challenge nicely, don't you? Now I'm off to work on the challenge card in honor of Kerry's birthday at Three Clovers. Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Sharing day today

I'll do my Copic challenge card on another post, but I have other things to share today, too. First, I'd like to thank you again for your prayers, warm thoughts, e-mails, cards, & visits to my blog while I was ill. According to my doctor visit on Tuesday, the biopsy results were NEGATIVE!! NO H Pylori bacteria anywhere to be found, NO cancer, nothing wrong other than the redness that Doc noted during the endoscopy back on the 12th. So for now, I stay on my daily dose of Nexium for the acid and the Creon with every meal to give my pancreas a vacation. The final diagnosis that they're giving me for this is "idiopathic acute pancreatitis with duodenitis." Hope it NEVER comes back, because I'd sure hate to add "chronic" in front of that tongue tangler! *LOL*

Now, for my other news...I'M AN ANGEL!!! No, seriously...I signed on earlier this week to be a demonstrator for The Angel Company. I will be selling rubber stamps that mount onto clear acrylic blocks (NICE storage solution for all of those wooden handles). We also carry papers, inks, markers, hardware, punches, chipboard, the new PINK Bind It All...it's gonna be loads of fun. I get my starter packet this weekend & those projects will post on my new blog Playin with Stamps & Paper. I hope you'll come by & look around some time. I'm hoping to have an e-store up and running within the month, so you can shop online & have our fantastic products come straight to your door.

I'm off to take pix of my challenge card...well, one of two challenges. I've still got to get one done for Kerry's. Anyway, I'll be back in a bit.

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Blog Candy (part Deux)

There's so much to look at that my eyes are crossing! *LOL* I've got a couple more for ya to check out though:Here's what you'll find at Scraps 4 Fun...

This is what the Card Kabin has up for grabs...

And this lovely stash is from A Crafter's Dream...
Remember to come back tomorrow for my little share. Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of day!!

More Blog Candy to Check Out!!

OMGosh, I LOVE the stuff! *LOL* No calories, no fat, nothing that makes the clothes shrink, yet tons of fun to be had. How could you resist? Here's what I've got for you to check out today:Hilde (aka Tindaloo) has a great "first blog candy" treat for you in honor of her birthday...(first pic will take you to her house)

Malin has an adorable "mini candy" giveaway...also be sure to check out her "candy bar" on the side of her blog ~~ OODLES of links to sign up for (don't be surprised if ya see a few listed here already*LOL*)!

Stacy is celebrating her Blogaversary...AND finally (well, for now anyway)....

Emma is celebrating the big 3-0 & giving away some nice prezzies....

Click the pics to go to the blogs & leave them some love. I'll have more that I'm hopping through right now (okay, I'm checking out ELEVEN MORE & will post again in just a bit, I'm certain of it). I also have some things to share with you tomorrow, so be sure to check back. Okay?

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Project complete!

My wedding gift project is complete! They got married on the 14th, but hubby didn't ask me to make anything before the ceremony - good thing, too, with my pancreas issues it would never have happened. Anyway, here's what we're giving the bride and groom:

I made the card about an hour ago. I started with a black 5x7 pre-made base; used some K&Co double-sided papers (the two pinks); the striped paper was a gift from my BFF, Sharron; and the olive paper set on point is from My Mind's Eye; a corner flourish clear stamp from Inkadinkado with some Memento ink in Tuxedo Black; a black button brad; and the pretty little flower is a double FloraDoodle from Petaloo that I picked up this morning on my way back from the dentist.

Inside the card I put some more of the pink paper from K&Co, along with some white card stock for our message. I punched down two sides with my new EK Success border punch called Parisienne. I'm really pleased with how it finished out. Now, here's where all the time-consuming work for the project came in...the embroidered piece.

The pattern is from Moonlit Dreams & Tattered Seams out of Clearfield, Utah. I chose the colors to go with their wedding. I really didn't have much to go on...it WAS a biker wedding, after all, so naturally the basics of black & white were there. The groom wore a black leather blazer & in the button hole had a lovely navy died rosebud. I just happened to have some deep blue mini buttons (3 of them teeny tiny little hearts) in the shades of his flower, so that's how I chose my floss colors. I took the glass out of a double frame that I found at Wal-Mart and the rest is history. Here's a closeup of the stitching:

If it looks a little "quilted" to you, well, it sort of IS. I used a light layer of Warm 'n Natural batting to keep the knotwork from showing through the muslin. Not too bad for a gal fighting with tummy issues, sick kids, sick hubby, a cold herself, kids with time out of school, taking the littlest one to the dentist, and the normal day-to-day stuff, don't ya think? *LOL* 'K! That's it for me...this lady is all tuckered out!

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Blog candy alert!

SQUEEEE! The artist HERSELF, Elisabeth Bell, is giving away some of the best candy I've seen in blogland to date. OMGosh, I've already dropped to bended knee & said my prayers in order to get my hand on these babies. Click on the pic to see what this talented and generous lady is giving away...
AND.......

Click the pic to go to Phoenix Crafts lovely giveaway {Psst! Do ya see the COPIC markers in there?!?!}

I've got some news that I'll share later in the week AND I should have photos later tonight of the embroidery project...thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Ugh!

Sorry I didn't post the other day as I'd hoped to. The cold that my youngest boy had for the last week finally caught me & I've now been 3 days with no voice, stuffy noggin, sore throat...just when I was starting to feel better with my tummy issues. *sigh* The best laid plans...I was going to show you a card that I've had in mind, work on my blog layout, & take care of some other things, but sadly those were not meant to happen just yet.

I'm just about done with my embroidery project - putting on embellishments & making the frame, then I'll get the card together.

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day.

Today I'm...

I'll try to have a paper project to show you tomorrow. I'm working on this embroidered piece & trying to learn how to design my own blog background. I'm even gonna be bold & take this baby from two columns to 3, maybe even 4. If you notice a few changes around here, don't be alarmed, I'm just doing some spring cleaning & rearranging the furniture! *LOL*

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Still living outside the box!

I stated yesterday on my Copic Challenge post, that I was living outside my "norm" making that card. Well, I've done it again! Literally FORCED myself to. I've actually been working on the basics of this card for nearly a month. Had the card base, background papers, even the focal all picked out. I just couldn't for the life of me figure out what to put with it. My mojo hadn't left the building, even though I was ill, as witnessed by the other cards I've managed to crank out. I think the thing that killed me was the COLOR SCHEME that I chose for this one. Yellow and orange --DEFINITELY something I don't normally do! *LOL* I must admit that I'm happier with the card today, compared to two weeks ago. Anyway, here's how it turned out, so you tell me what you think...
The card base is a 5"x7" wheat-colored card from K&Co; background paper is from a mat pad from ProvoCraft; image is from PC Crafter (Kate Merkley's "Dance & Cheer"); colored with my Copic Sketch markers; cut with my largest classic oval Nestabilities; yellow chalking on the background; orange ink from Studio G that I picked up back in October around the edges of the card & the oval.


The lettering is my "Gift Box" Thickers in uncolored chipboard. I used Copic YR04 to color.

I got these cute little flowers on a bush stem at Wal-Mart for something ridiculous like 75 cents. Peeled them off the stems, glued a few down with my Tombow aqua, & placed some rhinestones in the centers.

Like I said, I'm stretching outside my normal routine, but I'm kinda proud of the fact that not only am I willing to try something a little bit different, I'm actually happy with how it turns out! Now I'm off to cut some fabric and do a bit of embroidery. My DH attended the wedding of one of his biker brothers yesterday & he's asked me to stitch and frame their wedding certificate. I'll make a card to go with it & as soon as it's ready to view, I'll be sure to share.

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Blog Candy Alert!!!

Okay all of you Copic marker junkies (myself included) ~ this is HUGE & you need to pay attention!! Karen of Crafty Goings On is giving away a FABULOUS set of 72, yes SEVENTY-TWO, Copic Ciao markers on April 10th. Here are "Da Rules":

"The twist is that we want you to link to a project on your blog (in your comment) that either uses a download or a stamped image that you coloured in.

• Link to a card you made with a download or a stamped image (does NOT have to be one of ours)
• If you are using one of the Charmed Cards & Crafts downloads then you get two chances (please enter two comments, in the second just write "my second chance). All entries will be checked.
• Please mention the candy on your blog.

This will run until 10th April. This post will stay on top until then. The final draw will be entirely random."

Remember, don't enter on my blog, go over to Karen's place & enter for your chance to win. Good luck!!

Copic Colour Challenge #4

This week's challenge over at CCCB definitely stretched my imagination, but I sure had fun doing it! The colors that we were asked to use are:

They're quite pretty & I came very close to matching them. For this card, I used: Ranger Distress Ink in Mulled Lavender; 2 sheets of paper from a vivid-colored pad that I picked up at Wal-Mart for a song, rubbed with the ink on a baby wipe for that really ragged look; my largest classic oval Nestabilities; a strip of 5.5"x 12" cardstock, folded in half; Copic Sketch Marker #s 0, C5, G21, YG03, Y21, V09, Y11, V01, & BG10; some Thickers chipboard letters colored in Copic #V09; and an image from the CD "On Occasion" from Sunshine Graphics.This is a closeup of my coloring. I also inked the edge of the oval with the Ranger ink (didn't want it looking too "new" compared to the rest of the card).And here's the completed card so you can get the full effect. I think it has a nice "Spring" feel to it. These aren't normally colors that I would work with, I prefer either pastels or dark, muted colors, but it was nice to step out of my norm and try something new. Sure hope I did okay!
Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!

This makes SEVEN!!

Wow! Seven awards & my little home on the web here isn't even a year old yet! How did I get to be so lucky and have such wonderful friends?!? I was given this one today from Kathe, one of my "sisters from another mister" & found that this award, The PREMIO DARDOS AWARD, acknowledges the value of every blogger shows in their effort to transmit cultural, ethical, literacy and personal values everyday.

I'm supposed to name 15 blogs that I feel deserve this award. Many of my friends have been given this today by Kathe, so I'm just gonna let you pick 15 out of my "Where I Get My Inspiration" blog list, or if you'd like, snag it for yourself & say that it's from me, then link it back here.

I'm still not back to 100% health just yet. I had an endoscopy done yesterday & they took a biopsy of my stomach and upper intestines, so today I'm a bit sore. I'll have the results of the biopsy by the 24th, but they're saying that my current diagnosis is "idiopathic acute pancreatitis with duodenitis" - that's a mouth-full, isn't it? *LOL*

Well, time for me to go and get some rest (like I haven't been lying about like a big ole slug already!). Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Here are those little roses

that I told you about yesterday. I really wanted the ones I've been seeing on craft blogs. The posters were all saying "Prima" but I've been direct to Prima & cannot find them anywhere. Well, the other day, I just happened to be in BigLots! poking around and found myself on their crafting aisle. Normally, I hit the store for my snaps that I use on my journals, but something caught my eye and made me wonder, "would THIS work for what I'm wanting?"
$1.00 per package! Can you believe it?!? This is a sticker, made to stick on packages or gift bags. I wondered if I could peel them off the backing...

These are off of two of the stickers (I bought 3 & need to go get more!)...just carefully peel them off the heart-shaped paper backing (they're hot-glued on) and brush the dried baby's breath off of them.

Here's what they look like up close...

And I put some next to a nickel so you could get an idea of their real size. The two colored ones are done with Ranger Distressed ink (the pink one) and Stampin Up craft ink spot (So Saffron & Eggplant) and the color was painted on with a Tsukineko Fantastix in the brush tip. Now you know why I scattered them all over that card I mailed out yesterday! I LOVE these little roses & maybe if you have a BigLots near you, you'll be able to find some and have some in your crafting stash!

Thanks for stopping by and have a great rest of your day!!

Sharing a sympathy card

Not sure if you remember my "aunt by heart" that passed away in late September of 2008...anyway, her older sister was found Monday afternoon, dead in her favorite chair. She told someone last Wednesday night that on Thursday she was getting out to run some errands. Apparently, she'd been having some heart issues the week before and when Thursday came around, she had gotten dressed, sat down in the chair and just never got back up. Bobbie was a very sweet lady (my sister & I called her "aunt Bobbie") - she had three boys, just like my aunt Paula and so when my sister and I would visit her, she would spoil us girls rotten. They doted on us every chance they got & she will be sorely missed. I still chuckle at her clucking over my sister because she absolutely refused to wear a dress to church, even when it was our Missionettes meeting night! *LOL*

I thought I would show you the card I made for her sons & their families...

I had to put the card in a bubble mailer because of the texture of the roses. Didn't want the Post Office machines to eat the card.

Card recipe:

Kraft pre-made base (size A2)

Whisper White craft ink from Stampin Up!

Paper roses (two left the original cream color, other 2 colored with Copic RV11 & Ranger Distress Ink in Tattered Rose)

swirl stamp on card inside from Inkadinkado

Phrase stamp from Stampabilities

flower, butterfly, swallow, and frame stamps from SeeDs

butterfly punches from Martha Stewart (elegant butterfly & butterfly trio)

rose leaf punches from Martha Stewart

Sakura stardust clear gel pen on wings of khaki butterflies & leaf veins

Quickie Glue Pen for the butterflies & rose leaves

Tombow aqua glue for the roses

Tomorrow I'll show ya how I got hold of those neat little roses. I've been looking for the ones from Prima that I've been seeing on so many blogs with no success and the solution I came up with is one that YOU might be able to do, too! Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!