ssink - masculine monday

Today at the Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration blog we are sharing cards that are suitable for all the men in our lives! This card was a CASE from something I saw on Pinterest by Deena Boos. I changed it to have more of a masculine feel using the Retro Fresh Washi tape and turned it into a birthday card. This was one of the four cards my guests could create at last week's card night and I even gave them the option of turning it into a Halloween card if they wished!

Stamp Sets	Label Love, Tape It
Ink	Coastal Cabana, So Saffron
Paper	Tangerine Tango, Very Vanilla
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Retro Fresh Washi Tape
Tools	Label Punch

We'd love for you to stop by to see what other cards the SSINK designers have created that are quick and easy! Click on the picture below to head on over for a visit!

ssink - quick and easy

It's quick and easy cards today at the Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration blog. I love how easily these two baby cards came together...both using the same layout. I needed a handful of "congrats baby" cards and really wanted something I could create in a snap! After deciding on this layout, I just changed up the colors to match whether it's for a boy or girl!

Stamp Sets	Zoo Babies
Ink	Melon Mambo, Bermuda Bay, Smokey Slate
Paper	Melon Mambo, Bermuda Baby, Smokey Slate, Whisper White, Brights DSP (Daffodil Delight Chevron)
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Melon Mambo 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon, Bermuda Baby 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon, Pearls
Tools	Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine, Circle Framelits, Bitty Banner Framelits, Bitty Heart Punch

We'd love for you to stop by to see what other cards the SSINK designers have created that are quick and easy! Click on the picture below to head on over for a visit!

control freaks tour - Fall/Gratitude

Ready to hop along this month with the Control Freaks? If you've already been hopping, you should have just come from Judy DiScipio's blog. This month the theme is Fall or Gratitude. I wasn't able to participate last month in the Halloween-themed hop, but since Halloween is in the Fall I decided to share a little Halloween fun, too!

I decided it would be a good idea to use the same layout for both a Halloween card and a Thanksgiving card using the Mottley Monsters Designer Series Paper and Fall Fest stamp set. I love this fun paper, but didn't really realize just how much until I saw it in person. The pumpkins/leaves designs are back to back with each other so I just had to flip the paper over to fit the look of the card I was hoping for. The sentiments both come from the Mingle All The Way stamp set in the 2014 Holiday Catalog. Both of those sentiments fit perfectly in the blank space!

The differences between the two?

• The Halloween card uses the Tangerine Tango Baker's Twine; whereas the Thanksgiving card uses pieces I pulled apart from the Burlap Ribbon.
• The Halloween card uses the Edgelits border right underneath the DSP; whereas the Thanksgiving Card uses the Dotted Scalloped Ribbon Border Punch.
• I simply added a "face" to the pumpkin for the Halloween card and chose to leave the Thanksgiving pumpkins plain.

Stamp Sets	Fall Fest, Mingle All the Way
Ink	Black Memento, Tangerine Tango
Paper	Tangerine Tango, Basic Black, Crushed Curry, Whisper White, Mottley Monsters DSP
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Tangerine Tango Baker's Twine, Burlap Ribbon
Tools	Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine, Edgelits, Fun Fall Framelits Dies, Dotted Scalloped Ribbon Border Punch.

I also wanted to play around with making some "gratitude" tags that I could stick to a gift during this Fall season. I used the Project Life Holiday Cheer stamp set ("so thankful" and small leaf) and the Merry Everything stamp set, both from the 2014 Holiday Catalog. The tags are made using the Scalloped Tag Topper Punch. That punch always makes quick work of making tags! Not sure yet what I plan to attach them to, but they would be cute attached to a loaf of yummy pumpkin bread!

Stamp Sets	Project Life Holiday Cheer, Merry Everything
Ink	Crushed Curry, Real Red, Pumpkin Pie
Paper	Whisper White, Moonlight DSP Stack
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Blackberry Bliss Ribbon, Natural Chevron Ribbon, Pumpkin Pie Taffeta Ribbon, White Baker's Twine, Rhinestones, Autumn Wooden Elements
Tools	Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine, Bitty Banners Framelits, 3/4" Circle Punch, Scalloped Tag Topper Punch

Hope you got a little bit of inspiration today! Keep on hopping over to Justin Krieger's blog to see what he has in store for all of us!

the creation station blog hop - all about wreaths

I took a quick break from The Creation Station Blog Hop for the 1st Sunday of the month, but now it's the 3rd Sunday and we are back with another hop for you all to enjoy! Thanks for coming along to see all of the inspiration we have for you today. If you have already been following the hop, you probably came here from Teneale's blog. Yippee!! That means you're in the right place. :)

For today's hop we were able to choose from the following (any or all):
1. Stamp Set: Wonderous Wreath (and/or coordinating framelits!)
2. Theme: Wreaths
3. Accessory: Gift Box Punch Board

Last weekend I went away on a beach retreat with some of my Stampin' Up! buddies. It was 2 1/2 days of crafting bliss!! (I am already awaiting next year's retreat!) I was so excited to get caught up on projects I knew were coming up...and this hop was one of them! I actually don't own the Wonderous Wreath stamp set, but one of my friends I was with had it and let me do a little playing around with it.

I decided to create a card that actually opened up like double doors would. Here is a picture of the card laying flat. It's still the right size to slip perfectly into an envelope.

Standing up you can see it begins to open up in the middle...

And another view...

The Wonderous Wreath is attached to the left side of the card and the pumpkin and sentiment is attached to the other side, both using Dimensionals.

Stamp Sets	Wonderous Wreath, Fall Fest (pumpkin), For All Things (sentiment)
Ink	Hello Honey, Tangelo Twist, Blackberry Bliss, marker - Chocolate Chip (for pumpkin stem)
Paper	Hello Honey, Very Vanilla
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals
Tools	Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine, Wonderful Wreath Framelits Dies, Fun Fall Framelits Dies, Woodgrain Embossing Folder, Bitty Banner Framelits Dies

While also away for the weekend, I decided to pull out the Frightful Wreath Simply Created Kit that I won while at Stampin' Up's Convention during a Prize Patrol!

I wanted to go a little "out of the box" instead of how the Frightful Wreath kit was created for. Here is the original version of the wreath, which I think is awesome, but...I just wanted something a little different,

{Please excuse the lighting below...I had to take off the flash to lessen the shine on the mirror!}

Here is my simplified "different" version. You can see that I pulled in some extra elements by using the Burlap Ribbon and I turned one of the burlap bags from September's Paper Pumpkin Kit into a little bow for added whimsy. There are many pieces of the wreath kit that I didn't use (like the sparkly web and beautiful beaded spider) which I plan to use in other ways...maybe I'll come back to update when I do find the perfect project for those pieces!

I made the same rosette from the original wreath, but just cut it down a little smaller. I added the "happy" from a different stamp set, but used the Halloween from the Frightful Stamp Set that also came in my prize patrol package. 

You may notice that this is one of the burlap bags from the September's Paper Pumpkin Kit. I turned it into a little bow by wrapping the Tangelo Twist Satin Stitched Ribbon around the middle. 

Thank you again for stopping by! Continue on the hop to find more wonderful inspiration! Next stop is the talented Jennifer Downey or if you are hopping backwards, click on the back button to visit Teneale Williams' blog and see what beautiful creations she is sharing today.

ssink - gorgeous grunge halloween

Over at the Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration blog a few of the designers are sharing cards using the Gorgeous Grunge stamp set. It's a simple card, but I think it really packs a punch! I did add the witches boot using Bootiful Occasions because I thought it was the perfect addition to this Halloween card.

Gorgeous Grunge stamp set

I also used the Fab Friday 52 Color Combo.

Stamp Sets	Gorgeous Greetings, Bootiful Occasions, Good Greetings
Ink	Tangelo Twist, Blackberry Bliss, Memento Black, marker - Tangelo Twist
Paper	Tangelo Twist, Basic Black, Whisper White, Silver Glimmer Paper
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensional
Tools	Paper Snips

control freaks holiday card swap

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to swap again with the Control Freaks! This time around we made 25 Christmas swaps using a stamp set we each chose from the Holiday Catalog. I decided to play with the Bright & Beautiful stamp set again to see what I could come up with. I made all of my swaps the same and in return I got 25 beautiful swaps showcasing various Christmas sets from the Holiday Catalog. I love, love, love opening the mail box to find "fun mail"!!

After much trial and error with my design, I finally settled on this and I actually love how it turned out! I ended up leaving off half of the sentiment and to do that I colored the stamp using Lost Lagoon marker.

I used the Heat & Stick with Dazzling Diamonds Glitter technique for the stamped star and then using the Star Framelits and Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper created a "framed star" with a Rhinestone in the middle. Each star layer is popped up with Dimensionals.

Stamp Sets	Bright & Beautiful
Ink	Lost Lagoon, Versamark, Marker - Lost Lagoon
Paper	Lost Lagoon, Basic Gray, Whisper White, Smoky Slate, Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Mini Glue Dots, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter, Heat & Stick Powder, Rhinestones, Lost Lagoon 3/8" Silky Taffeta Ribbon, All is Calm Washi Tape
Tools	Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine, Star Framelits, Star Embossing Folder

25 cards all ready to mail!

The Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration designers are also sharing Christmas cards today, so be sure to head on over to see some inspiration as we look ahead to the Christmas season!

world card making day 2014

On Saturday, October 4th we celebrated another World Card Making Day! This was our 3rd Annual World Card Making Day event that myself and some of my team of demonstrators (1st year & 2nd year) held together. We had another great turnout of 21 stampers and added one more demonstrator into the mix to join us, so each of the guests made 10 cards (5 card designs, 2 of each design). Each guest came away ready for sending some handmade love in the mail (or hand delivered)...times ten! We had fun raffle prizes and lots of door prizes on the half hour. There was even a small consolation prize for everyone!

Tami, Me, Andrea, Olivia, & Terri ~ team designers

Let's stamp!

The first card is the one I designed for this event. Each stamper was able to choose which sentiment they wanted for their two cards. I had the Petite Pairs stamp set available. The first half of the sentiment fit perfectly on the front of the card next to the flower...

...and then finished off on the inside.

Stamp Sets	Flower Patch, Petite Pairs
Ink	Calypso Coral, Pear Pizzazz, Coastal Cabana, Crisp Cantaloupe, Versamark
Paper	Crisp Cantaloupe, Calypso Coral, Coastal Cabana, Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, In-Color Sequins, Crisp Cantaloupe Ruffled Ribbon (retired)
Tools	Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine, Flower Fair Framelits

These next four cards were created by my fellow demonstrators whom I teamed up with.

 Just a sampling of our fabulous stampers who came to hang out with us for the afternoon!

Raffle Prize Winners!!

My customer and friend Danna hit the jackpot with TWO raffle prize wins! Her sweet baby Jack must have been her lucky charm. ;)

And yummy treats, of course!

Cards for sale!

It was another great event! Mark your calendars for next year ~ October 3, 2015!

make a wish ~ ssinkcs14

I think I'm back into the swing of things!! I just spent the last 3 days at our annual Stampin' Up! team beach retreat. What a wonderful weekend away to relax...stamping, eating, laughing, and enjoying time with my team of friends! I got caught up on so much craftiness with Stampin' Up! and I am excited for the many things I have to share in the next few weeks, so be sure to visit again!

Let's start off the week with a fun sketch from the Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration blog. This sketch is definitely open to interpretation (click HERE for other SSINK designer inspiration). We would love for you to play along with us and you can link up your card creation through next Sunday (October 19th) at noon.

I knew I needed a card for my upcoming card night this Wednesday, so I tried to create something that would be easily reproducible for my guests. This card could even be masculine, which is an added bonus since I tend to run really low on those kinds of cards!

Up close version to show off the new Dazzling Diamond Glimmer paper and added dimension with the popped up "a" on the tag!

Stamp Sets	Perfect Pennants
Ink	Markers - Pumpkin Pie, Pear Pizzazz, Bermuda Bay, Crushed Curry
Paper	Bermuda Bay, Pear Pizazz, Whisper White, Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Pumpkin Pie Chevron Ribbon, White Baker's Twine
Tools	Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine, Stars Framelits, Stars Embossing Folder, Scalloped Tag Topper Punch, Paper Snips

ssink - for all things

Today some of the designers at SSINK are showcasing the beautiful stamp set For All Things. This is such a beautiful Fall set and I have used it a ton already! You can find all of my cards and projects I have created using this set HERE.

This card uses the color combo Crushed Curry, Rich Razzleberry, and Crumb Cake. I thought they were pretty Fall colors that blended well together. The large Crumb Cake blow is tied around the middle of the image to look as if the wheat is tied together with this bow.

Stamp Sets	For All Things
Ink	Rich Razzleberry, Crushed Curry
Paper	Crumb Cake, Rich Razzleberry, Very Vanilla, Motley Monsters DSP
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Regals Candy Dots, Crumb Cake Seam Binding
Tools	N/A

Thanks for stopping by!

fabulous work of art

Tomorrow night is card making night at my mother-in-law's and so I am preparing some cards for her and her friends to create! I found this sketch on Freshly Made Sketches and I knew it would be the perfect one to get my creative juices flowing for a quick and easy card!

I reached for my stamp set Work of Art and one of my favorite DSP stacks (Moonlight) and got right to work! I was able to bust out this card in a matter of 10 minutes! I wish it was that "easy" all the time. You don't really want to know how long it takes me to design a card on most days. Can you say perfectionist? ;)

I used the larger butterfly punch to punch out a piece of vellum and then placed a smaller butterfly (from Kinda Eclectic) on the top, finishing it with a couple of rhinestones. The butterfly is popped up on Dimensionals.

Stamp Sets	Work of Art, Kinda Eclectic
Ink	Blackberry Bliss, Hello Honey
Paper	Whisper White, Hello Honey, Blackberry Bliss, Moonlight DSP Stack
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Rhinestones
Tools	2-1/2" Circle Punch, Elegant Butterfly Punch, Bitty Butterfly Punch, Texture Boutique Machine, Decorative Dots Embossing Folder

I have been taking a little bit of a break from blogging (have you noticed?) as this mama has been needed a lot more at home lately. I've still been busy creating and being inspired...just haven't been able to SHARE much! I did participate in World Card Making Day with some of my team last Saturday, so I will share pictures soon of our fun day! I also created a fun swap card for the Control Freaks Holiday Swap, so that's coming, too!! Hope you all have a blessed day!