Sunflowers Galore!

I am in love with this card!! I found it on SCS (shocking, huh?! ;) and immediately wanted to make it!! I have a friend whose birthday is Monday so this is for her!! To make the sunflowers, punch and layer three 5-Petal Flower Punch pieces. The leaves are made by cutting 2 of the 5 petals apart and distressing them a little and inking using the direct-to-paper method. The background patterned paper is from Good Morning Sunshine and the flower centers are from Bella Rose. Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!!

Kristina's Color Inspiration #47

Well. I'm trying to be the first person to submit an entry for Kristina's Color Challenge #47, so let's see if I made it! More details to follow!!

Ooops! Didn't make it after all - I was third! This is the companion to the card I made yesterday. This is the perfect layout for a color challenge and Trendy Trees is the perfect stamp set! You can make those little trees any color you like! I was able to do this card without my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig, although I did have to trim the stamps a little even though they are pre-cut - I just get too much drag! I love the Chocolate Chip Double-Stitched Ribbon - it's the perfect accent for this simple card! Thanks for stopping by!!

More Trendy Trees

I found this card on SCS today and thought it was the perfect masculine card to send to a friend's cousin who was just diagnosed with cancer. He is very young and very, very nice with two small children, so this is an impossible time for them, to say the least. I wanted to let him and his family know that we are praying hard for them!! So many stamp sets are cutesy, but Trendy Trees is a perfectly appropriate stamp set and I know this sweet family will appreciate knowing that our thoughts and prayers are with them.

Inspired by Jodi!!

I got my inspiration for my card from this card by Jodi Collins on her blog, Stamping a Latte (gee, wonder why I like this blog?!?!?). My sweet friend, Cele, loaned me her Trendy Trees set and now she may never get it back ;) Even though I'm usually not a perfectionist, I had to use my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig to line up the images. It takes a little practice, but it's a great set - very versatile. Wait till you see the neat trick I learned on SCS!!! I'll be posting it later this week and it is COOL & CUTE!! I'll also post a more masculine card that I also found on SCS today. So, I hope you all have a wonderful rest of the evening - thanks for stopping by and come again soon!!

Inspired by Mercy!

This is another card for my friend's order and I love it, too! I found my inspiration on Mercy Kerin's blog, Lord Have Mercy (don't you just love that title?!). I used Pink Flamingo paper which is so happy and bright and my Nestabilities Ribbon Tags Trio, which are the perfect size and shape for a little sentiment on the card front. Enjoy your day - hope it's pretty and sunny where you are!

Happy Birthday, Karen!!

Good morning! Today is the first day back to school after Spring Break, so I am up and blogging early! I made this card for my dear, sweet friend, Karen, whose birthday is this week. She is one of my very favorite people and I wanted to make her a card that was extra-special - just like she is! I found my inspiration on Cambria Turnbow's blog with this card. I just love it! It has so many beautiful details and I was able to incorporate just about all of them into the card I made. I think I'm going to have to break down and buy a little craft sewing machine because stitches look so amazing on a card. I don't know who is going to teach me to use it, though. I'm not very patient ;) Thanks for stopping by today! Enjoy your day!

A friend in my mom's Sunday School class ordered a few cards from me including a couple of baby cards and the Sale-A-Bration paper from SU! is perfect for gender-neutral ones. As you know, I absolutely love this patchwork quilt design and think it's a natural choice for baby cards. I also used the wonderful new Scallop Oval Punch and the new Oval All set from the Occasions Mini Catalog. The Swiss Dot Cuttlebug Embossing Folder gives the card wonderful texture. Thanks for stopping by today and have a a great week!

Good Morning Sunshine

I am so sorry that it has taken me so long to post again this week. It's Bailey's Spring Break and the week has really gotten away from me - I thought it was Friday all week! But I think today's cards are worth the wait! I ordered Good Morning Sunshine DSP and Pacific Point Ribbon because of a project I saw on-line and by the time my order arrived, I forgot where I'd seen the card :( But I have found a LOT of inspiration, as you'll see if you click on the links below. I really love this paper, but then I REALLY LOVE PAPER!! These four cards are a gift for a friend's birthday and I intentionally did not stamp a sentiment on the cards because I wanted her to have the flexibility of customizing her cards to suit her needs. So, I stamped several different sentiments and punched them out with the Large Oval Punch and then I punched out several coordinating pieces of cardstock using the *NEW* Scallop Oval Punch. I like this idea and I think it makes a great gift - I know I'd like to receive it!! So have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by!

Blue Bird of Happiness

Hello There

Sunflower Get Well

Inspired by Madison Avenue

On a recent blog hop, I discovered this beautiful card on the blog, Madison Avenue. The reason I found it is because Geny Cassady designs for Papertrey Ink and I just won a TON of new PTI stuff!! I cannot wait till it arrives - I'll be stamping till my fingers bleed :) Anyway, I found this beautiful card and decided to break out Stampin' Up!'s Sweet Slumber DSP and make one of my own. I dug through the button bag and miraculously found two buttons to go with the Riding Hood Red one I already had - amazing! I think this is another great way to use up those paper scraps in a wonderfully creative way. Thanks for the inspiration, Geny - I think I'll be visiting your blog again and again!! Have a great Wednesday! Today is our 14th wedding anniversary so I know I'll have a great day!!

Get Your Green On, Baby!

What a wonderful day it has been! First of all, it is gorgeous here in Knoxville - sunny, warm, breezy, and beautiful!! Second of all, it's my sweet daddy's birthday and we are so looking forward to dinner with him and my sweet mama tonight! Third of all, Bailey & I had so much fun on our errands this morning. She now has a favorite Frappuccino, too (I know, bad news, huh?!) and since she's so LUCKY she was able to get one today at Target! That made her especially happy! She also got to put sprinkles on our drinks - I'll bet you didn't know that Starbucks had sprinkles, did you? Well, for Bailey they sure do :) I think our friends there are counting the days till Bailey is 16 and can work there. Just 8 more years . . . So besides being lucky on this day, we are also very blessed and hope your day is blessed as well!

(BTW, this is the little St. Patrick's Day treat that took me a week to finish!! Shouldn't have, it's very simple, but I kept putting it off till late last night and finally got it done. Yea!!)

By request: Onion Souffle Recipe

We had a small but very fun group at our demo meeting tonight (thanks for hosting us, Mary Ann!!), and we all enjoyed my friend, Michele's onion souffle recipe, so here it is:

ONION SOUFFLE
2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup frozen onions
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Combine all ingredients thoroughly and baked at 350 degrees till golden and bubbly (about 30 minutes). Bon Appetit!

Happy St. Patty's Eve to ya!

Well, I had the very best intentions for St. Patrick's Day projects - I have several that are in various stages of completion, which is not good because tomorrow's the big day!! It's also a big day because it's my sweet daddy's birthday! His gift is ready to go and I made him a beautiful card - all that's left is baking coconut cookies that I think he'll love! But I digress . . . Bailey is having a friend over to play today so hopefully I will be able to finish and post all of my o'projects - could I be that lucky?!? Have a great day!

Papertrey Ink ROCKS!!

OMGosh!!! OMGosh!!! OMGosh!!! I just found out I WON the "I Want It All" prize on Papertrey Ink's website!! I am freaking out!!! I love the new "Life" set and I can't wait to try Guide Lines Two. And the new Hibiscus Burst ribbon is de-lish! And the buttons . . . oh, the buttons are so beautiful! So, needless to say, I will be making a TON of cards soon and I CAN'T WAIT!! Have a wonderful weekend! I'm off to dream of beautiful crafting supplies . . .

Inspired by Beate

I don't know what it was about this card by Beate Johns that I just loved but, after I saw it, I had to order SU!'s new To the Nines paper. It came yesterday and I have been working on my sweet daddy's birthday card based on Beate's card. I made several changes, but I loved the large size of this card (mine is 6 inches square) because I wanted something extra-special for my daddy. Since I don't have a sewing machine, I faux-stitched around the outer edge of the DSP - I had never done anything but a straight stitch before, but I LOVE the zig zag stitch I tried on this card.
ETA: I'm sorry if you checked out my blog this morning. I have had computer problems all day and I just now finished this one post!! Very frustrating, but done, and I'm glad!! Off to bed . . .

Inspired by Jodi

Jodi Collins' "Stamping a Latte" blog is one of my very favorites! Her cards are so bright and colorful and creative! I fell in love with this card the other day and couldn't wait to create something similar. Green Tea is one of my all-time favorite SU! Designer Series Papers and I was so very sad when it retired, but luckily I still have some and use it often. In fact, that's the one I used for today's creation. I love the Martha Stewart butterfly punch my dear, sweet friend, Cele, gave me, and I used it on this card. So much easier than trying to cut out butterflies! I just noticed I forgot to paper pierce the card, so I may go back and do that. I love the look of paper piercing, especially when I pierce a triangle in the corners of a card. Thanks for stopping by today! By the way, I'm almost at 10,000 hits on my blog!! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!! I'm trying to come up with something special in honor of this milestone, so if you have any great ideas, please let me know!

Kristina's Color Inspiration #44

OK, so I am REALLY trying to learn to make simpler cards for those times when I need a quick card, but am short on time. Kristina Werner's color challenge this week was a perfect excuse to put my "simple" plan into action. I like this card much better than the Dawn McVey-inspired card I made last week, but then, I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE "Branch Out," so I'm sure that made a difference. I still feel like the card needs something, but with the limited colors and my new "less is more" philosophy, I decided to leave it alone. Then, when I saw this card on Stampin' Pretty, I made ANOTHER card with this color scheme because I had some DSP that coordinated. So, I have some more cards to add to my stash - very exciting!! Thanks for dropping by - I'll be posting more projects in the next few days. I might even get some scrapbooking done this weekend . . .

Inspired by Poppy

I absolutely FELL IN LOVE with this card on Poppy Paperie the other day! I think her pom-pom fringe is awesome and the colors are so happy! I love all the texture, too! I may have to break down and get a little craft sewing machine, although just typing those words causes me to have 7th grade Home Ec flashbacks and it wasn't pretty! On my card, I did faux stitching with my In Stitch'z template and white gel pen. Sadly, I didn't have any pom-pom fringe for my card, but I still like it! I finally cut into my Pink Flamingo paper from SU! It is one of the most beautiful patterns SU! has ever done and I can't wait to use it for the projects I saw on Stampin' with Di's blog. check it out - you'll drool!! Have a good night!

Inspired by Taylor

While I was blog-hopping this morning, I came across this beautiful card by Taylor Vanbruggen on her blog. I just love the layout! I have been trying to use the assortment of coffee stamps that I have, and I recently unearthed this great stamp from Rubbernecker. I stamped it three times so I could punch out my three coffee cups and I printed the sentiment off my computer. I am still in love with the new Parisian Breeze DSP and I use it all the time!! For me, starting with a base of solid cardstock layered with a piece of patterned paper is the easiest way to get a card going in the right direction. Thanks for stopping by today! I hope you're having a great day!