First Annual "March of the Snowmen" Blog Hop

Hi everyone!  I'm so excited to introduce to you the first annual "March of the Snowmen" Blog Hop!  I love snowmen images and so do all the other designers participating in this blog hop.  This talented group of ladies has planned some sensational snow flurried projects for you.  So before I list my own mini march of snowmen projects let me introduce you to our designers!  Make sure you scroll all the way to the bottom of my post before you start hopping though, because I'm giving away TWO blog candy packages!!  And check out each designers blogs carefully for MORE blog candy announcements!

Angella Crockett

Barb Foster

Deb Felts

Jen Carter

JenMarie Taylor

Jodi Heuser

Kelly Landers

Latisha Yoast

Laurie Unger

Laurie Willison

Linda Duke

Melisa Waldorf - You are here now

Michelle Bartnett

Mona Pendleton

Pam Imholz

Stacy Rogers

Snowman Project #1 was designed using a vintage FREE digi download from a challenge blog : Digital for Tuesday Challenge Blog.  They post a FREE vintage digi image each tuesday for you to design with.  The blog is sponsored by Clearly Vintage.  The owner sales vintage stamp sets that are wonderful.  So I wanted to take a minute to share this wonderful find with all my vintage lovin' friends.  I also designed this project for another challenge blog : Sunday Postcard Art.  When I can I have been playing along with challenge blogs for inchies, ATC's, collage, mixed media recently.

A postcard is 4" x 6".  I started with a piece of cardboard, tore away some of the surface to reveal the "ripples".  I layered on Weathered Wood Crackle Paint, then Sky Making Memories Acrylic Paint and lastly Picket Fence Crackle Paint.  I colored my image with Prismacolor pencils and OMS.  I add Shimmerz.  My "snow" is liquid applique.  I love that stuff!  I add a little white fun flock around the brim of the girls hat and Stampendous Prisma glitter to feather and ball on tip of girls hat.  All the other embellishments are things I picked up in the Christmas section of a local arts and crafts store. 

Snowman Project #2 was created using a wonderful vintage cut out by Crafty Secrets Heartwarming Vintage line of products.  I'm gonna be giving this one away at a Cookie Swap tomorrow night that is held annually by some of my Scrapbooking buddies here in town.

Snowman Project #3 was created using "Gifts of Love" by FireCracker Designs by Pamela.  You can check this set out HERE.  I love Martha Stewarts Snowflake border punch!  Perfect for you winter cards.

Snowman Project #4 features "Snowman Nativity" by The Angel Company.  I created my own watercolor background for this one, then stamped and embossed the snowflakes creating my own DP.  This is a Score-pal card, Cami card.  You can find the directions on the Scor-pal site.  If you are interested in ordering this set online from a TAC demo, let me know.  I can hook you up!  I'm hoping one of the designers in the hop show cases "Merriest Wishes".  It is one of the cutest snowman sets I have EVER seen!

The window creates a great card!

Here is another project using "Snowman Nativity" for Project #5.  I loved these little guys soooo much, I couldn't help creating a home decor project so I could sit them out on a table and enjoy them.  I used old wood stamp blocks as my base.

Blog Candy Packages for 2 Lucky Winners!

 

To qualify for blog candy all you have to do is leave me a comment with your email address included.  You have until 8pm EST Sunday December 6th.  At that time I will draw 2 names to win the above blog candy.  I will post the winners by 9pm EST.  Good Luck ladies!!

Thank you so much for stopping by!  I hope you enjoy the hop and are inspired to create your own snowmen projects to bring some winter cheer to your home or to someone else's mailbox this year!

Artist Trading Card / Christmas

Hello.  I bought one of those 7 Gypsies Revolving ATC Holder.  What a cool way to set your ATC Art out.  I decided to try and create ATC for different holidays that I can sit out with all my other holidat decor. Here are my first Christmas ATC's.

Artist Trading Card 2.5 " x 3.5"

DP : Making Memories Vintage Findings Kit

Image : Dover Publications Holiday Vignettes Book

DP : Making Memories Vintage Findings Kit

Image : Dover Publications Holiday Vignettes Book

Red Pearls : Memory Box

You can view all of my ATC's HERE

You can check out all of Christmas Projects HERE.

I won $25 free Impression Obsession!

TEEHHEEEEEE (giggling).  Who doesn't love winning free stuff!  Every 2 weeks or so, Shirley Ross and the IO DT share inspiration and a customer challenge via a Blog Hop.  And Mitra, IO owner, offers up a $25 gift certificate to their online store!!  I love Impression Obsession images and started playing along.  Shirley has been posting the challenges for customers in advance, so you have time to do some shopping for the perfect IO image to use for the challenge.  Last week my name was drawn and I just finished doing a little shopping!  I can't wait to get my new images in the mail.  We would love to have you join us!  I have already created my card for this weeks challenge.  You can see the challenge and blog hop on Thursday HERE.

Here is my entry for the upcoming challenge.

I used Winter Wonderland F2268
I stamped my tree with VersaMagic and embossed with White Embossing Powder.  I realized that you were not going to be able to see the details if the entire card was white, including the stamped image, so I brushed over the embossed image with some green ink.  I used my Cuttlebug and embossing templates to create my textured background.  I used my Martha Stewart border punch to create even more white texture.  I added white Pearl Glitter and pearls to the tree.

And here are the details for upcoming challenges that Shirley shared recently:

Dec. 3 -- WHITE (Mainly White) challenge
Dec. 17 -- VALENTINES/LOVE
Jan. 7 -- SPRING
Jan. 21 -- SHAPED card (anything but rectangle)

I hope you will join us in the next challenge. If you would like to prepare early here are the guidelines:
Impression-Obsession stamps only please.
Entries will be accepted until the following Saturday at midnight.
You email your entry to me using the Email Shirley link provided near the top of the second sidebar to the right.
All participants' cards will be posted here and also permanently in our IO Customer Album in the very next sidebar over.

If you live in Jacksonville, know that I have purchased Impression Obsession stamps locally at Pictures In Time, Scrap and Stamp, and A Small Cleverness.

Or shop online at Impression Obsession Online Store.

Joy Banner Triangle #2

 I just completed the second triangle for my Joy Banner that I'm creating along with the gals over at Ready... Steady ... Stamp.  Here are the guidelines for this section of the project :

I gotta be honest.  I forgot about the Kraft paper and in a panic decided that I could add it as a dangle from the bottom, whew.  I think long term, though, I will be changing this out to a large gold star.  That would match my first section better.

I hope this inspires you to start a Christmas Banner of your own! Need more inspiration??  Jump over to Ready, Steady, Stamp and check out the other girls projects!

GinaK Designs - Little Tees

 I used Little Tee's to create this one.  The sentiment is from Elegant Post.

I stamped my images on DCWV Citrus Matstack.  The Matstacks make it easy since all the paper coordinates and they are the perfect size for card making.  The paper already had glitter on it, so my card was quick and easy!

I hope everyone isn't too stuffed with turkey to get crafty this weekend.  Thanks for stopping by!

Christmas Phrases by FCD

Hello!  I hope everyone has arrived back home safely if you had to travel for Thanksgiving.  I love Thanksgiving, it's my favorite holiday!  But I'm always exhausted by the time it's all over with.  I think it's because I try to get so much done in just a couple of days.  So I'm finally getting back on the computer tonight to find that I have recieved a gazillion emails since tuesday and that my post didn't go off as planned on Wednesday.  So you are gettin' a two tonight.  I'm starting with my FCD post you should have received Wednesday.  As you may remember, Pamela from FCD gave us each 2 wonderful Christmas sets to work with for November and December.  Tonight I'm focusing on Christmas Phrases.  These sentiments are perfect for so many different Christmas cards.  These sentiments would make a beautiful card if used alone with some decorative paper.  But I chose to combine them with a couple of other FCD Christmas sets.

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I combined this one with the ornament top and star from Season's Greetings.

I cut the tree section from a piece of green textured paper.

I combined this one with the snowflakes from Gifts of Love.

I found some snowflake patterned paper and stamped my FCD snowflakes using VersaMark Ink and embossed with white embossing powder.  Sooooo easy!

Pamela  packs alot of options on a plate, so you really get your moneys worth when you order from her.  It's not to late to order your Christmas stamps from her, because she mails them out so quickly.  The latest they will be shipping before the holidays is December 15th.

Hoping to post my FCD Christmas Ornaments by Sunday.  See ya then!

Inch by Inch ...

Without further ado ...

Sand Between My Toes

I have been checking these little works of art for well over a year now.  We have a wonderful stamping/mixed media/collage store here in Jacksonville, A Small Cleverness.

They do monthly ATC and Inchie swaps among other wonderfully artistic activities.  I go there often and check out the artistic endeavers of these talented ladies.  And I'm ALWAYS amazed at how much they can get into a 1" square.  These little squaures can be combined to create larger works of arts.

The above set was created for the Inchy by Inch Challenge Blog.   The theme was texture.  I decided to go with sand, since I had these tiny sea shell stamps.  I used Goldens Coarse Pumice Gel.  It can be purchased in the Art section of most art/hobby stores.  It's greyish and can be mixed with acrylic paint.  I'm not happy with the color of my sand, but didn't have time to remix and start all over.  I think most of these tiny shells are from an Impression Obsession set and a Mini Technique Tuesday set I've had forever.

Passionate About Purple

Photo not so great.  A little harder to photograph these little guys.  Sorry.  I created this one for Small World of Inchies and Twinchies.  The theme was Purple.  I kinda cheated, because I went shopping for some images specifically so that I could do inchies.  I found these decorative sqaure stamps, perfect for stamping inchie backgrounds, by Inkadinkado.  So then all I had to do was find a tiny butterfly stamp in my stash.  I used 2 different shades of purple.  I stamped the background twice, trimmed the darker shade down to the frame, secured /popped it up to the lighter base.  Stamped the mini butterflies in the darker purple, cut with cuticle sissors and adhered with a tiny bit of glue at the butterfly body, so that the wings could "fly".  I added some Stampendous Pearl Glitter!  LOVE that stuff!

Scroll down to the next post for a totally different look from the ATC's and Inchies.  You will see why I said the last couple of days I had a "variety" of projects to post!