Getting Ready for Easter

Are you getting ready for Easter around your house? We used to decorate the house when the kids were little starting with Ash Wednesday, but now that it is just us two old foggies and the fur-babies, we don't put out the decorations. Yes, we do have the grands, but they are older now, too. I kind of miss it all. However, Easter cards are still called for, so I'll be making several.

This little image is by Imagine That - Digies by Kris. and can be found in the shop HERE. I actually colored this image three times because I could not decide on what color to make the sweet little bunny. My first inclination was to make her white (especially since I had a sweet white bunny at one time), but I really wanted more color on my card, so ended up making her gray. I didn't realize, until after I'd fiished coloring her bonnet, that I'd used similar colors as the pre-colored version in the set. Kris and I must have been on a similar wave length (smile).

My card base is a taupe color, and my DP is by K&Company. The background die piece is by Spellbinder, and the corner die pieces are by Cherry Lynn. I've added some pearls and ribbon to finish off my little card. Although it is hard to tell from the photo, all of the colors used can be found in the pretty floral DP papers.

You still have four more days to get a fabulous 40% off your purchase when you buy $10 worth of Imagine That images. Let me remind you that Kris' images are so very reasonably priced, and you will get a LOT for your money! 

I would also like to remind you of our challenge blog (found HERE) and the progressive challenge. ALL who link up will get next month's set FREE!  For March, we are using the Kitty in Flowers set. If you don't have this set, you can purchase it in the store for a discounted price all month long and then join our challenge. Now, since March is almost over, I know many of you may not have time to participate. However, next month we will have a new set available, and if you participate and link up, you will get May's set for free. It is a win-win deal, so have a look and make plans. We always love seeing what our followers make using Kris' adorable images.

Gotta run for now. May your Muses always be actively with you -- go make something beautiful!

Sketch 242, Tuesday Morning

Good Morning friends. Happy Tuesday! We have a really simple Tuesday Morning sketch for you to try this week. It will work great for cards, scrapbook pages and even 3D items.  This week's sponsor is our friends at Creative Classroom.  If you've not taken one of their classes then you simply must play along so you can try for a free seat in one of them. 

Here is our little sketch for you:

Since spring is FINALLY starting to peek its head around the corner here in the south and our spring flowers and shrubs are actually blooming, I decided to encourage it even more with my little card this week. I've used a Magnolia image and lots of flowers. 

We are interested to see what you can do with our sketch this week. It is always fun to see how each of you interprets and uses the sketches we provide. If you have the time, please join in this week's challenge. Remember, post your card at the Tuesday Morning Sketches challenge blog before Sunday evening to have a chance at our wonderful prize.

See you later. Have a good week!

New Easter Release

Sami at Sami Stamps has released a wonderful new set of image perfect for sweet Easter cards, and the DT have out done themselves with beautiful inspiration cards to share with you. 

For my card, I've colored this sweet little chick and egg with Copic markers after pinting it off on X-Press It brand card. I cut the image with a Spellbinder circle die. I then cut a second, slightly larger circle, from cream card as a mat and adhered both of them on top of the crochet scalloped circle. (You've seen me use those beautiful crochet mats before. They are hand made by a sweet friend of mine, Jessi Fogan, and if you are interested in buying some, you can find her blog HERE.)

The card base is brown card, and my DPs are a number of years old, so unfortunately the packaging is long gone so I can't tell you the manufacturer. I did not mat the background DP, letting the card itself act as a mat, but I then matted the blue, dotty cross piece with the same brown as the card. The flowers are by Petaloo; the lace is by Wright's; the two pearls are by Recollection, and the bow is made from ecru seam binding ribbon.

Here is a thumb nail view of the entire new set of images:

Sami is offering a special deal on "Egg Bunny" and "Four Spring Chicks," so you'll need to head over to the store to see what they are!

Birthday Boy

I told you I'd be back with more cards to share. This little cutie is one of the birthday images from this month's release at Image That! Digies by Kris. Did you participate in the wonderful birthday blog hop? The winners are posted on the blog, so you may want to rush over and see if your name is listed. Due to work requirements, I did not participate in our blog hop this month, but I have enjoyed using some of the images from the birthday release. Today's card is made using one of the images from the Birthday Dog set (found HERE). Remember, Kris' sets are well worth the money because you get line images, colored images, and sentiments, all for a really reasonable price!

I used the line image and colored it with Copic markers. The sentiment is also from the birthday set. I printed it off and then cut it into the circle which I matted with another circle from the same red card that I used for my zip-zag piece. The papers are from several 6 x 6" pads which I mixed and matched. My card base is brown, and the matting for the pieces is the same brown.

Whether you are looking to make a birthday card, get-well card, Easter card or a friendship card, you will surely find what you need at Imagine That! Kris' whimsical images are so fun, and as always, if you don't have time to color them yourself, you can use the pre-colored format.

Butterfly Cutie

Today's sketch is ready for you, and it's a pretty one.  We have a brand new sponsor.  The Stamp Doctor is here with us this week. Dr. Mechele is the owner of The Stamp Doctor and she carries a couple of different stamp brands as well as some exclusive to TSD.  She also designs dies that Spellbinders produces for her.  Amazing stuff!


So, here's our sketch:

As are so many people this year, I'm overly anxious for spring to arrive. I don't do cold well, and there has been more than an abundance of it this brutal winter. Here in the southern USA, Mother Nature is doing her bi-polar thing and vacillating between lovely days and miserable days! We get a glimps of what is to come, but it doesn't last! Consequently, when I saw the butterfly paper among the stash, I just HAD to use it!

I colored this adorably sweet image from The Paper Shelter (called "Cute") using my Copic markers. I used a Spellbinder rectangle die to cut the mat for the image, and then I traced the inside of the die around my image and hand cut it to fit atop the mat. I've kept the embellishments simple because the background paper is so fussy and only added a ribbon.

Our sketch this week is very elegant in its simplicity; yet, versatile enough to also be fun. Depending upon the shape of your matting and the papers you pick, this sketch can go elegant to whimsical. It is definitely a keeper. Take a few minutes and go over to the Tuesday Morning Sketches blog to have a look at the work of the other team members to see just how lovely and versatile this sketch really is. Then, join us this week by sharing your own version of our sketch.

Take care. I'll be back later this week with some more cards to share with you.

Tuesday with a Twist

Good Morning TMS friends.  Welcome to another fun sketch and this week is the Judged Challenge, so we have a fun little twist to add to the sketch.  We want you to make sure you include 3 B's (buttons, bows, birthday, brown, black, beads -- anything that begins with a B). We also have Bugaboo as our sponsor this week and the GENEROUS prize  is 7 digis of the winner's choice.  But to be eligible, you must use the twist.

Here is our sketch for this week:

I have used the Love Girl Cupcake image which you can find HERE. Isn't she pretty? My three B's are birthday, beads, black, bouquet. My image is colored with Copic markers. My DP is by K&Company. My flowers are by Recollections, as are my beads.

We have a fun lineup of inspiration for you over at the Tuesday Morning Challenge blog, so take a peek and then get ready to add your own touch to our sketch and join in this week's challenge. We look forward to seeing what you do with the TWIST, too.

Lamb of God

I had fully intended to have this go live on Wednesday to coincide with Ash Wednesday. However, got called in to work Tuesday night to take the place of someone who called out, and I completely forgot my posting. Then I worked on Wednesday, and the next thing I knew, the week had slipped by. However, here it is now. I hope you enjoy.

This image is one of the Imagine That! - Digies by Kris sets. It can be found in the store HERE. The image was inspired by John 1:29 and is perfect for Easter/Resurrection Sunday projects. (This set is also available in German text, sold separately.) As do most of Krtis' sets, this one comes with a line drawing, a pre-colored version, and a number of appropriate sentiments for you to use.

I printed the line image onto X-Press It card and colored it with my Copic markers. My card base is brown with a layer of blue card which I dry embossed using the Regal embossing folder by Spellbinder. I also photocopied (using the copy function on my computer printer) the page from my Bible (book of Luke) of Christ's crucifiction. I cut my image into an oval shape using the Spellbinder oval die and then layered it onto a brown matting cut with Spellbinder's Floral Ovals die. I used ecru satin ribbon and white pearls (Recollections) to finish off my card.

Remember, Kris not only sells wonderful images, but beautiful digital papers and digital projects -- and at wonderfully reasonable prices -- so take a few minutes to swing by the store and have a look. It's a fun place to visit. If you are looking for inspiration and ideas, then stop by the Imagine That blog and have a look at the lovely projects made by the design team members.

Wee Bit of Irish

Happy Friday everyone. Sami of Sami Stamps has a new release for you, and it celebrates St. Patty's Day. There is an adage that says that once a year EVERYONE is a little bit Irish, so even if neither you nor your ancestors hail from the Emerald Isle, you may still find Sami's new images delightful and fun! Here is a peek at all of the new images:

As usual with a new release, Sami is offering a freebie and a special price image. We are hoping that might entice you to join in this month's challenge which is quite simple -- USE GREEN! You can find the details on the challenge blog HERE.

For my wee card (smile), I've used Little Shamrock Dancer. I colored all of the image, except the shamrock, with Copic markers. I paper pieced the shamrock to match the background DP. My card base is white with a layer of brown card and then a brown dotty DP. I cut the green DP and then punched a border using a Fiskar border punch. Just above the punched area, I adhered a piece of ecru ribbon. Instead of a bow, I used flowers and leaves by Recollections, and green gem swirls, also by Recollections. To finish off my little card, I added green gems to two of the corners of my image square and to the center of the shamrock.

Again, we'd like to have you join us this month in the USE GREEN challenge. As always, remember that you MUST use a Sami Stamps image (remember those freebies). 

Tuesday Morning Sketch 239

We have a wonderful sponsor this week.  Digital Delights by Louby Loo is here and we couldn't be happier!

Digital Delights by Louby Loo is your one stop shop for all your digital stamps, paper piecing and digital products which are instantly downloadable. We also have a wide range of digital papers and cut files for all your crafting projects. Our low prices reflect our belief that crafting should not only be fun but affordable too!!

Other services include custom blog design and custom watermarks. Why wait for snail mail? Start creating with our instant downloads today.

So let's get started.  Here's the brand new sketch we're playing with this week. This one is designed by teammate Debbie.  

I have used Digital Delight's image called Bertie Bunny. This sweet little image was colored with Copic markers and then cut into a circle using a Spellbinder circle die. The die behind the image is cut with Spellbinder's scalloped circle die. My card base is white, and the DP is VERY old. It is by Provo Crafts. The orange stripes are cut from a piece of orange card scrap I had left from another card, and I've used green card for matting. The sentiment is also by Digital Delights. My little bow is made from Offray ribbon.

Please stop by the Tuesday Morning Challenge Blog and have a look at the wonderful creations by the other design team members, then head on over to your craft room and make your own wonderful creation to enter in this week's challenge.

One Year Old

Imagine That! Digis by Kris is ONE year old!!  
To celebrate, we've released 8 birthday-themed kits this month!

Kris has been busy creating some really wonderful birthday images to help celebrate the first year of magine That! Digis by Kris. A whole year has passed since Kris realized her dream and put her first images out for sale. If you haven't yet visited the Imagine That! online store, now is the time to do so. Kris not only offers adorable images, but she also offers digi papers that coordinate with many of her image designs. There is no doubt in my mind that you will find whatever you are wanting for your next crafting venture in the Image That! store.

I have used "Birthday Bear" (found HERE) for my card. However, if bears aren't your "thing," then check out the birthday kitty, dog, porcupine, raccoon, or lamb. They will all tickle your fancy and bring a smile to your face!

I colored birthday bear with Copic markers after printed it off onto X-Press It brand card (have you got that memorized by now? - grin). Pretty much standard copy for me at this point, isn't it? Well, if something ain't broke; don't fix it, right? X-Press It brand works for me, so I'm stickin' with it for now. My card is a white 5.5" square. My DPs are from an American Crafts 6 x 6" pad called "Hip Hip Hooray." My sentiment comes with the birthday bear (oh yes, did I mention you would get colored images, line images and sentiments all for one price when you order?). I printed the sentiment off onto white card and cut it out, then mounted it to a circle cut with a Spellbinder die. My mat for birthday bear was cut using a Nellie Snellin die, and my corner piece was cut using a Joy Crafts die. I tied green thread through the button and then adhered it to the center of my sentiment.

I hope you like birthday bear and will take a few minutes to visit Kris's online store to see the other adorable birthday animals -- after all, we ALWAYS seem to need birthday cards!

Your Next Stamp March Blog Hop

Welcome to the March YNS  Your Next Stamp  Blog Hop Digital Release!

We are so happy to have you join us this month, we have 9 brand new exclusive digital images from Penny and Laurence of Omnia Designs!!

This month the hop begins on Design Team member, Bonnie's Blog...click her name to get back to the beginning at any time.

We appreciate you hopping to each blog listed at the bottom of this post, just click on their picture and leave a comment on each blog to win some digital prizes!!

The winners will be announced on the YNS Blog on March 4th.

I have two cards to share with you. I am using the image "Little Sister" and when I saw it, it looked to me as if she has her little hand to her mouth the way one does when they are saying, "Oops." Two ideas popped into my mind, and since I couldn't decide on just one of them, I decided to go with both of them.

The first idea shown is for a get well card. The second is for a missed birthday. I've printed both images onto X-Press It brand card and colored them with Copic markers. The DPs are from 6 x 6" pads. Ribbons and dies used are from my stash.

From here, your next stop should be Ruza. Remember to leave a comment on each of the blogs in order to qualify for the prize. You will also want to take a few minutes to stop by the Your Next Stamp store and take advantage of the March sale.

Thanks for joining us this month, just click on the pictures below to see all of my teammates and guest designers lovely cards/projects: