Apple Pickin'

Hi there friends,
Before I have zero time to craft :( I decided to get one more card in before I plan for school. My blog pal, Kathy, is on the Tuesday Morning Sketches DT. This week she created the sketch so I had to play along :)
Here's her sketch:

Here's my card:

It's definitely a card to welcome happy days of spring :) The papers are Hometown Summer by Pink Paislee. The sweet image is called Adele Enjoying Fresh Apples by Sarah Kay. I just *adore* all the sweet details in her images. happy sigh...

Here's a closer peek:

She is colored with Copics & under her bare feet is some flower soft. The apple tree behind her is a MFT die called Sheltering Tree. I added little red buttons for the apples :) To finish it, I added a sentiment also from MFT on a Ribbon Tag Trio die from Spellbinders & an apple button to the center of the bow.
I've never been apple picking before  (well, except for a few that hang over my side of the wall from my neighbor's yard ;) ---> don't worry I asked... I think it would be fun to go apple picking & then come home & make a fresh apple pie! yum! Maybe I'm just having a Mary Poppins moment, but hey why not ;) Hopefully, it won't turn out the way it did when we went cherry picking.
     When I was a little girl, my Grammy took me & my brother cherry picking. We could eat as much as we wanted inside the farm & we just had to pay for what we took home in a bag. So, needless to say, my brother & I GORGED ourselves on cherries!!! About 5 minutes into the ride home, we made Grammy pull over & let's just say the only cherries we took home were the ones in the bag!!! Ugh, I will never forget that! But it did not stop me from loving & eating cherries :)

Ok, I see I'm rambling here as a way to keep me from my school junk, but I need to get to it seeing that I haven't touched a thing during vacation! Ah well...
 I'll be playing along with the following challenges:
Tuesday Morning Sketches: Sketch #127
The Pink Elephant: Anything Goes
Tip Top Tuesday: Anything Goes + MY TIP: When using the Viva Pen, start on the corners of your paper & then fill in the rest, that way your corners will always be neat & perfect :)
Cupcake Craftroom: Anything Goes
Stamps R Us: Anything Goes
The Cutie Pie Challenge: Use a Sentiment

Thanks so much for peeking friends,
Gotta Go... to school now----> insert tears here...

New Year Mojo

Hi ya Friends,
Happy New Year everyone!
I'm starting my crafty new year with a Mojo Monday Sketch :) Yaaaay!
My Grammy asked me to make a Thank You card she wants to give one of her friends. 
Here's the fab sketch:

Here's my card:

Right about when I was almost done, Grammy calls me to tell me not to put a big bulky flower on it cuz she has to mail it. Ughhh! Thanks for the heads up Grammy :(
Ok, so I ripped off that beautiful bloom & went with something a little less bulky:
Take Two:

I used a butterfly from the Spellbinders Butterflies 2 set along with a MFT mini rose cut in felt. I added a couple of pearl pins for the antennas, then went along the edges with my Viva pen. The beautiful paper is Sweet Nothings from Kaisercraft. The doily and the sentiment are from PTI (Signature Greetings).

Here's a closer peek at that:

Gosh, Grammy is so high maintenance! I always wondered where I got that from ;) Hee! Hee!

The good life is coming to an end soon as winter break is over :(   I know lots of you moms out there are jumping for joy as you're ready to send your kiddos back to school. You remember how you're feeling right now when the teacher wants to talk to you about your little darling ;)---> just sayin' ;)

I'll also be playing along in the following challenges:
Make it Monday: Anything Goes
Simon Says Stamp & Show: Something old - (dies) Something New (pattern paper)
Paper Sundaes: Something old - (dies) Something New (pattern paper)
JUGS: Felt
Simon Says Stamp: Anything Goes

Thanks so much for peeking in the new year :)
Gotta Go!

Top 10 Cards of 2011

Hi friends,
Last year I participated in a Top 10 cards of the year blog hop which was pretty fun :) My blog pal, Shelly, reminded me of it again having visited her blog. So I'm joining her again in this year's Top 10 cards Blog Hop hosted by Karin at "With an I for Paper"

Here are my Top 10 cards of 2011 (in no particular order):
 #1: Image from Sarah Kay

#2: Image from Designed 2 Delight

#3: Image from Digital Delights

#4: Image from Magnolia

#5: Image from Magnolia

#6: Image from Sarah Kay

#7: Pumpkin pop-up card using the Sizzix Ball die

#8: Image from Heartfelt Creations

#9: Dies from MFT

#10: Dies from Heartfelt Creations

It's fun to look back at past creations :) Now it's time to bring on the new & bring on the bubbly!!!
Wishing you lots of lovely crafternoons in the coming year :)

Hugs & as always,
Thanks for peeking!
Happy New Year!!!

Last but not Least

Hello friends,
Here are the last of my Christmas cards for this year! Yaaaay! I don't want to be a Grinch, but I am Christmased out :( When did it get this exhausting & stressful??? Ah well, maybe next year I won't wait 'til the last minute ;) ummm, yah right!  Hope you all had a wonderful time :)

I have three cards to share that I haven't delivered yet as they are going to friends I'll be seeing later this week.
Here's the first:

This is such a sweet Tilda :) She's water-colored with Distress Inks with warmer skin tones. I created a mantle to hang her from. The wreaths on either side of her were made with the Pine Branch punch (MS). I used the T!m Holtz Brick Embossing Folder for the fireplace background. The sentiment is heat embossed on a Spellbinder's Ribbon Banner die (luv that set :)

Here's card #2:

 Another sweet Tilda :) She's also colored with Distress Inks in lighter skin tones. (Don't worry, my Copics aren't going anywhere. I just wanted to mix it up a bit!) I luuuv the way Maggies look colored with Distress Inks so I had to give it a go.

 Here's a closer peek:

Distress Inks are a little more forgiving than Copics, me thinks :)

And card #3:

 This is a Christmas/New Year's card for my friend.

Here's a peek from above so you can see the dimension of those pine cones:

Those are T!m's. Well from his pine cone die as is the weathered clock. The birdhouse is from MFT which got a pass on the woodgrain texture plate (PTI). I added a bit of snow marker to it, the pine cones, and pine branches. I also made some berries with my red Viva pen.

So.... did you get what you wanted for Christmas? Well, I did not get my instant weight loss that I requested, but we did get a Keurig Coffee Maker for Christmas and I luuuuuv it! Where has it been all my life??!! But I think my fav gift was this:

Ahhhhh! It's a rhinestone studded, bring on the bling, Hello Kitty case for my iphone! I luuuv it! It's so sparkly & preeeetty! I guess I'll have to hit the treadmill to give myself the gift of weight loss :(  Darn that sweet tooth... and Grammy's super yummy tamales... and McDonald's Sweet Tea... and The Cheesecake Factory---> everything! (Their avocado egg rolls are a little piece of heaven, let me tell ya!)

I'm sending these cards to play along with these challenges:
Make it Monday: Anything Goes
Truly, Madly, Crafty Challenges: Christmas
Christmas Inspirations: New Years card (My card #3)
Magnolia Down Under: Colors- Red, Cream, Gold (Card #2)
Paper Sundaes: Celebrate
Hiding in my Craft Room: Embossing (card #1 dry & heat)
Mark's Finest Papers: Anything Goes
Secret Crafter: Anything Goes
Cooking it up with Katie: Anything Goes
Deconstructed Sketches: Sketch #32 (My Card #2)

Ok friends, that's about it for today.
Thanks so much for peeking!
Gotta Go!

Christmas 2011

Hi & Hello friends!
Popping in to wish you all a very Merry Christmas & Happiest of Holidays wherever you are in the world! Here's a little greeting card for ya :) & the gorgeous model you see is my brother's cat, Tiger. He enjoys dressing up for the holidays!
Feliz Navidad!

Create a picture slideshow

Card Rush

Hi ya friends,
Christmas day is a sleep away & I'm in a mad dash to complete the rest of my cards. I think I'll be ready though :) It's a good thing I hand deliver 99% of my cards! So today, I'm sharing some I got to complete yesterday.

Here's card #1: It's a Joy Fold Card

 You pop that top flap open & the lower panel flaps opens showing the sentiment. There's a space under the main image where you write your message.

(I think this card looks sooo much better in person :( don't know why the gold looks so weird.

#2: Tri-Shutter Card
Here it is closed:

& opened:

the 3rd is my CAS (as much as I can do it ;)

I made a few of these since they were pretty easy.
I'm heading back to the craft lab to complete my cards.
Thanks for peeking!
Gotta Go!

Patti's Poinsettias

Hi again friends,
Hope you are enjoying the holiday season & not letting the mayhem & foolishness stress you out.
Today, I've got a card inspired by my blog pal extraordinaire, Patti Lee. Not too long ago, she posted this BEAUTIFUL poinsettia tri-fold shutter card she created using the SCAL program to cut SVG files. I luuuuv making tri-fold shutter cards & had to make my own version. I also have the SCAL 2 on my computer, but I've never used it! Aaack, I know!!! But it won't be long let me tell ya, cuz Patti is killing me with all the AMAZING projects she's made with the SCAL using SVG files!
Here's my humble version inspired by the super talented Patti.

Here it is closed:

 I used the Layered Poinsettias stamp & dies from Heartfelt Creations...again ... for the 547th time ;)... (at least I got my money's worth for once!)

 Here it is opened:

The papers are BasicGrey. I also used the Petals-a-Plenty Embossing folder from SU.

Another peek:

I do luuuuv this card style. It looks complicated, but it's easy & it definitely gives a wow factor.

You can find the tute for this card style---> Here.
And if you've never stopped by my friend Patti's blog at Creations by Patti, first grab a super Venti cup of coffee cuz you'll be there for a while! Don't say I didn't warn ya! Hee Hee!

Stop the Madness! I went to Patti's blog to link it to this post & I saw she's referenced me in her project today! Wow! That was totally a coincidence! I guess great minds do think alike ;) Ha! Ha!

Thanks so much for peeking!
Gotta Go!