Hello friends and happy December!  Today I am sharing this card on the Butterfly Reflections, Ink blog, but before I get to my card, I wanted to share with you all that I got to visit the Butterfly Reflections, Ink store last weekend when I was nearby traveling for Thanksgiving.  Not only did I get to check out the awesome store, but I got to meet Vanessa in person, and on her birthday!  I was amazed by the amount of inventory in the store and the space is so well organized and clean.  I didn't even get to see nearly everything I wanted and I was there for almost two hours!  I can't wait to go back again (without my husband)!  If you are ever in the Kingston, New Hampshire (or greater Portsmouth/Manchester area) you must stop by,
it's really worth the visit.

Now for today's card. . . I used a stamp set that I purchased when I was at the store last week, although it has been on my list since it was released.  This set is called "Cocoa Stand" by Avery Elle.  I did also combine it with the "Snow Buddies" stamp set from Honey Bee Stamps to create an even larger scene.  Turquoise, red and brown are one of my favorite Christmas color combinations.  It's very fresh and modern feeling.

For the base of this slimline card, I cut a piece of turquoise cardstock measuring 8 1/2" x 3 1/2" long. I cut a 8 1/4" x 3 1/4" piece of Bristol Smooth cardstock to ink blend the background.  I used Tim Holtz Distress Oxide ink in Peacock Feathers and covered the cardstock with the ink before adhering this distressed background to the card base.  I cut a 8 1/4" x 1 1/4" piece of white cardstock and created a snowbank along the bottom edge of the cards to ground all of my images.  Along this border, I added Lawn Fawn Chunky Glitter for added sparkle.  I stamped all of the images from the Cocoa Stand stamp set in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock and colored them with Copic markers.  I then used the coordinating Cocoa Stand Elle-ment dies to cut all the images. also stamped all of the images from the Honey Bee Stamps Snow Buddies stamp set in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock and colored these images with Copic markers.  I also die cut these using the Snow Buddies Honey Cuts dies.  Then I began to form a scene just by placing the different images onto the card to where I was happy with the layout.  I adhered most of the images to the card with foam adhesive.  Lastly, I used a white gel pen and added little dots all over the card to resemble snow. 

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

Hello friends and happy BLACK Friday!  Best of luck to you brave souls who dare to venture out on this day because I want no part of it!  Those crowds are not for me!  Today, you will find me shopping local at the Butterfly Reflections, Ink in New Hampshire for my very first time!  Be sure to follow along on Instagram to see all the behind the scenes photos from the store and more.  I'm excited because it is also the shop owner, Vanessa's birthday, so I will get to wish her a happy birthday in person.  To celebrate, a large group of current and past Design Team members, along with some special guests, will be doing a blog hop on Instagram sharing cards that were inspired by some of Vanessa's favorite things:  the color fushia, cute critters (she LOVES Hello Bluebird), coffee and pumpkin spice.  Here is the card I created for her:

This slimline card ( 8 1/2" x 3 1/2") was made from Berry Burst cardstock.  The first matted layer is a  8 1/4" x 3 1/4" piece of Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock.  I die cut the mountains in Blushing Bride cardstock using the Hello Sweetums Mountains of Fun dies. I die cut the trees using the Lawn Fawn Stitched Trees dies.  I stamped all of the critters, trees and presents from the Hello Bluebird Frosty Friends stamp set in Memento Tuxedo Black ink and colored them using Copic markers.  I added highlights to some of the images with a Uniball White Gel pen.  I also added Lawn Fawn ultrafine glitter to the snowbanks and critters' hats.  I added many of the images to the card using 3M foam adhesive.  I stamped the sentiment at the bottom of the card in Berry Burst ink.  Lastly, I added a coat of clear Wink of Stella to the images for added sparkle.

Here are the Copic colors I used for coloring:

Here is the Frosty Friends stamp set by Hello Bluebird (available through Butterfly Reflections, Ink) that I used to create today's card:

Be sure to follow along on Instagram to see what everyone else created for Vanessa's birthday!
Thanks for visiting and I hope you have a wonderfully creative weekend!

Hello friends and happy Thanksgiving Eve day!  If you are traveling today (or anytime this week) I wish you safe travels and hope that each of you have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday with friends and family.  Today I am sharing some simple table placards on the Butterfly Reflections, Ink blog that were made using the Pretty Pink Posh Winter Wreath stamp set and coordinating dies.  Truth be told, Pretty Pink Posh also has an autumn wreath stamp set that would have worked for these placards too, but since I didn't buy that one, I was able to turn the winter wreath into more of a fall theme simply by using more traditional fall colors.  I also didn't know the names of everyone who will be attending Thanksgiving dinner at my aunt's house, so instead of personalizing the placards, I used various sentiments instead.

These placards are 3 1/2" square.  I simply folded a sheet of 3 1/2" x 7" paper in half to form the note card.  The base of each card is made from a kraft cardstock.  I stamped the Pretty Pink Posh Winter Wreath in Memento Tuxedo black ink on Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock and die cut it using the coordinating Winter Wreath die.  I colored each wreath in with Copic alcohol ink markers.  I cut a 4" x 1" strip of Lawn Fawn Gold Rush cardstock and adhered it to the notecard behind the wreath.  I adhered the wreath to the center of the placard using foam adhesive.  I tied a bow in Curry ribbon and adhered it to the top of the wreath using glue dots.   I stamped various sentiments in Cajun ink on Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock.  I notched the right end of the sentiment strip before adhering it to the center of the wreaths. Lastly, I added a coat of clear Wink of Stella to the flowers and leaves on the wreath for added sparkle.

Here is the Winter Wreath stamp set from Pretty Pink Posh (available through Butterfly Reflections, Ink):

May love and laughter light your days and warm your heart and home;
May good and faithful friends be yours wherever you may roam;
May peace and plenty bless your world with joy that long endures;
May all life's passing seasons, bring the best to you and yours.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hi friends!  Today I am sharing this card on the Butterfly Reflections, Ink blog.  The new "Sweet as Pie" stamp set by SugarPea Designs has my name written all over it.  "Sweet" and "pie" in the same sentence?  Yes, please!  It's no secret that I L-O-V-E sweets and with Thanksgiving coming up next week, I'm thinking all things pumpkin and apple right now using this yummy set.

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Kraft cardstock.  I cut a 5 1/4" x 4" piece of plaid paper similar to that of the Echo Park My Favorite Fall paper pack and adhered this to the card base. Using the Hello Bluebird Gallery Frame #2 die, I cut the frame from orange cardstock. I lined the back of the frame with a piece of Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock.  I stamped the sentiment "You're as sweet as pie" in a brown ink directly onto the white base lining.  Next, I stamped the images from the "Sweet as Pie" stamp set in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock.  I colored the images using my Copic Markers. Then I die cut the images using the coordinating Sweet as Pie Sugar Cuts. I adhered the die cut images to the card using foam adhesive.  Lastly, I added a coat of clear Wink of Stella to the pies for added sparkle (and also because I completely forgot to stamp and die cut the matching whip cream in the stamp set)!

So, maybe you've noticed that the bottom edge of that left side pie plate is a little darker than the rest?  Well, sure we can blame it on my coloring skills (truth), or we can just agree to say that it's a well loved pie plate that's seen a few family Thanksgiving's!  Works either way!

Here is the Sweet As Pie stamp set by SugarPea Designs that I used to create today's card:

I hope you have enjoyed today's card!   Thanks for visiting, you're all sweet as pie!

Hi friends!  Today I am sharing this winter treat project on the Butterfly Reflections, Ink website.  Next weekend, four girlfriends, my mom, and I are going on our annual craft retreat in Connecticut.  I'm looking forward to a long three-day weekend of crafting, chatting and chillaxing!  This weekend might be particularly chilly too because our local news is already starting to report the first snow for Friday!  It looks like I picked the perfect treat to make for everyone.  It's kind of a tradition for each of us to make small gifts for the other ladies when we go on one of these retreats. This year I chose to put hot cocoa packets into these Lawn Fawn goodie bags!  I wanted to also attach a candy cane, but surprisingly enough I couldn't find any in my local CVS or craft store and Amazon wanted $18 for a dozen! That's just plain crazy!

I chose three colors that are one of my favorite winter combos - Red, turquoise and kraft.  I think these colors are very fun, fresh and festive.  I cut the bags using the Lawn Fawn Goodie Bag die.  *Note, each bag does take a full sheet of 8 1/2" x 11" paper, so it does consume a fair amount of paper.  I assembled the bag using Lawn Fawn 1/4" tear tape. 

To decorate each goodie bag, I used the Holiday Skates stamp set from Avery Elle. I stamped two skates, one candy cane and two branches for each bag.  I stamped the skates and candy cane in Memento Tuxedo black ink and colored them with Copic markers.  I stamped the branches in both kraft ink and turquoise ink and used the coordinatingHoliday Skates die Elle-ments to cut them out. 

I stamped the sentiment "your friendship warms my heart" in Versamark ink on red, kraft or turquoise cardstock and heat embossed it with Lawn Fawn white embossing powder.  The sentiment is from the Concord & 9th Winter Wear stamp set. I die cut each sentiment out using the Lawn Fawn Fancy Folded Banners Lawn Cuts.  I adhered the skates to the front of the goodie bag using foam adhesive and tied a little bow in red ribbon at the top.  I adhered the ribbon with glue dots.  Lastly, I put a packet of hot cocoa and some tissue paper in the bag and adhered the sentiment to the top of the bag. 

These goodie bags were quick and easy to make and I think my friends will really enjoy sipping their cocoa when we are all gathered together in the living room next weekend catching up on the last year's worth of life events.

Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

Hello readers and happy Friday!  Yay for the weekend!  Today I have a card to share with you that is WAY outside of my color comfort zone!   Each month, one of my fellow DT members creates a mood board for the Butterfly Reflections, Ink blog and it is designed to help inspire you to create.  Perhaps you are inspired by the colors and textures or the patterns and the images.  A mood board is simply a starting place to build from.  This month Davina from Popsicle Creates is also so graciously offering (at her own expense) a $20 gift certificate to the Butterfly Reflections, Ink store!  All you have to do is make a card inspired by the mood board (see below) and enter your card on her website link-in.  One lucky winner will be chosen at random at the end of the month. 

At first I was very skeptical about these colors - salmon, curry, mint and teal.  Yikes!  Green and yellow together?  Meh.  I don't know about this!  But, as I got to coloring this fall wreath below, I LOVE it!  

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Crumb Cake cardstock.  Using the Gina Marie Scalloped Stitched Nesting Rectangle dies, I cut a piece of Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock for my first mat.  On a separate sheet of white cardstock, I stamped both wreaths and extra pumpkins and mushrooms from the Fall Foliage stamp set in Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  I colored in the images with Spectrum Noir alcohol ink markers and began to arrange them into an oval patterns on the card.  Once I had the placement of the images into a layout I was content with, I adhered the colored images to the card with 3M foam adhesive for added dimension.  I heat embossed the sentiment in the middle of the card with gold embossing powder.  Lastly, I added a coat of Clear Wink of Stella to the colored images for added sparkle.

Here is the beautiful new Fall Foliage stamp set (with coordinating dies) from Avery Elle:

I am still so pleasantly surprised that I ended up loving the colors of this mood board.  Now I want to create this card in ALL the colors!  Thanks, Davina, for inspiring me to step outside of the box.

Thanks for visiting and have a great weekend!

Hello crafty friends! (I say "friends" because I really do believe in the age old adage, "strangers are friends you've yet to meet.")  Today I'm happy to be writing my first post as one of the newest Design Team members for the fall/winter 2019 term for Butterfly Reflections, Ink.  I'm very grateful to Vanessa for selecting me to join her amazing group of talented crafters and to help spread the word about her local store.  Cheers to strong and independent women business owners and to shopping local!

I chose to use the Newton's Thanksgiving by Newton's Nook to create my "debut card." Mainly because this card is all about cats and carbs, which pretty much sums up my life!  We have three rescue cats who dominate our house (we have no children!) and I'm a carb girl all the way, hello breads and pastries, so, all things created by Newton's Nook really make me happy.

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock.  The first 5 1/4" x 4" layer is a sheet of paper from the Echo Park Fall Paper Pack (similar). I used the Stitched Circle Frames Lawn Cuts and cut a circle from a scrap piece of kraft plaid paper.  I cut off the bottom of the circle to make a half circle.  I stamped the sentiment in the upper right corner of this half circle in a dark brown ink.  I adhered this directly to the center of the card using a Tombow Adhesive Dots Runner - these are THE BEST in my opinion!
 
I stamped all of the images in Memento Tuxedo Black ink (another personal favorite of mine!) on white cardstock and used the coordinatingNewton's Thanksgiving dies to cut the images out.  I colored the images with alcohol ink markers and then I always use a White Gelly Roll pen to add highlights to my colored images.  Try it - it's a little insider's secret to adding detail and dimension!

I added a piece of burlap tape to the bottom of the half-circle and began to adhere my colored images to the card.  I often use foam adhesive when adding images to a card to add depth to my scenes.

Well, I hope you have enjoyed my first card for the Design Team!  Be sure to follow along on my Instagram too!  Thanks for taking the time to visit today and for joining me on my DT journey with Vanessa and Butterfly Reflections, Ink.  I look forward to sharing more of my creations with you and I hope you leave here feeling creative and inspired! 

Hello readers and welcome back from a long, holiday weekend!  I have an exciting announcement to share with you today. . . I have been selected to join the amazing Design Team at Butterfly Reflections, Ink. for the fall/winter 2019 term.  I've known for a few short weeks now, but had to keep it quiet until the store announced it earlier today on their blog.  Butterfly Reflections, Ink. is a small woman-owned and operated craft store that opened just over a year ago in May of 2018 in Kingston, New Hampshire.  While I have yet to visit the store in person (my mom and I are planning a road trip on Black Friday!) I am delighted to be joining Vanessa's team of amazing designers and fellow artisan's.   If you live in southern Maine or New Hampshire, or Eastern Massachusetts, please consider visiting.  Butterfly Reflections, Ink. (BRI) carries SO many products online too, including the newest releases from fan favorites such as Lawn Fawn, My Favorite Things, Newton's Nook and many, many more!  But, even better, because the store is located so close to me in New England, it only takes 2 days for shipping!  No more waiting!

Now, I'll introduce you to a few other talented ladies who will be joining along on this DT journey with me for BRI: 

First up we have Tiffany Beuning. Tiffany is from Las Vegas, is a high school counselor and is married to a great guy who supports her craft habit. 

On Wednesday I will be sharing the first card I created for the Butterfly Reflections, Ink. Design Team, but I hope in the meantime you will check out the BRI store online HERE and be sure to follow Vanessa Middleton on Facebook and Instagram.  Let's help these small, independent and local stores stay in business by showing our support!