Sweet Sunday Birthday Girl

It's time for this week's Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge, SSSC95. You'll find the sketch on Karen Giron's blog The Sweetest Thing.

I switched gears from my usual Sunday Christmas cards because I need to beef up my stash of birthday cards. The first few months of the year are a busy birthday time in my family so I thought I'd get a little head start.

This week's sketch seemed perfect for one of the tall, slim, a-la-mode images from MFT so I pulled out my Birthday Girl set. I stamped her with Memento Tuxedo black and coloured most of her with copics. Her dress is paper pieced though, with one of the patterns from my Cosmo  Cricket Circa 1934 mini deck. That wee bit of paper piecing was definitely a labour of love because it's behind the cupcake, so then I had to paper piece the cupcake on top of it, but I love the end result and would do it again in a heart beat. I added sparkle to the black bow, her shoes and her hair band with my clear Spica glitter pen and gave her a sparkly diamond necklace. I cut some patterned flowers with my flower trio die-namics and added the fun black scallop detail with my little open scallop. I didn't mean to stitch on every layer...it just kinda happened...and I love it!!!

I hope you'll play along with this week's sketch and link your creation on Karen's blog. Now let's go see what gorgeous creations the rest of the Sweet Sunday Stampers created.
Jen Tapler - she's taking this week off for a little R&R
Joanne Basile
Laura Fredrickson
Lynn Put
Sarah-Jane Kale'
Vicki Burdick
and Karen Giron

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Taylored Expressions Release Day!

It's finally shopping time at Taylored Expressions! All the new stamps, dies and impression plates are now available in the TE Store. But before you head off to fill your cart, the Baker's Dozen has a recap of the new sets with more creative ideas to share.

I used one of the super cute new Crafty Petites sets, Kitschy Kitchen, for my card today and I made another 4.25" square card. I stamped the oven with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Buttercream and coloured it with copics. I added just  a smidge of sparkle with my red Spica glitter pen but it's not showing too well in the photo. I {heart} this oven image...it reminds me of the oven at my parents cottage (well, not the colours, just the style) and that brings back all kinds of fond memories!!!

The layout is MTSC102 and I used patterned papers from my October Afternoon Farm Fresh 8x8 pad. I thought the gingham was almost like a picnic table cloth. My lacey square Nestabilities were the perfect frame for this darling oven. For the flower embellishment I used one of the images from Friendship Blooms, stamped it with Colorbox Blue Lagoon, and cut it out with the coordinating Friendship Blooms Dies. A single clear rhinestone adds just the right amount of sparkle.

Here's the die I used today:

Have fun hopping around and checking out the rest of the fabulous projects and then, happy shopping! Don't forget to check out the Fresh Out of the Oven section for all the new release products and more!!

Charmaine Ikach

Danielle Lounds

Donna Baker

Jackie Pedro

Jodi Collins

Karen Giron

Melissa Sauls

Regina Mangum

Sankari Wegman

Taylor VanBruggen

Tori Wild

illustrator, Nancy McKinney

and special guest baker, Mona Pendleton

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Taylored Expressions Sneak Peek Day 2-Crafty Petites

We're back for another day of sneak peeks with Taylored Expressions. Today the Baker's Dozen is sharing four sweet new stamp sets that are perfect for last minute gifts, stocking stuffers, secret Santa exchanges, etc. These sets are a new, smaller size measuring 3"x5.5" and they're called the Crafty Petites. Wait til you see them...they're just too cute to believe and priced at just $7.95 I know you'll want them all for yourself so you'd better order extras! The Crafty Petites come with a full colour index panel and each set contains 7 or 8 images and sentiments in the same deeply etched rubber as other TE sets. All the new products will be available in the TE Store tomorrow, Friday, December 3rd.

I worked with two of the Crafty Petites sets for my projects today, Sew Happy and Collector's Anonymous, and even though the sets are different I think they work really well together. I created a little gift for a crafty friend and a coordinating card.

Let's start with the little box of buttons. I started with a clear acetate box and decorated it with polka dot paper from my Pixielicious mini deck. I used my new small scallop border die on some purple as an accent and placed some Crystal Twinkles between the scallops for a little bling (I really like the effect of twinkles between scallops!). The button jar from Collector's Anonymous is stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Buttercream and coloured with copics. I meant to add glossy accents over the entire jar to look like glass but I completely forgot! When I finished this project I was so excited to photograph it, the glossy accents completely slipped my mind...doh!

Isn't that sentiment hilarious!! I adore it, and I think it's absolutely perfect for a little gifty item like this...it cracks me up!!! You could fill these little acetate boxes with other items like ribbons or spools of thread and hang them on the tree as ornaments...a gift and decoration all in one!

Next up I created a coordinating card to go along with my box-o-buttons and I used the new Sew Happy set. The finished size of this card is 4.25" square and I think this smaller size is perfect for the Crafty Petites sets!!!

I stamped the sewing machine with Memento Tuxedo Black onto Choice Buttercream and coloured it with copics before cutting it out. I used my circle Nestabilities on the purple polka dot paper from my Pixielicious mini deck and backed it with some Buttercream that I cut out with my lacey circle Nestabilities (with more Crystal Twinkles of course!). Take a look at the background paper...that's the 'other' side of the new Circles & Scallops Taylored Impression plate...swoon!!! I had to add some sewing on this card since it is a sewing themed set, but I used my corner chomper on the bottom corners first, then I finished it with a buttercream bow and a button.

Here's the die and impression plate I used today:

Don't forget to click this link for comprehensive instructions and videos on how to use the TE dies and impression plates. I'm pretty sure you'll be hooked once you give them a try! Also, Taylor has a new video showing the four different size sets offered at Taylored Expressions and she talks a little about each of them.

Now let's go see what the rest of the Baker's Dozen created with the Crafty Petites sets. Our talented Whimsical Wishes illustrator, Nancy McKinney, is playing along today also.

Charmaine Ikach
Danielle Lounds
Donna Baker
Jackie Pedro
Jodi Collins
Karen Giron
Karen Motz
Melissa Sauls
Nancy McKinney
Regina Mangum
Sankari Wegman
Taylor VanBruggen
Tori Wild

Tomorrow is release day and I'll be back with another project using a different Crafty Petites set.
Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Taylored Expressions Sneak Peek Day 1-Friendship Blooms

Taylored Expressions has a fun array of products this month and I, for one, had a blast making my card today. Not only are the stamps new, there are new dies and a Taylored Impression plate!!! All the new products will be available in the TE Store starting Friday, December 3rd.

The new set we're sharing today is all about friends...Friendship Blooms...the newest addition to the Whimsical Wishes line which is illustrated by Nancy McKinney.  I stamped the flowers with Memento Lady Bug and Colorbox Rouge. The centers are Memento Potter's Clay and Colorbox Blue Lagoon, and the stems are Memento Bamboo Leaves. I used the coordinating Friendship Blooms Dies to cut out the flowers and used my 1/2" circle punch for the centers.

Do you see that gorgeous texture on the background paper? That was done with my new Scallops & Circles Taylored Impression plate...I used the 'circles' side. There's also a new border die...actually TE is releasing three new border dies, but I used the Medium Scallop Border Die on the orange strip, then I placed some orange Tiny Twinkles for a little sparkle. The patterned paper is MME Fine & Dandy Tickled Pink.

Here are the dies and impression plate I used:

Don't forget that all Taylored Expressions stamp sets are deeply etched rubber stamps on cling foam and they come already cut out so you can start stamping as soon as you receive your package! And Taylor makes it easy to get a great impression perfect cuts with your new Taylored Impression plates and Taylored Dies...just follow the sandwich 'recipes' below for the Cuttlebug and Big Shot and click on this link for more detailed instructions and 'how to' videos for both the dies and impression plates. 

Now let's go see what the rest of the Baker's Dozen created using Friendship blooms and the fabulous new dies!
Charmaine Ikach
Danielle Lounds
Donna Baker
Jackie Pedro
Jodi Collins
Karen Giron
Melissa Sauls
Regina Mangum
Sankari Wegman
Taylor VanBruggen
Tori Wild
Nancy McKinney

I'll be back tomorrow with another sneak peek.
Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Flurry of Love

It was a chilly, chilly weekend but it was sunny and bright...not snowy and blustery. So I decided to create a little snow storm of my own with my card today.

This month's MFT guest designer challenge is to use stitching...something I do on pretty much every card anyway, so it seemed like the perfect challenge to play along with.

I used my Pure Innocence Flurry of Love set. The first thing I thought of was putting her on navy with big white snowflakes all around her. I stamped the image with Memento Tuxedo black, paper pieced her coat and hat with one of the patterns from my Pink Paisley 365 Degrees 6x6 pad. I coloured the rest with copics. I added some sugar sparkly fluff to the hat and boots then cut her out.

I would normally use white liquid applique for the falling snow but this is a stitching challenge so I dug out some white embroidery floss and created the snow with french knot stitches. Now, it's been a really long time since I did any embroidery so I had to google how to do a french knot. LOL!!! Thank goodness for You Tube, eh?!?

I used three layers of white felt for the snow on the ground but I wanted to make it look like the strong wind had blown it into ripples...kinda like the waves do to sand on the beach...so I added plenty of machine stitching on each layer. I played around with adding ribbon and embellishments but nothing looked right so I opted for a very simple layout that lets the image shine.

I did want to add a sentiment though so I ended up decorating the inside...more stitching of course and I also used my jumbo ric rac and let it snowflake die-namics.

You know when a card just makes you smile? Well this one just makes me smile...I keep picking it up and looking at it, and smiling. I know...nerdy, but hey, it's the little things, right?

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

Happy Holiday Mittens

Well it's Sunday, but it's not Sweet Sunday...we're taking the week off from the Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge...pout...pout...pout. Karen's traveling for Thanksgiving and I think time ran out on her (or some excuse like that! LOL!!!) before they left. But the good news is Sweet Sundays will resume next week.  :-)

At first I was at a loss...what will I do without a Sweet Sunday sketch?!? Then I saw Jen's Sketch For You To Try yesterday and I knew it'd been way too long since I played along with one of her fabulous sketches, so that's the layout for my card.

The felt mittens are something I saw Jodi do a while back and I thought it was so clever so I'm shamelessly casing her idea. I used the oven mitt die from the Kitchen Accessories, cut two mitts from red felt and flipped one of them over. The string attaching them is red Baker's Twine. Did you ever have mittens on strings...it was quite common where I'm from because no little kid wanted to loose a mitten in the dead of winter...it's cooooold in Northern Ontario! The sentiment is from Sparkle & Cheer and the snowflakes are from Winter Wonderland and they're both stamped with Memento Grape Jelly. I cut out the snowflakes with the smallest of the coordinating Winter Wonderland Snowflake dies. All the papers, ribbon and rhinestones are from my Snow Day Project Pantry. I love all the purple in this kit and couldn't resist using the dark purple as an accent. Doesn't it look so pretty cut out with my scalloped eyelet border die?

The sale continues at Taylored Expressions!!!

Now through Cyber Monday Taylored Expressions has some fantastic deals for you! Visit our Black Friday Blowout Department to see them all in one place. Here is just a sampling of what you'll see when you get there:

Stamp Sets - Purchase any 5 full sized Stamp Sets and GET ONE FREE!

Taylored Expressions T-shirts (3 styles to choose from) at 25% off!

Twinkles Special - Buy 2 Multi Colored Twinkles and get a Free Package of Crystal Twinkles.

Stickers and Tags - Purchase either the Sweet Season or Waiting for Santa sticker sheet and receive a set of 10 coordinating die cut tags free.

Key Ingredients Subscription - TE is lowering the monthly subscription fee for a 3 Month KI Subscriptionfrom $25.95 per month to $23.95 per month just for this 4 day sale. Normally you would need to subscribe for 6 months to get that monthly rate. This is a great time to give Key Ingredients a try!

A la Carte Stamps - Purchase any 3 Animals in Love A la Carte stamps and GET ONE FREE!

AND SO MUCH MORE!!!! Click over to the Black Friday Blowout Department now through Tuesday at 12:01am CST to take advantage of these incredible deals. Some quantities are limited, so for best selection shop early!

Here are the dies I used on today's card:

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen

I'm So Grateful For You

Well, this is a bit of an unplanned post but I just couldn't let today go by without some acknowledgement. Did you know that today is my blogoversary? Well frankly, I didn't realize it either until one of my readers left a comment on the previous post wishing me a happy blogoversary...Thank you Teena in Toronto!!!! Shame on me for not keeping track (really, I have no excuse...there's a blogoversary counter thingy on my sidebar! LOL!!!), but I'm grateful that someone brought it to my attention.

So I made a card for all of you...my blog readers. I still can't believe I've been doing this for 2 years now...and to think I started this little blog "just to get me stamping again". Well I'll tell you, I would probably still be blogging even if you weren't here, but it's a whole lot more FUN with you along for the ride!  :-)

I used my Framed Greetings and coordinating die-namic from MFT...it just seemed like THE perfect sentiment for what I wanted to express in this post. The layout is this week's Mojo Monday sketch, Mojo166. And the MFT Wednesday Stamp Club challenge this week is 'thankful for...' so this card definitely qualifies. The patterned papers are from my October Afternoon Thrift Shop pad and I paired them with island mist light, sunflowers medium, kiwi kiss and a pop of black. I also used my jumbo scallop die-namic and my flower trio die-namic.

Thank you for stopping by!!!!
Karen

Happy Turkey Day and a Blow Out Sale at Taylored Expressions

My card today is dedicated to everyone who will be spending time in the kitchen. And really, pretty much every woman will be in the kitchen at some point today, so three cheers for the cooks!!!! If you're in the USA then you're likely preparing something for Thanksgiving dinner and I'd like to wish you a happy turkey day!

I used my What's Cookin'? set from Taylored Expressions along with the coordinating apron die. The apron is mostly paper pieced with patterns from Cosmo Cricket's Circa 1934 papers and the red parts are coloured with copics. The layout is this week's Splitcoast sketch, SC308, and I used my take note die 3 on the red layer. My scalloped eyelet border die seemed like a perfect fit for all the dots in the patterned papers and I added plenty of Twinkles to the apron, the border and the top corners of the card.

Now for the best part of my post...A SALE!!!!!!!

Now through Cyber Monday Taylored Expressions has some fantastic deals for you! Visit our Black Friday Blowout Department to see them all in one place. Here is just a sampling of what you'll see when you get there:

Stamp Sets - Purchase any 5 full sized Stamp Sets and GET ONE FREE!

Taylored Expressions T-shirts (3 styles to choose from) at 25% off!

Twinkles Special - Buy 2 Multi Colored Twinkles and get a Free Package of Crystal Twinkles.

Stickers and Tags - Purchase either the Sweet Season or Waiting for Santa sticker sheet and receive a set of 10 coordinating die cut tags free.

Key Ingredients Subscription - TE is lowering the monthly subscription fee for a 3 Month KI Subscriptionfrom $25.95 per month to $23.95 per month just for this 4 day sale. Normally you would need to subscribe for 6 months to get that monthly rate. This is a great time to give Key Ingredients a try!

A la Carte Stamps - Purchase any 3 Animals in Love A la Carte stamps and GET ONE FREE!

AND SO MUCH MORE!!!! Click over to the Black Friday Blowout Department now through Tuesday at 12:01am CST to take advantage of these incredible deals. Some quantities are limited, so for best selection shop early!


Here are the dies I used on this card:

Thanks for stopping by!
Karen