365 Cards: Sketch Sunday!!

Hey there!! This is it. My final day with 365 Cards. I sure am going to miss all the fabulous ladies over there and the wonderful challenges. Pam really knows how to stretch you creatively and I am so happy to have had the chance to participate for this past year. I have learned so much and have had such a great time being able to create every week. I hope I get to come back often to play along with the new DT members. 

Ok for the final challenge we have a sketch...

And here is what I created:
I stamped right on the patterned paper. Added some buttons and this gorgeous gold ribbon.  Thank you so much to all of you for your visits and constant sweet comments. I am grateful to all of you... my 365 Cards FRIENDS!

I hope to see you around the blogosphere! I will continue to create and share cards here a few times every week so be sure to keep checking back. I will be here!

Thanks for visiting!

loves

k

Feb. Guest Designer: My Stamp Box!

Hey there folks! Wow, what a crazy few days it has been here. I wanted to post these thursday night but right when I tried to our power went out (we were having a CRAZY storm) then my oldest son got a flu bug or something and threw up ALL night long. Then last night we almost had a fire in the basement (such a long story...the firemen even came!) so I am just now getting to posting this.

Wanted to stop in and share a little bit I did for My Stamp Box this fabulous month of February! I was elated to hear from Bettina at My Stamp Box a few months ago and of course JUMPED at the chance to design for them this month. I had a really fun stamp set to work with and have some cards, a scrap page and project to share. You can check out the blog posts HERE and HERE. And for those of you who want a bit of eye candy to go with it, here are just a few things that I did. I hope you check out the fun stamps that My Stamp Box has to offer and take some time to go blog hopping through all the amazing projects and tutorials they have.

Thanks for stopping by!

k

Scrap Page Using "Itty Bitty's" stamp set. Released February 2010!

Cards:

365 Cards: Signature Style

Hey there peeps! It's getting late here on a wednesday and you can see that I am so late with my post, but I am getting it done just in time! This week at 365 Cards we are celebrating. ONE FULL YEAR of 365 Cards. Those of you who joined in on the fun from the beginning should have a serious stack of cards to show! 

Just one year ago I was asked to be on the design team of this great blog and participate twice a week with challenges for all of you to join in. Unfortunately that year has come to an end, and with a new baby to take care of I thought it appropriate to step down after a wonderful year at 365 Cards . I wanted to thank Pam and all the other fabulous designers at 365 Cards for such a fun and wonderful opportunity. YOU ARE THE BEST!!!

Today's challenge for me was to create a card using my signature style. Well, lets just say I was plain STUMPED! But I did pull out some things that I LOVE to use and find myself turning to again and again. I love to background stamp, and of course use buttons and twine, so here is what I came up with:

I used gold ink to stamp some medallions on my craft card base. Then I added some Terra Cotta ink with a text stamp. Then added more medallions with a brown ink. Lots of background stamping for ya! I popped up my frame with some dimensionals to showcase my sentiment. And of course I had to add my twine and rustic button. Thats a signature for ya! I hope you all have loved playing along this past year not just with me but with all of the 365 Card designers. We sure have had a great year!

Hope to see what you all create for today's challenge: You will need to scraplift something from this card and also use some modern influences to create your card. The sky's the limit folks!

Thanks again for playing and be sure to join in some other Sketch Fun HERE for your chance to win some free stamps!

Thanks for stopping by .

k

Deets:

Stamps: Giga Guide Lines, (Papertrey Ink), Vintage Frames (Sassafras Lass)

Ink: Galaxy Gold (Brilliance), Close To Coco (SU!), Terra Cotta Tile (Papertrey Ink)

Paper: Kraft, Rustic Cream, Terra Cotta (papertrey Ink)

Accessories: Lace Scallop Punch (Fiscars), Jute Twine, Rustic Button (Papertrey Ink)

You Make Me Smile

Hello. How are you??  Today's card is something I made up really quick with some new stamps. Well, new to my stash anyway. I love them. Really really love them.  Everything Alli Edwards does is just down right great. 

The sentiment is perfect and actually makes me smile. Thanks Alli for making such great stamps! The grass and cattail are from Technique Tuesday. Again, very fun to work with.
I added a simple strip of polkadots to finish off this baby. Simple, clean and to the point. What are you doing today?? And what makes you smile?? I would love to hear it!

Today its raining/snowing. A perfect day to stay in and bundle up. Which is exactly what we plan on doing here. Don't forget to join in the fun over at Pink Persimmon and take a shot at winning some new stamps! Visit this post HERE for details and get crafting!

Thanks for stopping by.

k

365 Cards Sketchy Sunday!!

Good Morning to each of you this fine sunday. Yesterday I said good-bye to my  mother and put her on a plane. Oh how sad it is! She was here for a week and helped cook, clean and take care of kids. I wonder to myself how in tarnation I will do this on my own! We loved having her here and hope we can take care of ourselves without her.

Today's sunday sketch:

Here is my take:

I opted not to round my corners because I love the crispness of the square. I stamped my flowers on the original diamond and then trimmed the edges by 1/2 inch. I think matted the entire thing adding in the trimmed edges back in. I stamped my sentiment on vellum and placed it over the flowers. You can see the big ones in there somewhere. 
The rest if patterned paper and cardstock. I used some stamps from Technique Tuesday. The are a lot of fun to use. 

Ok... baby is crying. Must run! 

Be sure to check out the Pink Persimmon sketch contest going on for the next week. You can read about it HERE and be sure to leave me a link of your creation. You can win some Pink Persimmon Stamps!!!

Thanks for stopping by.

k

Deets:

Stamps: Spiro Garden (Technique Tuesday), Simply You by Ali Edwards (Technique Tuesday), Vintage Frames (Sassafras Lass)

Ink: Old Olive, Chocolate Chip (SU!), Sweet Blush (Papertrey Ink), Graphite Black (Brilliance), 

Paper: Sweet Blush, Rustic Cream, Ripe Avocado, Vellum (Papertrey Ink), Amy Butler PP

Pink Persimmon Blog Hop & Giveaway!!!!

Hey there everyone! Today is an extra special day because I get to do more than one post! Today Pink Persimmon is having a sketch contest to win a SLEW of fun stamp sets from Pink Persimmon! If you would like a chance to win some PP Stamps from my blog here, take a look at the sketch, create a card/project/layout and post a link to your creation on THIS post. I will be giving away the SINGING BIRDS set to one lucky winner!!

Here is the sketch:

You are welcome to use this however it inspires you! I rotated the sketch to create my card:
Tweet Tweet!!! This is the CUTEST set. And it could be yours!! So get inspired, take some time and come back here to this post and leave me a link to your creation. You have until February 28th at midnight to get your post up. And here is the kicker.... You can enter to win at the other creative team members websites too! They are each giving away their own set. But you will need to create a separate card for each blog contest you enter... so get crackin'!

Again, here are the deets for those of you who want to participate:

1. Create a NEW card/project/layout based on the sketch and post a link to THIS post to be entered to win SINGING BIRDS (the set above)

2. Create a NEW card/project/layout based on the sketch for EACH stamp set you want to win and post a new link to EACH  Creative Team Member's blog for a chance to win even MORE stamps! (Check out their posts by clicking on their names:)

Julie 

Linda 

Kelly 

Samantha

3. And don't forget to Have Fun!!

I hope you feel inspired and I look forward to drawing a winner come March 1st! Good luck and Happy Crafting!!!

loves

k

Deets:

Stamps: Singing Birds (Pink Persimmon)

Ink: Graphite Black (Brilliance)

Paper: Terra Cotta, Spring Rain, Ripe Avocado, Stampers White (Papertrey Ink)

Accessories: Rustic Buttons, Jute Twine (Papertrey Ink), Lace Scallop Punch (Fiscars), Earth Element Markers (SU!)

365 Cards: Seven Sketches Week!

Good day to you this wonderful Wednesday! We have a fun week for you going on over at 365 Cards. This week every DT member has created a sketch for you to try out. Today is wednesday which means it's my turn! Here is the sketch I put together:

I drew up this sketch and then seemed to be inspired in a different way when it came time to make my card. Here is what I did:
I added a little rotation....I have been in Valentine's mode so the hearts got used again.  However I didn't want it to be a traditional red/pink card. The sentiment that I included is more of the feel I wanted to get across. I pulled out some cork paper to stamp my background on. I overlapped the white hearts and some text stamps. Popped up the hearts and added my twine and buttons for the last finishing touches. You can see the border line I drew in in black around the outer edge. I wanted it to be distinct but still subtle.

This card is set aside for my parents-in-law. They have been so wonderful to come and take care of me the first week being home from the hospital while my husband was away. I don't know if they realize how much help they actually were, but I am pretty sure I would have died (and my kids too) if they hadn't been here. I am SO grateful they are in my life. They love me (uh, i think..) and they love my kids and for that I am eternally indebted. 

That's all for this wednesday's 365 Card installment. I would love to see what you create with this sketch. I hope you find it inspiring! Until next time .....

loves

k

Deets:

Stamps: Background Basics: Hearts, Heart Prints (Papertrey Ink), Loving Words (Ali Edwards)

Ink: White (Brilliance), Dark Chocolate (Papertrey Ink) Old Olive, Not Quite Navy, Pumpkin Pie (SU!)

Paper: Smokey Shadow, Stampers White (Papertrey Ink)

Accessories: Cork Board (Michael's) Vintage Button, Jute Twine (Papertrey Ink), Black Marker (SU!)

365 Cards Sketchy Sunday!!

Good Morning and Happy Valentine's Day!!  Welcome to today's 365 Cards Sketch:

And welcome to my loving card for today's occasion:
Oh won't you Be Mine?? I took the circle from the sketch and just ran with it. It turned out quite bit different from the sketch, but it was inspiring which is the point right?

I use a lot of fun stamps on this one. Of course one of my Pink Persimmon favorites: Ric Rac Circle. I think you will be seeing a lot of it! Also I pulled out some Terra Cotta Satin Ribbon from Papertrey Ink. This color is truly delightful....

So how many of you are watching the Olympics!?!? So much fun right? All the events are in full swing which means my DH can now come home. FINALLY we get to have him for 2 straight weeks. Hopefully he will be able to refrain from working for that long ; )  Baby Kai is doing well. He is sleeping great, but for some reason is forgetting how to eat! I think its the pacifier that has thrown him off, so we tossed it out. Hopefully he will be back to his regular eating self in no time.

I hope you have a great sunday and send some love to those around you. Happy Valentine's Day!

Loves

k

Deets:

Stamps: Ric Rac Circle (Pink Persimmon) Background Basics: Hearts, Heart Prints (Papertrey Ink)

Ink: Terra Cotta Tile (Papertrey Ink), Chocolate Chip, Close To Cocoa (SU!)

Paper: Kraft, Rustic Vintage Cream (Papertrey Ink)

Accessories: Terracotta Tile Satin Ribbon (Papertrey Ink) Nestability Tags (Spellbinders)

365 Cards White Space Challenge

Hello Wednesday and Hello friends!!  It's the middle of the week. A day when the recycling goes out, the school week is half over and I get to share with you a 365 Cards challenge! Wednesday's are glorious!  Today's challenge issued by Pam is a White Space Challenge. That is take the image below and keep the white space empty! Which means that only the embellishments/sentiments etc. can go in the black space. 

Here is what I did:
Happy Birthday Birdie! I pulled out the Pink Persimmon stamps. Ric Rac Circle for the background. Paper pieced cupcake and birdie (American Craft Papers) and a double layer banner. Pretty simple and straight forward.
Here's a little close-up for ya. I love these vintage-y funky stamps. They are so much fun to play with. If you don' t have this ric rac circle, I suggest you pick one up. It really is stunning when it's stamped out.

So that's all for my wednesday card. Last night school was canceled for the incoming snow storm, so the kids are home and hopefully we will be able to play in the snow today. I however, would prefer to stay in bed, but methinks a 5 and 3 yr. old will not be too happy if I suggest that as the activity for the day. We will see how things play out. Thanks for stopping in today. I hope you have a good one.

Love to you and yours.

k

Deets: All Pink Persimmon unless noted.

Stamps: Vintage Greetings, Vintage Cupcake, Ric Rac Circle

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Ruby Red (SU!), Black Graphite (Brilliance)

Paper: Rustic Cream, Dark Chocolate (Papertrey Ink), Craft Fair Pattern Paper (AC)

Accessories: Pop Dots

Pink Persimmon + Divine Twine Valentine!

Happy Monday Morning!!! Today I wanted to share a few things Pink Persimmon. You can check out the blog HERE... There are some great Valentine ideas that the creative team has put together for the month. You should check it out!

Here is my little contribution:

The kids are doing Valentine's Day this friday because the holiday falls on a sunday this year. This is a little Valentine treat I will be sending in Ronin's lunch box. It's a 4x4 glassine bag filled with candy.  

I love this ric rac circle stamp set. It's simple but SO versatile. The final stamped image is so fun. I used it straight on my glassine bag and used the dotted journal lines to stamp my punched out hearts. I LOVE the scroll banner in the Vintage Greetings set. It's just so perfect in so many ways. I tucked my hearts in under it and popped up the sentiment that was stamped with THIS alpha set.

I folded over the edge of the glassine and punched two small holes through the flap and the front of the bag. I tied the whole thing up with some DIVINE TWINE. I LOVE this stuff!! The black and white was perfect for the look I was going for. Um... have I told you already how many wonderful colors this twine comes in?  You should check it out HERE. Just try to resist... I dare ya!

Pink Persimmon has some really great and versatile sets that can be adapted for any occasion. PLUS they have some great valentine sets as well. You can check out the post HERE and also check out some fun stamps HERE.

Also, just wanted you to know how GREAT the owners and creative team are for this company.  They have been so lovely with the arrival of baby Kai. They made up some cards for me! You can check the post out HERE on their blog. It's been so amazing to get to know wonderful ladies from all around that just dish out love so freely. I feel so grateful for the people I am getting to know and the amazing opportunity it is to be apart of this creative team. THANK YOU ladies for making this an unforgettable time for me!! 

Thanks for stopping by today. Let's stretch out Valentines Day and celebrate love all week long!! 

Love to you and yours

k

Deets:

Stamps: Vintage Greetings, Ric Rac Circle, Small Soda Pop Alpha Set (Pink Persimmon)

Ink: Black Graphite (Brilliance), Pure Poppy (Papertrey Ink)

Paper: Stampers White, Pure Poppy (Papertrey Ink)

Accessories: Glassine Bag, DIVINE TWINE, Marvy Heart Punch

Welcome Baby!

Hello there to you today! I just wanted to stop by here and share with you a few pictures of our new little guy. Malachi Axel Larsen:

He was born on February 4th at 9:12 in the morning. If you are interested in the story you can find it HERE on my personal family blog. There are a few more pictures over there as well. 
Here are my three boys. (the older two have matching chocolate cookie on their mouths ; )  The boys are so excited to have their little brother home. I am glad to be here as well, although the quiet of the hospital was quite nice ; ) We are all doing well and recouping just fine. Wanted to share this with you all since I know you have been watching my baby timer all these months! He is finally finally here! And a final word on his name...(Seems its a bit different than people may have expected ; ) Malachi means "messenger from God" I love the meaning and feel it is a bit softer for a baby, although we do plan on calling him Kai (k-eye) for short. Axel is a Scandinavian family name from my husbands side. We did not want to name him after Axel Rose but if he wants to be a rocker, then we will love him just the same ; )  Thanks for all of those who voted on my name poll and for all your support these last few months with being prego and having my hubby gone. It's been quite a journey and we are excited to start this next phase, so wish us luck!

Hope your sunday is going well. See you next week for 365 cards on wednesday and a few Pink Persimmon posts as well!! Also, I haven't heard back from my second winner of the Stamp It! Magazine. PLEASE contact me ASAP so I can send it out to you.... Check the post HERE to see if you are one of the winners. If I don't hear from you by monday I will draw a new winner! Thanks for playing!

Thanks for stopping by.

k

365 Cards: Sketchy Sunday!

Good Morning! It's sunday and I actually have this scheduled to post because as I type this I am getting ready to go to the hospital to be induced and don't know if I will be up for posting on this actual sunday morning. BUT regardless, I do have a card for you that I would love to share.... Here is the sketch from Pam over at 365 Cards. I LOVE this sketch. It's so great. I think it works no matter which way you turn it. 

I chose to rotate the sketch because I had some stamps I really wanted to use and they worked like this:
I just love these stamps from Technique Tuesday. I wanted to make a simple and flat card for my hubby for Valentines Day. He is a simple card kind-a guy, so I stuck with one layer (well, if you don't count the popped up sentiment). The sentiment is Ali Edwards. Again another stamp set I just ADORE!  Ok folks. That's it for today. Can you believe the one card I make and edit with my husband sitting next to me is this one... so now he know what he is getting for Valentine's day ; )

Ok. I hope to be back soon with baby news since technically I should have come home yesterday. I just want to say thanks for stopping by and for all your loving support! 

Have a good one!

k

Deets:

Stamps: Growing Wild (Technique Tuesday) Loving Words (Ali Edwards)

Ink: Terra Cotta Tile, Fresh Snow (Papertrey Ink), Old Olive (SU!)

Paper: Stampers Select White, Smokey Shadow (Papertrey Ink)

Accessories: Terra Cotta Tile Satin Ribbon, Jute Twine (Papertrey Ink)

365 Cards: Stamping Boutique Week!

Happy Wednesday! Today's Stamping Boutique image is so cute, I just knew I wanted to use it. Check it out:

Today's 365 Card challenge is to use a heart as your dominant shape so of course this image goes perfectly. I colored up the image and then made a little heart punched button out of paper to tie on. It shadows the tied up heart in the tree. Sorry this image is a bit washed out. The paper that mats the image is actually a light moss green and the card base is dark chocolate. A lot cuter in person ; )

Ok. That's all for now. I am heading to the doctor today to see what we can do about this baby that has stage fright. Daddy leaves sunday so this newbie needs to get MOVIN'! 

Thanks for stopping by. Hope all is well with you !

k

Happy Birthday Doggies

Good Monday morning to you all! Today I am sitting around just waiting for my contractions to pick up. I had quite a few last night and really thought I would be in the hospital by now, but you know how that works. Hopefully today with all the errands that need to be run, things will get kicked into high gear and we can get the baby show on the road! Today's card is coming to you with all Pink Persimmon goodies: 

I made up these scottie dogs and added some Divine Twine to their collars. Aren't they just cute!? I love this Dog Set by Pink Persimmon. At first glance I didn't think I would use it all that much, but you know these dogs are just too cute to ignore. I can see me using them for a lot of occasions. 
This card was made up for my MIL who loves little dogs. Her birthday and my 3 yr. old had a birthday celebration this week. I am a bit grateful I wasn't having a baby on either of their birthdays. Now if he could just come already things would be perfect!  

Also, wanted to share with you a NEW woman's blog with all sorts of fabulous things to offer. Great posts each day on life, love, family, fashion and everything in between. I present to you HOPSCOTCH.   Check it out cause today I have a little post up all about the adventures in child rearing. So stop on by and let me know what you think and while you are at it, you should SUBSCRIBE!!!

Also, I wanted to announce the winners of the Stamp It! Magazine from Paper Craft. Drum Roll Please.....

#2: ScrapAddict

#5: Rebecca's Card Hobby

Congrats Ladies!! Please email me or leave a comment with your address so I can get your magazines out to you before this baby comes!! (and believe me, you do have at least one day) Hope you enjoy all that you see in its pages. It's a really great magazine!

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope to see you on wed. since I have another 365 Card to share!

loves 

k