Stamp of the Month - Clear and Simple Stamps

First of all, HAPPY NEW YEAR!! Wow, huh? I can't believe 2009 is already over! Crazy!!

It's time once again for a fabulous new template from Clear and Simple Stamps, designed by the ultra talented Sue. I didn't get a chance to play with The Hatbox Template due to all of the Holiday Happenings around here, but check out this graphic:
And be sure to stop by the Clear and Simple Stamps website today - LOTS of exciting new things for you to check out!! This month's Copic Trio of the Month is Red Violet 1 {RV02, RV04, RV09}. And, the Stamp of the Month is the new Monogram 1 set.Use the coupon code CSS0110 at checkout to receive a special discount!!

So even though I haven't had a chance yet to make the Hatbox, I did get a head start on the cards I'll be making to put inside the hat box (making a lovely gift for someone special!!). Here's a little circle card I created using the new Limited Edition Thank You 2009 Stamp Set:

Stamps: Thank You 2009
Paper: Say Yellow to All your Fans, Glamazon Green, Dish all the Dirt Brown, Kraft Like a Rockstar CS (CSS); Lined DP (Scenic Route)
Ink: Momento Rich Cocoa (Tsukineko)
Accessories: Button (CSS); Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders); Flower Punches (Marvy Uchida)

Well, that's it for me today!! Technically, it's still 2009 in Hawaii as I type this up and I'm sitting here listening to the entire neighborhood trying to blow their faces off with about a gazillion fireworks!! (not exactly ideal for trying to get a 3-yr-old to go to bed at a decent hour!! LOL). And it's only going to get louder and crazier the closer to midnight it gets!! New Year's Eve in Hawaii is notoriously crazier in the fireworks department than the 4th of July. Our smoke detector (INSIDE our house!!!) goes off around 12:30 every year - I guess just because of all the smoke in the air from all of the fireworks in the neighborhood!! We had to go to Costco yesterday and you wouldn't believe the number of people with the GIGANTIC $300 Supersize Fireworks Mega Packs in their buggies waiting to checkout!! I don't get it. Personally, I'd just as soon light a few $100 bills on fire and watch them burn than spend it on fireworks, but whatever - to each his own!!

Here's wishing each of you a 2010 full of peace and happiness!!

Sweet Sunday Sketch #50

Wow! What a crazy week! I can't believe Hanukkah and Christmas have both come and gone and 2010 is bearing down on us already. Unbelievable!! I hope you all had a safe and happy holiday! My in-laws arrived (by the skin of their teeth!!) safely on Maui from the frozen tundra of the Midwest (Kansas to be exact) on Christmas Eve - just in time to join us for the past few days of amazingly BEAUTIFUL weather here on Maui! I've been seeing some pretty crazy pics of the weather some of you have been experiencing in blizzard conditions on the mainland and just can't even begin to imagine that!! Please don't hate me, but here are a few pics of how the Taplers spent our Christmas Eve morning...
If you're interested, you can see the rest of the pics from our fun Christmas Eve morning at the beach HERE on our family blog.

Anyway, on with the real reason I'm sure you're here...it's time once again for a Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge! Karen has another awesome sketch for us this week:

I had lots of fun with this one, creating this hybrid New Year's card with printed papers from the Time Flies digi kit by Dani Mogstad (Sweet Shoppe) and stamped sentiments from the New Year stamp set by Clear and Simple Stamps (the photo didn't come out very clear, but that bottom sentiment says "Happy New Year"):
I pulled out my new Fiskars Apron Lace punch again (LOVE that thing!!) and added some Hibiscus Burst (PTI) grosgrain ribbon. The winged clock is actually a digital embellishment from the Time Flies kit. Dani also has a coordinating Time Flies digital stamp set with this same image that you could print out and color with your Copics or colored pencils (I was just feeling lazy!!)

Be sure to stop by the other Sweet Sunday Stampers' blogs to see what they've done with the sketch this week:

• Karen Motz
• Laura Fredrickson
• Sarah-Jane Kale
  
• Vicki Burdick

Then head on over to Karen's blog and use Mr. Linky on today's post to share you own creation with us!!

Embellish Snowflakes Color Challenge

Sorry for the multiple posts one right after another today, but I've been DYING to participate in one of the Embellish Magazine challenges since the very first one - unfortunately the timing just hasn't been right until now! I decided to buckle down and get started early this time and it paid off! Today I have TWO (yep, that's right! TWO!) projects to share with you using the Embellish Snowflakes Color Challenge. Here's a look at the challenge image:Isn't that AWESOME!?!? I mean, really, who WOULDN'T be inspired by all that yummy goodness!? So here's what I created with my "real" paper and stamps this afternoon:
You all know I'm a sucker for some Kraft and I've never been known to miss an opportunity to throw in some chocolate and SU's Baja Breeze is still one of my favorite all-time SU colors (oh, what will I ever do when I finally run out of that stuff?? And it's getting close...I'm starting to hoard it...especially my beloved textured CS!!). Anyway, I went with a softer saffron for this card just because I'm not a big fan of Yo-Yo Yellow and I just couldn't make it look right with this card! Here are all the details of what's included (dontcha just LOVE that big covered chipboard snowflake!?!?) - I was pretty excited to dig into one of my favorite retro Verve stamp sets from last year - Snow Wonderful!

Stamps: Snow Wonderful (Verve) Paper: Kraft, Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze CS, textured Baja Breeze CS, So Saffron DP (SU) Ink: Fresh Snow (PTI); Momento Rich Cocoa (Tsukineko) Accessories: Brown Satin Ribbon (from quilting store); Apron Lace punch (Fiskars); Button (PTI); Snowflake #2 die (Sizzix); Hemp Twine

And now, I'm not sure if this second creation actually counts for the challenge since it's purely digital, but I was still inspired by the colors in the challenge to create this digital scrapbook layout:
Journaling reads (sorry, please don't hate me! LOL): "Snow? What's that? This Maui boy has never even seen the white fluffy stuff! Our idea of a cold winter day is when we have to wait until mid-morning for the temp to warm up to 80 degrees before we can head to the beach! - Keawakapu Beach, Kihei. November, 2009."

Credits:
Winter Wishes by Zoe Pearn (Sweet Shoppe); A Very Very Very Fine House by Libby Weifenbach (Sweet Shoppe); Summer Lovin' Templates by A+ Designs (Enchanted Studio Scraps)

MoJo Monday #116

So I think I'm completely losing my mind!! LOL. I thought I posted this early last week - at least that was my plan - to remind you all that it was contest week over on the MoJo Monday blog! But I just realized that I never got around to posting it! duh. Sorry guys! Hopefully most of you already are MoJo addicts anyway and knew it was contest week...and even if you didn't and you don't see this in time to get your card made, you still get to be inspired by a pretty awesome sketch, so really - we're all winners in the end, right?? RIGHT!?!? :-)
I was totally inspired by Julee's card this week - specifically the stitching she did on her circles. Now, I'm a much crapier stitcher than she is, so I had to rough up my circles a little bit to fake you guys out and make you think my sloppy stitching was on purpose to give it a "shabby" look! But it actually worked out, because isn't that paper AWESOME in all it's shabby chic-ness? And you know, shabby chic is usually so NOT my thing, but this Shabby Sugar digi kit (which is where these printed digi papers are from) by Zoe Pearn over at the Sweet Shoppe is so so awesome! I've used papers from this kit a few times already (don't worry - I'll be sharing more projects with it soon). And combined with the Thankful Accents stamp set from Verve, well the combo was just perfect for this sketch. Check it out:

Stamps: Thankful Accents (Verve)
Paper: Kraft CS (SU); printed digi paper from Shabby Sugar by Zoe Pearn (Sweet Shoppe)
Ink: Versafine Vintage Sepia (Tsukineko)
Accessories: Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders); Ribbon (PTI); Sewing Machine

*This is my second post today. Scroll down to see my Sweet Sunday Sketch Card*

Today Paper Craft Planet has a really fun game to play. The Super Novas all got together and played with the new Flower Soft Snow Globe CD. I'm so excited to share this project with you.... and you can play along and win a prize by participating in a scavenger hunt! Keep reading for instructions on how you can win!


The Flower Soft CD is amazing!! It has SO MANY adorable ready-to-print projects right on the disc and it's so easy to use! Just pop it in your computer and (for me at least), it starts right up. I chose to print out this cute little snowman! I printed him on some Matte Presentation Paper (the same paper I use to print my digital scrapbooking supplies), then cut him out. I cut out the oval outline in his belly and popped the Flower Soft Globe right in place, securing with some double-sided tape. I decided to use this project as a gift for my favorite stamping friend who just happens to love snowmen - I won't name names, just in case she reads this post!! ;-) - so I filled up his belly with some PTI buttons I thought she might like! The final touch was adding all that super awesome Polar White Flower Soft to the snowman's hat and around his body! I added a cardstock backing and a little triangle to form a card base so he'd stand up and I was done!

Today's scavenger hunt over on Papercraft Planet is sponsored by Flower Soft! You could win a GENEROUS prize if you play our game... Head on over to Papercraft Planet for all the details and you could win the same prize pack the Super Novas used to create all these beautiful projects! Package includes the Snow Globe CD, oval aperture cards and envelopes and display globes!

Check out what the Super Novas made!

Adela Rossol

Lynn Mercurio

Kim Burmeister

Wendy Price

Erika Martin

Lori Tecler

Jessica Fick

Sankari Wegman

Susanna Boyd

Amy Park

Find the product on the Flower Soft website that fits the clue to the riddle posted on Papercraft Planet and you could be our winner! Leave a comment on Paper Craft Planet with your answer. We will pick a random winner for all the CORRECT entries on December 14th.

Sweet Sunday Sketch #48

Here are, Sunday again already!! Time for another fun Sweet Sunday Sketch from Karen Giron! Here's a look at this week's sketch:
And here's my hybrid sample, using printed digi papers from the Checkin' It Twice kit by Dani Mogstad and some PTI stamps that I'd been itching to get all inky!!
I finally inked up my Mod Squad stamp set (PTI), turning those funky retro flowers into some weird kind of holiday bloom! What!? There are no RULES in the stamping world! The Merry & Bright sentiment is from the 2009 Holiday Tag Collection (PTI). I added some fun bling to the flowers with some adhesive rhinestones from my stash and used some old black polka dotted ribbon (sorry, I have NO IDEA who makes that). I'm pretty pleased with the finished card and it was super quick and easy!

Be sure to stop by the other Sweet Sunday Stampers' blogs to see what they've done with the sketch this week:

• Karen Motz
• Laura Fredrickson
• Lynn Put
• Sarah-Jane Kale
  
• Vicki Burdick

Then head on over to Karen's blog and use Mr. Linky on today's post to share you own creation with us!!

A little carried away...

Yeah, you might say I went a little overboard after I pulled out my Wings of Joy stamp set (Taylored Expressions) and printed off a bunch of this fun digi paper from the All Aglow kit by Traci Reed (Sweet Shoppe) to make my Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge #93 card!! But I was feeling so inspired that I just kept going and ended up creating 3 hybrid projects with this yummy combination!! Take a look....(sorry for the crappy pics - it was already dark tonight by the time I got around to taking my photos!!).

This first card was for the sketch challenge and I added some zigzag stitching, bling (I know! don't have a stroke....soooo not me!), and some silver elastic cording for embellishment. All 3 projects feature a Kraft CS base with the images colored using Copic markers.
For my second card I chose to work with one of my favorite images from the set - isn't that string of wintery goodness so cute!?!? I again added some zigzag stitching to this card and this time I threw some PTI buttons into the mix!
Finally, this last project is for Day 11 of Papercraft Planet's 12 Days of Christmas feature. Head on over to THIS POST on Papercraft Planet for more details and instructions on how to make this little gift card holder. You can also play along in a fun little Scavenger Hunt for a chance to win some awesome prizes!!It's a SUPER easy gift card holder that's held closed with a fun little "belly band"!

Well, that's it! I have a very busy crafting weekend ahead as I scramble to finish up some holiday gifts in time to get them in the mail!!

Well Wishes Release Day

Isn't that the cutest release image ever?? It's Release Day over at Clear and Simple Stamps!! There are 9 New Sets in the store as well as one BIG exciting website makeover! Be sure to take a look around - there's lots to explore and still more to come in the future as new features are added in the new year - with still more exciting news to come too!! ;-)

I have a couple more projects to share with you today using the new Love set that is now available:
Even though this set may look strictly like a Valentine's set upon first glance, it really is extremely versatile. Here, I've used that adorable Koala bear image along with a sentiment from the Naptime set to create a quick baby girl card! I used Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla and Pink Pirouette textured CS along with DP from last year's American Crafts' Romance collection. The image was stamped in Momento Rich Cocoa and colored with Copics.

And this little thing is actually a gift card holder. I probably will hold onto this until Valentine's Day and then stick a Starbuck's or Borders gift card inside for Joel. I used that AWESOME stringed hearts image (seriously LOVE that!! - if you missed it, be sure to check out yesterday's post for the Anniversary card I made for Joel using this image). My gift card holder uses DP from Cloud 9 along with Kraft and Very Vanilla CS. The image was stamped in Momento Rich Cocoa and colored with Copics and my Uniball white gel pen thing (whatever it's called??). I'll be back tomorrow with a gift card holder tutorial as part of my 12 Days of Christmas post for Papercraft Planet (sorry, but I gotta keep you guys coming back for more somehow right?? LOL).

Speaking of 12 Days of Christmas, be sure to stop by Papercraft Planet today - Clear and Simple Stamps is the host for Day 10 and you could win some CSS goodies for playing along in a fun little scavenger hunt!!

Be sure to check out all of the fabulous sets available as part of the Well Wishes Collection!
Be sure to stop by the other DT blogs for some New Release eye candy with the other sets as well:

• Beth Matson
• Kim Howard
• Lori Tecler
• Maria Levine
• Neva McMullen
• Robyn Weatherspoon
• Sarah Martina
• Simone Pursiful
  
• Sue Berker

Our Love Keeps Growing

Today is my 4th Wedding Anniversary!! 4 years ago today Joel and I were married in a beautiful ceremony just before ceremony on the beach in Makena, one of our favorite places here on Maui - ok, on Earth! It really was a perfect wedding!! So relaxed and laid back and everyone had such a fun time!!

I thought I'd share with you guys the anniversary card I made for him, which also doubles as a special day-early Sneak Peek of a New Release set, Love, from Clear and Simple Stamps!! Take a look:
I stamped that AMAZING stringed hearts image in Momento Rich Cocoa ink and colored with Copics. Isn't that image awesome!?!? Seriously, that image is one of my all-time favorite images not just from CSS, but EVER!! I just absolutely LOVE it!!! So whimsical and fun! And I can just imagine it in soooo many different color combinations and for so many purposes (Anniversary, wedding, baby, just because I love you, etc etc etc). I of course used a Kraft CS base for the card and printed some yummy digi papers from the Love Shack kit by Libby Weifenbach (Sweet Shoppe). I busted out my handy-dandy sewing machine on this card, adding some fun zig-zag stitching between paper patterns. The sentiment, which reads "Our Love Keeps Growing" is popped up on dimensionals and overhangs the edge of the card slightly (are you getting tired of that look from me yet? I'm kind of addicted to it!! LOL).

The Love set will be available with the other December New Releases from Clear and Simple Stamps tomorrow, Dec 10!! Stay tuned tomorrow for another quick card using this fun set!

And now, because it's my blog and my anniversary - I wanted to share some of my favorite pics from our wedding (yeah, yeah, I know I did this last year. Just humor me). It's so strange how our concept of time works, huh? On one hand I can't believe it's already been 4 years since the wedding - it seems like just yesterday! But on the other hand, I can't believe it's only been 4 years - our lives have changed so much, our little family has grown and it feels like we've been married forever!! LOL! Joel really is the greatest guy in the world! He's my best friend and he's my rock. He makes me laugh daily and he has AWESOME dimples.
Happy Anniversary Babe!! I love you!....and no, Joel doesn't read my blog. But I thought I'd try to fit in with everyone else who writes little love notes to their significant other on their blogs. I thinks it's kind of funny that crafters' S.O.'s read their blogs. And no, it doesn't bother me in the slightest that Joel doesn't read this blog. Why would he? This is MY thing. It's healthy to have my own thing that is completely separate from him. And that's just another thing that I love so much about him!!! He doesn't try to "fake it" and pretend like he cares about this stuff, because I know he doesn't! Don't get me wrong. He'll give me all the appropriate ooohs and aaahs when he gets his card, but let's face it - no non-paper-crafting spouse can REALLY appreciate this stuff in the same way a papercrafting friend can, right? ;-)

Sweet Sunday Sketch #47

Karen has a SUPER fun Sweet Sunday Sketch for you to play with this week!! Check it out:

Today is my son Dean's 3rd Birthday and we celebrated with a fun party at Keopuolani Park in Kahului yesterday morning. It was a beautiful Maui day- sunny and warm (about 80 degrees) - I was worried it was going to rain - and the kids wore themselves out running around and playing on the playground!! Dean totally scored with tons of new toys (just what he needs right before the holidays!! ha!) and it really was a pretty perfect day!! I just can't believe my baby is already 3!

This afternoon we're headed to another birthday party. Dean's friend Noah was born exactly 1 week before Dean and his 3rd birthday party is this afternoon Upcountry. I used this week's Sweet Sunday Sketch to create this fun and colorful card for him:

I'm excited to have finally busted a few PTI sets I've had for awhile but that had never seen ink until now!! And I got to use my new Apron Lace punch which arrived promptly from Overstock.com this past week (VERY pleased with the super fast and reasonably priced shipping to Hawaii - will definitely be doing more shopping there in the future!!).

What's in it...
Stamps: Star Prints, Signature Greetings (PTI)
Paper: Kraft, Whisper White, So Saffron CS, Textured Real Red CS (SU);
Ink: Versafine Black Onyx (Tsukineko); Real Red, Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery (SU)
Accessories: Star Punch, Bashful Blue ribbon, dimensionals (SU); Apron Lace punch (Fiskars); Swiss Dots Embossing Folder (Cuttlebug)

Be sure to stop by the other Sweet Sunday Stampers' blogs to see what they've done with the sketch this week:

• Karen Motz
• Laura Fredrickson
• Lynn Put
• Vicki Burdick

Then head on over to Karen's blog and use Mr. Linky to share you own creation with us!!