Making a living vs. Making a LIFE (SFYTT)

Hi everyone!! Hope you all are having a great weekend. I know, it seems like I was JUST doing last week's SFYTT.... and here we are again! Here is the link for this week, last week I was late and this week, I'm early! :) Funny thing is , the ribbon that was my inspiration last week, is my inspiration again.... I told you, I REALLY like blue;). This is actually a biodegradable ribbon, the brand is 'Nature's Own" and its from England. I wish I could say that I bought it when I was visiting there.... (hint, hint to my hubby, Steve!) but.... alas, just something cool I found in the clearance section at the Container Store, lol!!! Anyway, I thought it was cool that it's "green." The cardstock, background paper, stamps, red ribbon, punches, green button AND corduroy brad are all SU! The scalloped circle, is the new JUMBO scallop circle punch, I'm loving that as I use my smaller one nonstop. The paper is the new "Greenhouse Gala." Remember, I used the herringbone piece the other day on the gator card?? Same package of DSP. The stamp is a new hostess set that will be in the new catty. The green corner piece, as well as the brocade brad are both from K & Co. The brown scalloped sticker across the bottom is We R Memory Keepers. I made the red brad myself, and it is hand stamped. I omitted a couple pieces that are on the sketch, I just was afaraid it would get too busy, what with all the fabrics and patterns and pieces and things. BUT, I really <3 the way it turned out, a new favorite. :) Well, keeping it short tonight. I am looking forward to tomorrow night, my kids are going to my Mom's house (did I mention, I LOVE summer, when my Mom, who is a teacher is off work??) and we are going to my favorite restaurant "The Old Stone Church" in Castle Rock, an actual date! Can't wait. :) Have a great Sunday, all.

You can buy this card here.

Mosaic Bunnies (TCPTUES115)

Hi everyone, well... I DID get this done!! Yea me!! ;) It turned out really cute, so I'm glad I made the time. You can check out this week's Cat's Pajamas Challenge here. It's an aqua mosaic challenge & there's a few days left to submit, so check it out! :) Mosaic makes me think of glass tiles, a bit on the uneven side, and the color palette in the pic is blues/greens/aquas, so thats where I jumped off. I used my mini Stampin' Up! flower punch and the coordinating buttons and aqua wire for the mosaic strip along the bottom. I placed the punched flowers in a random pattern, and a bit unevenly spaced, because that's how I think of mosaic- a bit uneven, casual, and relaxed. I used this particular stamp set because....well.... to be honest this is the only TCP stamp set I have! So, again with the bunnies and the Copics. The cardstock colors are SU! Pacific Point, Tempting Turquoise, and some random green from my scrap bin. Well, that's it for me, my son has his baseball tornament this weekend, so I gotta close with a great big.... "GO BEES!!!!!"

Have a great weekend, everyone!

You can buy this bunny card here.

Tutu Much!! (SFYTT)

Hi there! Back again for the night. I realized if I wanted to get on this week's Sketch for You To Try (SFYTT) I had to do it TONIGHT or it would be too late! Here is this week's SFYTT link. Luckily, inspiration hit a little over an hour ago with this aqua ribbon. Once I got the idea to use it for the bunny's tutu, I was off and running! I may also submit this for the TCP Tuesday challenge. This is the Cat's Pajamas stamp set I told you about the other day..... SO CUTE!!! I just love these little bunnies! Anyway, this card is a bit less blue/green and mosaic-y than I would like for the challenge, BUT we will see when that one closes! Here  is the link for that challenge. I have 6 days, so hopefully I will come up with something more summery! I used the copics again on this card, I think I am getting better with them. The solid cardstock is the new color Cajun Craze and the blue is my new fave color Marina Mist. I don't know that I would've normally put these colors together? But I was thinking of the watery blues for the TCP challenge.... and then the brown of the bunny.... and then I found this paper in my DCWV "mod-Retro" paper stack.....and THEN, it just snowballed from there with the sketch in the background. Just a little peek into my creative spirals, I'm soooo tired now, pardon me if I'm a little loopy! ;) Well, I think that's it for  me tonight. Going to post this on Jen's page and then I will get this sweet little rabbit up on etsy, splitcoast, and spotted canary TOMORROW. Chat soon!! -Noelle 

Here is where you can purchase this bunny in her tutu:)

Journals For My etsy Shop

Hi everyone!! Here's some journals that I've been working on for my etsy shop. I'd like to make several more soon, but this summer is SO nuts, with all the boys home, I just haven't had time to work on much these days. Hopefully, I will get to some more very SOON :) These are regular sized composition books (currently 1$ at Target), I use scraps of the flocked paper to make a pen loop.  

This first red and brown diary is from Stampin' Up! "Presto Patterns" DSP. It comes white with embossed images on it. I brayered over the white with the new ink, Cherry Cobbler, some Basic Brown, and then finally spritzed it with the gold Smooch Spritz. I used a flocked paper by Christine Adolph (Creative Imaginations) on the bindings, more of antique look on this one. I used some brown sticker letters, along the bottom to spell out the word "journal." I used a large paper clip with a ribbon knotted on the top. I cover the insides of the journal cover with cardstock to cover the pen loop and ribbon ends.

The butterfly journal I thought would be good for a person going through a difficult time. The caption reads "If nothing ever changed, there would be no butterflies." I thought it would be a good gift for someone going through a loss of a loved one, a divorce, or job loss. The butterfly patternrd paper is Basic Grey and the butterfly flocked paper on the binding is Anna Griffin. The stamps are from Stampin' Up! as well as the polka dot acetate set of "wings."

The final journal is a Stampin' Up! paper as well, from the DSP package from last year, "Good Morning Sunshine." I thouyght it might be cute for a diet & exercise journal & I may make one for myself!! :) The stamps are Tart and Tangy. I had the decorated paper clip in my stash from awhile back.

Well that's it for today, I am trying (TRYING) to get around to this week's SFYTT. So, we'll see if that happens!! Have a great evening!

Buy vintage red journal

Buy butterfly journal

Buy pear journal

See you later alligator LONG CARD

Hi everyone! Hope you are all getting your weekend off to a fun and early start. I worked all day on cleaning up my basement (boy it was a MESS!) and after all that cleaning and organizing I really neede some craft therapy, so here we are.... I got my new Stampin' Up! preview goodies in the mail today as well as my new catalog. Ooh la la! VERY very cute, everything in there! This card is using some of those new toys. The paper is a new DSP called "Greenhouse Gala" SOOOO cute! It includes my NEW favorite color; Marina Mist (see, I TOLD you I have a thing for blue!!) The other colors of cardstock are Real Red and Confetti White. This gator stamp is from the new hostess set in the catalog, "Long Fellows." The Frankenstein quote stamp is from that fun set called "Smarty Pants." I believe the new catalog drops on July 1, but will let you know for sure later. I used the Copics again on this card, I love the blending, but I think I need to work with them some more as I'm still tending to bleed outside the lines a bit.

I lifted cutting the paper herringbone style from Angie Tieman's blog here. Just too cute! I've been following Angie's blog for a while now, and it actually was one of the things that inspired me to start my own. When I was thinking on it, I emailed her and she was really really sweet about giving me info. :) I also thought that cutting the paper that way was reminiscent of "teeth" so that seemed to go well with that gator stamp. 

This style of cards are my "long cards." They fit in a legal sized envelope. I designed one years ago and have been making them ever since. If you want a fun touch, you can attach a cut pencil, or roll of life savers, or a hatpin with pearls, or any other little goody on the left had side there where I have the woven ribbon. I altered this one a bit from my normal dimensions to accomodate the herringbone paper piece. Here's the original dimensions: Back large piece is 8 1/2" wide by 3 3/4" high. Inside piece is 8 1/2" wide by 2 5/8" high. Front piece is 6 3/4" wide by 3 1/4" high. Here is another card made with the same dimensions. It's an old card, sorry the pic is SO blurry!! :)

Finally I added some punched circles in the same color for texture, hoping that it would add dimension, but not make it too busy. Opinions on that choice? Well, I think i'm going to hit the sheets after I post this card a few more places. I'd love to have you comment or follow, THANK you so much, for checking me out, even if you can't though. I'm getting my etsy shop going, so i will keep you posted on that. 

Have a FABULOUS weekend!!! :) - Noelle 

You can purchase this fun little gator guy here.

Sunflower Latte (TCPTUES114)

Hi everyone! I hope everyone is well. We are having our first sunny day in almost a week! My best friend came up from the city she lives in (about an hour away...) and we met another friend at the zoo with the kids. 6 boys in all and there were moments I thought mine were wilder than any of the animals there! The zoo was CRAZY packed, I've had a membership for years and have never, EVER seen it so full before! Anyway, it was fun, but when I got home a couple hours ago, I was so tired! I thought some card making might relieve a little stress, so here we are.....

When my friend arrived today, she brought me the sweetest card! :) So, I wanted to make her a card to send her in the mail. We have a shared LOVE of coffee, so I though this would be a cute one for her. The sketch is this week's "TCP Tuesday" (TCPTUES114) link is here:
http://dancinginpajamas.blogspot.com/ After I was done, I realized, I probably should have used Cat's Pajamas brand stamps for this challenge! Whoops! Sorry, these are gel-a-tins. I will use CP next time I do one of their sketches, I just got a really CUTE set from there!

All cardstock is Stampin' Up! Colors as follows: "Good Morning Sunshine" DSP, Close to Cocoa, Summer Sun, Chocolate Chip and Whisper White. both Summer Sun & Close to Cocoa will be retired in less than a month! ACK! Also on here is a little wood flower from K& Company.

One of these days, I will start linking you up to where you can buy these products. I don't have any other links today, but here is my Stampin Up! site, I will put a button on the blog for it as well. http://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/noellesstampresource/ . If you haven't checked out Stampin' Up's retired list you should, they are retiring just a TON of colors, that if you don't order before the end of the month will be gone for good! The new colors coming out are PRETTY darn cool, though! I especially love the one called "Marina Mist." In case you haven't picked up on it, I've got kind of a love affair with the color blue. BIGTIME! ;) Well that's it, the troops are getting restless gain, so I should go. Hope everyone has a GREAT week! Please comment or follow my blog, I'm just getting started, thanks!! :)

Happy Summer Birthday!! (SFYTT)

Hi everyone!! Happy Saturday!! I am in a ESPECIALLY good mood today because my husband is finally home for an actual weekend!!! Yay! It's been over a month since he had more than one day off , AND (to sweeten the deal even more...) it's raining in Denver today, so my son's baseball game is cancelled & we have a whole day together, NICE and way too rare as of late! Buoyed by our freedom, we took our kids to the Downtown Aquarium for dinner and a look around last night. They have a sweet deal for kids on Friday nights, 1.99 kids meals in their restaurant (which truly is delicious!!) and 5$ admission into the aquarium itself plus free parking. If you live in the front range area in CO, you should check it out sometime, because it's usually pretty pricey. Heres some pics... My middle son, Collin and I (that's him in the diver suit) love to look for stingray eggs in the tanks. They are the WILDEST looking eggs you have ever seen! Google stingray eggs or "mermaid's purse" if you get a chance & you are interested in things like that! :) Ok, This card is this week's SFYTT, link here:

http://iheart2stamp.com/2010/06/12/sponsored-sketch-for-you-to-try/

The main card front is one of these wood sheets that are super thin. You can punch, die cut and cut them, they are pretty cool. All the papers are SU! except that green one, which is...... I believe (?) K & Co. If you know for sure if I'm wrong or right, please comment! The stamp behind the frame was stamped in VersaMark on glossy white & then brayered. Then I stamped the same image on different colors of cardstock, and cut out the different elements I wanted to highlight. Finally, I touched up with markers on the tree trunks & pink flower. The die used for the frame is Nestabilities & I cut out the center with an Xacto knife. The buttons are all SU! The main image is from a retired set that is SO cute, called "Seasonal Whimsy," and the "happy birthday" stamp is from "All Holidays." The colors used are: Melon Mambo, Tempting Turquoise, old Olive and Summer Sun, a VERY bright palette! Well, that's it for me! Please follow my blog or leave a comment, I'd love to get to know you better since I'm still new to all this. :)

You can purchase this card here

Birthday Bot (SFYTT)

Hi everyone! Hope you all are doing well. My sons are in VBS this week and having a ball! I have (up until today....) FINALLY been getting caught up around here! I've done a ton of laundry and cleaning! But today I decided, time for some "me" time! And that means finally getting around to this weeks "Sketch For You To Try" link which is here:

http://iheart2stamp.com/2010/06/05/darling-cute-first-saturday-of-the-month/

Well, I started this card with the sketch, and ended up altering it, just a wee bit. The robot stamp is from SU! "Lots of Bots" and the "make a wish" stamp is from "A Little Birthday Cheer." All the cardstock/paper is also SU! Colors are: Kiwi Kiss, Tempting Turquoise, Basic Gray, Kraft & Old Olive. The natural looking piece behind the patterned piece is actually cardboard, but I liked the look of it with this.

The "rivet" looking hardware on the robot and in the corner is SUPER duper old (think 5+ years...) & I don't remember the manufacturer, so sorry! The "screw" looking brads are from Michaels. I have 3 boys, so I just LOVE me a fun & cute boy card! I stamped and colored the robot with markers. I pulled the color scheme off the patterned paper, which is a recent "clearance" purchase from Stampin' Up! In the corner, that funny looking "gear" shaped punch is actually the punch for my i-Top (brad making tool).

The banner with the sentiment on it..... I tried to give it movement. I'm still not sure how I feel about the way it looks....... Guess I won't be putting it in an envelope though!! Well, I think that's it for me. I'm seeing that this page is getting lots of hits, so please follow my blog or leave a comment! I'd LOVE to hear from you!! :) TFL & have a great day!!  

You can purchase this card here

Blingy/Gothy/Twilight-y Cross Card

Ok, I have to explain..... I know, I KNOW this is not the kind of card/style you are used to seeing from me. :)

But, I went to the Craft Fair this weekend to sell my wares, and while there, I bought these funky, fun blingy flip flops. I thought, what a fun challenge it would be to make a card like that. With "Twilight" being so huge right now, this dark, tattooed look is pretty popular. I thought it would be a fun challenge and VERY different from my "usual" style! Additionally, the Spotted Canary is doing a "bling" project for the month of June, so I'm going to submit this card for that. Here's the link, if you'd like to join in the fun.

http://www.spottedcanary.com/forum.aspx?g=posts&t=7060

Ok, here we go with technique on this one. The technique on the main, large panel of the card is called a "Inside Out Joseph's Coat" technique. Here's what I did. This main large piece actually started out charcoal gray, I stamped the flower bouquet on it in black. You can see the top of the bouquet sticking out from behind the Medallion image. Then I used my embossing buddy to cover the whole piece. You can also use cornstarch for this step if you dont have the powdery embossing buddy/bag. But make sure and do SOMETHING, otherwise the embossing powder will stick all over both images, and you dont want that. Next I stamped my Medallion stamp (current SU!) in the clear VersaMark Ink and heat embossed it with clear powder. Finally you brayer over the whole thing with multiple ink colors. I used a BRIGHT pink (on the dark gray it looked burgundy pretty quick), a red, and I tried a little of the burgundy ink too. After you brayer, be sure to wipe off the Medallion with tissues so you see the original color showing through there. If you look close at the big picture, you can still see flecks of the Basic Gray cardstock showing through in the upper right-hand corner, where my brayering is subtle. The rest of the card was pretty easy. The cross is heat embossed in silver on black, the "rock star" stamp is from last year's hostess SU! set called "A Little Somethin'" Some of those purpley pearls, some rhinestones complete the blingy look. :)

I'm going to link you up to another card I made a while ago with this technique here. This card is lighter & easier to see the layering. It's called "Vintage Valentine." http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/1604544?&cat=500&ppuser=165203

Funny enough, that bouquet stamp from the first layer, is actually the oldest stamp I own. I used it on my wedding programs 14 years ago! It was well before I even got into scrapbooking or papercrafting & it's meaningful to me that I still have and use it! :) That's it for me, have a great day! Oh, and please follow my blog or leave a comment when you have time. I'd love to get to know you better!

You can purchase this card here