ABC Christmas Challenge - G for Green or Gold

Eeks!

I'm pulling up the rear with this challenge! :) I'm behind but still here! hee hee. Yesterday was a whirlwind of activities at our house with people in and out most of the day. It all went well, but it makes for one frazzled Mandy, who is used to being in a house all alone every day. :| Loners of the world unite! (Not really - just in thought).

Kinda funny story: we had contractors here doing some work yesterday, and bless their hearts, they were almost finished doing the last thing that was up in our attic, and one of them stepped through the ceiling. Bless. They were ok thankfully - but here longer than expected and I get to see their smiling, winking faces again this morning, when they come back to finish up that repair. LOL. Then the kids had a couple of friends over, and that meant socializing with their sweet Mom at drop-off and pick up time. It was a lot for me. :D My Hubby just laughs and shakes his head at me. (But deep down, he gets it. ;) )

Now on to the fun part! The ABC Christmas Challenge - so much fun. Systematically going through the alphabet for a challenge associated with each letter. What better way to entertain some crafty A-type personalities, right?

G for Green or Gold this week --- I went with Green, since I have virtually nothing gold in my crafty space.

 

 

While I have been so busy these last few weeks, I have much appreciated the plethora of colored images that I've had stashed in my desk because I color them, lose interest in what I'm doing - walk away - but can't throw them away. 8-) Claaaaasic Mandy.

 

So my cute little girl (From MFT Jingle All the Way) was colored in green and cut and in my desk drawer. I plucked her out and made a couple of mats in green (plaid paper from MFT pad and Blueprints 27 die cut, Tim Holtz Watercolor paper sponged in Mowed Lawn Distress Ink and decorated with a few not-so-strategically-placed water droplets.) She is popped up on foam tape and I added a few iridescent sequins and a twine bow to make it feel "complete". The sentiment is from the same stamp set.

 

While I wanted the card base to be rather simple and plain, I thought the white background was too plain and I added a Typewriter Text background (MFT) stamped in PTI Soft Stone ink. Barely there, but cuts down on that stark white. I love the subtle backgrounds in a really light grey or khaki on my white card bases.

 

 

Well that is it for me this morning! I'm off to find some more things to pack. (UGH!) The Piglets are on Spring Break and the poor things have had to entertain themselves while I've worked on jobs around the house for the upcoming move. I've promised them a field trip to a big book store and a movie at the end of the week. With big storms coming today, who knows if we can accomplish a trip or not. Yikes!

 

 

Thanks SO much for stopping by to visit! Please come back again (esp this summer, when I get back into the crafty swing of things!) 8-)

 

Don't forget to check out the Christmas crafty fun over at the ABC Christmas Challenge!

 

 

God Bless,

Mandy

 

 

Matthew 6:34   NKJV  (New King James Version)

    "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."

 



Pin It

Addicted To Stamps & More #187 - Make Your Mark

Hello!

I'm back with a fun post for Addicted To Stamps and More current challenge - Make Your Mark. Anything coloring related or inky will do!

 

And our sponsor this time is:

 

Eureka Stampede 

QKR Stampede and Eureka Stamps was purchased by Stamp On It in 2013 from the state of Colorado and moved to its new home in Michigan! We(Stamp On It) had its humble beginnings over 25 years ago and is now a mobile(on-the-road) family owned and operated business. We travel coast to coast and attend as a vendor over 25 retail stamping and scrapping shows each year. 

Blog: http://eurekastamps.blogspot.ca

 

Now for my card:

 

 

 

 

I used a fun image I had already colored up and cut using my Silhouette Pix Scan mat (love! It's super really great for digi images). This little bird is from Bugaboo and I colored it using PrismaColor Pencils. I inked my background panel (Cut with MFT Blueprints 13) using MFT Pineapple Die ink. I then die cut the oval scallop from also from MFT and PTI Simply Chartreuse cardstock. I die cut some Bazzil scrap cardstock using the Blueprints 25 for the sentiment strip and stamped it from the LJD You're The Sweetest stamp set. My card base is MFT Ripe Raspberry cardstock. It was really fast to put together since I had already cut and colored my image! I have to remember to keep more ready to go and on hand like this in the future. Maybe I can color a bunch one day, cut another, and then have them to make a card when inspiration strikes! (I'm all about changing my life to better suit my moods.) :D That was a quote in there, if anyone can identify it, I'd be most impressed!

 

 

Thanks SO much for stopping by to visit! Please do so again! And don't forget to join in the Make Your Mark fun over at Addicted to Stamps and More. :)

 

God Bless,

Mandy

 

 

Pin It

Christmas Card Challenges - #17 Color Challenge

For my Addicted To Stamps Challenge - Buttons & Bows post, click here.


Hello crafty friends,

It's time for another Christmas Card Challenge! We have a color challenge this week - to inspire your Christmas mojo and keep you on pace for your holiday cards for the upcoming year. A great way to make a few all year long and save on time and stress in December. 8-)


Here is this week's color inspiration:

 

 

 

I used my WPlus9 Merry & Bright stamp and die set to create my rustic card. The background panel is embossing using PTI's Canvas & Linen Impression plate and the circle is the MFT die Stitched Mini Scallops Circle STAX Die-namics. I also used MFT Die-namics for the sentiment banner using the Stitched Fishtail Flag STAX. I inked the edges of my main panel using WPlus9 Coconut Husk ink and added the red twine (Michael's) and red glitter enamel dots to spruce it up just a bit. I thought it too plain and not in the good way before any embellishments were added. :D

 

 

That's it for me today. We are visiting family for the holiday weekend and have a (not so) fun little drive ahead of us this afternoon! :)

 

Thanks SO much for stopping by to visit. I hope you will come back again soon!

 

God Bless,

Mandy

Pin It

Addicted To Stamps Challenge - #123 Buttons & Bows

Hello crafty friends,

I am back with a fun challenge over at Addicted To Stamps -- this one is all about Buttons & Bows. Use them both on your project (and don't forget the stamps) and play along with us.

 

 

I was feeling inspired by spring time temps, the sunshine, and the new Pure Innocence stamp set I ordered with my Valentine's Day gift card. (So fun!)

 

 

 

 

I used the large stitched scallop die from Blueprint 27  (I am addicted to this one!) and the Double Stitched Rectangle STAX dies for the main accent panel. After stamping and coloring the cute little girl, I sponged Broken China Distress Ink on the background and die cut the sun (also MFT) and added a button and bow in the center. It's really a simple card - it just packs some punch with the fun colors. :D

 

 

Well thanks so much for stopping by! I'm off to enjoy our 3 hour car ride home from visiting my family in the other side of our great state. :) Hope everyone has had a lovely Easter and beginning of Spring! :)

 

God Bless,

Mandy



Pin It

Christmas Card Challenges - #16 Photo Inspiration

Hello crafty friends!

I'm back with another Christmas card for the 2016 stash and Christmas Card Challenges. Just making away each week and hiding them in my crafty closet! :) I'm about to need a new space because I've never had this many Christmas cards made up this early in the year before. :)

Here is this week's challenge:

 

 

 

I used the fun little poinsettias from my MFT Winter Warmth set. I die cut a Kraft panel using Blueprint 13 and then embossed it with my PTI Woodgrain Impression Plate. The sentiment is from MFT Jingle All the Way and the little strip is die cut from the same Blueprint set. Super easy and quick! I cranked this one out in a hurry. Things are getting so harried around here. :) Too many things going on at once - I'm sure everyone can relate! :)

 

 

Thanks so much for stopping by to visit! I hope you will come back soon! Especially this summer when I hope to get back to my "normal" crafting pace. :)

 

God bless,

Mandy

Pin It

ABC Christmas Challenge - F for Frills .... or NO Frills~

Hello!

I'm back with another great challenge over at the ABC Christmas Challenge blog. It's just the most fun. I think, anyway. I love Christmas cards and the challenges presented every two weeks going systematically through the alphabet just speaks to the organized, A-type personality, nerd in me. I love it. Please do check it out and play along if you haven't already. I'm sure you will get into the spirit of things rather quickly. :D

 

Our lovely sponsor this challenge is:

 

 

Sponsor - Sweet Stamp Store

Prize - a $10.00 Gift Certificate for Sweet Stamp Store

SweetStamps.com manufactures artistic rubber stamps on cling cushion for use with acrylic blocks. We carry a variety of stamping and paper crafting goodies like our own Shades dye inks, metal embossing plates, embossing folders, cutting & embossing dies (Our very own Sweet Cuts Dies, Cheery Lynn, Marianne, Joy! and Nellie's), fine detail embossing powders, specialty cardstock and vellum along with supplies for parchment crafting. 

Now on to my card.... I choose the "NO frills" option ...as much out of necessity as anything. I was happily ready to go along with a challenge, as frills are not my thing - but I'm all about trying something new, when I realized my supplies I wanted to use for "frills" were all packed up for our upcoming move. ! ha! Sounds just like my typical M.O.

So, I went super CAS for a No Frills kind of card....

 

 

If you are following my blog and seeing most of my posts, you are probably going to get tired of this large scalloped panel. I just lurve it. It's from MFT Blueprints 27 and I'm not gonna lie, I mostly wanted this Blueprint for that one die. I will happily use the others...at some point, but I cut this one off and used it almost immediately. It's just fabulous. The background is PTI Simply Chartreuse ink over the MFT Geometric Print stencil and I stamped the sentiment from MFT Grand Holiday Greetings. Super simple and No frills, right? :)

 

 

Thanks SO much for stopping by to visit! Please come back again soon!

 

 

God Bless,

Mandy

 

 

Matthew 19:29   NKJV  (New King James Version)

     "And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My name's sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life."

Pin It

Addicted To Stamps & More #185 Photo Inspiration

Hello!

A beautiful spring day here in Middle Tennessee. We are loving it. I've already mowed the yard twice and The Boy has long since pulled out his shorts. He is obsessed with wearing shorts - and his idea of hot is not hot for a normal person. That one is special, I can assure you.

We have a fun springy challenge photo for inspiration over at Addicted To Stamps & More:

 

Our sponsor for this challenge is Happy Little Stampers.

Prize is a $15 gift certificate

Happy Little Stampers was created in 2015 by Kylie (owner of ATSM and ATCAS). Kylie wanted to bring out a line of stamps that were useful for every day crafters. From cute to whimsical images, from everyday to funky sentiments there is something for everyone!

 

I used a fun digital stamp I had colored up from Di's Digi Stamps called "Daffodil Delivery". It's SO cute. Before making my card, I cut him out using my Silhouette Pix Scan. (Super fun to use! May have changed my cardmaking from now on!)

 

 

 

The main panel was die cut using MFT Blueprints 27 (I'm IN LOVE with this die! Already used it on every card I've made since it came in.) I used the new MFT Geometric Print stencil and Latte Premium Dye Ink. I then stamped several phrases from Get Well Wishes stamp set and Black Licorice Hybrid ink. (also MFT) It was really quick and easy, especially since I had colored this little cutie during the 30 Day Color Challenge in February.

 

 



Well that's it for me today! Off to take care of more chores around the house. :) Of course.

Thanks SO much for stopping by to visit! Please come back again soon.

God Bless,
Mandy


James 1:12   NKJV  (New King James Version)
      "Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those love Him."

 

Pin It

Christmas Card Challenges - #15

Hello!

Another week of Christmas Card work ahead fun over at Christmas Card Challenges! :D I am SO busy right now with other things, just a precursor for what's coming at Christmas time, right? I shudder at the thought! lol.

This week is anything goes - a favorite for Christmas time and me. Christmas cards are my favorite to make and I love to make all kinds.

 

 

 

 

 

This fun little card is stamp up from the SSS Candy Cane Christmas set. I die cut the banner it's on using MFT Jumbo Stitched Fishtail Flags. The panel behind it is the inside of a die cut from MFT's Peek A Boo Wonky Windows. (I cut the window for another card and used the "scrap" on this card.) One more layer in the clip is a strip of vellum that I trimmed with pinking shears on the bottom edge hanging out. The main panel laying over the red card panel is sponged with Cracked Pistachio distress inks then a water spritzed stencil (MFT Large Circle Burst) was pressed down over it to pick up some of the sponged ink and leave a very subtle pattern behind. So subtle, that you can barely see it in this picture. Ha! The twine is Lawn Trimmings Green Sparkle. By the by, I've decided that (for me) Lawn Fawn ties up the best. And I am SO picky about how my bows look. Probably kinda stupid because no one could tell, but I want the things to look a certain way. It's in my DNA makeup - I can't help it.

 

 

Well that is all for me today! Off to do some more packing for the impending move. (Every time I think about it, I almost get sick. Yay! Good times! haha!)

 

 

Thanks SO much for stopping by to visit and for hanging with me while I'm barely posting and sharing projects! I know I'll be back into it full steam ahead once we get settled. And I'm sure I will be more than ready for that once we've gone through all the mayhem!

 

 

:)

 

God Bless,

Mandy

 

 

 

I Peter 3:21    NKJV  (New King James Version)

    "There is also an antitype which now saves us -- baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ."

Pin It

PDE Linky Party - Anything Goes!

Hello!

It's time for another week of fun over at the PDE Linky Party. It's a great place to go to show your projects because it's always "Anything Goes" -- and by anything, it really is anything. That means crochet, knitting, baking, scrapbooking, -- really - it's anything. Come check it out and play along.

 

 

I have a "springy" Get Well card to share today, with lots of texture.

 

 

 

 

To get my dots on the black, narrow panel, I used the Large Circle Burst Stencil from MFT and VersaMark ink. I then embossed with Silver Embossing Powder and cut the panel using Blueprints 23. I cut a few fabric scraps (Thank you, Sister) with pinking shears and layered them over before adding the die cut banner from Blueprint 25. The sentiment is from Get Well Wishes by MFT. My card base is PTI's Soft Stone, a great light grey for backgrounds.

 

 

That's all for me today. I'm barely crafting right now and certainly when I do, it's not "playing" unfortunately! Drat! We are in the midst of a move and I am snowed under right now. It is going well so far, so that's a blessing!

 

 

Thanks so much for stopping by to visit! Hope you will come again soon!

 

God Bless,

Mandy

 

Pin It

2 Creative Chicks - Showcase #8

Hello!

It's time to share another inspiration  project for the monthly showcase over at 2 Creative Chicks. It's always "Anything Goes" so this is a great chance to link up and show off any project you have made. Please come check it out!

 

 

 

 

I'm showing off some fun March décor I made myself. (Inspired by a design my sister made for a shirt for one of her customers for Valentine's. I don't want to hog all the credit.) :D I created this with some awesome glittery Heat Transfer Vinyl, a piece of burlap (cut from a placemat I bought for cheap at Target during the holidays), and a repurposed thrift store frame I painted.

 

 

 

 

I traced a four leaf clover free clip art and then added "lucky" in Ballerina Script font across the center. Once I cut and ironed onto the burlap, I stuck it in my frame and sat the frame on our foyer table. Voila! That was it. So easy, but so fun, too. I used the same design in a red glitter heart "love" for Valentine's and I plan to update for each holiday.

 

For some bonus inspiration, I'm sharing another little St. Patty's décor piece I have in my kitchen, but this one is even easier than the first. So easy, it's almost silly to share, but it's cute and I figure no one will mind. ?

 

 

 

 

 

This file is just printable subway art I obtained from the Silhouette Design Store (anyone else get lost in there for unexplainable amounts of time looking at all the fun projects?). I resized it to fit into my frame (even though it's not a square file, it adjusted quite nicely) and printed it on matte photo paper before trimming it down to fit in another repurposed thrift store frame. I plan to paint this one black, but the paint is already packed up with the rest of the garage in deference to our impending move this spring. Really putting a kink in my crafty hose, I'll just go ahead and tell ya.

 

Well, I hope you'll come over and play along at 2 Creative Chicks! All projects are welcome and it's always anything goes. Super fun way to share your décor ideas and any other crafty projects you might have going on, in addition to cards. (We all have too many hobbies, right?) :D

 

 





 

Challenge#8

Starts Mar. 1, 2016

Ends Mar. 31, 2016

Click HERE to link up!

 

 

Thanks SO much for stopping by to visit! I hope you will come back soon!

 

God Bless,

Mandy

 

 

II Timothy 2:12    NKJV (New King James Version)

     "If we endure,

      We shall also reign with Him.

      If we deny Him,

      He also will deny us."

Pin It

Christmas Card Challenges - #14 Color Challenge

Hello!

Another week has FLOWN by. Wow. It was a blur for me. I'm barely crafting and really hoping to use the tail end of my weekend to do a little relaxy time in The Fortress! Here's hoping, right?

I have a fun card to share that is for this week's color challenge at the Christmas Card Challenge blog.

 

 

 

I partook in some die cutting fun for this card. :D 

 

 

 

 

I used Blueprints 13 to cut my stitched background panel from some leftover CTMH cardstock with a fabulous subtle pattern on it. I used my MFT Typewriter background and PTI's Soft Stone ink to stamp the background used on my focus panel. I cut the banners using Blueprints 25 and patterned pieces from Basic Grey's Juniper Berry 6x6 pad. I then adhered the panels and die cut the Stitched Mini Scallop Rectangle. I used Reverse Confetti's Winter Words Confetti Cuts. I stamped "To The World" from PTI's Enclosed Bell set. Phew. That's a lot to report, but hopefully if there's anything you want to find, I've included the proper name.

 

Thanks SO much for stopping by to visit! Please do so again soon - and don't forget to hop on over to the Christmas Card Challenge blog!

 

 

God Bless,

Mandy

 

 

Romans 8:31   NKJV  (New King James Version)

     "What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?"

 

Pin It

ABC Christmas Challenges - E for Embossing

Hello!

I'm back with another great challenge over at the ABC Christmas Challenge blog. It's just the most fun. I think, anyway. I love Christmas cards and the challenges presented every two weeks going systematically through the alphabet just speaks to the organized, A-type personality, nerd in me. I love it. Please do check it out and play along if you haven't already. I'm sure you will get into the spirit of things rather quickly. :D

We are sponsored by the lovely Dulcie, owner of the  Wild Rose Studio

 One lucky entrant will win this lovely Snow Flourish Craft Die 

This challenge is letter E - Embossing! It can be any type of embossing. I went with Heat Embossing white stripes on my aqua blue panel below....

I used the Bold Diagonal Stripes background stamp from MFT stamped in VersaFine ink and White heat embossed. I then die cut the scalloped panel using the Stitched Mini Scalloped Rectangle STAX. (I'm addicted to these. I have the rectangle and circles, but wished I had them all! :D)

The scarf is from the Winter Warmth set (Stamp and matching die), I used the sentiment from LLD Hug In A Mug stamp. I die cut the flag for the sentiment using the Stitched Fishtail Flag STAX. My scarf is stamped in Grape Jelly Hybrid ink and Boysenberry Dye ink. (perfect combo!)

I hope you will check out the fun over at the ABC Christmas Challenge! We love seeing your creations! :) 

Thanks so much for stopping by!

God Bless,

Mandy

Pin It

Addicted To Stamps & More! Challenge #183 - Holiday

Hello!

It's time for another challenge over at Addicted To Stamps and More. :)  I had much fun with this one - Holidays! I'm guilty of only making "Holiday" cards that are Christmas. But, I've been branching out a little more this year. I had fun getting out of my norm making a St. Patrick's Day card for my hubby. We got engaged on St. Patrick's Day and I decided this was a perfect occasion to make him a card. And since it would be unexpected, he might like it a little more. Hee hee. (I feel silly giving them to him sometimes when I've MADE him look at so many over the years!)

Our sponsor this time is:

Now for my card:

:D  I used a cut file I'd made for some home décor using my Silhouette to cut the plaid shamrock. Lucky is cut out of the middle leaving the panel behind it to show through. (In the photo, it looks like I have the word on top. But that's just not the case and I couldn't sleep at night, if everyone didn't realize that. :D) I cut the panel using MFT's Stitched Mini Scallop Rectangle STAX then sponged Distress Inks, Mowed Lawn and Crushed Olive, onto it.

The plaid paper is from MFT Country Fair Plaid Paper Pack. I used Blueprints 25 to die cut the curved banner and stamped "2 Have U" using CTMH's Keyboard Upper Alphabet in MFT Cactus Premium Dye Ink. I finished it off with a couple of enamel dots and jute twine. It's all layered on a card base using Desert Storm Neenah cardstock.

 I'm also playing along with Crazy 4 Challenges - Spring cards, Just Us Girls - Photo Challenge, the sketch over at CAS(E) This Sketch, and the Key Lime challenge over at Curtain Call.

      

Thanks so much for stopping by to visit! Please come back again soon and don't forget to check out the Holiday fun over at Addicted To Stamps and More!

God Bless,

Mandy

Ephesians 1:7  NKJV  (New King James Version)

   "In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace."



Pin It