Avery Elle | August Sketch Challenge

Hello, hello! To kick off the three day weekend I have a card for this month's Avery Elle August Sketch Challenge.

I pulled out AE's new Home Sweet Home stamp set and some soft aqua, kraft, and gray papers:

(Supplies - Stamps: (Avery Elle) Home Sweet Home .Ink: (Memento) Black. Cardstock: (PTI) White, Kraft, Aqua Mist, Hawaiian Shores. Patterned Paper: (Papertrey Ink) Soft Stone Patterns Pack. Markers: Copic. Twine: Stampin' Up! Enamel Dots: My Mind's Eye.)

The camper image is my favorite from the set, but I love the little teepee and igloo are darling, too. :)

That's it for me today. I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday weekend. Thanks for stopping by!

Fresh Squeezed Stamps Release Week | Inside Scoop: Birthday

I have one last card to share for Fresh Squeezed Stamps' newest release, featuring Inside Scoop: Birthday. This all sentiment set includes several extra long sentiments, perfect for the outside or the inside of a birthday card. 

I created the green polka dot background by stamping the large polka dot stop with Memento Luxe Pear Tart ink. The sentiment, from Inside Scoop: Birthday, is embossed with white powder onto PTI's Hibiscus Burst cardstock. A couple of die cut candles and a scattered stars finish off the card.
 

That's it for this month's Fresh Squeezed Stamps release! Make sure to hop over to the Fresh Squeezed Stamps blog for more inspiration and to enter for a chance to win this great set!

Fresh Squeezed Stamps Release Week | Subway Series Occasions

Good morning! It's day two of the Fresh Squeezed Stamps release week and I am thrilled to show off another great stamp set!

The new Subway Series Occasions set is perfect for babies, weddings, and your girlfriends! I used the baby themed stamp for my card, embossing it with Powder Zing embossing powder onto white cardstock. Three matching aqua buttons are tucked under/over the card, and I finished it off with a big white bow. Oh how I love the aqua/yellow color combo! So soft and pretty, and perfect for celebrating a new arrival.

(Supplies - Stamps: (Fresh Squeezed Stamps) Subway Series Occasions. Ink: VersaMark. Patterned Paper: Echo Park. Ribbon, buttons: Papertrey Ink.)

Make sure to check out the Fresh Squeezed Stamps blog for more inspiration using Subway Series: Occasions!

Thanks for stopping by. :)

Great Impressions Stamps | Too Cute Pumpkins

This is my second post of the day. To see today's Fresh Squeezed Stamps release week post, please scroll down.

Good morning! 

My second card today features a cute little pumpkin stamp from Great Impressions Stamps. I love fall and I love creating cards and projects for fall/Halloween, but it's hard to get in the mood when it's 90 degrees outside! Hopefully cooler weather will be on our way soon.

That's it for me today! Have a great week!

Fresh Squeezed Stamps Release Week | Life of the Party

It's the last week of the month which means release week for Fresh Squeezed Stamps! Whoo hoo! First up is a very fun birthday themed set featuring fun images and a very trendy font for sentiments.

My favorite image from the set is this adorable layered birthday cake. I embossed the image with white embossing powder then colored it in with Copic markers. After I cut out the cake, I stamped/embossed it onto the aqua star before layering the colored cake on top. The "Happy Birthday" sentiment is actually two separate stamps. The "happy" is from Words to Live By, and "birthday" is from the new set Life of the Party. I embossed both sentiments with white embossing powder.

Make sure to check out the Fresh Squeezed Stamps blog for more fun projects using this set. I'll be back tomorrow with another sneak peek. Thanks for stopping by.

CAS-ual Fridays | Challenge #112

Hi friends! I hope everyone had a restful weekend. I am feeling so much better after spending the last 48 hours on the couch, watching pre-season football and making sure Evan didn't take out my new framed anchor print with his Nerf football. I'm not sure my house is going to survive this kid... he is an accident waiting to happen. :)

I have a new card to share for this week's CAS-ual Fridays challenge: Aqua, Green, and Orange. I adore this color combo and was anxious to pull out a few new sets from Waltzingmouse for the challenge: Two Step Floral Sprig, Big Day - Today, and the Pinstripe mini background. And I used my Silhouette to cut out the leaves (available from Waltzingmouse), and I am delighted with the results. Very crisp and clean cuts, making the whole card come together quickly. I upgraded my Silhouette so I can cut SVG files and I am so glad I did. That little machine is awesome!

 (Supplies - Stamps: (Waltzingmouse) Two Step Floral Sprig, Big Day - Today, and the Pinstripe mini background. Ink: (PTI) Aqua Mist, Limeade Ice, New Leaf, Orange Zest, Terracotta Tile, Harvest Gold, Summer Sunrise, Black. Cardstock: (PTI) Orange Zest, White. Other: pearls, stickles.)

The latest Waltzingmouse release was one of my favorites... so many beautiful sets! Flowers & nautical themed... two of my favorite things!

That is it for me tonight. Have a great week!

Digital Layouts | August 2013

Hey there! I am currently bundled up on the couch, Kleenex and ice water within reach as I fight a cold. Evan was kind enough to share. :)

I've had another busy month over a Pixels and Co., creating layouts for several designers. For the first layout I pulled out some photos from 2010: Jack's First Birthday. Look at those chubby cheeks and big blue eyes!

A couple of weeks ago I had the boys sit in the family room for a Christmas card photo. I know, it's early. But Shutterfly sent out a coupon code for free Christmas cards so I made it work. And I must admit, they turned out pretty well for an impromptu photo shoot. Rocket was lingering and in the way, so Evan pulled him in for a few pictures, too. Jack wanted to pose with Lilly and Gabby, but they aren't the pose-for-photos type of kitties.
 

The traditional first day of school photo of Evan. He is a 2nd grader this year and the first 8 days have been wonderful. The transition from summer to school was (fortunately) an easy one for all of us. 

And last but not least, a super cute Jack photo, enlarged to 12 x 12 with the help of a digital template.

I'm off to open another box of Kleenex and watch Grey's Anatomy reruns. Super fun Saturday night, let me tell you! 

Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by!

Fresh Squeezed Stamps | Thanks a Bunch

Good morning!  Today I have a fun and bright thank you card featuring the new Everyday Expressions stamp set from Fresh Squeezed Stamps.  I stamped the flowers in two different blue inks, then added pearls & stickles to the centers.  The leaves were stamped in green to match the patterned paper.

(Supplies - Stamps: (Fresh Squeezed Stamps) Everyday Expressions. Ink: (Memento Luxe) Teal Zeal, Nautical Blue, Pear Tart. (Memento) Black. Cardstock: White, Limeade Ice, Shimmer pink. Patterned Paper: Limeade Ice patterns pack. Dies: Bells and Boughs, Label basics. Other: Stickles, gems.)

 Everyday Expressions

That's it for me today! Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful weekend. :)

Paper Smooches Sparks | Cool Shades Challenge

Hello, hello! I am popping in for a few minutes with the kids are occupied. Evan is running back and forth between the family room (where the Mariners are on) and the office (to play Minecraft), and Jack is taking a nap in our room. I love how quiet it is right now! Definitely time for a blog post. 

This week's Paper Smooches Sparks challenge is a color challenge:

Here is my take:

(Supplies - Stamps: (Paper Smooches) Pretty Phrases, Reflections. Ink: Memento Luxe, Papertrey ink. Cardstock: (PTI) Kraft, Lemon Tart, White, shimmer pink. Patterned Paper: (PTI) Hibiscus Burst patterns pack. Dies: (PTI) Turning a New Leaf, Scalloped border. Other: Buttons, twine.)

That's it for me today. Check back tomorrow for a card featuring Fresh Squeezed Stamps. Have a great night!

Great Impressions Stamps | Birthday Wishes

Good morning! Today I have a a fun birthday card featuring Flying By for Great Impressions Stamps. This stamp is great for coloring with Copics and paper piecing. Today I pulled out several green copics for the balloons, and a light blue copic for the birds:

(Supplies - Stamp: (Great Impressions) Flying By. Ink: (Memento) Black. Cardstock: (PTI) White, New Leaf. Patterned Paper: (PTI) New Leaf Patterns Pack. Dies: (PTI) Wonderful Words: Birthday. Letter stickers: Kelly Purkey. Other: Twine, gems.)

That's it for me today! Thanks for stopping by. :)

ColourQ Challenge #202 | Simon Says Stamp Challenge: Monochromatic

Hi there! I hope everyone had a great week. My free mornings are quickly becoming a favorite part of my day... especially when I can spend an hour or two working on projects in my office.

First up is a card for this week's ColourQ challenge:

I pulled out a new set from Wplus9, Fanciful Feathers, and stamped them diagonally onto white cardstock. I trimmed the gray and yellow cardstock into strips, stamped the sentiment, then adhered them to my card and trimmed the edges. The buttons, from Papertrey Ink, were adhered last. 
 

 

(Supplies - Stamps: (Wplus9) Fanciful Feathers. Ink: (Stampin' Up!) Smokey Slate, Daffodil Delight, Ruby Red. (Memento) Black. Cardstock: (PTI) Pure Poppy. (Stampin' Up!) Daffodil Delight, Smokey Slate. Buttons: (PTI) True Black.)

Up next I have a card for this week's Wednesday Challenge for Simon Says Stamps: Monochromatic. I wanted to create something using the new Mat Stack die and matching stamp set (Scrolling Script), and Waltzingmouse's Simple Sprig set. This is what I came up with:

 

Aren't the leaves and flowers gorgeous? I used two sizes of Mat Stack #7 and a Papertrey Ink's Bells and Boughs stamp set and die, plus a few pearls to finish off the card. The ink is Memento Luxe in Sweet Plum, Lilac Posies, and Rose Bud. 

 (Supplies - Stamps: (PTI) Scrolling Script, Bells and Boughs. (Waltzingmouse) Simple Sprig. Ink: (Memento Luxe) Lilac Posies, Sweet Plum, and Rose Bud. Cardstock: (PTI) Lavender Moon, Royal Velvet, Plum Pudding, White. Patterned Paper: (PTI) Berry Sorbet patterns pack. Punch: Marvy Uchida. Dies: (PTI) Mat Stack #7, Bells and Boughs. Pearls: Hero Arts.)

I have one more card to share. I created this one last week for a ColourQ challenge but I didn't get it posted in time. The flowers are from Dawn McVey's Delightful Dahlia Additions set. It took some practice, but layering the flowers was easier than I expected and the results are beautiful! I used Spring Rain, Blueberry Sky, and Enchanted Evening for each flower.

 (Supplies - Stamps: (PTI) Delightful Dahlia Additions. Ink: (PTI) Black, Spring Rain, Blueberry Sky, Enchanted Evening. Cardstock: (PTI) Blueberry Sky, Simply Chartreuse, Harvest Gold, White. Patterned Paper: (PTI) Spring Rain patterns pack. Dies: (PTI) Mat Stack #6, Ruby Rose (leaves). Felt: (PTI) Simply Chartreuse. Other: Buttons.)

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful weekend!

Fresh Squeezed Stamps | Just a Note

Good morning! Today I have CAS note card that is perfect for mailing... nothing lumpy or bumpy that will add extra postage!

I used a sticky note to mask the envelope stamp (from String Me Along), starting at the top and working my way down. After stamping the envelopes I stamped the sentiment, mounted the stamped panel onto red cardstock, and that's it! I love having a bunch one one layer cards handy for sending a quick note to a friend.

(Supplies - Stamps: (Fresh Squeezed Stamps) String Me Along. Ink: (PTI) Black, Pure Poppy. Cardstock: (PTI) White, Pure Poppy.)

 String Me Along

That's it for me today! I hope everyone has a fabulous weekend!

Wplus9 Monday Mood Board | Challenge #18

Today was the first day of school for my little ones, so I am writing this post sans children... and I must say, it's nice to have a quiet house! Both boys will be in school Monday-Friday this year, and I will have three whole hours of peace and quiet everyday, for the first time in 7+ years. I cleaned up the kitchen today and I was amazed... it stayed clean for three whole hours. A record in the Taylor house, for sure.

I also finished up a card this morning for this week's Monday Mood Board challenge. I am a wee bit obsessed with all things nautical at the moment and my Wplus9 release order arrived on Monday (yay!), so I created a nauti-cool (sorry, couldn't help myself) "Thanks" card:

The gold ink is a little hard to see in these photos, but the anchors at the top of the card & the flags at the bottom are stamped with Tsukineko's Brilliance Galaxy Gold Dew Drop ink. This ink adds a fabulous shine and really sparkles in person. The background cardstock is Wplus9's new Nautical Navy cardstock, and the little banners are from Stampin' Up's clear set called Settin' Sail.

Edited to add: I am also submitting this card for this week's Tuesday Trigger over at the Moxie Fab blog:

I also have a nautical "just because" card to share, also using Stampin' Up's Settin' Sail stamp set. This is the second time I have purchased photopolymer stamps from SU!, and I am very impressed with the quality (and the price!). 

I did a quick search on Google Images for "sailboats" to get some inspiration for my card. I was instantly drawn to the swooping sails in varying colors and the beautiful curves of the boats. I wanted to create something similar for my card and I tried (unsuccessfully) to execute my vision using various bowls and plates and Pure Poppy cardstock, but I wasn't happy with the results. I had a "light bulb" moment when I glanced at my Silhouette Cameo and realized I have this amazing machine that will have no problem cutting out what I want. A few clicks in Silhouette Studio and I had a perfect shape for my card:

And I have to share a couple of back to school pictures of my kids. Evan started 2nd grade today, and Jack is in VPK. We had a relatively smooth morning and Jack was all smiles when I picked him up at noon. Ev will be home in a bit and I'm sure I'll get one word answers and a nod or two, but I hope he shares about his first day. 

Evan - age 7

 Jack - age 4

I'll be back tomorrow with a CAS note card featuring Fresh Squeezed Stamps. Thanks for stopping by! 

Great Impressions Stamps | Love Struck Owl

Hey there! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. I didn't get to spend as much time in my office as I would have liked, but I did have a chance to play with a fun little owl stamp this afternoon while Evan played Minecraft. He was a happy camper to have some free time on the computer. :)

Today's card features an adorable owl stamp from Great Impressions Stamps called Love Struck Owl. I have used him a couple of times before, but this time I wanted to create a background, using my grid block as a guide. And I must say, I'm delighted with the results. The little owl was stamped with Hero Arts' Bubblegum ink.

 (Supplies - Stamp: (Great Impressions) Love Struck Owl. Ink: (Hero Arts) Bubblegum. Cardstock: (PTI) Shimmer pink, Sweet Blush, Aqua Mist, White. Dies: (PTI) Limitless Layers Hearts, Headline Alpha. Other: Ribbon, enamel dots.)

I hope this cards inspires you to pull out your stamps and create a custom background for your projects. It's one of my favorite techniques!

Thanks so much for stopping by. Have a great week!

Papertrey Ink | Make It Monday #128

Hey there! This week's Make It Monday video (for Papertrey Ink) is a super quick and easy one... creating random background patterns. 

I pulled out a couple of new stamp sets for my card: Bigger Blooms and Polka Dot Parade #5. To create the background paper I used one stamp per stamp pad, working from top left to bottom right. After I stamped my background it still felt a little plain, so I ran it through my big shot with the linen and canvas impressions plate (my most used impression plate!), which added some texture to the paper. The patterned paper is from the Harvest Gold patterns pack. A Hibiscus Burst button + twine, plus some gems finished off my card.

That's it for me today! Have a wonderful weekend and thanks for stopping by!

Great Impressions Stamps | Happy Birthday Balloons

Good morning! For this week's Great Impressions Stamps card I pulled out another new(ish) stamp: Hot Air Balloon. I wanted to create a scene with the stamp, and add my own vellum clouds, so I masked off the clouds from the stamp before inking, so only the balloon was stamped onto my cardstock. I used several aqua, green, and orange Copics to color in the image.

I die cut the clouds from vellum and use mini glue dots to adhere them to my cardstock. Because the glue dots show through the vellum, I used a small gem to cover up the adhesive. Functional and pretty! 

 (Supplies - Stamps: (Great Impressions) Hot Air Balloon, Happy Birthday. Cardstock: (PTI) White, Limeade Ice. Ink: (Memento) Black. Patterned Paper: (PTI) Aqua Mist, Orange Zest patterns packs. Markers: Copics. Dies: (PTI) Heart 2 Heart #6. Other: Buttons, twine, vellum, gems.)

That's it for me! I hope you have a wonderful weekend. Thanks for stopping by!

Fresh Squeezed Stamps | Insta Hello

Good morning! I have a fun (and colorful!) birthday card to share using one of my favorite FSS stamp sets: Breath of Fresh Flair. This set has so many wonderful images, and I love the little Insta camera! 

I colored the body of the camera with hot pink and gray Copic Markers. The three stripes I colored with light aqua, aqua, and teal Copics. 

For the center of the camera, I added small die cut hearts plus gems. The result is a cute little row of pink cameras. I added three strips of cardstock, matching the aqua stripes of the cameras, behind the stamped panel.

(Supplies - Stamps: (Fresh Squeezed Stamps) Breath of Fresh Flair. Ink: (Memento) Black. Cardstock: White, Aqua Mist, Hawaiian Shores, Sweet Gelato, Teal. Dies: Banner Builder, (Simon Says Stamp) Hearts. Letter stickers: BasicGray. Gems: KI Memories. Markers: Copic)

Breath of Fresh Flair

That's it for me today! Check back tomorrow for a card using some fun stamps from Great Impressions. Thanks for stopping by!

Digital Layouts | Jack

Hey there! I hope everyone is having a great week. The kids and I are enjoying the final days of summer vacation... I can't believe they start school next week! 

I have a couple of new layouts to share using products from Pixels & Co (and both layouts feature Mr. Jack). The first layout uses Scotty Girl Designs' new Camp S'more kit. And that raccoon? Too cute for words.

(Supplies - Patterned paper, rub-on, stickers, alphabet, buttons: (Dawn By Design) He Creates. Template: (Scotty Girl Designs) Skyscraper template. Stitching: (Scotty Girl Designs) Swirly Stitches. Staple: (Mommyish) Basically.)

I need to place an order with Mpix soon to get some of these layouts printed and in my albums... I have made a ton of layouts in the past year! Not that I need to be "forced" to create, but having monthly responsibilities for Pixels and Co and two different designers definitely keeps me creating. 

 I'll be back tomorrow with a card for Fresh Squeezed Stamps. Thanks for stopping by!

Great Impressions Stamps | August Challenge

Hello, hello! I'm sorry my post is a bit delayed today... I've been having issues with Blogger since last night. For some reason my post wouldn't publish correctly. But it seems to be working now, thank goodness!

This month's challenge for Great Impressions Stamps is to create a square card. I love square cards and I had a lot of fun searching for the perfect stamp for this challenge.

I pulled out Great Impressions' Bucket of Flowers for my card... a beautiful image that is perfect for coloring with Copic markers.

(Supplies - Stamps: (GI) Bucket of Flowers. Ink: (Memento) Black. Cardstock: (PTI) Sweet Blush, Simply Chartreuse. Dies: (PTI) Fabulous Frames. Patterned Paper: Glitz. Ribbon: PTI. Other: Typewriter.)

We are going to have a low key Sunday around here... I've had a headache off and on for the past week that just won't go away. I hate feeling under the weather. :(

Have a great week! 

CAS-ual Fridays | Challenge #111

Hey there!

I am playing along with the CAS-ual Fridays weekly challenge today, using a beautiful stamp set from Technique Tuesday (Green House Society - Stems).

Aren't the flowers lovely? And I really like the sentiment, which is actually three separate stamps (love that!). The background stamp is Papertrey Ink's Background Basics: Herringbone. 

The challenge says "buttons", but I'm hoping one button will qualify. When I was creating my card I needed something to unify the right and left side. A threaded button worked perfectly!

That's it for me today! Have a wonderful week and thanks for stopping by.

Fresh Squeezed Stamps | Friends are Like Stars

Good morning! Today I have a sparkly card to share for Fresh Squeezed Stamps; perfect for sending to a friend! I used the fabulous sentiment stamp set Words to Live By,  plus lots of glitter. :)

The sentiment is one image, but I used a sticky note to mask off the top of the image before stamping onto coral cardstock. I embellished the small stars with coral pearls. I die cut the stars, covered them in double sided tape, then dumped on matching glitter (from Martha Stewart). I used matching twine to thread the buttons before adhering them to my card with glue dots.  

(Supplies - Stamps: (Fresh Squeezed Stamps) Words to Live By. Ink: (Ranger) Archival Black Ink. Cardstock: Melon Berry, Enchanted Evening, Spring Rain, Shimmer white paper. Patterned paper: Blueberry Sky patterns pack. Dies: Seeing Stars. Other: Buttons, twine, glitter, pearls.)

Words to Live By

That's it for me today! Make sure to check back tomorrow for more fabulous inspiration using Fresh Squeezed Stamps!