Cherry On Top Customer Blog Hop

I am the last stop on the Cherry On Top blog hop. You should have just come from Emily's blog. Didn't you just love her eye candy? If you are just joining the hop, you can find the blog hop order on Amy's blog.

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I first heard of the kits from Caffinated Cropper on Carole's blog. I went through the blog hop and was lucky enough to win the Beeez Kneeez mini kit. (You can see a card I made using Beeez Kneeez HERE.) I loved the kit so much that I bought the Cherry on Top kit too. The colors in the kit remind me of the Fourth of July and summer.

When I got an email from Amy earlier this week talking about a customer blog hop, I thought that I wouldn't have any time to get a card together. I was disappointed because I really wanted to dig into the kit and make something. Well today (Thursday afternoon), I found that I had a whole half an hour to myself that I could spend on crafting. I thought that would be the real test of the kit. Can I make something cute with my limited amount of time? I was able to make this card and get my supplies cleaned up in less than 45 minutes. I like the results for being so rushed. What do you think?

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Here is a look at the inside.

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If you missed any one along the way, you can get a complete list of blog hop participants on Amy's blog. One random poster who leaves a comment on every blog in hop will win a free mini kit. Remember that is how I got hooked on the kits from the Caffinated Cropper.

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Thank you for looking!

Supplies: (Everything is from the Cherry On Top kit from the Caffinated Cropper unless marked with an "*".)

• Images: Bowl of Cherries from Shabby Green Door
• Papers & CS: Jillibean Soup Kraft cards* (from Beeez Kneeez Kit), Georgia Pacific CS*, PTI kraft paper*, misc. DP from kit
• Inks: Momento Tuxedo Black*
• Embellishments & Tools: Stampin' Up Brilliant Blue markers*, Prismacolor markers*, Spellbinders Nestabilities*, Inkssential white pen*, Kaiser gemstones, paper piercer*
• Techniques: Faux stitching, paper piecing

Challenges for this card:

• Crafty Angel - Summer
• Digi Doodle Shop Challenge - Anything Goes
• Lilli of the Valley - Here comes summer
• Stamptacular Sunday - Stitching

Under the sea...... Meljen's Designs shaped card challenge

This week the challenge on the Meljen's Design Challenge blog is Shaped Cards. I decided to make a couple of Get Well cards using images from the new release "Sea Critters". You can get this new release in the Meljen's Design digi shop.

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Come join us in the Shaped Cards challenge at Inspiration and Challenge blog for the chance to win some Meljen's Designs digital images.

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You might also want to check out the fabulous tutorials a couple of the DT members are putting together for Tutorial Tuesdays. This week Andrea put together a paper piecing tutorial.

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Did you get your Meljen's Designs freebie this week? It is only available for one week. You can get it on Melissa's blog.

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Thank you for looking. Stop by the Challenge & Inspiration blog to see what the rest of the team created for the shaped card challenge.

Updated: These cards were in the top 3 in the Die Cuts R Us Double Duty challenge.

Challenges for these cards:

• Aly's Sunday Challenge - ASC16 Animal Hugs
• C.R.A.F.T. challenge - Shaped Cards
• Cupcake Craft Challenge - Don't Be Square
• Die Cuts R Us - Double Duty
• Mojo Monday - Sketch (used on the crabby card)
• OWH Stars & Stamps - Wild Thing
• Papertake Weekly - Do Something Different (I usually don't make shaped cards)
• Penny Challenge - Shaped Cards
• Pink Elephant Challenge - TPE64 Aqua

Supplies:

• Image: Little Fish & Cutie Crab from Meljen's Designs
• Papers & CS: My Mind's Eye Where The Heart Is, image printed on Nenah Crest solar white
• Inks: none
• Embellishments & Tools: Cricut, Prismacolor and Copic markers, clear embossing powder and heat tool, misc. gem stones, Sakura Gellyroll clear glitter pen, misc. ribbons (green ribbon was colored with Prismacolor markers)

Monday with Lindsay - Girly card

Updated: This was a top 5 winner in the Hope Stamps Eternal Cupcake Inspiration Challenge.

We are back to our normal posting schedule after all the birthday festivities earlier this month to celebrate the first birthday of Lindsay's Stamp Stuff. Our theme for this week is "Feeling Girly".

Since I need several birthday cards over the next couple of weeks, I decided to make a girly birthday card. I used the cupcake tree image from the Sweet Stuff digital stamp set and gave the card a bit of a vintage feel. (Here is a shout out to my friend Scrap-It-Girl who gave me the old dictionary pages used on this card. Thank you!) To keep it girly and feminine I added pearls, lace, ribbon, and flowers.

Stop by to see what girly projects the rest of the DT created.

Lindsay Weirich (owner)

Jennifer Bliss

Karin Martin

Rhonda Walker

Challenges for this card:

• C.R.A.F.T. Challenge - #47 Pink & Brown
• Clearly Inspired Challenge - CIC12 Ribbon
• Crafty Creations - Distressing
• Creative Card Crew - Happy Birthday
• Cupcake Inspiration Challenge - CIC56
• Dare U 2 Digi Stamp - Flowers
• Die Cut Dreams - Make your own flowers
• Fussy N Fancy - Birthday with a sweet treat
• Magical Crafts - Something for the Girls
• One Stitch At A Time - Flowers
• Our Creative Corner - Blooming Blossoms
• Pile it On - Make it Sweet
• Prairie Fairy Fridays - Distressed
• Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge - Distressing
• Sew Many Challenges - Flowers
• Simple Doodles - Not A Spring Chick Anymore (used old dictionary pages)
• Sisterhood of Scrap - Flowers
• Stamp, Scrap & Doodle Saturdays - Girly Project
• The Sweet Stop Sketch challenge - SSS53 sketch

Supplies:

• Image: Sweet Stuff digital stamp set from Lindsay's Stamp Stuff on mygrafico, Inside sentiment from Paper Garden Projects
• Papers: My Minds Eye Love Nest paper stack, kraft cards stock from Papertrey, Georgia Pacific cs
• Inks: Tim Holtz Distress Ink - tea dye
• Embellishments & Tools: Stampin' Up markers, Sakura clear, silver, & pink glitter pens, Spellbinders nestabilities, Kaiser half pearls, Glimmer mist in pearl, Close To My Heart edge distressing tool, book pages, misc. ribbon, lace, small flowers

Sock Monkey "Hi"

Updated 5-11-10: Winner of the Handy Five at the Handfull of Stamps challenge.

I don't know about you, but I have never been a fan of sock monkeys. They have always given me the creeps. There is just something freaky about them.... Maybe it's the beady little eyes or the big red mouth....

What ever it is, I have finally found a sock monkey that doesn't creep me out. In fact, he is darn right cute.

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This cute lil' guy is from Meljen's Designs new release "Stuffed with Love"digital stamp set. You can purchase him alone or in a package with the rest of his friends from the Meljen's Design store and right now you can get 25% off your purchase.

So go on over there and check out the cute sock monkey and his pals.... or I might have to send this guy after ya.

Challenges for this card:

• Aly's Sunday Challenge - Buttons
• Ann's Creative Nook - Use that Chipboard
• Creative Cottage - Going Green (Chipboard is a recycled cereal box and the button are recycled from old clothes)
• Hand Full of Stamps - Use up that stock
• Moving along with the times - Animals
• Paper Sundaes - A card with no people
• Stamp with Fun - Animals

Supplies:

• Image: Little Sock Monkey from Meljen's Designs
• CS & Papers: misc. brown cs, Neenah Crest solar white, Stampin' Up white, My Mind's Eye Laundry Line paper pack
• Inks: None
• Embellishments & Tools: misc buttons, DMC floss, Martha Stewart rick rack, Prismacolor markers, Sakura gelly roll clear glitter pen, crystal effects, Cricut, George cartridge, chipboard letters were made by cutting them out of a recycled cereal box
  

Celebrate Life

I have a lot of birthday cards to make over the next couple of weeks. When I saw this fantastic quote about celebrating your life from Oprah Winfrey, I thought it would make a great birthday card. This sentiment was a free download from Raindrop Echo Designs for Whimsy Stamps.

If you like this sentiment, you also might want to check out Ann's new challenge blog, Sentimental Sundays. She has basic sentiments set which is available for free download.

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I added the brownish pearls at the very end. I have been saving these, who knows for what, but now I actually used them on a project. I am challenging myself to continue to use all these "special" things that I have stashed. They aren't too special when they are sitting in their packaging where no one can enjoy them.

** Updated - I was in the super 6 for the Card Patterns Sketch #60

I hope you have a great day!

Challenges for this card:

• All Sorts - In Stitches
• Card Patterns - Sketch 60
• Charisma Cardz - Quote Me
• Fab N Funky - Get It All Out
• My Time To Craft - Quick Quotes
• Penny's Challenge - Anything Goes
• Practical Scrappers - Fiber, Floss, Ribbon
• Sentimental Sundays - Blooming Gorgeous

Supplies:

• Image: Word Art/Sentiment Celebration Sentiments by Raindrop Echo Designs
  
• Papers & CS: Perfect Day paper pack from Close To My Heart, white cs for card base from Stampin' Up
• Inks: None
• Tools & Embellishments: Spellbinders Nestabilities, lace, DMC floss, Kaiser pearls, Prima flower, Stampin' Up Chocolate Chip marker, paper piercer
• Techniques: Faux stitching

Just Bee-Cause & Sale news

This adorable image, Honey Bee Buckets, is a freebie from Melissa blog from a few weeks ago. I just love this little bee. I could not wait to pair him up with the Beeez Kneeez mini kit from the Caffinated Cropper that I won. When I got it in the mail I was so please with all the cute goodies that it contained. (Thank you Amy!) Almost everything on this card is from the kit and I have plenty of goodies left over.

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Meljen's Designs is having a Customer Appreciation Storewide Sale starting today. For one week, the ENTIRE Meljens Designs store will be 25% off - this includes the new release that comes out today, the new release packs, and discount packs. This includes the newly released "Stuffed with Love" set. Go check it out HERE. Use code MD25sale at check out.

Our 4th challenge at the Meljen's Designs Challenge and Inspiration blog starts today. The theme is "For the Little Ones!" I hope you will join us and link up your creation for the chance to win some Meljen's Designs images. You can also stop by to get some inspiration from some the DT members.

Thank you for looking!

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts Challenge - 48 In Stitches
• Aly's Stamping Challenge - Buttons
• Corrosive Challenge - Paper piercing (bottom panel pierced at top & bottom.)
• One Stop Craft Challenge - Things with Wings
• Paper Sundaes - A card with no people
• Pile It On - It's Finally Spring
• Polka Doodle - Animal Magic
• Simon Says Stamp -things with wings
• The Sweet Stop - SSS52 Sketch with buttons & bows
• Tellen's Place - Ink Distressing

Supplies:

• Image: Honey Bee Buckets by Meljen Designs
• Papers & CS: Neenah Classic Crest Solar White, misc. brown, all DP from the Beeez Kneeez mini kit, card base Stampin' Up white CS
• Inks: Tim Holtz distressing inks in tea dye (only used to ink distress the edges of all papers)
• Embellishments & Tools: paper piercer, Stampin' Up Chocolate Chip maker, twine, Prismacolor and Copic markers, DMC floss, misc. brad, Cricut & George cartridge, button and pom pom rick rack are from the Beeez Kneeez mini kit, sentiment is computer generated

LSS Blog Hop Winner!

The winner of the Sweet Stuff digital stamp set that I was giving away for the Lindsay' Stamp Stuff blog hop is Rosanne. Thank you again to every one that hopped with us!

Lindsay's Stamp Stuff / Thanks!

Although Lindsay gave her DT the day off, I wanted to thank you for joining in the birthday celebration last week. I think we all had a lot of fun in the mygrafico virtual crop room sharing projects and tips and just chatting. I hope you were able to stop buy and got the cute freebies Lindsay was giving away only there.

You still have a little time to get in on the prizes for the blog hop. Each DT member is doing a drawing for one digital stamp set. (That's a total of 18 digital stamp sets!) Mine is for the Sweet Stuff digital stamp set that was used to make this card. You can see my posting for the blog hop HERE. I will be doing the drawing this evening.

As for the details on this card, I put it together with the scraps I had on my table after finishing another project. It measures 3-1/4 inches square. Although I have used the Sweet Stuff set multiple times, I have never used this image before so I thought I had better give it some use. The inside (I forgot to take a picture) says "You're So Sweet!".

Thank you for looking! The DT will be back to our regular Monday LSS posts next week.

Challenges for this card:

• Daisy Doodles Challenge - Pink + 1 (mine is brown)
• Dare U 2 Digi Stamp - Metal (I have a metal swirl/clip)
• Fab N Funky - Use a neglected stamp
• KL Stampin N Scrapin - KLSNS26 Bling
• Kpink challenge - Thrifty crafter
• Little C's - Add bling
• One Stitch at a Time - Thank you
• Paper Popsicles - Icecream

Supplies:

• Image: Sweet Stuff digital stamp set from Lindsay's Stamp Stuff on mygrafico.com
• Papers & CS: My Mind's Eye Laundry Line, Georgia Pacific CS, misc. brown CS
• Inks: none
• Embellishements & Tools: Prismacolor & Copic markers, misc. clip, Hero Arts gem stones, scalloped square nesties

With Deepest Sympathy / 2 Sketches 4 You

** Updated 4-20-10 This card won the Top 3 Scoops in the Pile It On challenge.

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Unfortunately I needed another sympathy card. One of my husband's customers passed away yesterday and he wanted a card to send to her family. I feel like I am always scrambling to make sympathy cards lately but for some reason I just can't force myself to build a stock of them. A little bit of denial I guess. If I don't have them on hand, maybe I won't need them. Sadly that theory hasn't been working out too well.

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I found this lovely word art on Ann Vento's blog, Raindrop Echo Designs. If you haven't been over there, you should go check it out. She is kind enough to share some of the lovely word art / sentiments that she has created as freebies. (She also sells some through Whimsy Stamps.) She makes gorgeous cards.

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Earlier this week we were celebrating the first birthday of Lindsay's Stamp Stuff. You still have time to get in on the blog hop and have a chance at winning some digital stamps set. See my post HERE for details.

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I hope you have a fabulous week end.

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Challenges for this card:

• 2 Sketches 4 You -Sketch #50
• Little C's challenge - Add some bling (used adhesive gem stones)
• Our Creative Corner - Bows
• Penny's Challenge - Anything Goes
• Pile It On - Say it with Words
• Stamp Something - Layers
• Stampin' for the Weekend - Ribbons & Bows

Supplies:

• Image: Word art Free Sympathy Sentiments from Raindrop Echo Designs
• Papers & CS: Close To My Heart Silhouette paper pack, misc. black, Georgia Pacific CS
• Inks: Memento Tuxedo black (sentiment inside the card)
• Embellishments & Tools: Black ribbon, black gem stones, Stampin' Up border punch, Nesties files from Penny Duncan Creations, Cricut & SCAL

Meljen's Designs Challenge #3 - 3D

This post should be subtitled "What ever possessed me to do that?"

The Meljen's Designs challenge this week is 3-D elements for a card and when I saw this cute little bear I knew exactly what I wanted to do.

I printed the sick little bear out several times - my main image and then a few additional times for layering/piecing. I roughly cut out the blanket (after coloring) from one of the "extras" and layered it on another scrap piece of CS to make it more sturdy. (Here comes the possessed part...) I then poked 2 holes in each of the "X's" Melissa had on the blanket. At this point I thought I had better look up french knots on the web since I haven't done them in probably 20 years, then I tied french knots in each set of holes. My old eyes were not happy with me by the end but I love the way it looks. (With his green and gold blanket, I think this little bear is a Packer fan.)

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I layered/pieced his cold pack, hand and feet to add extra dimension. I wanted to make the tissues look more real and decided what would look more real than actual tissues. I cut a small square out of a clean tissue. Since it was 3-ply, I wadded up 2 layers and glued them down for the "used" tissues. I made a little slit in the tissue box with my craft knife and poked the end of the third piece into it and glued it down.

Here is a close up look at the details on the card.

Since I spent so much time on the front of the card, I thought I had better pretty up the inside too so I used this Get Well sentiment freebie from Melissa's blog.

So what do you think?

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Thank you for looking. Please stop by the DT blog to see what the rest of the team is up to and jump in on the challenge.

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STORE UPDATE: The new Meljen's Designs digi shop is now up and running again! It is now fully re-stocked and ready for instant downloads. The Meljen's Designs Etsy Shop will be closing today so please be sure to update those bookmarks.

As a side note, I was very excited to find out my card using Meljen's Designs Toadstool Buggies was one of the top 6 picks for Mojo Monday sketch #133. Woohoo!

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Supplies:

• Image: Sick Little Bear & Get Well sentiment by Meljen's Designs
• Papers & CS: Close To My Heart Emporium paper pack, Georgia Pacific CS, Stampin Up white CS
• Inks: none
• Tools & Embellishments: tissue, button, DMC floss, needle, prismacolor pencils & OMS, Sakura Gelly Roll clear glitter pen, pop dots
• Techniques: faux stitching, 3-D, french knots

Challenges:

• Aly's Sunday Challenge - ASC15 - buttons
• Card Patterns - Sketch #59
• CCEE - Get Well
• Corrosive Challenge - #59 Texture
• Crafty Card Makers - #18 Challenge yourself
• Crafty Creations - #62 paper piecing
• Crazy Challenge - Don't call me flat
• Cute Cards Thursday - #108 Touch Feely (texture)
• Digital Tuesday - Paper piece with digitals
• Magical Crafts - #12 Animal Antics
• Paper Popsicles - Sewing (I used faux stitching and embroidery knots)
• Paper Take Weekly- Cutie Pie
• Secret Crafter - Get Well
• Stamp Something - Stitch Something
• Your Next Stamp - Stitching

Final Day of the Lindsay's Stamp Stuff Birthday Event

Today is the final day of the Lindsay's Stamp Stuff Shop, Hop, and Crop event. There is still time to get in on the blog hop today, with the chance to win a some digital stamps. Start at Lindsay's blog. (The hop will start at 10 AM ET.)

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Remember that everything in the Lindsay's Stamp Stuff store on mygrafico is 50% off through the end of the day. Now is the time to get that cute set you've been looking at. If you end up winning the same set during the hop, Lindsay will swap it for another one so there is no reason not to buy it today.

Make sure you stop by the virtual crop room on mygrafico to check out what is going on. Lindsay is giving away some freebies that will only be available during the blog hop. There will be lots of fun with free classes and challenges for prizes. Let me tell you I have seen some awesome projects posted over there during the last 2 days. People are also sharing their favorite crafting tips and I have learned some great, useful stuff.

Lastly, for your chance to win the Sweet Stuff digital stamp set, see my post HERE with the details.

Here is a little altered notebook I made for the altered item challenge in the crop room. Nothing fancy but I needed something to keep track of all the cool stuff I see online or supplies I run out of. It is small enough to keep on my desk and then slip into my purse when I go shopping. I did not use any embellishments because I didn't want them getting hooked on stuff in my purse. I was also happy to use up some scrap paper. Based on a suggestion in the crop room, I am adding a little pocket on the inside to slip a coupon or two.

I hope you have a wonderful day!

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Challenges:

• The Clearly Delightful Monthly Challenge - dry embossing and the color yellow

Supplies:

• Image: Crafty Tools & Puns digital stamp set from Lindsay's Stamp Stuff on mygrafico.com
• CS & Papers: Scraps. I believe it is So Saffron and Cutie Pie from Stampin' Up
• Inks: None
• Embellishements & Tools: Mini composition notebook

Lindsay's Stamp Stuff Birthday Event

Today is the second day of the Lindsay's Stamp Stuff Shop, Hop, and Crop event. To get in on the blog hop today, with the chance to win a some digital stamps, start at Lindsay's blog. The hop starts at 10 AM ET. (9 AM Central)

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Everything in the Lindsay's Stamp Stuff store on mygrafico is 50% off through April 15th.

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Make sure you stop by the virtual crop room on mygrafico to check out what is going on. Lindsay is giving away some freebies that will only be available during the blog hop. There will be lots of fun with free classes and challenges for prizes. This card uses Monday's freebie. Did you get it? Go on over there and check what she has for Tuesday and join in the fun.

Lastly, for your chance to win the Sweet Stuff digital stamp set, see my post HERE with the details.

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Supplies:

• Image: Party hat freebie from Lindsay's Stamp Stuff
• Papers & CS: Georgia Pacific CS, Stampin' Up Real Red, mis. black
• Inks: None
• Tools & Embellishments: Spellbinders nestabilities. hole punch, misc. ribbon, BacicGrey rubbons, black pom pom

Happy Birthday Lindsay' Stamp Stuff! Hop, Shop, Crop & Blog Candy

It's here! Over the next 3 days (April 13-15th) we are celebrating the first birthday of Lindsay's Stamp Stuff! Lindsay has planned a lot of special events to celebrate.

We are kicking off each day with a blog hop starting at Lindsay's blog at 10:00 am ET. Each day you can hop to 6 of the LSS DT's blogs for a chance to win some goodies and see some lovely projects. Since I am the second stop on the hop today, you should have just come from Lindsay's blog. If you get lost, you can go back to Lindsay's blog for a list of participants to get you back on your way.





You can't have a birthday party with out cake or cupcakes so I made this yummy chocolate cupcake using Sweet Stuff. Is there any other type of cake (or cupcake) other than chocolate?
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Sweet Stuff is one of my favorite, go-to sets for birthdays but it is very versatile and can be used for other occasions such as Valentine's Day or Thinking of You. Here is a look at the complete set.



I also made an easel card using this same set. Easel cards are so popular right now but most of the ones I have seen are square. I wanted to make one that could fit into a standard A2 envelope. (Of course I got carried away with the layers so it might be a bit heavy to mail...)






To make a A2 sized easel card you will need a piece of card stock for the base that is 4-1/4" x 11". The front of the card is made of another piece of card stock cut 4-1/4" x 5-1/2". Score the long piece at 5-1/2" and 8-1/4". If this doesn't make sense to you, see my post HERE on easel cards for more instructions.
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Now that we have had our cake, let me tell you about some of the other events. All Lindsay's Stamp Stuff product (including her brand new sets) is on sale for 50% off, April 13-15th, at her store on mygrafico.com. How sweet is that? Stop by to check out her new sets including ones for spring, graduation, and crafting.


You will also want to stop in at the virtual crop room on mygrafico. Lindsay will be giving away one freebie a day that will only be available in the crop room during the hop. (April 13-15th). If you have not signed up on mygrafico or for the crop room, it is free and very easy. All the details can be found here. In the virtual crop room, Lindsay will be holding classes and challenges where you can get the chance to win additional prizes. Feel free to pop in to see what is happening.


Now that you stuck with me through all of this, I have a surprise for you. Lindsay is giving away 18 digital stamp sets during during the LSS birthday event. You have a chance to win the Sweet Stuff digital stamp set used to make these projects right now. Leave a comment on this post for one chance to win. For a second chance to win, add the "I'm a fan of Lindsay's Stamp Stuff" badge to your blog and link to the Lindsay's Stamp Stuff store on mygrafico. Leave a second comment letting me know you have done this. I will use random.org to pick a winner the evening of Monday, April 19th, and will post their name here on Tuesday, April 20th. Please leave your email address to make it easier to get the free digital set to you if you win. (To help avoid spam type it in this format: shestampsblog at yahoo dot com) If you already have this set, don't worry you can still play. Lindsay will allow you to swap it with another set if you are picked.
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Remember to start back at Lindsay's blog each morning where she will kick off the blog hop for that day. (The hop will start at 10:00 A.M. ET / 9:00 AM CT)

Thank you for stopping. The next stop on the hop is Margie. I know you are going to love what she has created for you.


Challenges for these cards:

For the cupcake card:

• C.R.A.F.T. challenge - #45 Buttons
• Creative Card Crew - #48 Happy Birthday
• Hand Full of Stamps - HFOS#23 - Digi It
• Paper Popsicles - 4-12-10 Sewing (used stitching)
• Polka Doodles - #13 Birthday
• Stamp, Scrap & Doodle Saturday - #35 Birthday
• Stamp Something - Stitch Something
• Taylored Expressions - TESC#108 Sketch

For the easel, cake card:

• Etsy Inspired Challenge - #83 The Mouse Market (I was inspired by this piece.)
• Hand Full of Stamps - HFOS #23 - Digi It
• Little Red Wagon - #23 Sketch
• Moving Along with the Times - #41 Easel card
• Simple Doodles - #15 Inspire others
• Stamp, Scrap & Doodle Saturdays - #35 Birthdays
• Stamp Something - Stitch Something

Supplies:

• Image: Sweet Stuff from Lindsay's Stamp Stuff on mygrafico.com, sentiment on cup cake card is computer generated, sentiment on easel card is from Flowers with Love by AnnaBelle Stamps
• CS & Papers: Close to My Heart Topstitch paper pack, Georgia Pacific CS, Stampin' Up white CS
• Inks: Stampin' Up Chocolate chip (pad and marker)
• Embellishments & Tools: Prismacolor pencils, OMS, paper piercer, wood button, DMC floss, gold brads, EK Success 5-petal flower punch, Pearl glimmer mist, Stampin' Up corner punch and edge punch, sakura gelly roll pen (clear glitter)
• Techniques: Faux stitching

Monday with Lindsay's Stamp Stuff

Today my daughter goes back to school after spring break and things should get back to normal around here. Well, almost normal because I do not have my usual Lindsay's Stamp Stuff Monday post. Lindsay has planned some special events to celebrate the first birthday of Lindsay's Stamp Stuff starting on Tuesday so I will be posting later this week.

The Hop, Shop & Crop events will kick off tomorrow, April 13th. The blog hop will start each day on Lindsay's blog at 10 A.M. ET. Lindsay will have a list of blog hop participants for the day. Come hop with us to have a chance at prizes!

There will be a 3-day crop in the mygrafico crop room. Over the course of the event you can pop in and out as often as you want to participate classes, join challenges or just see what is going on. The classes and crops are free. There will be freebies and prizes.

If you have not already joined the crop room group on mygrafico, you can find out all the details on my previous post HERE. It is very easy to join and it is FREE.

I hope you will come back and join us in the birthday celebration for Lindsay's Stamp Stuff.


**Updated: Lindsay has posted a list of challenges in the crop room to give you some advance notice. You can check them out HERE.

Boyish Birthday Cards

I need to build up my stock of birthday cards, especially ones that can be used for men or boys. When I was looking through my files I found this word art that was a freebie on Melissa's blog at the end of March. After I pulled out some DP I wanted to use, I was able to color the word art and make 2 cards pretty quickly. I love quick cards! I purposely stayed away from large embellishments so that they would be easy to mail. To keep them from being too plain I used paper piercing and faux stitching.

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Speaking of birthdays (boy, am I the queen of smooth or what?)(don't answer that) remember we have big plans next week to celebrate the first birthday of Lindsay's Stamp Stuff. You can see my post HERE for more details, but Lindsay has a lot of fun stuff planned. Even though it is LSS's birthday, we are getting the goodies with the chance to get freebies and win prizes.

Thank you for looking!

Challenges for these cards:

• Splitcoast Stampers - SC274 Sketch
• Bee Crafty - Birthdays
• Crazy 4 Challenges - use kraft cs
• My Time to Craft - On the Spot (both cards have "spotty" background papers)
• Paper Popsicles - Birthday
• Polka Doodles - #13 Birthday
• Polly Craft Challenge - Anything Goes
• Spoonful of Sugar - One for the boys
• Stamp, Scrap, & Doodle Saturdays - birthdays
• Sweet Stampin' Challenge - It's a Man's world

Supplies:

• Images: Happy Birthday freebie word art from Meljen's Designs
• CS & Papers: My Mind's Eye Where the Heart Is, Georgia Pacific CS, misc green and brown CS
• Inks: Distress Inks in Tea Dye (used only for sponging on first card)
• Tools & Embellishments: Prismacolor pencils, OMS, paper piercer, Stampin' Up Chocolate Chip marker (for faux stitching)
• Techniques: Faux stitching, paper piercing

Ms. Brightside Award

I have been remiss in posting this award from Leanne. If you don't know Leanne, go check out her blog, Created by Leanne, and you will be in for a treat. She is a very talented, creative lady. While you are there, leave her a comment to let her know you stopped by.

As with all awards, there are some rules for accepting the awards. They are list the top 10 things that make you happy, top 5 list of trivia about yourself, share the award with 5 other people, link to the blogs of the people you choose and the person that awarded it to you.

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Top 10 things that make me happy (not necessarily in order)

1) Starbucks mocha

2) Time spent with friends

3) Time spend with family

4) Listening to good music

5) Vacation days

6) Time spent crafting just for me (no deadlines)

7) Jazzercise

8) Reading a good book

9) Being outside on a nice day

10) Doing something nice for some one (random act of kindness)

5 bits of trivia about me

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1) I don't watch much TV

2) Although I don't watch much TV, I am addicted to Glee (Hurray, the new season starts soon!)

3) My husband makes fun of me for watching the above mentioned TV show

4) I went to the movies with my family today and saw "How to tame your dragon" in 3-D. (Good movie!)

5) I love chocolate, especially dark chocolate!

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Now to pass this on to 5 blogging friends. Ladies, I hope you will accept this award because you all inspire me in some way.

1) Joanne

2) Rhonda

3) Tammy

4) Kristal

5) Micki

Thank you!

Mojo Monday on Thursday with Meljen's Designs

** Updated: I am so excited. This card was picked as one of the top 6 for Mojo Monday's Sketch #133!**

I broke out my prismacolor pencils over the week end and sat and colored a bunch of images. The Easter Bunny brought my daughter her own small set of prismacolor pencils so she colored with me. It was so relaxing.

I made Meljen's Designs Toadstool Buggies into this card using the Mojo Monday sketch 133 and some of my favorite DP. I rotated the sketch so that it would work with my image.

If you regularly read my blog, you know I just got my first alcohol markers. They came in handy to color my clear gemstones brown to coordinate with my card. (I love how useful these markers can be used to color EVERYTHING!)

Be sure to check the Meljen's Designs Inspiration and Challenge blog to join the new challenge "Let's See Some Girly Colors".

Have a great day!


Challenges for this card:

• ABC Challenge - R is for Red
• Make Up 4 the Weekend - #22 Favorite Fairy or winged thing
• Mojo Monday - MOJO133
• Pixie Dust Studios - Things with wings
• Quixotic Paperie - the Joys of Spring
• Simple Doodles - Layers
• Stamp, Scrap & Doodle Saturdays - Wings

Supplies:

• Image: Toadstool Buggies by Meljen's Designs
• Papers & CS: DCWV Songbird stack, Stampin' Up Chocolate Chip & Old Olive, Georgia Pacific CS
• Inks: none
• Embellishments & Tools: Prismacolor pencils, OMS, clear gem stones, Prismacolor marker, Stampin' Up Old Olive ribbon, Spellbinders Nestabilities, Circut George cartridge

Our visitor and a few reminders

No crafty eye candy to share with you today but I do have a picture of our Easter visitor. He has been hanging out under our bird feeders every day since we first saw him on Sunday. I think he is an escapee from a hunt club that is not too far away.

I'll leave you with a few of reminders:

• You until noon EST today to get in on the Meljen's Designs blog hop. One lucky winner will receive a $10 gift certificate to Meljen's Designs new store. (More info HERE)
• You still have until 11:59 EST to get in on Meljen's Designs first challenge. (HERE) This week's challenge is "Anything Goes". You do not need to use a Meljen's Designs image.
• Join the Meljen's Designs group on Papercraft Planet (HERE) to get the 400 member freebie.
• Check out Melissa's blog and get your Monday freebies.
• I will not have a Lindsay's Stamp Stuff posting on Monday, but on Tuesday we will be kicking off the Lindsay's Stamp Stuff Hop, Shop, and Crop event to celebrate Lindsay's Stamp Stuff's birthday.
• If you have not already done so, you might want to sign up at the mygrafico crop room to participate in the free crop, challenges and have a chance to get freebies and win prizes during the birthday celebration. More information on how to sign up is in my previous post HERE.
• More information on the blog hop will be coming soon.
• Check out Lindsay's blog and get your Thursday freebies.

That's all for today. Have a wonderful day!

Mark your calendar....

It's a birthday party for Lindsay's Stamp Stuff. To celebrate we are going to Hop, Shop & Crop April 13-15. Lindsay will be holding a 3-day crop in the mygrafico crop room. Go on over there now and join (it's free). Over the course of the 3-days you can pop in and out as often as you want to participate in the events and classes, join challenges or just see what is going on. The classes and crops are free. There will be freebies and prizes. We also have a blog hop and other exciting things planned. Stay tuned for more details.

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Tips:

• To join the crop, you will need to be a member of the mygrafico community. It's free to join. Join now so you are ready for the crop. (Click HERE to join)
• To join the crop group (after joining mygrafico) click HERE
• If you do not want to receive emails when people comment on the crop, after joining the crop room group, click on the "stop following" button. You are still a member but you won't get all the emails.
• Remember, it is all FREE!

Hello World Here's A Song That We're Singing....

Come On Get Happy....


This week our theme for Lindsay's Stamp Stuff is "Inspired by Song". I am almost ashamed to admit this song has been stuck in my head. (Some one please help me get it out!) For those of us mature enough to remember, this was the theme song of the Partridge Family. Boy, wasn't David Cassidy dreamy??? Okay, enough of this dating myself and on to my project. (Update: I just got an email that this card will be featured on SNR Card Universe. Woohoo!)





I made this card both inspired by the song and a bit by the old TV show. These cute little birds are from the Love Grows Here digital stamp set. I printed the bird in 2 sizes, colored, and cut them out. I clipped the valentine from its beak since I didn't need it for this card. I love this set! Although you probably think of it as a "Valentine's Day" set, I will use it all year. (See my post from last week here for another project using it.) The cupcake can be used for birthdays, the cherries for summer, the love birds for weddings or anniversaries just to name a few. Here is a close up of the set.

When I was at my Jazzercise class on Wednesday, sweating through an abdominal (not abominable, though it seemed that way at the time) routine set to Rihanna's "Umbrella", I thought I could do a card with one of the new sets for this song! It also works for for Faith Hills' "Red Umbrella". Either way, here is my umbrella card using the new Puddle Fun digital stamp set.




And here is a look at the complete set.




I have to admit I am disappointed I ran out of time this week to make some of the other projects floating around in my head for this theme. How about "Black Coffee" (Billie Holiday) or "Coffee Girl" (Tragically Hip) using Coffee Talk, "Born in the USA" (Bruce Springsteen) using the Patriotic collection, anything by the Scissor Sisters using the scissors from Sew Pretty, "Birdhouse in your Soul" (They Might Be Giants) using Birds & Branches... The possibilities are endless... As a music junkie,I could go on and on. But, just for you, I won't.

I hope this inspires you to create a project using that song you have in your head. Check out what the rest of the DT created when they were inspired by song.

Lindsay (Owner)
Cassandra
Christie
Jennifer
Jessica
Karin
Kristen
Rhonda
Tanya



Thank you for looking!


Challenges:

Come On Get Happy card
CCEE - Silly Animals
Charisma Cardz - Animal Magic
For Fun Challenge - Anything Goes
Just Add Ink - JAI 11- Add Ink
Magical Crafts - Animal Antics
Make Up 4 the Week end - M4TW22 - Fairy or Winged Thing
Papertake Weekly - Open Challenge
Practical Scrappers - Markers
S2G - Anything Goes
Stamp, Scrap & Doodle Saturdays - #34 Wings

Umbrella Card
ABC challenge - R=Red
One Stop Craft Challenge - Paper Piecing
Our Creative Corner - Buttons
Sketch & Stash - #32 Sketch
Totally Papercrafts - Let's go digital

Supplies:

Come On Get Happy card

• Images: Love Grows Here digital stamp set by Lindsay's Stamp Stuff on mygrafico.com
• Papers & CS: SongBird stack from DCWV, Georgia Pacific CS
• Inks: none
• Tools & Embellishments: Prismacolor markers, Stampin' Up Chocolate Chip marker, paper piecer, Cricut George cartridge, sentiment is computer generated
• Techniques: Faux stitching

Umbrella card

• Images: Puddle Fun digital stamp set by Lindsay's Stamp Stuff on mygrafico.com
• Papers & CS: SongBird stack from DCWV, Georgia Pacific CS, misc. brown CS
• Inks: Close To My Heart Juniper
• Tools & Embellishments: Stampin' Up markers, DMC floss, buttons, brads, Martha Stewart rick rack, sentiment is computer generated
• Techniques: Paper piecing, embossing a digital stamp

River Rock Sympathy

I had a recent need for a sympathy card. I like the clean look of this card. I'm going to keep this post short. I bet you have better things to do this week end than read a long post.

Thank you for looking!

Happy Easter!

Challenges for this card:
Crafty Creations - Anything Goes
Die Cut Dreams - Black, white, & one other color
Doodle Palace - Use black
For Fun Challenge - Anything Goes
Paper Popsicles - Ribbon
Papertake Weekly - Open Challenge
Pixie Dust Studios - Black,white, & one other color
Prairie Fairy Fridays - Texture
Simple Doodles - Add some layers


Supplies:
• STAMPS: CTMH Treasure Life
• CS & PAPERS: SU River Rock, SU white, misc. black
• INKS: SU River Rock, SU Basic Black
• EMBELLISHMENTS & TOOLS: Leafy Branch Cuttle Bug embossing folder, black ribbon

Meljen's Designs Blog Hop and Store Grand Opening

Today is the big day and we have a lot to celebrate! It is the official launch of the new Meljen's Designs store, a DT blog hop, the kick off the first Meljen's Weekly Thursday challenge, and the release of a new digi stamp pack with 10 new images. Trust me, you are going to love them!

If you didn't come from Kim's blog, you may want to go to Meljen's DT blog to start the hop at the beginning so you don't miss out on any of the fun. Make sure you visit each DT blog on the hop and leave a comment to qualify for a random drawing of a $10 gift certificate to Meljen's new store and to collect a special surprise at the end.

My first card uses Unicorn's Rest from the new release. Isn't she sweet? She is available with the rest of Meljen's images in the new Meljen's Designs store. The new store offers INSTANT DOWNLOADS, lower prices on word art, easy browing, and a search function. If that is not enough to entice you to visit the store, just go check it out because it is so cute!

I also wanted to make a more boyish card so I used Cuddle Dragon from the new release Don't you think "Dreaming of You" is a great sentiment for inside of the card?

Speaking of dreaming, are you are dreaming of a $10 gift certificate to Meljen's new store? If so, remember you need to comment on all the blogs along the way to qualify for the prize drawing. The hop will end on Wednesday, April 7th at noon EST. The winner will be posted on the Meljen's DT blog on Thursday, April 15th.

For another chance to win some Meljen Design's images, enter the Weekly Thursday Challenge on the DT blog. Our first challenge is "Anything Goes" and will run from April 1 to April 7, 11:59 PM EST. You DO NOT need to use a Meljen Designs image to take part in the challenge, but if you do, you will be entered twice for the prize drawing. The prize will be 3 Meljen's Designs images of the winner's choice. Read more details on the DT blog.


Remember, if you get lost along the way, you can find the complete list of the DT blogs in order at the top of my side bar.

Now hop on over to Shannon's blog. I know she has something adorable waiting for you.


Thank you for stopping by and enjoy the rest of the blog hop!







Challenges for these cards.


Unicorn's Rest card:
Caardvarks - Use lace
Charisma Cardz - Animal magic
Hand Full of Stamps - #21 You're a Sweet One
Papertake Weekly - Open Challenge
Pile It On - #12-Animal-rific
The Pink Elephant - #60 Pastels
Stampavie - #88 Friends
The Sweet Stop - SSS49 Sketch

Cuddle Dragon card:
Annabelle Stamps - #ABSC018 - Sketch
Cute Daisy May - For the Boys
Sir Stampsalot - Fantasy

Supplies:
Unicorn's Rest card:
• Stamps: Unicorn's Rest digital stamp from Meljen's Designs
• Papers & CS: Close To My Heart Topstick DP pack, Georgia Pacific CS
• Inks: Prismacolor and Copic markers
• Tools & Embellishments: Kaiser half pearls, Spare Parts lace, misc. flowers from Hobby Lobby, Circut & George cartridge, sentiment computer generated

Cuddle Dragon card:
• Stamps: Cuddle Dragon digital stamp from Meljen's Designs, Spot on Backgrounds from Close To My Heart (pattern on the stars)
• Papers & CS: My Minds Eye Where the Heart Is, Georgia Pacific CS, scraps of blue, green and orange CS
• Inks: Prismacolor & Copic markers, Versamark Champagne Dazzle
• Tools & Embellishments: Stampin' Up border punch & star punch, misc. gold brads, Sakura gelly roll clear glitter pen, Twinklette gold glitter marker