Grin and bear it

I'm participating in a virtual card swap at The Stamp Shack where we all were sent this adorable Teddy bear image to color and create a card with.

Here is my creation. I had so much fun coloring this guy in. I'm afraid I don't know who makes this stamp, but I think he's absolutely adorable. The sentiment is by CTMH stamped in White Daisy ink.

I used a white Uni-Ball Signo gel pen to "stitch" around the edges and accent with dots. The ribbon is the one and only Miss Elizabeth's from Dollar tree.

Christmas in July with Happy Hoppers

I love the Happy Hopper stamps by Stampabilites. They are designed by the woman who makes the House Mouse stamps... which I also adore!

Here is a Christmas card that I put together with an image that I colored a while back. Isn't it sweet?! I used colored pencils and sponged the background. I also added diamond Stickles to this for a little extra shimmer.

Lily at the Beach

I think Rachelle Ann Miller is a brilliant illustrator and I'm so glad her images are available as stamps.

I made this card using one of her Lily images. I colored this in with Copic markers and tried a little blending here and there.

The scrap pile on my table was getting pretty high and I found these background papers mixed in there. I had the image colored in already, so this card was so quick and easy to make. I really like how this turned out.

I have not decided what to stamp on the inside of this card. I might leave it blank until I figure out who I want to send this to.

Elisabeth Bell for Sugar Nellie

I am participating in a virtual image swap at the shack. I was sent this fantastic image to use on my card and here is my creation. I'm too cheap to pay international postage, so I don't own any Elisabeth Bell and/or Sugar Nellie stamps so it was an extra special treat to receive this image to use.

For the background paper, I used paper from one of my My Mind's Eye paper stacks. The flowers are from my Iced Got Prima's jar and the ribbon came from some roll that I picked up at Michael's. The sentiment came from my new Close to My Heart Daydream set. I also used diamond stickles to make the clouds and to enhance the flowers on the background paper.

I rarely take pictures of the inside of my cards, but I like to decorate the insides as well. Not only does decorating the inside of the card add more detail, but it also gives the card more weight so it feels like an extra special card.

Card using Alcohol Ink

I love playing with alcohol inks. Here is a card that I made using one of my AI experiments.

The stamps are by Basic Grey. This is the first time I've used clear stamps on AI pages and the first time that I have used these particular stamps. They were a little slippery on the paper. I'm going to take them for another spin to see if I can get the hang of stamping with these on slick paper, but I'm pretty happy with the results.

I used Palette hybrid ink in Noir and just added a little bit of hemp string as an accent. The "You Rock" sentiment is from my CTMH Dino Roar set.

Hip Hip Hooray

I was playing with my embossing folders and made this card the other day. The stamps are by Gel-a-Tins. Aren't they cute?!

I used a little clear glaze to trace the black outlines on the hippo and just filled it in with some fun colors.

Frogetful Sam - SweetNSassyStamps

I recently placed an order with SweetNSassy Stamps

and she was so kind to add a few stamped images to my package. This sweet image is one of their June releases called Frogetful Sam.

To color this in, I just used copic markers. The paper is by My Mind's Eye.

Lily & Milo Holding Hands - Rachelle Ann Miller

I just adore Rachelle Ann Miller's illustrations and her stamps are wonderful!

Here is Lily and Milo. Aren't they sweet?! I colored this in with copic markers and decorated with Prima flowers and adhesive backed rhinestones. This was such a fun card to put together!

The sentiment is by Studio G. Love those little $1 stamps!

Like Magnolia Stamps? Then have a look at this blog.

Pretty Pressings is offering a Magnolia Stamp blog candy! If you look through her previous posts you will also see some adorable cards that she has made with her Magnolia's.

When, oh when will these stamps become widely available in the US?!

Police Officer Training Graduation Card

A friend of ours had his graduation ceremony from Police Officer Training last night. I had no police themed stamps and my husband made me promise not to make him a Girlie card, so I came up with this idea. Get it? Donuts and coffee... police officer? :)

For the donut, I just used my Creative Memories CCS circle patterns. I frosted it with my DecoArt Snow Writer and used Stickles to give the donut a few sprinkles. I used a scalloped circle punch to take a bite out of the donut.

The coffee stamp is by Inque Boutique and I just colored it in with some Copics. The sentiment is by Close to My Heart and the background paper is something I had in my Creative Memories photo mat pile. I believe they came as a free gift for something.