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!

Hello friends and Merry Christmas (though surely you are all enjoying the magic of being with your friends and families right now and hopefully not spending the day reading here)!  But, in spite of Christmas, the rest of the world goes on and today is my last day sharing as a member of the Butterfly Reflections, Ink Design Team.  A new team is currently being selected and will be announced soon to kick off the new year.  I am so grateful to Vanessa for selecting me to be a part of her team.  I have discovered many new creative friends along the way and I have even been offered some amazing new opportunities that I will be announcing soon!

Today I am sharing a pop-up card featuring the Do Re Me Ow stamp set from Trinity Stamps.  It's a perfect set for me because of my love of cats and these punny sentiments are over the top!  I purchased this stamp set (and many others!) when I was fortunate enough to visit the Butterfly Reflections Ink store on Black Friday this year. 

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Kraft cardstock.  I lined the base of the card with a piece of light blue watercolor paper from the Lawn Fawn Watercolor Wishes paper pack.  I die cut the mountains from Balmy Blue cardstock using the Mama Elephant Snow Capped Mountain dies.  The tops of the mountains were cut from Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock. Along the bottom of the card, I created a curvy snowbank that I lined with a thin coat of Lawn Fawn Chunky Glitter.   I stamped the images (cats, lampost, box) from the Do Re Me Ow stamp set in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock and then I colored the images with Copic Markers.  I used the coordinating Do Re Me Ow dies from Trinity Stamps to die cut the images after coloring.  I adhered the images to the card using foam adhesive for added dimension.  Lastly, I stamped the sentiment in the lower left corner and a few music notes all in Memento Tuxedo Black ink.

The bottom of the inside of the card is a piece of Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. I stamped the inside sentiment and music notes in Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  The top of the inside of the card is another light blue piece of watercolor paper from the Lawn Fawn Watercolor Wishes paper pack.  I heat embossed some white snowflakes over the paper.  To create the pop-up component, I used the Lawn Fawn Stitched Hillside Pop-Up die and cut it out from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock.  I added a layer of Lawn Fawn Chunky Glitter to each of the "snowbanks."  I stamped all of the cat images, fences and lamposts in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock and colored the images with Copic markers.  I used the coordinating Do Re Me Ow dies to cut out the colored images and adhered them to the inside of the card to create a scene. Lastly, I added some more music notes stamped in Memento Tuxedo black ink. 

Merry Christmas, friends!  May you be blessed with the spirit of the season which is PEACE, the gladness of the season which is HOPE, and the heart of the season which is LOVE.

Hello readers!  I am so excited to be a guest designer for the Coffee Loving Cardmakers today.   A big thank you to co-hosts Amy and Chaitali for having me!  Because we are still just a few days away from Christmas, I have created a seasonal inspired coffee themed card to share with you.

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Kraft 80lb cardstock.  Using the Gina Marie Scalloped Stitched Nesting Rectangle dies, I cut the first layer from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. I heat embossed the sentiment in gold embossing powder in the upper right hand corner of this scalloped piece.  Using both the pine leaves, berries and branches from the Papertrey Ink Holiday Greens and Papertrey Ink Spruce and Sprig stamp set and dies, I cut branches and berries in evergreen cardstock, rich cherry cardstock and gold glimmer paper. I adhered all of these die cuts directly to the white scalloped cardstock using a Mono tape runner.

I die cut the coffee mugs, cozies and lids using the Hero Arts Coffee Cup Tags Frame Cuts.  The lids were cut from solid cherry cardstock and the coffee cups and cozies were cut from the Echo Park Here Comes Santa Claus paper pack. I adhered the two coffee mugs to the card using foam adhesive for added height and dimension.  Lastly I added two pine cones cut from gold foil paper and a red bow die cut from red sparkle paper to the center of the coffee mugs for lots of added glitz and sparkle!

In my mind these two mugs are filled with extra chocolate-y hot cocoa or overly nutmegged chai, since I’m not a coffee drinker.  I call that my “Christmas in a cup!” 
 
I hope you have enjoyed today’s card.  And, once again, a big thank you to the Coffee Loving Cardmakers for having me as a guest designer. Thank you for visiting and happy creating! 

Hello crafty readers!  Today I am excited to be sharing the first card I made using some really fun products from Whimsy Stamps.   I credit my friend Candice for being the one who introduced me to making slimline cards, and ever since I discovered this larger canvas to work on, I have been hooked!  This is just one of the reasons I love Whimsy Stamps - because they are now offering slimline dies.  P.S.  -I'll share another reason soon! For today's card I have used the Slimline Postage Die and the fun and slightly sassy gingerbread men from the GingerSnaps stamp set.

*Full list of supplies at end of post.

The base of this 8 1/2" x 3 1/2" sized card is made from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock.  The first
8 1/4" x 3 1/4" matted layer is a piece of kraft cardstock.  I cut the Postage Slimline Die from red cardstock.  I lined the back of the Postage Slimline die with a scrap piece of plaid designer paper.  I stamped all of the gingerbread men in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock.  I colored all of the images with Copic markers.  I used my Scan & Cut to cut the images out.   I adhered the gingerbread men to the card with foam adhesive for added dimension.  I stamped several of the sentiments in Versafine CLAIR Pinecone ink on white cardstock and notched both ends before adhering them to the card also with foam adhesive.  I added in a couple red candy mints (stamped in Versafine CLAIR Tulip Red ink) and candy canes to fill in the spaces between the gingerbread men.  Lastly, I added a coat of Clear Wink of Stella to the images for added sparkle.

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

Hello friends!  Today I am sharing this multiple interactive card on the Butterfly Reflections Ink blog.  I put off purchasing this adorable "Mice On Ice" stamp set for as long as I possibly could, but in a war between my wallet and Lawn Fawn products, my wallet loses. Nearly every single time!  I added three different interactive components all on this one A2 sized card.  The bottom left corner is a shaker, the top left mice are on Mini Action Wobbles and the mice on the top right are only visible when you lift the flap. 

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock.  Using the Lawn Fawn Peekaboo Backdrop Lawn Cuts, I cut the frame from raspberry cardstock.  On the top upper right corner, I added a lift the flap die to the frame.  I stamped the sentiment in raspberry ink.  I stamped all of the mice images in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on Neenah Solar White cardstock.  I colored the images with Copic markers and then used the coordinating Mice on Ice Lawn Cuts to die cut the images out.  On the lower right side of the card, I lined the frame with a small piece of pink plaid cardstock from the Sunny Studios Classic Gingham 6 x 6" paper pack. I then handcut a white snowbank to fill the square and added two mice with foam adhesive.

On the upper left side of the card, I lined the frame again with a small piece of pink plaid cardstock from the Sunny Studios Classic Gingham 6 x 6" paper pack. I then handcut a white snowbank to fill the square and added two mice with this time on a Mini Action Wobble Spring, so that when you touch them they jiggle, or wobble.

In the lower left corner of the card, I created a mini shaker.  I lined the back of the rectangle with a piece of acetate film.  I placed approximately one tablespoon of Iridescent Diamond Dust behind the frame and layered the frame with foam adhesive to give the Iridescent Diamond Dust room to move when you shake it.  I added two more little skating mice on top of the shaker and the word "happy" which I stamped in raspberry ink and cut with the coordinating Mice on Ice Lawn Cuts dies. 

I hope you have enjoyed this very interactive card!  It was a lot of fun to conceptualize and create.
Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

Hello friends and readers!  Welcome back from the weekend.  I hope you all had a great one.   Mine was equal parts crafting, relaxing and baking.  I have been starting to design cards and classes for 2020 and would you believe that I'm already thinking about Valentine's Day!?  I know, I know!  Christmas isn't even here yet, and yup, Lawn Fawn is already enticing us with their Stud Puffin release!  But, I've still got a few more Christmas themed cards to share with you just yet. . .

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock.  I die cut the mountains from Neenah White Solar Smooth cardstock using the Lawn Fawn Stitched Mountain Border dies.  I created an alcohol ink backround for behind the mountains.  (See highlight below on alcohol ink backgrounds). I die cut the mountain tops from Smoky Slate cardstock.  Using the Stitched Slopey Joe Borders, I cut one snowbank from white cardstock.  I put a thin layer of Lawn Fawn Chunky Glitter on the top of that snowbank.  I created the trees from white cardstock using the Lawn Fawn Stitched Tree Borders.  I cut the "leaves" of the trees out from Silver Glimmer paper.  I stamped the sentiment in salmon ink in the lower right corner of the card.  I stamped the yeti's and trees in Memento Tuxedo black ink on Neenah White Solar Smooth cardstock.  I colored the images with Copic markers and adhered them to the card using foam adhesive for added dimension. 

*Because I am not currently creating video technique content on my website, I highly recommend checking out this Easy Alcohol Ink Background Tutorial on YouTube by the amazing Jennifer McGuire.  She has created a very simple introduction to working with alcohol inks to create background pieces.  This was the first video I watched after purchasing my alcohol inks and then I just spent time playing with them!

Here is the Yeti or Not stamp set from Hello Bluebird that I used to create today's card:

Thanks for visiting and have a great week!

Where are all of my kitty followers at?  Today's Christmas card is perfect for those feline friends in your life. This card features the adorable Santa Paws stamp set from Newton's Nook Designs.  I have long been a fan of NND due to the company's namesake, Newton, being a beloved orange tabby cat.  My first cat, as an adult, was also an orange tabby.  Unfortunately, this past fall Jennifer and Jeff (the owners of NND) suffered a loss when 18-year-old Newton passed away.  His memory will live on through the company name and the kitty images that everyone uses on their cards.  This Santa Paws stamp set is one of my favorite NND Christmas sets for all it's punny cat themed holiday sentiments.

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Neenah White Solar Smooth cardstock.  I cut a 5 1/4" x 4" piece of red snowflake patterned paper (source unknown) and adhered it directly to the card base.  Using the Lawn Fawn Stiched Hillside Landscape Backdrop die, I cut the background also from Neenah White cardstock.  I added Lawn Fawn Chunky Glitter to the two sloping snowbanks of the background die. I stamped the images in Memento Tuxedo black ink on Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock and colored the images with Copic markers.  I added a few highlights to the images using a white Uniball gel pen.  I used the coordinating Santa Paws die to cut out the images and adhered them to the card using foam adhesive.

Here is the Santa Paws Newton stamp set from Newton's Nook Designs that I used to create today's card:

Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

Hello crafty friends and readers!  Today I am sharing these two cards featuring vivid alcohol ink backgrounds and adorable snowmen over on the Butterfly Reflections, Ink blog.  Creating alcohol ink pieces of art to use on cards has such a WOW effect.  While I love the look of Distress Oxide inks, I still don't feel entirely comfortable using them, so when I want to create eye-catching backgrounds, Ranger Adirondack Alcohol Inks are my go-to.

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 White Yupo paper on which to create my background.  I dropped a couple drops each of Aqua, Pool and Patina inks onto the Yupo paper and blew the ink around with a straw until I achieved a desired look.  No, there is no rhyme or reason to my madness when creating with alcohol! Just keep at it until you have a look that YOU are happy with!  I let this ink dry before splattering some white acrylic paint over the background to resemble snow.  Then I cut two Lawn Fawn Birch Trees from white cardstock.  I handcut a snowbank out of white cardstock for the bottom of the card and adhered a layer of Lawn Fawn Chunky Glitter over the top of the snowbank.  I stamped the images in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock and die cut them using the coordinating Snow Buddies Honey Cuts dies. I colored in the images with Copic markers and adhered them to the card with foam adhesive to create a little scene.  Lastly I die cut the "let it snow" sentiment from the Lawn Fawn Big Scripty Words Lawn Cuts in turquoise cardstock and glitter cardstock, layering the two together for a shadowed effect, before adhering these to the bottom of the card with foam adhesive.

Here is the Snow Buddies stamp set from Honey Bee Stamps that I used to create these cards:

Now for the second card:

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 White Yupo paper on which to create my background.  I dropped dropped three colored alcohol inks (salmon, raspberry and villainous) on the right side of the paper and "swiped left!" ; )  Haha, did anyone catch that?!  I let this ink dry before splattering some white acrylic paint over the background to resemble snow.  Then I cut three Lawn Fawn Birch Trees from white cardstock.  I handcut a snowbank out of white cardstock for the bottom of the card and adhered a layer of Lawn Fawn Chunky Glitter over the top of the snowbank.  I stamped the images in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock and die cut them using the coordinating Snow Buddies Honey Cuts dies. I colored in the images with Copic markers and adhered them to the card to create a little scene. 

I hope you have enjoyed these whimsical snowmen surrounded by an alcohol inked winter wonderland.  Thanks for visiting and happy creating!

Hello and happy Tuesday readers!  Today I am sharing three cards that were inspired by fellow cardmaker, Ivana Camdzic.  I first discovered Ivana through Instagram and was drawn to her beautiful use of pastel colors and her stunning layout photography.  I have later come to learn she is a foodie, a traveler and also married to a wonderful man named Mark.  So, we have discovered much more in common through our social media friendship than just our shared passion for papercrafting!  What I have also realized after creating these cards is that I really like pastel colors and that even though they are considered more non-traditional for holiday cards, they are equally as stunning!  I do hope to incorporate many more of these soft colors in the future.

Here are the beautiful cards created by Ivana that inspired my cards:

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Smoky Slate cardstock.  Using the Gina Marie Designs Scalloped Stitched Nesting Rectangles, I cut a piece of silver star patterned paper (source unknown).  I adhered this scalloped patterned paper directly to the card base using a dot tape runner.  I die cut the wreath in both Mint Macaron and Pistachio cardstock.  I punched little white flowers to adorn the wreath and placed clear rhinestones in the center of the flowers.  Lastly, I die cut the sentiment "joy" from silver glimmer cardstock and adhered it to the bottom of the card.

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Crumb Cake cardstock.  I die cut a piece of music patterned paper (source unknown) and adhered it to the center of the card.  Using the Hello Winter Nice and Neat Dies from Neat And Tangled, I die cut the word in Cherry Cobbler and white cardstock. I adhered the sentiment to the middle of the card using foam adhesive.  I stamped the leaves, greenery and berries using the Spruce and Sprigs stamp set and coordinating dies from Papertrey Ink. I adhered the berries, leaves and greenery to the top left and lower right side of the frame to make the sentiment pop. 

The base of this A2 sized card is made from Crumb Cake cardstock.  Using the Gina Marie Designs Scalloped Stitched Nesting Rectangles, I cut a piece of Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock.  I adhered this scalloped patterned paper directly to the card base using a dot tape runner.  I die cut the wreath in both Blushing Bride and Flirty Flamingo cardstock.  I placed pink rhinestones in the center of the wreath.  I cut a 4" x 1 1/2" sheet of birch gold foil paper, notched both ends and placed it behind the wreath.  I die cut the "believe" sentiment from gold glimmer cardstock and white cardstock.  I layered the two on top of each other and adhered the sentiment to the center of the card using foam adhesive. 

I hope you have enjoyed seeing a variety of ways to incorporate pastel colors into your holiday cards.  Thank you for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!