Doodle Dragon release coming soon!

If you follow Dustin's blog, you know that he's having some problems with his website. He plans to post this week's releases as soon as he's able, but you can still anticipate his "cool" new digis here and on the design team blogs (on the left under the Doodle Dragon banner).

This is my 2nd - yes, SECOND - Christmas card this year. I don't think I've ever been this far along with my Christmas cards EVER! lol But with Dustin's art, I think it will be a breeze this year! =D

I started with a sketch from 2 Sketches for You and a kraft base, then used papers from the BG Wassail collection. The gingerbread man & ornament were painted with Shimmerz with a little silver glitter glue for the cap and hanger. The scalloped mat was kraft, but to tie it together with the buttons, I sponged on some Memento Rich Cocoa, then rolled the hemp twine on the ink pad to give it a little more color. The buttons have quite small holes, so I threaded the hemp through with the help of a needle threader. Both the image and the buttons are popped up on pop dots.

supplies ~ kraft: Bazzill, dsp: Basic Grey Wassail, image: Dustin Pike, buttons & hemp: stash

Are you in the Christmas spirit yet? Yeah, I'm not quite there yet, but at this rate I will be soon! Thanks for coming to visit today, and have a great weekend!

Showing my SheetLoad with a Doodle Dragon freebie

Hello, again! Today is your lucky day - Dustin Pike is giving away a really cute Christmas dragon today! Here's a peek at what I did with it.

I used the July sketch for SheetLoad of Cards magazine to come up with this little guy, and decided to do something I rarely do: I paper pieced. In fact, the entire image is pieced with Christmas paper scraps from last year. I embellished with ribbons and poinsettia flower brads that I picked up during Michael's after-Christmas sale. The sentiment is from Inkadinkado, also an after-Christmas bargain. It's hard to see, but I used a QuickKutz embossing folder on the card base to add a little interest. I also used my Fiskars border punch for the scallops and my Tonic ticket tag punch on the corners of the image.

So, I guess this is officially my first Christmas card of this year, and even though I don't want to admit it Christmas is fast approaching. Have you started your Christmas cards yet, or are you more of a last-minute kind of person?

supplies ~ cardstock & dsp: stash, ribbon: Michaels, flowers/brads: Making Memories, image: Dustin Pike Doodle Dragon, sentiment: Inkadinkado Christmas Tag Wishes

Have a terrific day!

Penny Black Saturday Challenge 59: Recipe

I'll admit it: I'm a challenge addict. The problem: life gets in the way! There are a gazillion awesome challenge blogs out there, many of which I follow. The Penny Black Saturday Challenge blog is one of them. I've entered all of two PB challenges since I started blogging last year, but I follow the blog. Every week I say, "I'm going to enter this week," and every week I don't have time. ::sigh::

But this week I finally got the chance! I had the card front already done from last month's SheetLoad sketch, and I colored up this image with Prismas & baby oil while on vacation. All I had to do was adhere the image and add a few embellishments for this week's recipe challenge to include 3 ribbons, 2 flowers and 1 charm. Voila!

Other than the hedgehog images, this is probably one of my favorite Penny Black stamps. It's so happy, and it's a breeze to color. It would have been even easier if I had made the flower a daisy, but I was at my parents' house when I colored this and some memories started to surface. Mom and Granny always had flower beds when I was growing up, and one of my favorites were Black-Eyed Susans. They are in the daisy family, but the coloring is definitely different from the typical white-petaled daisies that are so familiar. I wasn't too interested in flowers growing up and didn't know the names of many flowers (unlike my mom & grandmothers), but I definitely knew these! I guess you could say I was reliving my childhood as I colored. =D

supplies ~ cardstock: Martha Stewart, kraft: Bazzill, dsp: DCWV Sweet Stack, rub-on sentiment: Joann's, flowers: Prima, brad: K & Co., charm: stash, ribbon: Michael's

Thanks for popping in today - I'll see you again soon! =D

Verve Project Parade: Divine Details

:::Looking for my Whimsy Challenge post? Scroll down to the next one!:::

I have been an admirer of Verve stamps for quite a while, but it seems like there's never enough $$ to get everything I want. I won a $25 gift certificate in the last Project Parade, but my craft room is a mess, so I haven't inked up the stamps I bought (YET!) =D

So I decided to enter this card in this month's round of the Verve Project Parade, and you may notice a similarity to my DT project for the Whimsy Stamps Challenge Blog. It came out really well, and this month we're supposed to describe our design process when we make cards.

My process is simple, really. I have to have a sketch to begin. I'm very visual, so a blank panel does nothing to inspire me. Give me a sketch, and my imagination will take flight! So this sketch is from a Stamp Something challenge that I never had time to enter; it was hanging on my bulletin board waiting for a card.

The next step is to decide what image, papers and colors I want to use. This one was easy since I had two of these monkeys, and my intention was to start my card for the DT project. I also wanted to make a masculine card - I always need more of those. Basic Grey puts out a lot of nice manly papers, so I decided to use them.

Once I get those main elements down, then I start thinking about whether I will use sentiments or embellishments. I really struggle with sentiments, but I'm lucky to have an Archaic rub-on book that had some sentiments in it. I picked this one since it just fit the monkey so well and mounted it on a Nesties label with a couple of brads.

supplies ~ cardstock: stash & SU Chocolate Chip, dsp: Basic Grey Archaic, sentiment: BG Archaic rub-on, brads: Making Memories, image: Whimsy Monkey

Now you have a glimpse into how my crazy brain works - there really is a method to my madness! =D

Thanks for visiting to day, and have a terrific day!

Whimsy Challenge: Sketch

I can't believe that I'm finally back! After two weeks of vacation, a week of hubby's hospitalization, and a week of trying to settle back into "normal" life, I finally had time to make a brand new card. I did color up several images over vacation and get them onto card fronts I made before leaving, but I'll share those later.

Today is a new challenge at the Whimsy Stamps Challenge Blog, and it's my fave...a sketch! And I'll tell you something funny (at least it is now): I'm a very visual person, so I usually print out sketches and post them above my craft table as I work. I thought I was all organized and ready-to-go for this week's challenge when I was ready to work on it. I got the card all done, photographed, edited and went to post it on the DT message board...and I used the WRONG SKETCH! It wasn't even an old Whimsy Challenge sketch; I have no idea where I got that sketch! So you can imagine my frustration as I went back to the drawing board. To save myself a little heartache, I used the same image and papers the second time around since I was happy with the color combo, but BOY! was I an unhappy camper to have to start over!

So here are the deets, assuming you've picked yourself up off the floor! This cute little monkey was colored with Prisma pencils (no OMS this time), papers are BG Archaic matted on SU Chocolate Chip. And do you notice something you don't usually see on my cards? Yep - words! Sentiments are always the hardest for me, so many times I either put it inside after thinking about it a while, or I let the card be entirely image-driven and blank inside for a personal note. I won a blog candy that included Archaic rub-ons, though, and they are so cute! I used one of them on this card, and another on the "mistake" card mentioned above.

supplies ~ cardstock: stash & SU Chocolate Chip, dsp: Basic Grey Archaic, sentiment: BG Archaic rub-on, brads: Making Memories, image: Whimsy Monkey

OK, that's it for me today. There's lots more inspiration on the other design team blogs. You can get the links on the left side of my blog under the Whimsy banner, or go to the challenge blog to see their creations all together.

Thanks for visiting today, and have a Magical Monday!

Things have finally settled down a bit...and a WOJ blog candy

Thank you to everyone who prayed for us while Bill was in the hospital. He is doing much better now and is home, much to our relief and delight. We still have lots of doctor appointments to do, but at least I'm mostly home rather than simply sleeping here and spending my days at the hospital. That frees up some time for crafting, although I don't know yet how much.

On a happier note, Katharina Frei is offering a Whiff of Joy blog candy that you may like - an entire fall stamp kit! WOJ images are so adorable, and I'm sure you've seen them already out in the blogosphere. Head over to her blog to get details and enter!

Sporadic posts for a couple of weeks

I'm back from my vacation, but wanted to let you know that my posts (if there are any) may be sporadic for a week or two. My husband is in the hospital until at least Wednesday, and may need more of my attention once he gets home. We would deeply appreciate your prayers for his healing and the doctors' wisdom. Thank you!

Did you see the new releases at Doodle Dragon?

It's another new release over at Doodle Dragon Studio! You can see the "cool" new images on Dustin's blog, or you can go straight to the store to buy the ones you like. ETA: I didn't know ahead of time that Dustin was going to do this, but from now til Midnight this Sunday 07-12-09 he's selling ALL of his digi stamps (including today's 15) for $25.00.

All 118 of his digis...$25. How can you say no to that?!?!

I'll be back in a couple of days with new cards to share. Thanks for visiting - come again soon!

Doodle Dragon freebie!

Yep, I'm still out of town, but Dustin is still offering his weekly freebie. Make sure you pay him a visit! And remember that tomorrow is the new Doodle Dragon release - make sure you stop by for a look at what's new!

Thanks for coming for a visit - I'll be back in a few days with new posts.

Whimsy Challenge celebrates birthdays

Another Monday, a brand new challenge at Whimsy Stamps Challenge Blog! I hope you had a great Independence Day weekend!

This week we'd like to see your BIRTHDAY cards. I'm sure you can use more birthday cards, right? I know I can always use more birthday cards! I'm still out of town, so you can see what the rest of the design team has created by visiting the challenge blog, or you can click the links on the left under the Whimsy banner. Remember: any image is okay, but a Whimsy Stamps image will get you two entries for the week (and the prizes are always wonderful)!

Thanks for stopping by today! I should be back next Monday with a "cool" (*wink*) card to share with you. Have a fantastic day!

July Shout Out to SheetLoad

It's here - the July issue of SheetLoad has arrived for download! This month's issue shows you how to make 8 cards using just 5 pieces of cardstock and 2 patterned papers. Remember that if you make ONE card using their layout, you can enter it for a great prize - see the SheetLoad blog for details!

Happy 4th of July!

Today is one of my favorite holidays! Besides the food, family and fun that goes with it, there's a serious side that the history teacher in me admires a great deal. This nation was founded on the principle of freedom. Our history proves that it has been a bumpy and tumultuous journey, but that founding principle is still our guide post when we lose our way as a nation.

But it's also a day that reminds me of true freedom. I am so grateful that the Lord Jesus saved my soul so many years ago. I no longer live under the bondage of sin with the shame and guilt it produces. I know that when it's my turn to leave this world, I'll be welcomed into Heaven for an eternity of rest and peace because Jesus died and rose again to take away my sin. I've done nothing to merit a place in Heaven - Christ did it all on the Cross. Amen!

Thanks for visiting today! I hope that your Independence Day is a blessed one!

Hip Hop Hangover goes PINK

I don't usually do pink very often. It's not that I don't like it, it's just that I love other colors so much more (sorry, pink!). But Lee Murphy issued a challenge to use pink and brown on our cards since that's HER favorite color combo (if you visit her blog, you'll find out that PINK and BLING are her two favorite things on cards - go figure!).

So, here it is, folks...pink, brown, and some bling, too. I experimented with this card. I used some watercolor paper to stamp Royal Day with VersaMark. Then I took some Ruby Red Twinkling H2Os and painted the entire piece of paper. Being impatient, I hit it with my heat gun to dry it out faster. What happened is the image only barely shows up out of direct light, and it has a very subtle shimmer to it in direct light. I tried this process with Shimmerz, too, but it didn't work. I have never tried a resist technique and, silly me, I didn't bother to go to SCS to see how it's done. This was my random attempt, which didn't work out the way I expected - but I kinda like it. The camera didn't pick it up very well - you have to look pretty hard to see the background image.

supplies - light pink cardstock: stash, brown cardstock: SU Chocolate Chip, hot pink: custom made by MOI on Strathmore, ribbon: Michael's, gems: Darice, image: Unity April KOM {fresh beginnings}

Thanks for coming by today - have a great Independence weekend!

Get yer Doodle Dragon Freebie!

If you haven't been to Dustin Pike's blog today, you should go over and pick up your free image. He's been doing backgrounds for a couple of weeks, but since I'm out of town I have NO IDEA what he's offering, but I know it will be really good!

Dustin and the design team are taking a break this week, so you'll probably see some older images on our blogs instead of new art. We'll have some all new images next week, though!

I do have one card for you from his May 28 release called "Early Bird". I thought it might be funny to put a "thinking of you" sentiment on it - it'll mess with the recipient's head!

I colored the image with Prismas & OMS, but wanted vibrant colors and no shading this time. If I have time, I'll post a tutorial with how I did this - usually the color with Prisma pencils gets subdued with OMS, but I used a slightly different technique this time.

supplies ~ cardstock: stash, dsp: Basic Grey Archaic, image: Dustin Pike "Early Bird", senitment: Studio G

Thanks for coming by today - have a super day!