LOOKEY, Lookey!! FABULOUS Idea!

Okay . . . . be prepared to rush right out to your local hardware store. I showed a picture in the Archiver's Holiday sales flyer of a ribbon organizer from Clip-it-Up to my husband and he made one for me! A piece of gutter, two endcaps, some wing nuts and a metal rod and voila! I only had 4 inches clearance under my Ikea pen holders and it fits perfectly! In the pictures I haven't placed the ribbon ends under the rod yet because I'm still deciding what ribbons are "worthy" of the front row on my desk. Isn't this the coolest thing evah? Now my ribbons will be easily accessible and I can roll out just the right amount without removing the roll. WoooHOOO!!!

Thanks for stopping by today. I've been working on some thank you cards and will share them when they've had time to reach the recipients >wink<

Hugs,

Colleen

Noel

Like everyone else, I'm rushing around like crazy trying to get ready for next week. I did finally get some cards made. I first decided not to send any, then decided to send only to out of town friends and family that I won't see this year. Then, re-thought and decided to send a few to the older family members even if I've seen them. They seem to be into the card thing more than others. So, this is what I came up with. My inspiration was from Alli Miles HERE. Alli makes the cutest cards, and her blog is one of my must reads. I used a Hero Arts clear stamp for the "NOEL" and paper pieced the "O" with various scraps. Sorry, I forgot about pictures until the others were signed and sealed. I used Cryogen White card stock, a rectangle Nestability, some SU ribbon and Memento black ink. I touched up some of the paper pieces with glitter pens or a glaze pen. All in all, not too time consuming, and they are in the mail. Cross that off my list.

If I don't get to post again, I want to wish everyone a very MERRY CHRISTMAS! Thank you for the time you spend visiting me here. I do appreciate it.

Hugs,

Colleen

Hokies Lamp

My step-daughter and her husband both graduated from Virginia Tech and are HUGE fans, so I made this lamp as one of their Christmas presents. VT's school colors are orange and magenta . . . not a color combo I would choose, but so be it . . . I used a glass block from a local craft store that had been drilled, added orange and clear lights and chipboard letters covered with card stock from my stash, probably Bazzill. I could not find enough of one type ribbon in the magenta, so I improvised and made two bows and stacked them. I forgot to save some magenta ribbon when making the bows, so ended up tying them together with orange ribbon and I think I like it better that way! I wrapped the wide magenta ribbon around the block and added the narrow orange ribbon on top of it. This was really a fairly simple project. I hope they like it.

Well, I guess it's about time to start on my Christmas cards. Nothing like waiting until the last minute, huh?

Thanks for stopping by today.

Hugs,

Colleen

JOY Centerpiece

This project was inspired by a similar one I saw at a local craft store. I particularly liked the small, low profile . . . can't have something too tall or large taking up valuable real estate on the dining table, huh? The original project used wooden blocks a little larger than these card stock ones, but the price was better on these = D Templates for the boxes I made can be found here. Mel's blog is awesome and full of patterns and ideas, so prepare to visit awhile when you visit. I only used the bottom portion of the boxes and turned them upside down. I used American Craft dp and red satin ribbon, then covered some chipboard letters with SU's Real Red card stock. The three boxes are held together with mere paper clips. I'll add some silk holly and a couple of candles and viola!

I hope everyone is having a fabulous day. It is nasty and rainy here, but I'll take rain over snow any day, thank you very much.

Hugs,

Colleen

Masculine Card Debbie Olson CASE

I loved Debbie Olson's masculine card from the other day so much I decided to borrow her design and create a similar card for my brother-in-law's birthday. Using a different Basic Grey dp (6x6 pad) but the same CHF sentiment, it was easy peasy and I know he will like it. I have a hard time omitting ribbon from any card (even a masculine one looks naked without it imho), and the little ribbon loop with a button is just perfect. This is a layout I intend to use again.

Thanks for stopping by. Tomorrow I have a centerpiece you must see, so see you then.

Hugs,

Colleen

Lockhart Holly Cupcake (My Favorite)

Another version of the Lockhart Holly Cupcake, as promised. I think this is my favorite . . . what do you think?

It feels wonderful to be creating again. I have so many ideas . . .

Thanks for stopping by. Tomorrow I have a masculine card that is Debbie Olson inspired.

Hugs,

Colleen

Lockhart Holly Cupcake

I bought this Lockhart stamp with my niece's December birthday in mind. I used Basic Grey's Wassail 6x6 paper pad. Don't you just love these scaled down versions of their designer papers? The cupcake is colored with Copics and some Ranger Glossy Accents added to the berries. I did another card with this cupcake, but couldn't get a decent picture of it. I'll try again tomorrow.

Thanks for stopping by my little corner of the blogosphere.

Hugs,

Colleen

Belle for Alayna's Birthday

For me, a little time to stamp is worse than no time at all. I get frustrated leaving ideas and projects half complete and would rather not stamp at all. I also do not like feeling that I have to do something. Some intensive therapy would probably reveal that I'm still rebelling against my mother, but I want this blog to be something I enjoy and if it becomes a chore on my to-do list, it's no longer fun. Can anyone relate?

Anyway, I made this card a couple of months ago and just never posted it. I used a Jolee's sticker for Belle, so there's not a lot of originality here. I am working on some other cards and hope to update more frequently. I appreciate your patience and thank you for stopping by today.

Hugs,

Colleen

Zindorf CASE

Right out of the chute, I must confess that this card is a CASE of one by the great Zindorf. If you are not one of the thousands following her blog, here is the link: http://zindorf.blogs.splitcoaststampers.com/ If you scroll down, you'll find the card I case'd.

Sorry to post and run. I thank you for stopping by.

Hugs,

Colleen

Ambrosia Butterflies

Happy World Card Making Day! I bought this Verses stamp weeks ago and left it on my desk so I wouldn't forget about it. The Ambrosia line of designer paper from Basic Grey is so gorgeous and inspirational. It may be my favorite to date from BG. And I just LOVE the 6x6 scaled down versions. Anyway, the butterfly is a Martha Stewart punch that I layered with vellum, inked with SU Pumpkin Pie and Riding Hood Red over a base of Marigold Morning. I did my inking on the vellum first, then punched out the best part. The ribbon is from American Crafts and the brads I'm not sure of . . . I take those out of their packaging. I wish I had more of these larger brads. I think the wider ribbons call for larger brads.

Thanks for stopping by and sharing WCMD with me.

Hugs,

Colleen

Brittany's Birthday Card

I had so much fun making this card for my niece. I bought this Penny Black stamp with her in mind and had a ball coloring the jeans and accessories with my Copics and Spicas . . . borrowing heavily from the illustration on the wood mount. I used my Cuttlebug Happy Birthday embossing folder on a piece of card stock that I previously stamped with Cornish Heritage Farm's Denim background. I used a Stampin' UP! mini library clip with a scrap of ribbon cut down to fit and tied through it to embellish the sentiment a bit. I'm sorry, I'm not at home and don't recall the maker of the sentiment stamp. Anyway, pretty simple all in all.

Thank you for stopping by. I've been out of town for the past week . . . heading home tomorrow. DH prefers I not announce to the world when we're going out of town. He doesn't realize how small my "reach" is or he'd wouldn't be so concerned LOL

Hugs all! I can't wait to do some stamping!

Birthday Card to Casey

I thought I had posted this card, but apparently not. Casey is a pilot, so I'm always on the lookout for cute aviation themed stamps. This one is from A Muse, and I used a clear Happy Birthday stamp to create the banner. I used Neenah natural white in their heaviest weight card stock as a base so the card would be substantial enough to hold a gift card and added the Webster Pages patterned paper. The zig zag embossed edge was created with a Martha Stewart border punch. I've had this little arrow embellishment forevah and it was the perfect color and addition to hold the card closed. Don't you think the arrow looks like a propeller? Well, it reminded me of one anyway . . . I'm just surprised I could find it. I created the pocket with a little red line tape and it was done!

Thanks so much for stopping by today.

Hugs,

Colleen

Changito B-day

As soon as I saw this stamp by Stampendous, I knew it was going home with me (tee hee) I colored the image with Copics and cut it with my Nestabilities (what did we do before we had these?!). The dp is Sassafrass Lass and the scallop edge is part of the paper design.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Hugs,

Colleen

STAMPIN' UP! ONLINE ORDERING

Did you know that you can now order Stampin' UP! products online? Cool, huh?!! THIS link will take you to my website where you can order anytime, and it will ship directly to you. You can pay by credit card, too! Just click the "shop now" button below my name in the upper right hand corner to begin. Of course, I'm happy to place your order for you! I just want you to know you have options.
Happy Stamping!!
Hugs,
Colleen

Happy Birdie to YOU!

Two posts in one day! Ok, just don't get used to it lol! The chick is from Penny Black, the sentiment A Muse, and the dp from Cosmo Cricket's "Hello Sunshine' 8x8 pack. I colored the image with Copics, added some applique and glitter to the cake and finished with SU ribbon. I'm very pleased with this one.

Thanks for staying with me through my dry spell.

Hugs,

Colleen

Best Wishes and Happy Birthday Flowers

Here are a couple of very simple cards using some hoarded primas and a had to have Hero Arts set that is just now seeing ink. I cased these, but for the life of me cannot find who to credit. I apologize.

Thank you for taking time to visit my blog.

Hugs,

Colleen

We will never forget!

An Udder Year Older

All stamps used for this card are from Cornish Heritage Farms. Isn't this just the cutest cow image ever?! I colored her with Prismacolor pencils and cut her out with my Nestabilities. The card stock is SU! Blush Blossom and, it may be hard to see, but I stamped that with the weathered background stamp. The cow background was stamped on white and matted with black and, yup, that's cow ribbon, too. I do not remember where I got it, sorry. I made several of these with different sayings, but guess I haven't downloaded the others from my camera.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Hugs,

Colleen

Another Anniversary Card

I just love black and white with a touch of red.The designer paper is from Imaginesce, the mini hearts from Amuse, and the bird duo from Inkadinkado. Thanks Carol, for letting me stamp some of these off. You can see I'm putting them to good use.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Hugs,

Colleen

Anniversary Cards

I have several cards to make for September, so I'm getting a start on the anniversary ones. The socks stamp is from Lockhart. The "what a pair" is from Memory Box. The dp is from a large pad of My Mind's Eye that I picked up awhile back from Sam's or Costco. I used my Cuttlebug folder on the background and sanded it slightly. I paper pieced the socks with coordinating papers.

Thank you for stopping by today.

Hugs,

Colleen

Onesie for Nolan

Two posts in one day! Well, we have a new grandson and I just have to share the card I am putting in the mail to the proud parents. I'm so pleased with it! Nolan's dad is a pilot in the US Air Force, so of course there had to be an airplane used in the welcome card. I used a Cornish Heritage Farms background stamp for the polka dots and clear embossed them. Then I die cut and built the plane in card stock layers, cutting away portions of each color.

These onesie cards have been around awhile, but I credit Lauren Meader with my introduction to these cuties. She has directions on her blog here. That is a link to her blog. You'll have to look back a few months for the onesie post. The airplane is a CuttleKids die I recently snagged at Michael's in their clearance section. The SU card stock used is Bashful Blue, Brilliant Blue, Really Red and GP white. The banner on the envelope reads "It's a boy!" and I think it is a Fiskars clear stamp. I did not save the packaging for that set, sorry.

That may be all I have for today, but you never know . . .

Hugs,

Colleen

Lasting Impressions Cards

While I still had my Lasting Impressions paper out, I decided to make a couple of additional cards. I think you'll find them self explanatory, but if you need details, please ask.

Thank you for stopping by.

Hugs,

Colleen

Another Sunglass ALERT!

I'm still using the American Crafts paper, but making a thank you note today. The image is from Stampendous, and I colored it with Prismacolors.

Thank you for stopping by.

Hugs,

Colleen

So It's Your Birthday

I am so excited to post these cards. I finally played a bit with Adobe Photoshop to edit my pictures, and I cannot believe the difference in my card photos. Normally, I just set the card up with a white background in a sunny window, take the picture and resize it without any editing. I've honestly thought the pictures were ok. My camera is a small purse size Canon Elph, and I really didn't expect the quality I see on other blogs where they have fabulous, expensive cameras and equipment. Anyway, tell me what you think . . . . can you see the difference. I need to edited and re-post an earlier card.

The image of the lady is from American Art Stamps and the sentiment Custer's Last Stamp. The dp is American Crafts, card stock Papertrey ink and coloring done with Copics (still learning, but determined).

Thank you for sharing a bit of your day with me. It is most appreciated.

Hugs,

Colleen

Look at the previous post . . . I added an edited photo so you could see the difference editing makes. Omagosh . . !!!!! I think I need to go back and edit all my posts!!!

Lasting Impressions card

Every so often I feel compelled to use some of the many(!) Lasting Impressions products that I have. I love their white core paper because I love the scuffed look that enhances the embossed lines, plus their colors are so summery and cheerful. Anyway, here is a quick card. Even the sentiment is LI.

Thanks for sharing your day with me.

Hugs,

Colleen

Sad News

Randy and I received a call early Tuesday morning that Mom (Randy's mother) had taken a turn for the worse and she passed shortly afterwards. We have been in South Carolina for the funeral and family matters and just returned this afternoon. I hope to have some time in my rubber room tomorrow. Thanks for hanging in there with me.
Hugs,
Colleen

Isn't this the CUTEST card ever!!!???

My friend Carol sent me this card for my birthday last week, and I just had to share it with you. Thanks Carol!!

Kristina Werner Color Inspiration Challenge

Every week I tell myself I'm going to participate in this challenge, but I never do . . . until today! I love Kristina's blog and her simple style. So here are my entries . . . I have no idea why the colors look different. I even used the same pieces of card stock for each. I did take the lighter picture just a little later in the day. Go figure . . .

The fuzzy balls on the first card are new from May Arts and it matches SU!'s Certainly Celery "perfectly".

Thank you for stopping by.

Hugs,

Colleen

WoooHOOOO!!

I can't believe I finally finished these cards! Anytime I start from scratch with no sketch or idea, it takes me forevah! Anywho . . . I'm pleased with the result and hope you like these too. The flowers are die cuts from Spellbinders. I added a little white pen to some of the embossed areas. So-o-o-o . . . which version of the card do you like best?

Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs,

Colleen

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CAROL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Carol, if you did not receive your birthday card today STEP AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER!!!

Ok, now we can proceed with the card I made for Carol's birthday. I used the free paper pack that Archiver's gave away a few weeks ago with a $50 purchase. I'm usually not too crazy about the freebie paper packs, but I really like this group. Sentiment stamp is from Inkadinkado and the flowers are Spellbinder dies and a Martha Stewart punch. I took the picture a couple of weeks ago and just before I mailed it, added a butterfly. So, picture just to the right of the sentiment a vellum butterfly over the same butterfly punched from pink cardstock. Can you see it?

Carol, I hope you're having a fabuloso day, sweetie . . . . don't eat too much of the cake John made you from scratch. (Doncha just love a man that cooks?)

Hugs all, and have a great Fourth of July.

Colleen

Stampendous Flower Box

Long time, no post. I guess I should explain . . . if I still have any readers lol. My dear mother-in-law is in stage four of colon cancer, and she lives more than 400 miles away. This came on very suddenly and has been a terrible shock. DH and I have made three trips to South Carolina in June and with obligations at home, life has been rather hectic. I thank you for your patience. I've always enjoyed my time stamping and now I find it therapeutic as well.

"Flower Chat" is the name of the clear stamp set from Stampendous that I used for this card. I colored it with Copics and cut and matted it on Chocolate Chip using Spellbinder's Classic Rectangle and Scallop Rectangle sets. The sentiment is from Amuse and it fit perfectly in the flower box.

I have a couple of other cards to share later today or tomorrow.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Hugs,

Colleen

Thanks, Thanks, Thanks

This will have to be quick; please forgive me. If you need more details, please don't hesitate to ask. Stamps by Stamping Details and Papertrey Ink Mixed Messages (top card), Studio G (stem) and Papertrey Ink (leaves) and Target $1 spot (flower) (middle card) and Great Impressions.

Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs,

Colleen