Newest Design Team Member!

I'm SO excited to announce that I've been chosen as one of the newest design team members for the Paper Playtime Challenge Blog. I'm delighted to be a part of a design team again with some very talented ladies! My run begins in April so make sure you stop by Paper Playtime and join in on the fun!!

Also, if you haven't yet, make sure you enter my Blog Redesign Giveaway for $25 bucks towards your choice at either Michael's, AC Moore or JoAnn's!

Hope everyone has a great week!!

Wishing for Spring

Looking for my $25 crafty supplies giveaway? Click here!

I don't know about you, but I'm getting pretty annoyed with winter. These dreary days seem never-ending and especially here in New York, the only thing you can do is hibernate and wait until it's all over. Or you can try making Spring flowery cards while playing Disney background music and try to trick your mind into thinking of brighter days! That's what I tried to do with this card below.

I recently purchased this paper pack from Recollections called Neapolitan and it came with the nicest, brightest paper! I also remembered that a few years ago, I bought these borders from Recollections that seems to go perfectly with the pack so it was total serendipity! I partnered up some pink paper with a floral pattern and used the border as a divider. A few weeks ago, I got this Magnolia stamp of Tilda holding a Teddy Bear which I thought was so cute since I'm pretty much a sucker for anything having to do with bears. The scalloped background was inked with Tattered Rose distress ink (I seem to be using this color a lot lately). And lastly, I decided to add some roses and a sentiment.

I like the way this came out- especially the Copic blending. I seem to be getting better at it after much frustration and practice. =)

I'll be entering this card in two challenges-
1. Paper Playtime #4 Use a sentiment stamp challenge.
2. The Pink Elephant Anything Goes Challenge.

So here's hoping wherever you are, Spring is not too far behind. =)

Saying Thank You with a Dandelion

Looking for my $25 crafty supplies Giveaway? Click Here!


Little known fact about me: I have two stepsisters. They are far from the evil sister cliche however. They're both older than me and even though we don't know each other very well, whenever I do see them, they're always very sweet and gracious. The other day, my stepfather came home with a pair of earrings that his daughter Melissa picked up for me. It was totally out of the blue and I thought the sentiment was very sweet. I decided to make her a thank you card.

I took a dandelion stamp and embossed it on a piece of card stock. I then took my distress inks and blended Tattered Rose with Mustard Seed and Squeezed Lemonade. Since I can't seem to sew paper correctly, I just drew on the paper to give it the appearance. I then took a blossom stamp and lightly stamped the edges of the card with Victorian Velvet. I felt it still wasn't done so I added a yellow ribbon and a sentiment.

The card itself was quick to make. The hard part was trying to figure out what colors to blend in together! Hope you like it!

I'll be entering this into two challenges-

1. My Craft Spot Challenge # 87- Flowers.
2. Little Scrap Pieces Fun Friday Emboss Challenge. 

New Design = New Giveaway!

So if you haven't already noticed, my blog has been completely redesigned! I decided since it was a new year, I'd go ahead and make some changes. I spent time looking through the internet, visiting web design sites trying to find just the right designer (who wasn't going to break my wallet).

One night while going through 15+ pages on Etsy, I found Lauren! I simply loved the examples she posted of the other sites she had worked on and she was also incredibly affordable. The other girls gave her glowing reviews on Etsy and she really deserves every word. She was very quick to answer and so nice to discuss ideas with. I knew I wanted something simple and very clean and she definitely delivered. If you are thinking about redesigning your own blog, I certainly recommend her! You can find her on Etsy or even look up her Blog where I found so many awesome crafting ideas.

And since I feel this blog deserves a friggin parade, we'll just have to settle for a GIVEAWAY!

I thought about making a stash of goodies, but then again, if you are anything like me, you're picky as hell with your crafting supplies. You are also a slight snob when it comes to the places you purchase from. As much as I love Michael's, I seem to be spending some more time at AC Moore lately. Or perhaps JoAnn's is your cup of tea? It's your choice! You have three ways to join. Be a follower, leave a comment and spread the word. Easy peasy! This is running until March 10th. Good luck!




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Love in the Office

I'm sure everyone has their fair share of difficult people to deal with at the office. I sure do. Thankfully however, I have two amazing friends and together, we make it through the day with a little venting and a lot of laughter. They are two of the best people I know. For my last set of Valentines, this is what I made them.

For my friend Gale, I took to my Cuttlebug with a new folder I recently purchased at Michael's. The embossing is so nice it practically creates the entire card for you. I found these really cute Inkadinkado animal valentine stamps and I wanted to use them for these cards. I added some paper flowers with a little jewel in the middle.

For my friend Andrew, I created a smaller card with different patterned paper from (who else?) Martha Stewart. I used the Baby Shower Cricut cartridge to cut out flags and since Andrew is a laid back kinda guy, I added the stamp with the relaxing duckies.

It's us against the World!

 Also, something BIG is happening for this blog and I cannot wait to unveil it! Hopefully by next week everything will be in place and I will be able to share. That also means a giveaway soon!!! I'm trying to decide what kind I want to do. Gift cards can be so boring, but they are useful.... Still thinking!

Frog Prince

I wanted to make a colorful Valentine for my friend Kevin. I'm pretty much in love with the Create a Critter 2 cartridge and I knew I wanted to make the frog for Kevin because I think he's such a prince!

I started with my distress inks and I tried to create a sunset background on a lake or river but then it just looked so messy and I lost my patience so I went over all the sides with Vintage Photo. When in doubt, I tend to just cover the card with that ink all around. So the background wasn't exactly what I was going for but... eh. You live, you learn.

And of course, I had to make him an action wobble because I'm doing that to almost every card lately. I'm running out of them!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day isn't a big deal around here. My boyfriend JP and I don't really do anything special for it. It's not that we dislike the holiday, but it's not really our thing. We do exchange small presents and cards, but tonight he has a lot of work to do and I can't miss Grey's Anatomy so that's that.

But I do make him a card because that's what I do and putting aside all the forced lovey dovey sentiments that this holiday brings, it's just a nice way to show your partner that you appreciate them. This is what I made him.

I bought this S.W.A.L.K stamp months ago and it's been sitting in my drawer waiting to be used. I've been trying to get better with my Copics and my boyfriend has actually been really supportive so I wanted to use them for his card. I covered the image with red Washi tape and put jewels in the corners. The background heart paper is from a Martha Stewart pack as is the paper puncher I used for the top and bottom of the card. I recently bought this Studio G sentiment at JoAnn's and I thought it was just so cute.

We exchanged presents at midnight, but the cards will be exchanged tonight after we have the lovely steak dinner I will be preparing. For us, this is a perfect holiday.

My Valentine's Present from him. He knows me so well. 

I'm going to be entering this card in the following challenges-

Pause, Dream, Enjoy Mainly Red Challenge. This ends February 17th.
Paper Playtime Border Punch Challenge. This also ends on February 17th.


So whether Valentine's Day is a big deal or just another day for you, I hope no matter how you spend it, you have a lovely time. =)

My Longest Valentine

Like most little girls, my Valentine growing up was always my Dad. He would bring my mom roses and for his mini-sized Valentine, he would bring me a small heart shaped box of chocolates and a Disney card. At 28 years, he's been my longest Valentine. =)

For his card this year, I wanted to make something sparkly and eye catching.

Martha Stewart's Valentine's Day pack came with so many different kinds of paper so I used the Create a Critter 2 cartridge to cut out some glittery hearts. I had some ribbon left over from Christmas time so I used it to hang the Valentines. I was going to stamp a sentiment, but then I actually just liked this as it was. I'm trying to learn exactly when to just stop with a card before it becomes too cluttered.

My Daddy-o!

I'm entering this card in the following challenges-

Red Carpet Studio- "Where the Heart Is" Challenge. Make a card with a heart and this closes on February 16th.
Hiding in my Craft Room- Scraps Challenge. This closes on February 16th.
Little Scrap Pieces- Love is in the Air Challenge. This can be any kind of project having to do with love and it closes on February 14th. 

Two Little Birdies in a Tree

Today's card is another Valentine's Day project. I made this for my best friend, Monique and her guy, John. I'm a big fan of them as a couple, especially since it seemed like they were going for the 'will-they-or-won't-they' couple award of the century. But one simply has to remain optimistic and love always wins out in the end!

Monique is a huge fan of birds so I wanted to incorporate that in the card. I also tease her a lot because she gushes about him and when I saw this stamp sentiment, I just had to smile. The birds were cut from the Create A Critter 2 cartridge. After I added them, the card seemed a little unfinished so I added some flowers in the corners.

I'm entering this into the Cut It Up Challenge #11-'Love is in the Air'. This ends on February 6th.

How cute are they?

 So here's to them and lots more lovey dovey Valentine's Days in their future. :-)