Another Take on Simon Says Stamp November Card Kit

If you follow me long enough, you know that I like to make multiple cards with the same supplies. Well, the Simon Says Stamp's card kits provide me ample chances to create. Previously, I had created this card, today is another take on the same card kit.

In this kit, there are some cute bunny images from Lawn Fawn Snow Day paper. I HAD to incorporate them into my design, so I came up with this.....

 This card is almost one layer...I grouped the bunnies with the punched out circles.

Adding some hand stitching makes this card extra unique and special. Don't you think?

Thanks for stopping by today!

Edited: I am delighted to have a little shout out over Hero Arts blog today (see here). Metallic-themed cards are such fun...have you tried any lately?

 

StampNation Weekly Challenge!

Hello! This is my 2nd post today. I am sharing a sneak peek of the weekly challenge over StampNation. Other than hosting a  A Very Trendy Holiday class, StampNation has a weekly challenge! This is my DT assignment for this challenge.

You can sign up for A Very Trendy Holiday Class here

  A Very Trendy Holiday 2.0 consists of 18 video tutorials & over 50 samples. 

If you are a StampNation Member, you will get $10 discount on the class (see here)

You still can comment on this post to win a spot in the class, if you haven't done so.
The comment feature in this post has been disabled.

Thanks for stopping by!

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge # 287

 

Welcome to another week on the Simon Says Stamp Challenge !! Thank you for joining us for the Get Crafty Challenge and we hope you will all join us again this week too :-)

This week the challenge is...

Anything Goes 

 We are using Spectrum Noir this week. You don't have to use them to join in but if you have some, we love to see them used :-)

I have two packs of Spectrum Noir--Primary and Floral. They are a joy to work with. I love the blending and the colors are gorgeous!  They are great options if you are looking into getting coloring pencils. 

Supplies: "Sparkler" , Wonderful and Jolly (Penny Black), Liquid Pearls 

gemstones, Bazzille card stock (black), Versafine

As always, Simon Says Stamp will be giving away a $50 voucher to shop at the fabulous Simon Says Stamp Store!

 
AND 

 Spectrum Noir are giving away one lucky winner a choice of 

2 sets of Spectrum Noir Pencils! Yay!  

 

 So now it's YOUR turn ! Happy Crafting !!

There are fabulous Give Aways and inspiration from fabulous designers on a daily basis over on the Simon Says Stamp Blog . If you haven't subscribed by email, you may want to do so you don't miss out.

You have until Wed. 8am Eastern Time to join in :-)

I hope you check out the DT's work!  I can't wait to see what you create!!
Thanks for stopping by! 

Street Art!

Time to take an adventure to explore the art side while strolling on the streets of Venice....

 That's me in the red hat!
Today's post is to re-live the time that we spent in late August wandering around Venice. I must say it was a LOT of walking. But in order to see a place like Venice, you simply have to take the time exploring by walking (other than taking a gondolier, water taxi or Vaporetto). There is no other way...

 See the ornate windows with beautiful flowers? Our hotel room was on the far left !

We stumbled into a free exhibition and we came across this door entrance...

Even simple buildings can look so interesting, in the eyes of tourists like me!

We caught this young gondolier taking a moment to take a little nap. And boy, did he ever pose for us so fabulously!

Every corner around the canal is dreamy.

I will have more random posts like this one.
Lastly, I want to share my pride and joy-daughter Stephanie and son David.

Congratulations to David who found out yesterday that he got a co-op job at CrossChasm Technologies (modeling hybrid and electric vehicles). It's THE job he really wanted. Way to go!
Life is full of blessings...they are for me!
Thanks for stopping by!

Working with Small Dies!

 Hello! Have you played with small dies before?

Around Town (Penny Black)  are likely the smallest dies that I have ever come across. The details are amazing! When I first worked on the image, I tried to use watercolor to paint in every little detail. But I realized that it is likely a good idea to keep the colors simple.

This is the result.

I love creating my own colored paper. This card was no exception. 

I water-colored on paper and then made the die cut for each house. Can you see the trees, horse and sleigh?

I created a "hill" by using DCWV card stock. I added the houses and church with pop dots. When it was time to stamp the sentiment, I decided to emboss it in white on vellum and I then added the stitching.

Lastly, don't forget to enter your comment in this post for a chance to win a class for A Very Trend Holiday.

You can sign up the class for A Very Trendy Holiday Card class from StampNation, details here
If you are a StampNation Member, you get a $10 discount on the class (see  here)

Thanks for stopping by!

Playing with Digital Image

 It's been a while since I played with a digital image. As I was looking into Create A Smile blog, I stumbled upon the FREE cute digital images that they offer. With less than 3 hours to spare before the deadline, I made a card with the penguin image!
You can read all about the guest designer search here.

edited: I changed my coloring a bit since I didn't like my original take on the penguin. 

Have you ever played with a digital image? Here are a few things to take note of: 

1. Right click, save, copy and paste the image into Word document (I use Microsoft Word)

2. You can then re-size the image to your liking (by dragging the arrow at the corner)

3. Print it on light/medium card stock

4. Print a couple of images on pattern paper (if you choose to paper-piece)

That's about it! I had some fun paper-piecing the images. I created the water scene with distress inks. The stenciled background (with embossing paste) provide the interest and textures. The bright neon color combo makes you happy and not take things seriously....My son David thought the card was cute! He has a thing for critters!

Lastly, another reminder about "A Very Trendy Holiday Class"...

 A Very Trendy Holiday 2.0 consists of 18 video tutorials & over 50 samples. 

For all the details about this wonderful class, you can find out here
If you are a StampNation Member, you will get $10 discount on the class (see here) 

You can enter the giveaway here.

The comment feature in this post has been disabled. 
Happy Sunday!

Using a Delicate Die with Vellum!

Gossamer

Hello! I am popping in to share another creation with the NEW Penny Black die called Gossamer.

With an intricate die like this, you really can't go wrong however you use it.

I decided to use vellum. It was all because my B plate in my old Cuttlebug does not make a clean cut any more. I need a new one. So I proceeded to use vellum instead. This is the result.

I stamped and embossed the snowflakes and sentiment from Snow Dancer. With the delicate diecut from the vellum, this card took little time to create.

If you have an excellent die cut machine, I highly recommend this for making multiple cards.

 Lastly, I am sharing how I used up my turkey leftover..
As I love making pies, turkey pot pie is really easy. I always make my own pie crusts. I also add some special French herbs to add to the flavor.

Here is what to do if you want to take a short cut: get frozen pie crust and add a can of Campbell Cream of Chicken to the filling. Easy peasy!

Lastly, don't forget to comment here to win a spot to take this awesome card class!
 For all the details about this wonderful class, you can find out here
If you are a StampNation Member, you will get $10 discount on the class (see here)
Thanks so much for stopping by!

Win a Spot in A Very Trendy Holiday Class!

Are you interested in signing up for A Very Trendy Holiday class from StampNation?

 Well, today I am giving a spot away for the class! The class fee is $27! If you have already signed up, you will get your money back if you are the random winner!

 A Very Trendy Holiday 2.0 consists of 18 video tutorials & over 50 samples. 

For all the details about this wonderful class, you can find out here
If you are a StampNation Member, you will get $10 discount on the class (see here) 

  I am thrilled to have contributed a few projects to this class. It is packed with inspiration and will sure get your creative juices flowing! 

Here is a beautiful sample of the DT's work.

 Here is a card that I created yesterday. It has one of the many trends that are covered in the class--stencil!

 This giveaway will stay open till  October 30, 11:59pm Eastern Time.

 Please leave me a comment in THIS post for a chance to win.

Thanks for stopping by!  

Simon Says Stamp November Card Kit

Hello friends!

I had the pleasure of getting this November Card Kit from Simon Says Stamp.

This set comes with a lovely stamp set and Lawn Fawn pattern paper.. ( see details here).

 

 I did some stamping of the tree image with 3 shades of green. I absolutely adore the embellishments in this set. The gold tree was stamped in Delicata. I love the subtle shimmer of the tree!

See that enamel bow ( from My Mind's Eye)? Yum! The only thing I added was the gold string behind the bow.

Lastly, if you are interested in signing up for A Very Trendy Holiday Card class from StampNation, you can find out here
If you are a StampNation Member, you get a $10 discount on the class (see here)
 I am part of this class, so perhaps I will see you there?

Thanks for stopping by!  

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge # 286

 

Welcome to another week on the Simon Says Stamp Challenge !! Thank you for joining us for the Color Coordinates Challenge and we hope you will all join us again this week too :-)

This week the challenge is...

GET CRAFTY AND USE KRAFT

 We are using one of my favorite brands--Hero Arts this week. You don't have to use them to join in but if you have some, we love to see them used :-)

For my project, I used  Retro Frame and Lil Hoot . I am sharing 10 tips about "how to use kraft card stock".  Please make sure that you check them out!

 

It's always fun to create a little "scene" by combining stamps. With the kraft card stock, it is a good idea to use pattern paper! The colors and pattern look especially sharp with the kraft card stock. First I embossed the Retro Frame in white. Then I paper-pieced the images with Fresh Cut (Basic Grey). I also cut out the leaves from the owl image in this set to add interest to the design. I hope you like it!

 

Ding---> What can you do with kraft card stock?

1. Paper-piecing proves to be a fun and creative way to use up your stash of pattern paper

2. Color the stamped/embossed image with color pencils and blend it with mineral water

3. Emboss the images ( the ones with outlines) in a few colors of embossing powder

4. Kraft card stock makes colorful images POP ( see here) 

5. Break up your stamped image with kraft card stock to add interest (see here)

6. Kraft card stock makes a wonderful background (see here)

7. Try stamping AND embossing on kraft card stock! (see here)

8. Kraft card stock can add textures to your design (see here)  
9. Kraft card stock makes the best TAGS (see here and here)
10. Experiment with (white) chalk ink and stamp (see here)

 
I hope that I didn't overload you on jump-starting your Get Crafty project :) 

As always, Simon Says Stamp will be giving away a $50 voucher to shop at the fabulous Simon Says Stamp Store!

So now it's YOUR turn ! Happy Crafting !!

There are fabulous Give Aways and inspiration from fabulous designers on a daily basis over on the Simon Says Stamp Blog . If you haven't subscribed by email, you may want to do so you don't miss out.

You have until Wed. 8am Eastern Time to join in :-)

I hope you check out the DT's work!  I can't wait to see what you create!!
Thanks for stopping by! 

Add a Little Dazzle + CAS-ual Fridays Stamps Blog Hop

Hello, hello! 

I am popping in to share two projects that I created for the blog hop.
It's a joint hop for CAS-ual Fridays Stamps and Add a Little Dazzle!

Supplies: Pinecones,  Sleigh Bells,  Shuffle Fri Dies, Momento Inks (New Sprout, Bamboo Leaves)

Perfect Peacock,  silver, purple and red (Add a Little Dazzle), Liquid Pearls, silver thread (Michael's)

About this card: 

~score the outlines and use thin copy paper to mask the border

~create the Christmas tree by stamping the pine cones

~die cut diamond (Shuffle Fri-Dies) and small circles (Sleigh Bells) with the metal sheets for the "ornaments"

~embellish with silver strings and Liquid Pearls

My 2nd card is a super easy one! I created a large bow for the "gift" by using the 4 Petal Fri-Dies and Shuffle Fri-Die.

 Supplies: Shuffle Fri Dies,  Pinecones,  4 Petals Fri Dies,Martha Stewart ribbons, Momento Inks, Add a Little Dazzle metal sheets (red), white embossing powder, gem

 These metal sheets really are fun and versatile to use! I think they do "Add a Little Dazzle" to your project that needs a SHINE! I am loving how my cards turned out and will definitely use the metal sheets in my future projects!

You should hop along to check out what we have created for you. AND remember to leave a comment in each hop for a chance to win a FABULOUS PRIZE!

 CAS-ual Fridays Blog
                            Virginia Lu <---you are here
Cathy Parlitsis
 Marci Sharp
Lee Ann Barrett
 Kate Capper
 
You can find out all about the hop at CAS-ual Fridays and Add a Little Dazzle.

Thanks for stopping by!