Nutcracker Sweet - FMS155

A funny thing happened on the way to a traditional Christmas card with a Santa Claus tag.........

There is a Nutcracker Soldier in the Santa Stache set along with Santa and I decided to stamp him just for fun.  He proved to be so irresistible that Santa went back in the box and the solider was colored and "tagged" before I knew it! Then the Christmas paper went back into the drawer and out came the fun yellow polka dot page from Flower Pot DSP . And somehow I remembered there was this cute little phrase in the Nuts About You hostess set and a card was born!

       Have fun with tags on this week's terrific sketch from Karren at Freshly Made Sketches~!
                                           

Fall Foliage......PPA220

I am convinced Mother Nature invented fall so we wouldn't feel too badly about our fading summer days.  I bet Stampin' Up! was thinking along those lines as well when it released this beautiful fall set called For All Things along with that gorgeous DSP Colors of Autumn.

Fall is such a busy time around here - lots to do around the house before the snow flies and the holiday bustle begins. There are family birthdays and a wedding coming up next week - and best of all I will be flying to Atlanta soon for a Pals Stamping Weekend!  I was working on my swaps yesterday in the kitchen and spread my stamped panels out to dry on the counter.  (I am doing this dahlia card as my swap.)

My husband walked in and looked at all of the panels and said "Oh my God do you know you stamped all of these low and off center?"  Yes dear..............



                           Pals Paper Arts has a wonderfully versatile sketch for us this week!

                                     

To Thine Own Shelf....Be True........FMS154

I do enjoy stamping and making cards but reading a good book is my absolute favorite pastime! My friend and fellow FMS DT member Rita Wright has also been known to enjoy a good book herself now and then.  When she saw this SSS set called To Thine Own Shelf she had to have it........and she knew exactly who else on the FMS team would have to have it as well! I adore all of the books and book shelf images in this set! This sentiment makes me smile and works perfectly for a belated birthday card.  Strips of Flashback DSP from SU! anchor the design.  

Since my retirement from teaching I have enjoyed working part time at our local library - and since it is only part time that leaves me time to stamp as well! Ah yes....to thine own shelf.....be true! 





             Cindy Lovell has a delightful sketch for us this week at Freshly Made Sketches!                                                                     

While the Cat's Away......

While Mary Fish  is off enjoying Founder's Circle this week members of her Pals group have taken over her blog!  I am delighted to be her guest stamper today!  I used a new Halloween set called Tee-Hee-Hee to create this fun card.  I snitched an accent from a Project Life pack and frayed a bit of the new Tangelo Twist Two-tone Trim to use as embellishments.

This sentiment makes me smile because an outfit just isn't complete without the right shoes!  But then again some of the best outfits require no shoes at all..........

Going for the Gold .......FabFri50

Fall has definitely started around here - the leaves are turning, the sweatshirts are out and our air conditioners have been put back in the attic until next year.  The Fab Friday Challenge is "turning 50" this week and is celebrating with a gold and white challenge - perfect for fall!  This sentiment is from Autumn Foliage by Inkadinkado and it looks terrific embossed in gold backed by Gold Soiree DSP and Kraft Cardstock!

So congrats to the crew at Fab Friday - they are one talented group of designers!  And I'm looking forward to their next 50 challenges!

Hello Dahling..........FMS153

The watercolor wash background really came to life on this card with a bokeh effect.  Using a sponge dauber and circle stencils I applied white craft ink randomly across the watercolored panel.  I loved the finished effect so I kept the stamping very simple and using just black ink with a few scattered sequins for sparkle.

Someone I know doesn't need any sequins to sparkle.....Miss Emma donned movie star sunglasses to take a ride in her new red wagon..........Hello Dahling!

                                     


                  I adore Jen Brum's sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches!  Hope you join us~
                                                                   

Mellow Yellow - PPA218

This dahlia is definitely bold enough to stand on its own but I thought a pop of color would really set it off!  Using a split panel technique I saw on Maile Belles' blog allowed me to insert a strip of Hello Honey designer paper behind the white cardstock which is popped up on dimensionals. The dahlia is stamped on the white which has been trimmed out very carefully with paper snips and paper trimmer. And "in real life" the rhinestones are a lovely shade of yellow thanks to my Blendabilities but my camera just couldn't pick that up correctly.

My daughter's camera however seems to have no trouble picking up beautiful shades of yellow as you can see from this picture of a sunset in the Outer Banks!

                           Pals Paper Arts has a wonderful color challenge for us this week.  Hope you join us!

                                        

Fun Stuff - FMS152

Making this birthday card for Freshly Made Sketches using the Big News set and a big enamel dot from a Project Life kit was just plain fun - like birthdays should be!  There is a birthday party planned this weekend for Miss Emma who will be turning two  - that will definitely be fun as well!  And we have a fun announcement from Freshly Made Sketches - the fabulous Kim Singdahlsen will be joining our design team permanently!  She is amazingly talented and I am excited to be working with her!  Wow that is three fun happenings this week.......fun, fun, fun......hope Daddy doesn't take my T-Bird away...........

Cindy Hall's wonderful sketch this week at Freshly Made Sketches is so versatile!  Hope you join us!