CAS-ual Fridays Stamps New Release (Day 3)

Hello! It's Day 3 over CAS-ual Friday's Stamps blog! We are having some sneak peeks at this set called Lotsa Links.

If you like border stamps, this is IT! Here is my little example:

I stamped the links and colored in space...easy!  It's GREAT for making masculine cards, too! Please stop by CAS-ual Friday's Stamps blog for more inspiration! Remember to leave a comment there and you just might win yourself some new stamps!!

Just a reminder to vote for my Gallery Idol entry (see here)
The voting ends tomorrow noon (at Mountain Time). Thanks for stopping by! 

CAS-ual Fridays Stamps New Release (Day 2)

For my Gallery Idol entry, please click on the top right side bar. PLEASE vote!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 This is my 2nd post for the day, for Runway Inspired Challenge, please click here or scroll down.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 It's Day 2 over CAS-ual Friday's Stamps Blog! We are having some sneak peeks at this stamp set called Shenanigan. 
 
  The sentiments in this set are really useful and FUN! I stamped a few of them and used banner diecuts and sequins to add some wow factors! Hope you like it!

Please check out my DT mates' creative takes on this stamp set over CAS-ual Friday's Stamps Blog. The comment feature in this post has been turned off. Please leave me your feedback here if you like. Thanks for stopping by! 

Runway Inspired Challenge #38

For my Gallery Idol entry, please click on the top right side bar or check out my entry here.
Please please vote! Thank you!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hello Gorgeous!

It's Runway Inspired Challenge time! I hope this challenge will make you try something new and different. I normally will not come up with a color combo like this fashion photo. But, boy,  do I love that for a challenge! It really forced me to examine this runway photo in detail! Isn't it just gorgeous?

I noticed the colors, shine and textures on the fabric, so I came up with this design.

My dry embossing folders have been in idle for the longest time. I love dry-embossed floral and diamond images on the shiny card stock! I stamped and diecut a butterfly and added it to the white strip. I love how even and polished it looks!

I hope you check out my DT mates inspiring projects for this challenge (see here).
  ~ Jennifer~ Laura~ Nina ~ Pamela ~Tasnim ~Wida

Thanks for stopping by!

Gallery Idol Round 3 Entry

Hello friends! I feel so blessed and excited to be able to move on to this round. It has been an amazing experience to say the least! And now it's time to share my Gallery Idol entry with you!

The challenge this round is to create a card with exactly 10 embellishmenta. You might already know what embellishments are. Here is a quick definition from Dictionary.

1.	beautification of something: the act or process of adding ornaments or decorations to something to make it more beautiful
2.	something added for beautification: something added to increase beauty or interest

 

Stamps: Shopping Bag from Stampcow (Etsy), sentiment ( I Heart Art from Paper Smooches). 

Inks: Tide Pool, Orange Soda, Pale Tomato, Corn Flower, Butter Bar, Soft Blossom, Soft Green, Splash by Hero Arts

10 Embellishments: gems, pearls, floss (Michael's), sequins (Neat and Tangled), heart-pearl by Hero Arts

Last Friday, right after I found out that I got to move to the next round of Gallery Idol,  I happened to receive this stamp (Shopping Bag) from Etsy ! It came all the way from Hong Kong! After thinking about designs, I put this stamp into use right away.

For the 10-embellishments theme, the shopping bags make the design easy! I incorporated gems, pearls, sequins and floss for the little touches!
Do you have a favorite bag?

You can vote here (#7)!

After this week's round (result will be out on Friday), we will have moved from Top 10 to Top 5! It will be a dream come true to be in the Top 5! My daughter Stephanie thinks the Gallery Idol has definitely made me stretch my limit and go outside of my comfort zone. She thinks I am already a winner because she saw improvements in just the last few weeks! I will always remember this :)

About voting (see top right side bar):

1. Click on the “Registration” tab. You can log in with Facebook (that saves time).

2. Once you’ve registered, then click on the “View Entries” tab.
3. Select your card, click on the “Vote” tab. You only get one vote, so choose carefully!

 This round is going to be a tough one. EVERY. vote. counts. If you like to see me move to the next /last round, I would love to have your vote! Thank you, once again, for your AWESOME support!

You can vote here (#7) 

CAS-ual Fridays Stamps New Release (Day1)

Hello! Today I am sharing my projects with you over CAS-ual Fridays Stamps! This new set called "Wonderful Words" are versatile and lovely to have! I chose to decorate a gift bag, that way you can see how fabulous the images are. Ta-da!

Aren't they lovely? I did some paper-piecing with American Crafts paper pad. The sentiment are certainly beautiful! Please visit CAS-ual Friday's Stamp Blog for the full reveal and do check out my DT mates inspiring projects!  A free stamp set from each sneak peek day will be given away! Be sure to answer a question and WIN!

The comment feature in this post is turned off. My Gallery Idol project is coming up next! 

Till later :)  Thanks for stopping by!

Danke/Grazie/Thanks

Woohoo! I made it to Top 10 ( details here) for Gallery Idol! I am absolutely thrilled to move to the next round!

My heartfelt thanks to you for voting for me in the last round of Gallery Idol.

I thought it is perfect to share a thank-you card with you today.

As I was doing a happy little dance, Dr. John asked if I have 10 embellishments ( for the next theme) in my stash. I sheepishly told him that I don't have any...he suggests to have a diamond theme! Looks like a trip to the jewelry store is needed this weekend (LOL).

I couldn't be where I am without your support!

Danke/Grazie/Thanks! 

Inspired by Pattern Paper

I am sharing a layout today! This floral print from Basic Grey's Out of Print inspired me to make a layout. I happened to find a photo of Apphia (my nephew's daughter) which seems to be perfect with such a busy print.

I took the colors from the pattern paper and did some simple stamping and cutting.

 Supplies: Love Jar, Heart Wing Butterfly by Hero Arts, SRM Stickers

Ding---> Ever get stuck on picking colors? Just take the colors from the pattern paper and pick a few colors and....before you know it, BAM! You are in business! 

Note: After finish making this page and post, I happened to be reading up on the latest July/August issue by Paper Crafts. The Go-to Gal Betsy Veldman also shares the same tip about finding the right colors/shades, that is, use the paper collections for color inspiration (more details in p.14)! So, there you go!

 The Gallery Idol voting ends today at Noon (Mountain time). I would be thrilled to have your vote if you haven't voted yet (just click here).We'll find out on Friday whether I get to move to the next round. It's been a fun and thrilling experience! Thanks so much for your AWESOME support! Your sweet comments over Paper Crafts, Flickr, my blog, Facebook...etc. I appreciate them all! 

NEW SRM Products!

For my latest Gallery Idol entry (details here), please click on the right top side bar and vote! The deadline for voting is June 13, Noon (MT), Thursday. Thank YOU in advance!

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today is my turn to share new SRM project with you! SRM Press has come up with some fabulous products! I am amazed at the new one as I had a hard time deciding which one to showcase! Since I chose the birthday birdie, this is what I came up with....

Clear Box (Rectangle)

With with the help of pattern paper, ribbons, ( both are from American Crafts), The Twinery and SRM products (Labels by the Dozen-Birthday) , this box was easy to assemble. 

Stickers by the Dozen-Birthday Birdie
 

I also made some fun toppers for the Lemon Squares( courtesy of my son David).

YUMMY, aren't they? The comment feature in this blog post has been turned off. Please leave me your comments over SRM Blog.
 Thanks for stopping by! 

Gallery Idol-Make You Own Stamped Background

Hello my friends! If you have been following my blog closely over the last two weeks, you know it's time to share my project for Gallery Idol. This week we are progressing from Top 15 to Top 10. I am so happy to be able to continue to this round! Big thanks to you for voting for me in the last week.

 This round's theme is  Make Your Own Stamped Background. Well, as an avid stamper, I must admit that I have done this numerous times. But this time, it was intense! When I was thinking up designs, at times I felt that my brain was about to burst and that my patience was at its limit (trust me, it doesn't take much). So this is it...

It can be a challenge when you have lots of stamps to choose from as it can be overwhelming. When I narrowed down the ideas and realized what worked, then I was good to go! Here is a simple tutorial so you'll get the idea how I created this background.

(for the step by step instructions, just click on the photo and you will see it over my Flickr site)

Supplies: So Kind, Mid Tone Shadow Inks ( Field Green, Soft Sand), heart-shape pearl by Hero Arts, Gold Embossing Powder (detailed, smooth) by Recollections/Michael's, (Love Fancy Stickers) sentiment by SRM Stickers, ribbons by American Crafts

These are the boo-boos! LOL...I told you that my patience was TESTED!

They are either stamped/embossed wrong or appear to be messy...

Ding----> I started with smaller stamps when building a background.  It's a good idea to stamp and test out the design on scrap paper (so you don't waste the precious card stock).  Avoid distractions during the stamping/embossing (when possible). When you like the stamped design, expand the ideas...

After making the card, I decided to make a set of note cards.

I hope you enjoy seeing my creative process. If you'd like to see me moving on to the next round, please please please vote for my card here.
If you don't have an account yet, you can register here with Facebook Login and fill out the essential information and that's it!  

It has been a fabulous experience to be in the Gallery Idol. I am relishing the moments as it goes. My family have been so supportive of me and they totally understand the "pressure"!  Lastly, I just want to say "Thank YOU" from the bottom of my heart!
Please vote here (#11)!

Published Cards

Just sharing my two published cards over CARDS magazine (May 2013 issue) and one from Paper Crafts (May/June issue).

Some of you may have seen this card in my blog before. I submitted to CARD for the honey comb category and luckily, it was selected for publication. I love how they photograph this card!

Notice the background? They used of a textured candle and a neon box for the photo shoot? Swoon!

The 2nd card is a Grad card
I let the stamps and SRM Stickers do the talking...

 And last but not least, it was this card in Paper Crafts (May/June 2013)
 
Here is the look of the magazine

Well, today's post is definitely the highlight of my card-making. And now with the latest Gallery Idol (details here) , I am so pleased and humbled! Thank you for your unwavering support and positive feedback!

Please come back on Monday for my next Gallery Idol "Make Your Own Stamped Background" entry! You'll do the "background check"!!

CAS-ual Fridays Stamps Blog Day!

It's my turn to share some DT projects with you over CAS-ual Fridays Stamps Blog! I am excited to share these cards with you as I had so much fun creating them!

First up,  it was this card with stamps from Zigs and Zags, Mums the Word. With some lovely colors on an easy layout, this card will make a delightful birthday greeting to anyone special in your life. Those sequins add a bit of a wow factor to the design.

My 2nd card is a truly clean and simple one. You get the idea with just a few elements- glitter, blings and a striking color--RED! I used a double-sided tape for the Stop sign to add some glitter (see the glittery strip?)

 Lastly, I used alcohol inks for the background. The sentiment All the Best is from this set called Breathe.  The flower images are from Simon Says Stamps Daisy diecut.  The sentiment was embossed in white over the striking alcohol-inked background.

I would appreciate that you leave me the feedback over CAS-ual Fridays Stamps Blog. Lastly, I want to thank you for the support, especially with the Gallery Idol voting!

 Edited: Yay, I made it to the next round (details here)
thank you, thank you, thank you....

CARDS Blog Challenge!

Hello! I am excited to share my project with you today. You see, CAS-ual Fridays Stamps is the sponsor for the June CARDS Blog challenge! As part of the DT, we are invited to play along with the sketch.

My take

 supplies: Frankly and Bold Wishes from CAS-ual Fridays Stamps, Knee High from Basic Grey, Gold Embossing Powders (Michael's), Hero Arts Mid Tone Inks (Butter Bar, Raspberry), Simon Says Stamps Die Cut  (Banners), gems, sequin, fine black pen (for faux stitching)

The Girl Friday Ink Squad all have fabulous creations to share with you too! We thought it would be fun to do a little blog hop to make it easy and fun for you :) Be sure to leave a comment on each of the blogs as you hop along. One of the blogs...and it's still a mystery as to which one it will be...will have a random winner who will receive a really great prize!

 If you got lost or sidetracked along the way, here is the lineup: 

CAS-ual Fridays Stamps 

Lynn Mangan 

Virginia Lu

Kelly Griglione
Dana Seymour
Karen Baker
Michelle Woerner
Piali Biswas
Laurie Willison 
CARDS Blog Challenge

 

The prize for the sketch challenge is really awesome but you'll have to make it through to the CARDS blog to see it (serious prize, people!!!)! Be sure to follow their instructions to include your project for your chance to win, you have until June 17th to play along. 
Now off you go to see what Kelly Grigloine has created for your oohing and aahing delight! You will have plenty of time to enter this challenge. Details are in CARDS Blog. 
And lastly, please vote over Gallery Idol if you haven't. Simple click on the top right sidebar and you are there! 

Thanks for stopping by!