Stamptacular Sunday "SPRING FEVER" Challenge/Thank You, Priscilla

This week’s challenge is going to be so much fun!  We can’t wait to see what you create!

This week's challenge is a…

“SPRING FEVER!”

For this week's challenge you will create a card or project with a SPRING theme!  But, please don’t forget to stamp!  After all…we don’t call this the STAMPtacular Sunday Challenge for nothing!      

You will have from now until midnight (EST) April 6^th, 2012 to complete this challenge and post a DIRECT LINK to your submission into our InLinkz in order to be entered into the drawing for this week's fabulous prize donated by:

MARIANNE DESIGNS

PRIZE:  IT’S A SURPRISE!

AND

STITCHY BEAR DIGITAL STAMPS

PRIZE:  $10 Gift Voucher!

First,  I want to express my deepest gratitude to Priscilla for the DT term I have just finished at Stamptacular Sunday Challenge. It was a wonderful six months, and it has been such a pleasure working with her and the rest of the fabulous Design Team! I am sad to step down, but I know that it is time for me to do so. Priscilla, thank you again for the opportunity!

Second, I want to say Happy Easter to all of you who celebrate it! I hope it is a beautiful one!

On to my final DT card: this week's challenge was really fun for me. I was able to use a Rick St. Dennis image for my spring theme; I do love coloring Rick's detailed digis, as I am sure I have already mentioned. And what better image to use than "Spring Goddess", which I printed on Make It Colour Blending Card.

I colored this image with my Copics and a couple of Twin Touch markers that I have purchased. (Shhhhh, don't tell Gary. He doesn't know that I needed a few TT's to cover colors that Copic doesn't have.)

Face: E000, E00, E11, R20

Hair: YR20, E31, E35

Leaves: TTGY173, TTGY48 

Dress, Shoes, Flowers: V20, V22, V25, V28

My DP is from the Lily Bee Design Picket Fence collection. I used my Distrezz-It-All to rough up the edges. I paired this DP with Stampin' Up CS. My sentiment is from Create with TLC. Per usual, I used die cuts on this card. My sentiment was cut with a Memory Box Ticket die. My corner die cuts were created using a Whimsy Corner die. My flower was die cut using Cheery Lynn Daisy Strip and Build a Flower Embellishment #2. I pulled this flower together with a SU brad. My flourishes were created using MFT Leafy Flourish die. I added some ribbon and a bow for my finishing touch. And that does it for my final DT card at Stamptacular Sunday Challenge.

Do stop by to check out the fabulous creations by my former teamies. And have fun with your spring fever creation! Thanks again, Priscilla! Sending you big hugs!

The Outlawz Greeting Card "Express Your Spirituality" Challenge and HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LARRY!

Ooops, well, first I have to apologize. My fat fingers managed to publish this post with nothing but part of the title completed. Honestly, I don't know how that happened. Sorry I gave you a false alarm.

Secondly, Happy Birthday to my dear brother, Larry. Today is his 60th! Big day. New decade. Larry, you're now officially old. Put that in your pipe and smoke it. (Insert evil grin here.)

OK, now on to the actual post. This week our Greeting Card challenge at the Outlawz is to "Express Your Spirituality". And we are being sponsored by Bugaboo Stamps.

I took this opportunity to make another Easter card, this time for my niece's munchkin, Tristan. He is just the cutest little guy. I thought Bugaboo WOE Big Egg would be a great image for a 2-year old boy.

I printed Big Egg on Cryogen CS, and colored it with my Copics: 

Skin: E000, E00, E11, E21, R20

Egg & Hair: E71, E74, E77, E79

Egg Dots & Bunny Suit: G0000, G000, G00

Suit Trim: E41, E42, E43

I printed my Create with TLC sentiment on Cryogen CS as well. I cut it out with a Whimsy Postage Stamp die, and then sponged SU ink around the edges of both the sentiment and the image. My DP came from MME Lost & Found Breeze collection. It was paired with Bazzill Kraft CS. I added cheesecloth to the card layers, and embellished with eggs made from the following dies: Cheery Lynn Lace Egg 5, Lace Egg 7 and Nesting Eggs; Memory Box Filigree Egg. I added corner die cuts made with a La-La Land Crafts Corner die. And I think that's about it.

We had a marvelous birthday dinner for Gary last night at our daughter's home. Angela fixed some papadum with two yummy dips for an appetizer. Then we had a most marvelous lentil soup with yogurt. And the main course was a scrumptious chicken biryani, which her family didn't seem to like much. Probably because they were comparing it to the same dish that they had eaten at The Dhaba, (our favorite local Indian restaurant.) But I thoroughly enjoyed it, and was horrified when she told Jon to throw the leftovers into the garbage disposal.

Needless to say, (so if it's needless, why am I saying it?), I got the leftovers to take home with me. 

Oh, and btw, there was a wonderful yogurt dessert with pistachios. Oh, yum. It was a fabulous meal. Our daughter is a very good cook. She learned that from her dad, she did. 

It was a really nice evening. And we watched a reality show I had never heard of--it's called "Duck Dynasty". One of the more ridiculous reality shows, for sure. But I'll tell you what: I was laughing so hard I cried. Don't know if I'll ever watch it again, but it was certainly good entertainment for a half hour last night. Duck Dynasty, indeed.

Well, peeps, I'm off to do my comments. Yup, I am waaaay behind again--happens every time I work on a card. Now, y'all be sure to check out the great cards by my teammates! And have a wonderful week!

Stamptacular Sunday "FUZZY Friends!" Challenge

This week’s challenge is going to be so much fun!  We can’t wait to see what you create!

This week's challenge is a…

“FUZZY Friends!”

For this week's challenge you will create a card or project using an image with an animal! But, please don’t forget to stamp! After all…we don’t call this the STAMPtacular Sunday Challenge for nothing!      

You will have from now until midnight (EST) March 30^th, 2012 to complete this challenge and post a DIRECT LINK to your submission into our InLinkz in order to be entered into the drawing for this week's fabulous prize donated by:

MAGNOLIA-LICIOUS

PRIZE:  IT’S A SURPRISE!

Hey, it's Sunday again? How did that happen so fast? I blinked and a week flew by. Would somebody mind slowing down the clock just a wee bit for me, please? Oh, thank you, thank you very much.

Gary and I went out to the Blue Hound with the Dinner Club last night. There were 18 of us this time, so we didn't all get to converse with one another, as we were split into two tables. But we really had a fun time and a wonderful meal. Well, except for the fact that the waiter at the other table was Johnny-on-the-spot, and had them fed and desserted, (new word), before our table was done with dinner. So service was a bit uneven. 

We started with wine, caramel popcorn, (yes, it is odd, but yummy), and a really nice cheese platter. We each had a cup of cauliflower soup, which we had the last time we were there. Well, not the same exact cup, of course, but the same kind of soup. However, last time I had the shot-glass size, and I think that was a better size than the cup--gives you a great taste without filling you up. Note to self: next time order the shot of soup.

Then we got our main dishes. Gary had cobia, a fish I had never heard of before last night. I tried it, and it was quite tasty. But not a fraction as good as my mussels. I ordered the small portion--which still ended up being a lot of mussels. And they were heavenly--the flavor was sensational, the broth was fabulous, and I finished all of it. I even ate all the broth by slurping it up through a straw. Which was a little strange--drinking warm soup through a straw. Hey, it wasn't my idea. 

A friend at the other table had the large portion of mussels. And he loved the broth so much that he requested a straw to slurp all of it up. (Why they didn't give us soup spoons with the mussels is a mystery.) So, when he and another friend saw that I had mussels, too, they asked their waiter to bring me a straw for my broth. And he did. I couldn't disappoint my friends, now, could I? I had to finish off my broth with a straw--especially since three people from the other table came over to take my photo as I was doing it. Unfortunately, it got posted on Facebook. What I do for my friends. Sigh...

The only disappointment for food was the dessert. I ordered the pineapple upside-down cake with caramel sauce and ice cream. The cake was so dry that it was hard to swallow. So I didn't. I ate the pineapple, the caramel sauce and the ice cream. I left the cake sitting on my plate. I'll know not to order that again. Of course, the trick is for me to remember  that I shouldn't order it again! I really should have just skipped dessert. Oh well, the evening was still lots of fun--much laughter and, for the most part, really yummy food. 

I need a nap. 

On to my card. The theme this week is "Fuzzy Friends". And this image has a fuzzy-wuzzy bunny. He belongs to Betsy. Who is just as adorable as the bunny. This Rick St. Dennis image, Betsy and the Bunny can be found here. I love coloring Rick's images. They have so much personality and are usually quite detailed. Betsy was printed on Make It Colour Blending Card and colored with Copics and Twin Touch Brush markers: 

Skin: E000, E00, E11, E21, R20

Hair: E11, E13, E15, E18

Flowers and Bunny: R20, R21, R22

Dress: YG00, TTY41, TTY49

Dress Trim, Gloves, Shoes: BG70, BG72

I used a little Copic Spica for Bunny's eyes. Then I did a confetti background and cut the image out with a Spellbinders Labels 10 die. The DP is from the Basic Grey Konnichiwa collection, and was paired with Stampin' Up CS. My sentiment, from Create with TLC, was die cut using a Whimsy Ticket die, and then sponged with SU ink. The flower was created with the following dies: Cheery Lynn Daisy Strip and Embellishment #1. I added a white brad to hold the layers together. My corner die-cuts were made using La-La Land Crafts Corner die. And my flourishes were die-cut using MFT Leaf Flourish die. Then I added some lace from my stash and some SU ribbon, and called it a card.

Do check out the wonderful creations by my talented teammates! And have a wonderful Sunday! I'll be Bach. You can Beethoven. 

Jellypark Friends DT Pretty Pastels Challenge

Yup, our new challenge is Pretty Pastels, perfect for creating spring and/or Easter cards. I am not a big fan of pastels. I prefer more vibrant colors, usually deep, rich colors. Which is actually pretty silly for a Copic user. Pastel colors are much easier to work with. Especially yellows. So did I do yellows on this card? Nope. But I did do a lovely lavender.

Before I get to my card, do you have any fun plans for the weekend? I do. And it all involves eating. Now there's a real shocker for you. On Saturday, we are going out with our monthly dinner club to the Blue Hound in downtown Phoenix. Gary and I went there with friends several weeks ago and loved it. I am really looking forward to a repeat visit. Then, on Sunday, we go to our daughter's for dinner, so that Gary can have a small family birthday celebration. Oh, btw, he really liked the baseball card I made for him. (He also took the double meaning for the sentiment, as I suspected he would.) And he loves the new sheets. I washed them and put them on the bed yesterday, and he told me he really likes how they look. SCORE! 

Anyway, that's what we are up to. Hope you have some fun plans, too. Of course, I have cards to make--one today and one tomorrow, so I'd best get on the stick. My broomstick, of course.

But before I go, I must share my card deets--whether you like it or not. I chose a darling image, Jellypark Friends Girl on a Swing, for my card. I had this idea in my mind about using her on a die-cut branch. Lo and behold, that's actually what I did! Will wonders never cease! First I printed her on Make It Colour Blending Card; then I colored her with Copics:

Skin: E000, E00, E11, E21, R20

Hair: E31, E35, YR20

Barrette: V000, V01, C0

Swing: E31, E35, YG21, YG93, and Twin Touch GY48

I added some Copic Spica to her dress and shoe button. Then I put Wink of Stella Brush Silver on her barrette. 

The colors were based on my DP from the SEI Couture collection. I have hoarded this for months; I finally broke down and grabbed some to use. I really love this collection. Even though it is pastel. Go figure. If it is going to be pastel, it should have lavender in it. (Because my favorite color is actually purple. You know, the color of royalty. I figure I must have been Queen of something in another lifetime.) But I digress....I paired the DP with DCWV CS. 

I cut branches with the following dies: Memory Box Leafy Branch and Woodland Branch. Then I printed a sentiment from Create with TLC and die-cut it with Spellbinders Classic Ovals and framed it with Spellbinders Lacey Ovals. Voila! My card was done. I had to make a simple card, because I had a couple of sinus headaches this week that kept me from crafting much.

You know the kinds of headache those are, right? The ones where the pressure and pain increases if you bend forward. Try coloring without bending over. (It's kind of hard for me to color lying flat on my back.) So it was difficult to work on this card. You know what helped? The dinner we had for Gary's birthday Wednesday night.

Back-story: we were supposed to go to Turkish Kitchen, which had rave reviews from several sources and made the Best New Restaurant list in the Phoenix Magazine last fall. It sounded really good to Gary, and he picked it for his birthday dinner; I wasn't really in the mood for Turkish cuisine, but it was his birthday dinner, so off we went to Chandler. All I could think of was that I wanted to go to Hot Pot instead, which isn't far from the Turkish Kitchen location. But I kept my mouth shut. Yay, me!!!

Well, the TK is gone! Out of business. What? What the heck happened? Who knows, but Gary was so disappointed. (Me, not so much.) Then he said that we should go to Hot Pot since it was nearby. Hahahahaha! I got my wish. Without saying a word. Must have been mental telepathy, huh? Or  I could be mentally telepathetic. Whatev. I got to eat where I wanted. I asked him to pick out all the ingredients for our hot pot, including the broth. Ummmmm....I did not want the Thai curry. And that's exactly what he chose. But, this was a very good thing. Because the spicy broth cleared my sinuses out. And relieved the headache. Cool beans, huh? The whole evening worked out perfectly. The service and food were great and I felt better. Too bad about Gary. (Like he never gets what he wants--not!)

Hope you check out the fab creations by my DT'mates. And then, pick out your favorite pastels and give them a whirl. And have a great weekend, whatever your plans are!

Through The Craft Room Door Anything Goes Challenge and Gary's Birthday Card

We are being sponsored this week by Oozak. And, as always, our challenge is Anything Goes. We certainly had a lot of wonderful entries last week, and I expect we will this week, too! Looking forward to them.

So, Gary's birthday is tomorrow. He will be turning the big "65", which could be his retirement age. But, fortunately for my crafting budget, he has decided to work another year or two. I honestly think he would get really bored being home all the time. I hope he finds a part-time job once he does retire, so he doesn't drive me crazy all day! OK, crazier. You got me.

So I managed to make this card without his knowledge. I worked on it while he was in bed sleeping or at work. And, as he doesn't read my blog, he won't see this until he opens the envelope tomorrow.

He didn't want me to buy him a birthday present. He got a fishhook necklace, carved from petrified walrus tusk, when we were in Maui in January. That was supposed to be his birthday gift. So I bought some new sheets for our bed instead of a personal gift. Yeah, I know it will benefit me, too, but they are in the color that he wanted to use as an accent. And I have been waiting almost three years to find them. It's really silly that you have to wait until a color is "in" to use it in your home, don't you think? Oh, they are teal in case you were wondering. And if you weren't, too bad.

I am caught up on my DT comments, but woefully behind in my blog comments. I will get caught up though; I just had to get this card done first. It seems to be a bit impossible to do both at the same time. Perhaps if I grew another set of arms...

I chose another MayzyArt image to color for this card, called Baseball. I think he is really cute, and I thought it was appropriate to use it for Gary's birthday. We have partial-season tickets to weekend games for the Arizona Diamondbacks, and opening day is less than two weeks away. I attempted to color the uniform in D'back colors, and was more or less successful. (Whatever that means.)

The image was printed on Cryogen CS and colored with my Copics:

Eyes: B32, B34

Skin: E000, E00, E11, E21, R20

Hair: E33, E35, E37

Shoes, pants, and bat: E21, E23, E25

Socks, shirt, and hat: E02, E08, E09

Ball: C00, W0

Clouds: C0, C2, C3, W0, B60

Sky: BG0000, BG000

Grass: G20, G21, YG63, YG93, YG97, YG99

My thanks go out to Alyce Keegan for her tutorials on coloring sky, clouds and grass. Obviously I need more practice, but this will have to do for today.

I decided to do another sketch for this card. It saved me time in trying to design something myself. I found the following on Simon Says Stamp! Challenge Blog:

My DP layers for this sketch are from the Basic Grey What's Up collection. (I am going to enter their spring challenge with this card, as well as the Simon Says Challenge.) Card stock is from both Stampin' Up and DCWV. I distressed the DP using Distress Ink. I cut my tree using the Memory Box Grand Oak Tree die, and the fence using the Cheery Lynn Victorian Picket Fence die. I added a bit of Tim Holtz Film Strip Ribbon. And I also made up my own sentiment. Yes, it can be taken two ways--and I did that for Gary. (He has such a weird sense of humor. Mine, however, is quite normal. OK, you can quit rolling your eyes.) The inside reads: "...just don't hurt yourself." I hope he finds it amusing.

That does it for me until Friday. Be sure to check out the cool creations by my fellow teamies!

The Outlawz Greetings Card "Layer It Up" Challenge and Happy Birthday, Barbara!

First of all, I want to wish my sister, Barbara, a very Happy Birthday today! Hope it is fabulous! Love you! Glad you got back to Wisconsin OK.

Secondly, this week, in The Outlawz Greetings Card Challenge, we want you to layer it up. So, do you think this was really a challenge for moi? Not so much. I like to layer, and layer, and then layer some more on most of my cards. So this one was an easy one for me.

We are sponsored again this week by QKR.

I used the image, QKR Bunny Bath, for my card. It was printed on Make It Colour Blending Card and colored with my Copics: Y13, Y15, Y18, Y19, Y21, Y23, Y26, BG0000, W0, W1, W3, W5. I added Diamond Glaze to the water drips and bubbles. Then I cut the image out with a Spellbinders Grand Circle die.

I also used a layering sketch from Sketch Saturday for my design. I am entering this one challenge with my card.

The DP I selected is from the Authentique Blissful collection. The card stock is from DCWV. My sentiment is from Create with TLC, and was cut out using a Spellbinders Classic Rectangle die. I added another large circle using another Spellbinders Grand Circle die. I used other dies for my embellies: Cheery Lynn Lace Egg #7, Cheery Lynn Nesting Eggs, Memory Box Loopy Rings, and Memory Box Filigree Egg.

I am one tired old lady, as I write this in the wee hours of Monday morning. Gary and I went to the Fountain Hills Wine and Art Festival Sunday morning. We met our football friends, Andy and Amy, there and spent a couple of hours walking around checking things out. Had a bite to eat--I ate a decent Greek salad, and Gary had a gyro. I found several things to buy, but only purchased some organic honey caramels. Everything else I wanted came with an extremely steep price tag. And, honestly, if I had pushed hard enough, I think I could have gotten Gary to buy at least one of my favorite items there. But I just didn't feel the real "need" for any of them. Being in the sunshine for two hours just wore me out. (Of course, the wine sampling had nothing to do with that.) I really need to get into shape. Someday. When I have nothing else that takes precedence. Like breathing. Or taking a nap. 

Speaking of taking a nap, I think I will go to bed now. I have to get up pretty early to finish a DT card that goes live tomorrow. And I am just too pooped out to work on it anymore tonight. What is it with fresh air that makes you so tired? I knew I stayed indoors for a good reason.

Wishing you all a wonderful week! Check out the fab cards by my teamies, and then join in the layering fun! Over and out.

Stamptacular Sunday "I DO!" Challenge and Our Anniversary Card

This week’s challenge is going to be so much fun!  We can’t wait to see what you create!

This week's challenge is a…

“I DO!”

For this week's challenge you will create a card or project for a wedding or anniversary! But, please don’t forget to stamp! After all…we don’t call this the STAMPtacular Sunday Challenge for nothing!      

You will have from now until midnight (EST) March 23^rd, 2012 to complete this challenge and post a DIRECT LINK to your submission into our InLinkz in order to be entered into the drawing for this week's fabulous prize donated by:

BUGABOO

PRIZE:  Winner’s Choice of 7 Digis!

Another really great prize given out on Stamptacular Sunday Challenge! Will look forward to seeing the entries for this! 

I have had an interesting week. Translation: some of it really sucked. Like the part where I went to the dentist and found out I have two teeth with root problems. So I am headed to an endodontist for a consultation and diagnosis. Oh, joy.

I may need a retrograde filling in one of them. Now I have had this done. Back in 1967. On the tooth next to the one in question. And it WAS. NOT. FUN. Sorry for yelling. (At least I didn't use red lettering!) Some sadist cuts through the front of your mouth, and then drills through your skull to get at the root tip. It is such a jarring sensation. Nothing like normal dental work, believe me. You think your entire skull is going to crack apart. (Which, in my case, might not be such a bad thing.) Back in '67 they packed my root with amalgam. That means I have mercury inside my head. (And you wonder why I have, let us say, certain brain difficulties. Like remembering stuff. No, it's not because I am old. It's because I have mercury in my head. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.) 

So that's a possibility. The other would be pulling the tooth and then going through the fun of getting an implant. My sister just got two of them, and it took nearly a year to get that done. Oh, goody. I can't wait.

The second tooth is giving me some problems now. I get sharp pains when I bite down on it. (So, Penny, don't bite down on it. Duh!) My dentist says it may have a crack and need a root canal. Or if the crack extends into the root, I may need the tooth pulled and then an implant. Sigh...

So, hi-ho, hi-ho, it's off to the endodontist I go, hi-ho, hi-ho, hi-ho. I really must apologize to my peeps who have really serious health issues facing them. I know that this is just my mouth, and it's not life-threatening. And I must apologize to my sister, who just went through nearly a year of hell getting her teeth fixed. However, this is just not the kind of news you want to hear when you go to get your teeth cleaned. Especially if you are afraid of dental work. Which I am, even though I have had a lot of it. Hey, if it walks like a chicken and clucks like a chicken, it must be a chicken. Bwaaaaaaaack!

So, the other fun stuff this week was that our printer starting conking out on us. It was giving us lines and blotches suddenly. And it took the opportunity to do so when it printed on my very expensive Copic paper. Whaaaaaat? So I cleaned the printer, several times, and still it was acting up. No problem, I can get by without a printer. Not. (All my DT images are digital and have to be printed out.) Help. me.

I didn't have time for Gary to do his usual hours and hours of research before making a purchase. (He does have an engineering background--need I say more?)

Miracle of miracles, my sweet sugar-daddy told me to go ahead and order a new printer. The one we had was maybe 8 or so years old. Which is actually a pretty long life for a printer. But it was slow as molasses. Which drove Gary bonkers. (And he didn't have far to go for that, believe me.) So I actually think Gary was glad that we needed a new printer. It gave him an excuse to get a faster one. 

I did have two days worth of down-time--which didn't help much with getting DT assignments done. Yeah, I am a bit behind, but will catch up again soon. I hope. I did get my dies organized and labelled. Now I don't have to look through each magnetic folder to see what's inside. 

Oh, and I had to set up the printer when I got it, because Gary was bowling that night. And, of course, I screwed up something with our wireless router and our modem. I had to get the modem reset by our internet provider. Lo and behold, the internet refreshes faster now. So that was a bit of a blessing in disguise. And Gary fixed the wireless router, so we are good to go now. Whew! Technology is so much fun.

'K, enough BS. I will now get to my card, which I made for our anniversary. That isn't actually until May 9. But the only other anniversary before then is my sister's, and I didn't want her to see the posting of her card. So I made one for Gary instead. He never reads my blog, so he won't see it ahead of time. I'm sneaky that way. Well, I am sneaky in a lot of ways. But we won't go into that now. I just hope I remember in May that I already made a card for Gary--you know, 'cuz that mercury is messing with my brain!

I chose MayzyArt Tango. This is so perfect for Gary. We used to dance a lot. Took lessons and everything. When we lived in the retirement community we were in a couple of talent (really?) shows. And we did a routine our dance teacher gave us for the first show. Which went surprisingly well. But then came the next show and we choreographed our own tango routine. Uh-oh. Let's just say I get nervous ahead of performing, but then perform fine. Gary is fine before performing, but nervous during. And he had brain-freeze in one performance. So we did a bit of stumbling about before finding the steps again. Hence, the sentiment I came up with for this card.

(And, fyi, there were two other times that Gary had trouble at the end of other routines. He got so upset that I said we had to quit performing in public. It was too hard on his ego. So now we just dance for fun. Takes all the stress out of it!)

I printed 'Tango' on Make It Colour Blending Card, and then colored it with my Copics: 

                        Skin: E000, E00, E11, E21, R20, R22

                        Hair: Y21, YR23, E33, E35

                        Shoes & Dress: BV11, BV13, BV17

                        Shoes & Shirt:  YR21, YR23, YR24, YR27

                        Slacks: E23, E25, E27, E29 

                       And a touch of B32 for the eyes

The image was fussy-cut and mounted on DP from the Bo Bunny Weekend Market Collection, which had been paired with Stampin' Up CS. I added a bit of lace and some die cuts. I used the following dies:  SCACD Alice's Clock Statement Corner and Classic Timepiece; Memory Box Graceful Chandelier; Spellbinders Classic Circles. That's it for me.

Hope you are having a great weekend! Do check out the wonderful cards by my talented teamies!

And I was encouraged to enter this into The Corrosive Challenge, which went live today also. And so I did--thank you, Linda!

The Outlawz Greetings Card "Gotta Have Green" Challenge/Larry's Birthday Card

Yup, this week you gotta have green--any shade you want--somewhere on your card. It's in honor of St. Patrick's Day next Sunday, doncha know. And it seems to be a popular theme across Challenge-land this week. So you can certainly enter more than one challenge with your card! This week we are once again being sponsored by Bugaboo Stamps.

You know how I moaned and groaned about my recent haircut? Well, I took care of that problem this morning. I shaved my head. Thought Gary and I could be the Bobbsey Twins. Are any of you old enough to remember reading the books about the adventures of the Bobbsey Twins? Unfortunately, I am. Oh, yeah, and about my bald head--I was just kidding. But it's not such a bad idea, really. Would make for really cheap hair maintenance when Gary retires. Just think, no more shampoo, hair thickening products, hair spray, time wasted on styling, etc. How fab would that be? And then Gary and I could get matching visors, and we could both look like Ian Poulter. I think I could rock this look as much as Gary does, don't you?

No? Aw, c'mon, I really, really could. Just think of the looks we would get! And we'd be cracking up all the time. I am just thinking about it. We laughed so hard when Gary put this hat on. I still wish he had bought it when he had the chance. Party pooper.

I managed to get a card made for the next issue of Through The Craft Room Door. I think there is a gift bag I made going into that issue as well. It's a fun magazine, full of creations, tutorials, and free digi images. So if you don't have a subscription, you can get one here. I don't know the date of the new issue, but it will be out soon. In the meantime, you can check out the magazine by clicking on the Jan/Feb video at the top right on my blog. 

And now to today's card. I had to make a card for my brother, Larry, whose birthday is the 25th. Holy moly, Rocky, I have it ready early! Yay, me! Anyway, this is a most auspicious birthday for Larry. Whose name is really Harry, like my dad's. His name is actually Harry Lawrence, so we called him Larry. And I thoughtfully called him Hairy Larry when he was little. I'm really nice that way. He loves me for all the nice things I did to him as a kid. Yeah, probably not. Back to the card--it is for his 60th birthday. And so I had to tease him a bit--because he has made fun of me for almost four years for being in my 60's. However, I don't think this card is too mean, do you?

I used Bugaboo Gus Birthday Recount. I love the Gus and Stella images. They look so darn cantankerous. Just what I imagine I will be in a few years. Though some may argue I am already there. I beg their pardon! But, just give me time, Peeps, just give me time. 

I printed old Gus on Cryogen CS and then colored him with my Copics:

 Skin: E000, E00, E11, E21, R20

Hair: C1, C3, C5

Clothing: B93, B95, B97, YG93, YG95, YG97

Hey, I finally did it--gave you the actual usage of my colors! Don't expect that every time, though. Because I may forget. I'm old, remember? I have started adding a bit of E21 to the skin color--thank you, Alyce! I also have to thank Pops for the idea of adding Pearl Pen to the background of the image. (I have seen her do it many times, and finally tried it myself--I like it!)

I chose MME Lost & Found Breeze DP, which I paired with Stampin' Up and DCWV CS. I sponged a bit of SU ink around my image, on my DP and CS, and on my balloon die cuts. Those die cuts were made with the Whimsy Balloon Die Set. I used Memory Box Typewriter Number dies to cut the "60". I finished the card by cutting apart the sentiment before adhering it, adding baker's twine to the balloons, and putting Diamond Glaze on Gus' glasses.

Be sure to check out the fab cards by my talented teammates. And get your green on! Hope this week is wonderful for each and every one of you! I am off to get caught up on blog comments.

Stamptacular Sunday "To DIE For" Challenge

This week’s challenge is going to be so much fun!  We can’t wait to see what you create!

This week's challenge is a…

“To DIE For!”

For this week's challenge you will create a card or project using any type of die. But, please don’t forget to stamp! After all…we don’t call this the STAMPtacular Sunday Challenge for nothing!      

You will have from now until midnight (EST) March 16^th, 2012 to complete this challenge and post a DIRECT LINK to your submission into our InLinkz in order to be entered into the drawing for this week's fabulous prize donated by:

WHOOPSI DAISY

PRIZE:  TWO Sheets of DIGIS used by DT!

Hey, what a great prize, right? As you can see, I didn't use a Whoopsi Daisy image on my card. I was gone to Hawaii when all the images were chosen for our various sponsors. But I did manage to use a cool image for today's card anyway. 

We are having lots of cool weather and tons of rain here in the Arizona desert. Well, maybe not tons of rain, but certainly buckets of it. My yard is still flooded from Friday's rain. And we had more on Saturday. Today's forecast is for clear skies and mid-60's. I can handle that. Just no more rain, please. This isn't Seattle, after all! 

Useless info: I needed a haircut, and my normal stylist wasn't available last week. Nor would she be in the upcoming two weeks. What? How can that be? I needed my hair done like NOW! (Sorry for yelling.) But doesn't that happen to you? You go merrily along with your life. Then, all of a sudden, in one day, your hair just. looks. awful. You can't do a thing with it. And you need help--immediately.

So when I called, and my gal was on vacation, I begged for someone else to cut my hair--yes, I know it was a risk, but anything had to be better than what I had. (At least I thought so at the time.) And I was so excited to get my hair cut, that I showed up an hour early for it. Ooops! Well, no matter, I had to go buy dog food anyway, And I figured I could go to Hobby Lobby, too, in the extra time that I had.

Too bad for Gary. I definitely had time for Hobby Lobby--to the tune of $50! Eeeks! I just kept grabbing more and more cute little theme buttons. Because I don't have nearly enough to start my own store. And I got more tulle, and some pearl flourishes. Because a store has to have those to open for business, too! I think I am ready now. Nawww, just kidding. But Gary tells everyone I have enough stock to open a small store--and he is not far from right. 

Yup, that haircut really cost him. And me. Because I am not happy with it. Remind me never to see that girl again! Geesh. She skinned one side of my head, and nearly pulled my hair out while she was trimming the back. Which hurt. And was a first for me. (Hopefully a last.) My word. The only saving grace is that my hair will grow back. And the next time I need a haircut, I will see my regular stylist.

Okey dokey, enough chit-chat. I have much to do, as usual. And not enough time to get it done. So here goes:

I chose an image called Mae by Rick St. Dennis. She is hot-stuff, huh? I printed her on Make It Colour Blending Card and colored her with Copics: BG90, BG93, BG96, E000, E00, E11, E21, E55, E57, R00, R01, R02, R11, C3, C5, C7, C9. I accented her lips and jewelry with Wink of Stella in clear--a new product that Pops got me started on. It is a fine-tip, brush-on glitter. So far I love it. It's really easy to apply and gives quite the shine, which, of course, never shows in the photos. Oh well....

I decided to use a CLP sketch this time, so I will be entering that challenge with my card. I have to say, I had a really tough time designing this card. I just couldn't get my paper, etc. to fit in with the sketch the way I was envisioning it. It took me 3 days to get this card done. Gag me.  

During all that craziness, I chose DP from the Basic Grey Curio collection and paired it with Stampin' Up CS. The image was fussy-cut and popped on the top of the card front. This was after layering DP, CS, and Copic-dyed lace. Die cuts were made using: Spellbinders Grand Ovals die; La-La Land Crafts Dress Form die; SCACD Classic Corner die; Cheery Lynn Victorian Romance Flourish die. I also added some Queen & Co. Rhinestones; a dress form button; and a Create with TLC sentiment, which had been die-cut using the Whimsy Ticket die. I sponged the sentiment with some SU ink. And then I called it a week day. 

I'm going to take my bad haircut and go hide in my craft room now. I hope you will check out the fabulous cards by my teammates and then start crafting your own "to die for" card. Have a great week! 

Jellypark Friends March 8th Release

OK, somebody please explain to me what happened to the last four weeks. It can't already be time for another Jellypark release that I do a creation for, can it? I must be living in the Twilight Zone, where your life flashes by instantaneously. Help. me. please.

You know what else this means? That I need to share the last of our Hawaii photos before they are ancient history. Yeah, I know, I really dragged this out, didn't I? Tough.

So I didn't take any more photos on Maui that last day. I think I was photographed out. I had taken more than 900 total pictures after all. Gary, not so much. He only took about 300. He is more thoughtful about his photos, but then he is an engineering program manager, so that figures, right? Anyway, he traipsed around the Westin grounds on our last morning there to get some shots of the hotel. And then he got dizzy with that inner ear disturbance, although I don't think I can make that a cause-and-effect situation.

Without further ado, or adon't, here is the end of our trip:

I think you can tell that there are several levels to the swimming pools, that there are a few waterfalls, and that the grounds are really pretty. I enjoyed sitting outside reading in the various beautiful areas; however, we will never stay there again. The rooms are just too tiny to enjoy being in at night. Or in the daytime. Or anytime, for that matter. I mean, after all, when a hotel doesn't even have a comfy chair for lounging in the room, well, I mean, really! (Gosh, what am I--a prima donna or something? After all, I was in Hawaii for goodness' sake! And I have the audacity to complain? Smack me now.) (But we still won't go back to the Maui Westin Hotel.)

We return to our regularly scheduled program. There are two darling new images again in this Jellypark release. One is a sweet Time for Tea image with two little girls; the other is the pretty Two Love Birds and Cage image that I chose to use. I wanted a chance to use my Poppystamps Nestled Bird and Vintage Bird Cage dies. And I found some bird DP, part of the MME Lost & Found Blush collection, which I paired with Stampin' Up CS. So my card was shaping up.

I printed my image on Make It Colour Blending Card, and then colored it with Copics: RV00, RV32, RV34, BG70, BG72, BG75. I think those are the fewest colors I have ever used to color an image!

I decided to use a sketch this time, and chose the one for the current challenge at Sketch Saturday, which I am entering with my card.

I not only combined bird DP with bird die cuts, but I added a Maya Road Little Birdie trinket. Bird, bird, bird, bird is the word. (Name that tune.) I also added a mini clothespin, some Stampin' Up ribbon, Cheery Lynn Lace Corner Deco E die cuts, and two Whimsy mini ticket die cuts, which were stamped with Whimsy Love Mini Ticket stamps. 

And that does it for this card. Be sure to check out the fab release cards done by my talented teammates. While you're at it, check out the wonderful challenge cards by the rest of our great DT, too. Then join us in our "Bunny Hop Challenge", which runs for the next two weeks.

Have a great weekend!

Through The Craft Room Door Anything Goes Challenge

It feels like I have been permanently fused to my computer keyboard. I am caught up on my comments at the moment, and I have been blogging as well. I need to get back to my craft room and make. more. cards. Yup, yup, yup. 

But, first, I must get to the details for this week's TTCRD challenge--always anything goes, but you know that, right? This week's sponsor is:

Whoopsi Daisy has lots of darling images. We were given our choice of several to use, and I chose #862. I don't think the images have names, just numbers. I thought this image was really pretty. 

I had decided to do her in pretty yellows and pinks, so I checked my stash for DP in those colors. Lo and behold, Stampin' Up Razzleberry Lemonade just fit the bill. It was certainly easy to pair with CS! 

I printed my image on Make It Colour Blending Card and colored it with Copics: R20, YG93, YG97, Y21, RV13, RV14, RV17, RV63, RV66, RV69, C0, C2, C4, YR20, YR21, YR23, YR24, YR27, E000, E00, E11, E21, E31, E33. I also added some Copic Spica to her eyelids. Then I sponged SU ink around the edges, added some die cut corners made with La-La Land Crafts Corner die, and mounted her on layered CS. I added layered DP and CS, a bow made with Bazzill Basics ribbon, and a tiny doily made from the Cheery Lynn Mini Italian Flourish die. My sentiment was created using a Whimsy Ticket sentiment and a Whimsy Ticket die. 

Have to tell you that I feel like a bit of an idiot. Who, me? Yes. Me, truly. Because I finally watched Whimsy's video on how to use their sentiments with their dies. And, oh by gosh, by golly, is it ever easy. I can't even explain what I was trying to do, which was really clumsy. And idiotic. So I had been ignoring my Whimsy dies and stamps for the most part. I do believe I will be using them a lot more in the future, now that I know how.

Looking forward to all of your entries this week! Perhaps you'll even try a Whoopsi Daisy image. Do check out the fab cards done by my talented teammates!  

Stamptacular Sunday Challenge is Back!

Just want everyone to know that our challenge is back finally--no more issues with malware! Thank heavens!

So please get your entries in for our new Sketch Challenge! Looking forward to seeing them!

The Outlawz Greetings Card "Spring is in the Air" Challenge

Our challenge to you this week is "Spring is in the Air". We'd like to see something that would include flowers and butterflies. We are sponsored by QKR Stampede, a company with lots of fun images. 

As a matter of fact, I just saw them this past weekend in Mesa, Arizona, at the Rubber Stamp Show that is held there twice a year. My sister, Barbara, and I spent Saturday morning at the show. Blowing our money at two booths each. We both bought a lot of items, mostly Cheery Lynn dies, at the Sweet Stamps booth. Then Barbara went to Stamps by Judith for some new rubber stamps, and I went to Judikins for some Diamond Glaze. 

I didn't buy any stamps at QKR, because I use their digi images. I rarely buy stamps anymore, as I've found I'd rather work with digis. It is so easy to size them and storage is a dream! 

Gary wasn't too thrilled when I told him how much I had spent. But he also wasn't really angry either. He is my bestest sugar daddy, doncha know. Besides, I knew ahead of time that he will get a bonus from work in the near future--and I had to help him spend it. Before he did something silly, like invest the money. I can't die-cut a retirement account, now can I?

I was invited to a party Saturday night, but due to spending time at the convention, I couldn't go. Too much crafting to get done. Crazy, isn't it? I am almost caught up again, but just as soon as I say that, something else will happen, and I'll once more be behind. Why? Well, it's a Murphy's Law, isn't it? If any of you find Murphy, especially before St. Patrick's Day, send him on a long vacation, OK? I thank you.

Oh, and I just had a memory flash of St. Paddy's Day in 1977. I was working for an architect in downtown St. Paul. As an office manager. Of one. In other words, I was more like a Girl Friday. And Monday. And Tuesday...well, you get the idea. I did it all. Including running lots of errands for the office. And that particular day I had to go out for something. OMG! I knew then, and there, I would never work in downtown St. Paul on St. Patrick's Day again! It was AWFUL! Oh, sorry for shouting, but it really was. There were so many inebriated people on the street. Throwing beer bottles and garbage. It was an excuse for everyone to act like bozos. I was a young thing then--to be exact, I was 27. And drunk guys were making physical contact with me as I walked down the street. Gag. Me. Aren't you glad I shared that memory? And, just why can I remember something that happened 36 years ago, when I have no idea what I did 36 minutes ago? Inquiring minds want to know.

OK, I will put you out of your misery now and give you the details on my card. I used QKR Picking Flowers, because this is a flower and butterfly challenge, right? I'm on top of things like that. I printed this cutie on Make It Color Blending Card and colored her with Copics: Y32, Y35, Y38, R20, BG90, BG93, BG96, E000, E00, E21, E23, E25, E31, E50, E51, E53, G000, G12. Then I fussy-cut her, and popped her on top of some cheesecloth. Which was on top of a die-cut doily, which was on top of some other die cuts, which were on top of some Stampin' Up ribbon, which was on top of some DP from the Prima Sun Kiss collection, which was layered on top of some Bazzill and Stampin' Up CS. 

The other components are the butterfly die cuts and the Create with TLC sentiment, (which was also die cut and layered), as well as the corner die cuts. And the dies I used for this card were: Cheery Lynn French Pastry Doily and Exotic Butterfly Medium; Memory Box Kaleidoscope and Vivienne Butterflies; Spellbinders Marvelous Squares and Scalloped Squares; Marianne Designs Garden Branch and Decorative Elegance; and SCACD Classic Corner.

We had a great turnout last week, and are hoping for the same this week! So, dream of spring and show us your blooms 'n 'flies. And be sure to check out the fabulous cards by my talented teammates!

Stamptacular Sunday Sketch Challenge

This week’s challenge is going to be so much fun!  We can’t wait to see what you create!

This week's challenge is a…

“SKETCH Challenge!”

For this week's challenge you will create a card or project using the above sketch as your inspiration!  Please feel free to flip it, flop it, twist it, turn it and add any embellishments your heart desires as long as we can still see the original sketch in your final results.  But, please don’t forget to stamp!  After all…we don’t call this the STAMPtacular Sunday Challenge for nothing!      

You will have from now until midnight (EST) March 9^th, 2012 to complete this challenge and post a DIRECT LINK to your submission into our InLinkz in order to be entered into the drawing for this week's fabulous prize donated by:

Paper Temptress

PRIZE:  $25 Gift Certificate!

AND

TOTALLY STAMPALICIOUS

PRIZE:  Winner's Choice of ONE Stamp Set!

Can't wait to see what you come up with. I am not sure when I will see it, though, because Chrome will not let me through to the website. It says there is malware there, and has been that way for the last three days. So I have not commented on anyone's entries for a while. I apologize for that. As soon as Chrome permits it, I will go back and comment on last week's entries that I missed.

I created a card for my sister, Merrilyn, who had knee replacement surgery last Tuesday. The surgery was successful, and she is home recovering. She had a rough couple of days following the surgery, but is doing very well now. Our other sister, Barbara, has been there to help Merrilyn, as she was for Merrilyn's other knee replacement last summer. Barbara, you are the best! 

I have many things to do yet today, so will keep this short and share more with you tomorrow.

I chose the darling Saturated Canary Sparkle Nurse for my image. She was printed on Make It Colour Blending Card and colored with Copics: E000, E00, E11, E21, E33, E35, E81, R20, Y00, Y21, YR23, C00, C0, C1, C2, C7, C9, YG11, YG13, BG32, BG34, G00. I painstakingly fussy-cut her, because I do not have a Cameo to do that for me.

My DP is from the Kaisercraft Chapter One collection, which was paired with Stampin' Up CS. My corner die cut was created from an SCACD Classic Corners die. The last element is a sentiment I created on the computer, because it just fit for the image and the surgery. (That's my story, and I'm stickin' to it.)

As soon as you are able, please check out the always fantastic creations by my fellow DT members. Have fun with the sketch, and have a great week!