Hello friends and happy Monday!  I am excited to be sharing my card for the Newton's Nook Inky Paws Challenge today.  I frequently hear from friends and fellow stampers that they aren't creative enough to design something on their own, or that they don't know what colors to use.  They feel frustrated before they even begin because they don't know where to begin.  I understand!  Yes, I've been there too!  That's the concept behind a card challenge.  It can help to inspire you and get the creative juices flowing by giving you a place to start.  Challenge #115 by Newton's Nook is a theme challenge.  Let the image below be your inspiration for creating a card (or scrapbook page) and see where this challenge takes you!  

Here is the card I created inspired by the image above.  I went with the theme of hearts:

*A full list of supplies (with shopping links) is located at the end of this post.

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock.  Using a 5 1/4" x 4" piece of designer paper with a red heart pattern, I adhered this patterned paper directly to the card base.  Using the Gina Marie Designs Scalloped Stitched Nesting Rectangle dies, I cut a medium sized rectangle from red cardstock.  I adhere this directly to the center of the card.  I die cut a large heart from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock and stamped small hearts in red ink around the heart.  I also stamped the "thank you" sentiment in red ink. 

I stamped the flowers from the Newton's Nook Designs Peony Blooms stamp set in Memento Tuxedo black ink on Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock.  I colored in the flowers with Copic markers and used the coordinating Peony Blooms dies to cut them out.  I adhered the flowers to the bottom portion of the heart with foam adhesive for added dimension.  Lastly, I added a coat of clear Wink of Stella to the flowers for added sparkle. 

In this close-up photo of the peonies, you can see the sparkle from the Wink of Stella:

Will this theme inspire YOU to create?  Are you ready to get your paws inky with us and play along for a chance to win?!  We will randomly select one linked entry to receive a $20 store credit to the Newton's Nook Designs online shop! 
We will also highlight our favorites from each challenge the following Monday, so that all entries have a chance to be featured on the Newton's Nook Designs blog.

Please make sure you review the challenge rules page before you link up your project!  
Deadline to enter is Friday, January 31, at midnight CST.

Thanks for visiting and I hope to see your creations there!

Hello friends and happy Saturday!  I don't normally blog on the weekends, but today I am happy to be a guest designer for the Butterfly Reflections, Ink blog!  If you recall, last fall I was a member of the BRI Design Team, and I'm so grateful that they still use many of the old DT members to share their creations with you.  I had been eyeing this "I Chews You" stamp set by Concord and 9th for a little while because I thought it was different that a traditional "lovey-dovey" stamp for Valentine's Day.  It also reminded me of the little Valentine cards we all stuffed in decorated shoeboxes back in grade school!

I also decided to use the January BRI Mood Board colors that inspired the color palette for my cards:

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock.  Using a piece of mint green cardstock, I cut the cardstock using the Poppystamps Double Stitch Scalloped Rectangles.  I then cut a 5" x 3 3/4" piece of white cardstock and stamped mint green hearts all over it using the Mini Hearts background stamp by My Favorite Things.  On a scrap piece of white cardstock, I stamped the outline of the gumball machine in Memento Tuxedo Black.  I filled in the gumball machine with mint green ink and PinkFresh Studio Ballet Slipper Pink inks.  I fussy cut the gumball machine using a small pair of craft scissors and adhered it to the card using foam squares.  I cut the gumballs using the small gumball die found in the I Chews You coordinating die set from mint cardstock, light purple and light pink cardstock.  I adhered the gumballs to the top of the gumball machine.  I stamped "Be Mine" in mint ink inside the gumball machine.  I stamped "so stuck on you" in mint ink on white cardstock and cut it out into little word strips.  I adhered the word strips to the right side of the gumball machine using foam squares.  Lastly, I added Nuvo Crystal Glaze to the gumballs to give them a glossy look! 

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock.  Using a piece of purple cardstock, I cut the cardstock using the Poppystamps Double Stitch Scalloped Rectangles.  I then cut a 5" x 3 3/4" piece of Lawn Fawn Gotta Have Gingham paper in green and adhered it to the purple frame.   On a scrap piece of white cardstock, I stamped the outline of the gumball machine in Memento Tuxedo Black.  I filled in the gumball machine with purple ink.  I fussy cut the gumball machine using a small pair of craft scissors and adhered it to the card using foam squares.  I cut the gumballs using the small gumball die found in the I Chews You coordinating die set from mint cardstock, light purple and light pink cardstock.  I adhered the gumballs to the top of the gumball machine.  I stamped "Be Mine" in light purple ink inside the gumball machine.  I stamped "you're gumbelieveable" in light purple ink on white cardstock and cut it out into little word strips.  I adhered the word strips to the right side of the gumball machine using foam squares.  Lastly, I added Nuvo Crystal Glaze to the gumballs to give them a glossy look! 

I hope you have enjoyed these fun cards!  Fellow design team member, Davina, is hosting a color challenge on her personal blog, PopsiclesticksCreates, all month long and you can link YOUR projects there for a chance to win a $20 gift certificate to the Butterfly Reflections Ink store!  Just remember to use the January BRI mood board colors!

Thanks for visiting and have a great weekend!

If I had to pick my absolute favorite color, this card is it!  Call it what you want - fuschia, raspberry, magenta, or simply berry, this reddish pinky-purple color is gorgeous and rich.  I have it in cardstock, ink, ribbon and even cardigans, lipstick and velvet wedge heels!  P.S. - those heels are to die for!  Literally.  I tripped one day into the street on my way to work and it was not pretty. . . Anywho, today's card features the "Sending Bunches" digital stamp set from RG Avenue.  If you would like to learn more about digital stamps, please read this post where I talk in detail about what they are and how to use them.  

*Full supply list (with shopping links) is located at the end of this post.

This A2 sized card is made from Raspberry cardstock.  Using the Gina Marie Scalloped Stitched Nesting Rectangle dies, I cut the first layer from Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock.  I stamped some splotches of raspberry ink directly onto the scalloped white cardstock.  Because the "Sending Bunches" stamp set is a digital stamp set, I printed the file from my computer onto Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock.  I colored in the images with Copic markers and then used my Scan & Cut 2 electronic cutting machine to cut the images out for me.   I added the sentiment in the lower right corner using Tombow adhesive.  I added the large balloon and two sets of flowers to the left center size of the card using foam adhesive for added dimension.  Lastly, I added a coat of Dazzling Pat to the flowers and balloon for added sparkle. 

Look at that sparkle!

I hope you are loving this color as much as I do!  Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

I love reading news articles or Facebook posts about those who would like cards mailed to them and yesterday this article posted on CNN captured my eye. 
I will be sending this scrapbook making hero a Valentine card, will you please join me?

(CNN)  A 104-year-old US Marine Corps veteran who served in World War II is asking people to send him cards for Valentine's Day.

Maj. Bill White, a California native, has had a lifetime full of unforgettable experiences. He has collected objects and filled scrapbooks to remind him of special memories which he keeps on a bookshelf organized by year. But now, the young-spirited veteran wants to expand his collection of memories, and he's asking the public to help by sending him a card this Valentine's Day.

"I'll save every one of them like I've been saving little things that have come up until right now and they'll be a personal part of my history," White told CNN affiliate KTXL.And that history of his is more than eventful.

White earned a Purple Heart for surviving the Battle of Iwo Jima in 1945. The bloody battle between the US Marines and Imperial Army of Japan lasted five weeks, killing nearly 7,000 US Marines and more than 20,000 Japanese fighters.

"When I was wounded, I didn't have any choice in the matter. A grenade blow up about 6 inches from me," White told KTXL. "The fact that I even survived is something. There weren't too many of us."

The veteran, who spent 30 years on active duty, was taken off the battlefield as a result of his injuries.
White told KTXL his love for scrapbooking keeps him busy, allowing him to "keep track" of his life's special events. But the real key to his long and positive life, he said, was simple: "Just keep breathing."

If you'd like to send White a Valentine's Day card, you can mail it to:

Operation Valentine
ATTN: Hold for Maj Bill White, USMC (Ret)
The Oaks at Inglewood6725 Inglewood Ave.
Stockton, CA 95207


*For  more information on those seeking card donations, please read this post here or you can donate cards to the Live Like Roo foundation here. 

Today I am excited to share with you a new release from Whimsy Stamps called "Voo Doo Too."  I have always had a particular interest in the Louisiana Vodou culture after visiting New Orleans many years ago.  While Hollywood has given us the perception of this demonic, malevolent culture, it is a history rooted rich in slavery and cultural traditions.  While commonly associated with death and ill will, the voo doo doll can also offer magical healing properties.  Today these creepy-cute guys are offering nothing but love for you!

*A full supply list (with shopping links) is located at the end of this post.

The base of this slimline card measures 8 1/2" x 3 1/2".  The base is made from Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock.  Using the Slimline Windows die from Whimsy Stamps, I created the frame from gray cardstock.  Behind the gray frame, I lined the background with a miscellaneous piece of lime green lined designer paper.  In between some of the frames I stamped the "Voo Doo Too" sentiment in Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  I stamped the voo doo doll images in Tuxedo Memento Black ink and colored them with Copic markers.  I added some highlights to the colored images using a white Uniball gel pen.  I used my Scan and Cut 2 electronic cutting machine to cut the images out.  I adhered the images to the card using foam adhesive.  Lastly, I punched a few small hearts from red cardstock and floated them around the card, also using foam adhesive for added height.

I hope you like these mildly creepy cuties!  Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

Hello readers and welcome back from the weekend!  I hope you found a little time to do something crafty.  Today I am sharing another card that I made for the Newton's Nook Inky Paws Challenge #114.  This week we have a sketch challenge to inspire you.  If you missed last week's post, here is the first card I designed using this sketch.  Our challenges run for two weeks, thereby giving you more time to create, so I have designed a second card to share with you this week that was still inspired by the same sketch seen below:

*Full supply list (with shopping links) is located at the end of this post.

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock.  I cut a 5 1/4" x 4" piece of miscellaneous blue patterned and adhered it directly to the card base.  Using the Hello Bluebird Gallery Frame #2 die, I cut the frame from blue cardstock.  I lined the back of the frame with a piece of Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock.  On this lining, I stamped the sentiment in red ink and a couple snowflakes in light blue ink.  I then made a small shaker card component out of the small bottom piece of the frame.  I filled the shaker with icy glitter.  I stamped the snowman from the Frozen Friends stamp set in Memento Tuxedo Black on Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock and then I fussy cut the snowmen out with small craft scissors.  I added a little color to the snowmen with Copic markers.  I placed a thin strip of red cardstock below the snowmen to ground them and to separate them from the shaker component.  Lastly, I added a small bow from white glitter twine to the left side of the card. 

Will this sketch inspire YOU to create?  Are you ready to get your paws inky with us and play along for a chance to win?!  We will randomly select one linked entry to receive a $20 store credit to the Newton's Nook Designs online shop! 
We will also highlight our favorites from each challenge the following Monday, so that all entries have a chance to be featured on the Newton's Nook Designs blog.

Please make sure you review the challenge rules page before you link up your project!  
Deadline to enter is Friday, January 17th, at midnight CST.

Thanks for visiting and I hope to see your creations there!

Hello readers and happy Friday!  I hope you have fun things planned for the weekend ahead.  Tonight I am hosting a Potluck Stamp BINGO at my house and I will be giving away over $400 in craft related prizes!  This nearly annual event is my simple way of being able to give back to the community for those who have supported me by attending my classes.  It's always a fun night.  My favorite memory about hosting this event is the year someone ate a BINGO ball!  She mistakenly thought it was a gumball!  People kept asking why O61 was never called and this poor woman had to admit, upon realizing her error, that she had bitten into the ball mistakenly and put it off to the side of her dessert tray.  The BINGO ball was disinfected in and the game played on!  Good times. 

Today I have another fun pop-up box card to share with you featuring the Frosty Wishes stamp set from Whimsy Stamps. 

*A full supply list (with shopping links) is located at the end of this post.

The base of this box card was made from Stone Gray cardstock.  I used the Lawn Fawn Scalloped Box Card Pop Up die to create the box card.  Whenever I make an interactive card, I always assemble it using thin line tear tape.  This tape is much stronger that Tombow adhesive.  The box base flaps were lined with Passionate Pink cardstock and then paper from the Whimsy Stamps Cozy Winter paper pack.  The top layer flaps were lined with Neenah White Solar Smooth cardstock and then lined with more paper from the Cozy Winter paper pack.  I lined the back flap with white cardstock.  I stamped the sentiment from the Whimsy Stamps Frosty Wishes set in Passionate Pink.  I also stamped a few snowflakes in Passionate Pink on the back flap.  I stamped all of the images from the Frosty Wishes stamp set in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. 

I stamped all of the images from the Frosty Wishes stamp set in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock.  I colored in all the images with Copic markers and then cut them using my Scan & Cut 2 electronic cutting machine. I add some highlights to the colored images with a Uniball white gel pel.  I adhered the colored images to the card with foam adhesive in a scene that was appealing to my eye. 

Thank you for visiting and I hope you have a wonderfully creative weekend!

As per my usual, I am late to creating this New Year's celebration card, but honestly this time it's not my fault!  I never received this fun 2020 Uni stamp set from RG Avenue until last weekend.  But, it is so darn adorable that I couldn't wait to create with it regardless if it's January 9th or not.  Technically, it is still the New Year! But, this stamp set could also work for birthdays, if you just didn't use the little unicorns with the "2020" or "Happy New Year" banners.  

*A full list of supplies (with shopping links) can be found at the end of this post.

This slimline card measures 8 1/2" x 3 1/2".  The base is cut from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock.  Using the Slimline Windows die from Whimsy Stamps, I cut the frame from purple cardstock.  I lined the back of the frame with a piece of purple lined paper from the Lawn Fawn Really Rainbow paper pack.  Because this is a digital stamp, I printed the sheet image on Neenah White Solar Smooth cardstock and colored the images with Copic markers.  I then ran the image sheet through my Scan and Cut 2 which cut the images out for me.  I adhered the images to the card using foam adhesive for added dimension.  Lastly, I added a coat of Dazzling Pat for added sparkle. 

$19.99
Use this bundle to create some fun projects and bring in the New Year with these super cute Unicorn!!!

Purchase includes files in 4 formats; Regular PDF, Outlined PDF, SVG & JPEG
Instantly after checkout, you will receive the zip file of digital files so you can start creating projects right away!
If you have a digital die cut machine you’ll love our digital downloads.

Thanks for visiting and I hope you have a MAGICAL day!

On Wednesday's we wear pink!  Well today, this lumberjack got the "Mean Girls" message and has donned the appropriate ensemble with his pink ax and all!  He's even going to be chopping down a pink tree!  : )  This fun stamp set called "Love Jack" is from RG Avenue and I think it is an excellent set to be used for Valentine's Day, perhaps for the lumberjack in your life!  Sure, I've made this into pretty pink cards for today, but I also can't wait to add some dark colors and plaid patterns to make Jack a little more burly and masculine.

*The full list of supplies (with shopping links) can be found at the end of this post. 

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Sweet Pink sugar stock.  Using the Gina Marie Scalloped Stitched Rectangle dies, I cut the first layer from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock.  I die cut a small heart from Sweet Cane cardstock and adhered it in the upper right forner.  I stamped the sentiment "You're Awesome" in Sweet Pink Ink and fussy cut it into a banner that I adhered over the heart.  I stamped all of the images from the "Lumberjack Love" stamp set in Black Taffy ink and colored them using Copic markers.  I added some highlights to the images using a Uniball white gel pen.  I stamped the tree over a piece of patterned pink paper (only so I wouldn't have to color it!) I used my Scan and Cut 2 to cut all o of the images out and adhered them to the card.  Lastly, I added a coat of Dazzling Pat to the Lumberjack and woodpile for added sparkle. 

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock.  I cut a 5 1/4" by 4" piece of Sweet Cane Sugar Stock and adhered it directly to the card base.  Using the Gina Marie Stitched Rectangle dies, I cut a rectangle from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock and stamped "Wood you" down the left side in Sweet Cane ink.  I also stamped a few hearts in Sweet Pink ink.  I adhered this rectangle directly to the card base.  I stamped all of the images in the "Lumberjack Love" stamp set in Black Taffy ink and colored them with Copic markers.  I used the Scan & Cut 2 to cut all of my images.  I adhered the images to the card using foam adhesive.  Lastly, I added some Dazzling Pat to the saw blade and lumberjack for added sparkle. 

Thank you for visiting and happy creating!

I have been experimenting a lot with watercolor recently.  Last September I took two classes on watercoloring at the Scrapbook Expo in Ontario, California, and I was able to experiment with a variety of different mediums used for watercoloring.  We learned about the Kuretake Gansai Watercolor Palette, Spectrum Noir Sparkle Pens, Zig Watercolor Clean Brushes and Tim Holtz Distress Crayons.  These were great classes for me because I was able to discover certain mediums that I liked (Zig and Spectrum Noir) and others that I didn't thoroughly enjoy (Distress Crayons).  For today's "blue-tiful" floral card, I used the Spectrum Noir Sparkle Pens.  These Sparkle pens are just like the Wink of Stella pens that we all love, except in color! 

*A full list of supplies (with shopping links) can be found at the end of this post.

The base of this slimline card measures 8 1/2" x 3 1/2" inches.  The base is made from Blue Raspberry cardstock.  I cut a 8 1/4" x 3 1/4" piece of Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock to mount onto the blue base.  I stamped the sentiment in blue ink in the upper right hand corner of this white cardstock before adhering it to the card base.  I stamped the large flower from the Simon Says Stamp Beautiful Flowers stamp set in Versamark ink.  I heat embossed the image with white embossing powder.  I die cut the flowers using the Beautiful Flowers die.  I colored the large flower with Spectrum Noir Sparkle Pens in blues and green.  Once the image dried, I adhered it to the slimline card using foam adhesive.  I also punched some extra leaves out of blue and green sparkle paper, that I tucked behind the main image for added sparkle

I hope you have enjoyed today's card.  Thank you for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!