Greenhouse Gala.......

This week's sketch at Stamping 411 was just perfect to showcase this designer paper.  Greenhouse Gala is over the top gorgeous and just like a beautiful dress it doesn't need a lot of accessories to shine.  Real Red satin ribbon, an image from Friends Never Fade and this card is ready to head out!

Oh the Places You'll Go..........

It's that time of year - everyone seems to be on the move!  It's the season of graduations, weddings, retirements and vacations.  Welcome Neighbor DSP and Daffodil Delight set the background for my "moving" card. Button balloons with baskets made from a stamped squiggle from Playful Pieces and part of the cone from Sweet Scoops are soaring off to new adventures!  The sentiment from Asian Artistry is perfect framed in Melon Mambo.  I followed Margaret Moody's sketch at Pals Paper Arts this week but changed it up just a bit by having the card open differently as you can see here. 

As for me, I have graduated, married and retired so I guess all that's left is vacation!  I'm going to Graceland..........................

Someday........

Someday I will actually complete a Mojo Monday card on Monday........instead of finishing it in the last ten minutes of a Wednesday!   On the bright side this will be sent to a friend who just broke her wrist and it should get to her before her cast comes off in four weeks........hmmm maybe if it were Mojo Monthly I'd have a chance!

Summer's Top Five......PPA47......

Pals Paper Arts summer theme led me to create this card using the Sweet Sunday Sketch.  I love summer and here are my Top Five Reasons why:

                     5.  No heat bills

                     4.  Extra hours of daylight

                     3.  Campfires by the lake

                     2.  Reading on the beach

                                    AND

                     1.  The guys do most of the cooking!

A Tale of Two Blog Candies.......Part 2........

270 Comments!   Wow!  I have read every one and enjoyed all of your answers describing your stamping styles. Sara is quick and ribbony, Lorijane - randomly balanced. Lisa P is a "crell" - crisp and embellished. Julie C is "queasy" while Linda W and Kelley R said they were "cleasy".  Marybeth likes glitter and sparkle and labeled herself "glitarkle".  Trish in Wisconsin said CASLAYS - clean and simple with layers. Sarah likes modern with a dash of cute.  And Michele hit home when she said "Quick always helps but who are we kidding?"  Hmmm.... I am thinking that maybe I should have had "painful and time-consuming" as a category!  I feel your pain - some days my waste basket is the most used tool in my stamping room! 

And now, the WINNER of the blog candy pictured above is:

                Donna who wrote:  Beautiful work! Love your style. I would say I usually go for quick and easy, but I love to use lots of embellishments, layers and fun techniques if I have time.



Congratulations Donna! You have 48 hours to e-mail me at jcallahan1@nycap.rr.com.  Make sure you send me your address.  Thanks to everyone who played along!

A Tale of Two Blog Candies.......Part 1........

I am a definite fan of Wendy Janson!  Long before I became a demo I followed her blog. I did this shower invitation about a year and a half ago.  It is a CASE of a birthday card that Wendy did in September of 2008!  Check it out!  I thought her card was beautiful and I reworked it slightly to turn it into invitations for a baby shower.  I rummaged through my sample box and found it to post today.  And why would I dig that out?  Wendy recently celebrated 100,000 hits on her blog.  I left her a comment of congratulations and ended up winning a fabulous box of blog candy!  So thank you Wendy for the treats and more importantly for your wonderful inspiration!

The card is a beautiful combination of Pink Pirouette, Pretty in Pink and Rose Red.  I changed it so that just the white square layer of the card opened.  The shower information was printed on the inside white panel.



Part 2 of this tale will come tomorrow when I post the winner of my blog candy picked from the comments left after our Pals Farewell Hop......stay tuned....

These Buds Are For You!

If I could send you all flowers I would!  Thanks for the wonderful comments many of you left after Tuesday's Farewell Hop Post!  The response was fantastic - over 250 comments and counting!  You still have a chance at the blog candy - the deadline is Friday, June 11th at 3pm - CST. Click here if you would like to enter. I will post the winner Sunday morning - June 13th.  PPA's challenge this week was to use Bermuda Bay, Crushed Curry and Soft Suede.  I put them together using some DSP, Sweet Scoops and Pocket Silhouettes.  So to all of you who drop by and say hello, these buds are for you!

Farewell Retiring Colors!

Welcome to the Stampin' Pretty Pals June hop! We're bidding a "Fond Farewell" to the retiring colors of Stampin' Up!'s Color Renovation. If you've hopped over from Regina's blog, you are on the right path.  Should you hop off course, simply click on any of the links in the Pals Hop Line-up below and you'll be back on track. 

I took a basic decorating class once from a wonderful lady who taught us to never buy something because we thought it would "match." She said always buy what you love and everything will come together.  When I spread out SU's retiring colors to prepare for this hop, I thought of Ruth's advice and decided to pick my favorite three colors:  Barely Banana, Almost Amethyst and Cameo Coral.  I put them together following the Stamping411 sketch and it worked! Sound advice 30 years later! 

The Pals have blog candy at every stop. Visit all 17 Stampin' Pretty Pals, answer a specific posted question and you'll have 17 chances to WIN some great Stampin' Up! goodies!

I am offering a pack of Orchid Opulence along with 20 co-ordinating 6x6 sheets of Shades of Spring DSP.  There is also a Cameo Coral ink pad, 4 Groovy Guava notes with envelopes, 6 copper edged metal tags and a roll of Chocolate Chip Alpine Ribbon. Simply leave me a comment and answer this question by 3pm (CST), Friday, June 11th:

What's your stamping style? Quick and easy? Lots of layers and embellishments? Vintage with distressing? Crisp and clean? 

My answer would be "Quisp" - quick and crisp!

I will post the winner Sunday, June 13th.  You will have 48 hours to get back to me - US shipping only.

Off you go to the next stop, Anne Eicher - so glad you hopped by!

    Complete Pals June Hop Line-Up

    1. Liz Hughes 

    2. Gina Shaw

     3. Barbara Furlong

    4. Nina Dee

    5. Debbie Pierce

    6. Ann Schach

    7. Melanie Collins

    8. Kim Lampone

    9. Mike Funke

  10. Regina Mangum

  11. Linda Callahan

  12. Anne Eicher

  13. Mary Fish

  14. Carla Bazhenow

  15. Joanna Munster

  16. Margaret Moody

  17. Martha Stewart

Summertime....and the livin' is easy.....

Summer is way too short where I live so you have to take advantage of every sunny day.  The inspiration photo this week at Pals Paper Arts is beautiful - and definitely inspiring! That's just where I plan to be this weekend - lounging by the lake!  But there's something missing in the photo.......so I added it to the card.....

Clean Sweep!

It was a picture perfect holiday weekend at the lake but it's time to get back to the real world.  I came home and decided to clean up, clean out and reorganize.  There's new catalog buzz in the air - I need to be ready!  I scooped bits and pieces of everything from my desk into a basket and then began sorting the larger pieces of paper.  I found some Wild Wasabi blank note cards (3 1/4 x 6 1/2).  Who knew? Cleaning is definitely over-rated so I decided to stop and create a card using one of them. I remembered the scrap basket and thought of Patti MacLeith.  I love when her posts begin with "Just had these scraps lying on my desk and I decided to put them together......"  Her results are always terrific!  So this one's for you Patti - I just put together pieces that were lying around........... maybe you can clean and create at the same time.......