'Thank you, Nichole!

If you've stopped by my blog before, you know that I'm a HUGE Papertrey Ink fan! In fact, they are the company that really got me back into stamping.... Every month so much excitement & inspiration abounds....!
So here's a little thank you to Nichole (and her partners) for always keeping it so fun!

PTI vintage cream & aqua mist cardstock. PTI aqua mist ink. PTI embellishments stamps.

A little paper pleating for Maren's challenge....

The sentiment on this is from Giga guidelines in smokey shadow.....

Thanks so much for stopping by- I'd love to know what you think!

ribbon wedding cake

I have been hoping to enter this week's challenge at Wee Memories- how can I resist- sweets & ribbon!! :)
I've got lots of weddings coming up, so I thought this would be a good time to start on those cards.... My friend, Charlene, inspired me with her doily card, so I put my own spin on that.
I used May Arts crocheted ribbon, cut in 3 lengths & layered over vellum. Then I strung pearls (from Joanns) onto May Arts silk ribbon & added those to the top of each layer.

I attached the cake to some basic gray paper (capella 'mezzo')- it has a pretty wedding-y feel to it on it's own! I distressed with PTI tea dye inks & SU! close to cocoa to try to match the uncut side.

May Arts is sponsoring this challenge- and I want to encourage you to head over to their blog- they are having a comment-to-win-a-spool-of-ribbon (your choice!)!! That contest is open until Sept. 5th- AND open to international entries (hint, hint) so go get your comment in!

The Wee Memories challenge is only open for a few more hours- but you can head over there to see all the sweets with ribbon!!!

Thanks for stopping by- I'd love to hear what you think!

EBTKS #21

I'm finally getting a chance to play along again with EBTKS!! It's sketch challenge time:

So here's my take:

I turned the sketch on it's side... then got busy. I really wanted to use the misted doily I'd made during my last post, and some ruffled aqua ribbon- but I couldn't make it work. Fiddlesticks.

So I moved on, and picked an image that I though my niece would like- I have twin girl nieces that turn 8 tomorrow (Happy Birthday Sydney & Emma!!!).

I stamped in Versafine black on PTI white, paper pieced using Cosmo Cricket's Earth love 6x6, & colored with ink & prismacolor pencils. I'd machine sewn a random circle on the pp & attached some crinkled seam binding that I'd dyed with glimmer mist. Then I attached the little rhinestone to the wand, applied white acrylic paint to the heart in her hair & on her belt (I used black glaze pen on her belt), and threw some shadows on her dress.

I stamped her wings on vellum & heat embossed, cut out & applied crystal stickles to the wings as well as the wand. I then stamped the sentiment in PTI chai ink over & over again- since I really do hope they both have a magical day tomorrow!

You've got a little more time to play along with EBTKS- so get busy!!!

Thanks for stopping by- you know I'd love to hear what you think!!! :D

The Play Date Cafe Challenge #43

This is the first time I've played along with The Play Date Cafe. My friend, Michelle, plays a lot, so I thought I'd go check it out. And check out this inspiration photo:

Is that gorgeous, or what?!
So here's what I came up with:

I glimmer misted (key lime pie) some PTI white cardstock, using a doily as a mask. I have to say, I loved it just like that! I punched some butterflies (MS & PTI die) out of PTI aqua mist, and stamped the large butterfly with PTI butterfly dreams using SU! garden green.

The sentiment is also in garden green ink. I added some diamond stickles to the large butterfly & litte tiny rhinestones (Ben Franklin's) to the smaller butterlies. The large one is popped up for more dimension.

One more of the ribbon- it's crinkled seam binding that I dyed- and I think it's a little bit of heaven! :)

I really wish you could see the sparkle- in real life the whole card shimmers....

And because I haven't posted an update of the puppy:

He's adjusting quite well!
So go check out PDCC43- you have a few days to play along!

Thanks so much for stopping by- I'd love to hear what you think!

Yippee!!! :)

You may remember that I did a few posts here recently featuring May Arts ribbon. They were having a 'Calling all Bloggers' contest to select their blog team. You can imagine my excitement when I found out this morning that I made the team!!!!! Thanks again to all of you that commented on their blog for me- I really appreciate your support!

I would love to send you over to their blog again- they are having a comment to win a spool of their awesome ribbon- it's open through Aug. 22nd. Good luck!

Happy Bridal Shower

Can you believe I'm back again so soon? Crazy, I tell 'ya! :)
It seems we know many people getting married all of a sudden. Isn't it funny how you can go a long time with none, and then BOOM- 3 within a couple of weeks. The one that I'm sad about not being able to attend is my cousins- he's getting married on Laguna Beach (CA). Let me reiterate... ON THE BEACH. 'nough said.
This card is for Cory's cousin's wedding shower... I took a look at her registry- both for a gift AND to get a feel for her colors. That's where this combo comes from. I know. It is the same combo as the last PTI hop- don't be too shocked if it's on my Christmas cards too! ;)

PTI vintage cream cardstock, scattered showers & polka dot 2 stamps. PTI pure poppy & tea dye duo, SU! creamy caramel, Versafine vintage sepia inks

The button is TRULY vintage, embroidery thread from my stash.

I don't know about you, but that dotted frame from vintage labels (PTI) around the sentiment makes me giddy!

I think I'll add this one to the Wee Memories 'buttons, brads & bling' challenge too!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I'd love hearing what you think!!!

i {heart} u...

Hi there!!! Long time no blog- you'd think I got a puppy or something!?! :)
Finally back with something crafty- I know you've had enough non-craftiness out of me!
I've put my Pink Paislee queen bee paper to work here... It's so pretty on it's own! I also got out my Practicing Creativity 'key to my heart' stamps.

I stamped the heart on red cardstock with versamark & embossed with UTEE, then cut it out. I then popped it up between the i & u which had been stamped with PTI fresh snow ink. I cut a narrow piece of the dotted paper & pleated it, then machine stitched it in place.

I used my MS doily punch on more red cardstock along the bottom.

I used some red heart brads (from Joanns I think) to bring it all together.

I would like to thank all of you that were so sweet & went over to May Arts to leave a comment for me there!! I know how busy we ALL are- I really appreciate that several of you did that for me!!! So this one's for all the folks that swing by my little corner of blogland... i {heart} u! :)

I'm entering this in the Wee Memories Challenge #18 (thanks Erin!!)!

Thanks so much for stopping by- I'd LOVE to hear what you think!!!

Gone to the dogs....

Honestly there is a crafty post 2 posts down- but here's another one with pics....
Meet Cosmo (yes, as in Cricket, and Kosmo Kramer, and short for the delightful cocktail cosmopolitan).
Hadley's been begging for a pet since we lost our cat last year. I got her a beta fish a couple of months ago, but 'colorful sparky' wasn't really cutting it in the pet department. Cory started warning me it was coming- I guess I knew I was outnumbered.....
Yesterday we went to 'Woofstock'- an annual rescue/adoption event. The furry person we were looking for wasn't there. We looked around for quite awile & decided we'd hold out... and in walked 'clyde'. We wanted a girl. He's not one. And still, he had me at hello....

He's about 25 lbs & around 5 months old. He was rescued from Puerto Rico, so he's bilingual now. *giggle* That's his 'I was adopted at woofstock' bandana. The folks we adopted him from brought him to us last night- they wanted to check us out.... I'm good with that.

Hadley already had a tea party with him this morning!


I know, right?

So hopefully I'll get to some craftiness soon, but now you know who's keeping me busy!

Vacation pics....

We spent 2 weeks on our boat in South Puget Sound (Washington state) in July this year....
There are lots of pics, and no crafts on this one. ETA-there's a crafty post from today below! My friend Natalie would've had these all on scrapbook layouts by now, but alas- I'm lucky to have even downloaded them!
It was great right from the start- this is our first day in Penrose- we spent several there!

Even though there's no proof, even I jumped in that cold (COLD) water- it was pretty hot & I hadn't seen any jellyfish for awhile...

on the beach...

the one below has Cory holding a moon snail- we must've seen nearly a dozen!

we towed the little boat grandma & grandpa gave Hadley...

This isn't the best pic of the boat, but that's Mt. Rainier in the background. I don't think I could ever tire of seeing that peak- and I see it everyday I drive home, much closer than this!

yep, that close to the eagles- something else I'll never tire of!

We moved on to Jerrol's cove on Harstene Island-

We drank the bottle of wine we'd brought back from New Zealand- we'd been saving it for our 10 year anniversary. It was great to reminisce about that winery....

Those are the Olympic mountains. Did I mention how beautiful I find our area to be?

On to Olympia...

dancing at the farmer's market

enjoying lakefair rides...

winning 'shiny-tongue'

that's the state capitol in the background

heading to Poulsbo, we always end up having to watch out for the ferries!

Hadley loves playing at the little park right next to the marina...

looks like a Hawaii sunset, I'm told! :D

to prove I was there....

Soldered pendant with May Arts...

I have a soldered pendant I put together to show you! I've used graphic 45 for one side, and the girls' paperie for the other.

That little 'fancy' sticker is girls' paperie too!

I strung it on some gorgeous May Arts silk ribbon. I started with black, but look how much the look is changed when I switched to the pink, and then the white silk ribbon!

I'd love to hear your thoughts...! And if you have a minute (hahaha- do any of us have a spare?) head over to the May Arts blog & leave a little note about my post over there- I would REALLY appreciate it!!!! (did that sound like begging? well, if it didn't it should have!!)

Thanks for stopping by! :D