Year in Review - 2016!

Hi friends!

It's hard to believe that 2016 is nearly over, but yes - it is!  

Soon, the ball will be dropping, signifying another year has finished.

And with that -

it marks another year of blogging for me,

and another year of friendships made ♥

While 2016 was my least creative year 

and fewest blog posts ever ...

it was also a year of creative blessings :)

 And looking back at my year in review,

 some of the cards are previewing here for the first time,

as I made many more cards - just didn't blog as many :/

Here are a few highlights ♥

January

February

 

March

April
 

May

June

July

August

September

October

November 

December

 Have you posted your Year in Review, too?
If you leave a note in the comment area below,
I'll make sure to stop by and see yours, too!

And remember - today is the LAST DAY to enter the 
blog candy giveaway :)   

Big hugs, and bigger blessings for the year ahead!
2017 - cheers!
~Kelly  

Denise's *Happy Birthday* blog hop + stamp giveaway! :)

        

It's Denise's *Happy Birthday* blog hop + stamp giveaway!

Hi friends!

Today The Project Bin's design team is celebrating the birthday of Denise, 
owner and designer of The Project Bin stamps! 

In honor of Denise's birthday, 

her design team is hosting a blog hop to showcase her wonderful stamps :)

If you just stumbled upon the hop, you'll want to start at the beginning with Angela's amazing blog and finish with The Project Bin blog where you can wish Denise a very Happy Birthday! ♥

For the full blog hop line up, see the list below ↓

And since it's a celebration, we have party gifts!
For one lucky winner, a prize package including a brand new The Project Bin stamp set is being given away :) 
In order to win, you must visit all the stops on the hop,
leave comments along the way and make the final stop at The Project Bin Blog!
You have until December 31, 12 PM EST and the winner will be announced
here on my blog 1/1/2017! 

 
If you haven't seen the stamps at The Project Bin, there is truly something for everyone!   Whether it's sweet and inspiring, or whimsical and fun, The Project Bin has it all - perfect for all your card making needs.  In order to win the blog candy giveaway, make sure to stop at each blog on the hop and leave a comment.   The prize draw will close on 12/31 and the winner announced :)

                                                                                             

For my card today, I've used the Popcorn Stamp and Die set!
It's not only so versatile, but super fun and perfect for cards and layouts!

Here's how I made the front of my card:
I stamped the popcorn bucket and popcorn stamps onto #110 white cardstock.

I stamped them out a second time on a seperate paper and then ran those through the cuttlebug with the coordinating dies.  I attached them with 3d foam to give the card a little dimension.  Lastly, I stamped out one of the sentiments that also comes with the set and popped that onto the front with foam.

And here is the inside using Born Yesterday ~ Another Birthday and More Gorgeous Than ever! 

   Here is a close up of the popcorn, 'popped up' with 3d foam - LOL!

And the stamp and die set that I used:    

As I am the last stop on the hop,

 from here head over to The Project Bin blog 

and wish Denise a wonderful birthday ♥

Here is the full hop order:

Angela Bode

Cheryl Walker (not a hop stop, but you can visit our teammie!)

Chrisi Rogers (no card but you can still visit!)

Dawn Barrett  

Dawn Bennett   

 Kelly Clark

 Lori Turner

 Nancy Nickel

Patricia Chalas

Penny Ward

Stasia Sloma

Kelly Santi ← You are here!

The Project Bin

Thanks so much for hopping along with us today!

Happy Birthday blessings, Denise! ♥

Big hugs, bigger blessings!
~Kelly 

 

I'm just waiting ....

.... to see if my coffee chooses to use its powers for good or evil today!

Hee hee!

I'm back with another Riley and Company card 

for the Tuesday card bonanza,

cards from Riley's Team 1 DT!

This was pretty much what I wanted to do today :)

After a bustling and wonderfully fun Christmas with

our kids, gift exchanges, our bountiful meal, the spirit of love around us!

Today,

I sat. 

Well, I did walk the dogs,

...and do the laundry, 

and the dishes,

and cooked dinner, 

and cleaned, 

AND played games with the kids!

Yep, not much sitting - LOL!

But I did get to make a few cards, too!

Santa's elves were very, VERY good to me

and I was gifted the mini MISTI and some new stamps and dies! :)

I love my little elves! ♥

 And this is the inside of the card - left blank for a message later :)

Using my UM coffee Riley

and the funnybones sentiment powers for good or evil

I created this bright and cheerful card -

added a few flowers and buttons and done!

You can find this stamp and more in the shop,

as well as the inspiration from the DT at Stamper's Ink blog.

Thanks for stopping by!

Big hugs, bigger blessings!

~Kelly

I'm the Designer Highlight for Riley and Co stamps! ♥

Hi friends! 

I hope and pray you all had a wonderful Christmas! 

We sure did - surrounded by my husband and our 4 beautiful children all home at the same time (this, my friends, is a very difficult feat!) as well as the lovely young men our two oldest daughters are dating.  We had full bellies AND full hearts! ♥

Today is the day of a featured designer on the Riley and Company blog ...

and today the designer is me! :)

Thank you, Tanya, for the wonderful spotlight opportunity and 

to our fearless DT coordinator, Angii - who works tirelessly behind the scenes ♥

So, what did I make today?

A herd of moose!

 My son is a voracious reader (just like his mommy!) and plows through books faster than I can buy them or stack them up at the library!

He was my inspiration for thinking up this project -

bookmarks showcasing the literary classics.

Riley and Company stamps has SO MANY different storybook characters!

I chose the ones he was most familiar with or loves these particular books,

and 'snuck' a few girl ones in there, too.

 My Riley bookmarks were inspired by such characters as:  

Wheat Riley (Huckleberry Finn)

Sophie O'Hara (Gone with the Wind)

 Snow White Sophie, 

 Old World Riley (Rip Van Winkle), 

 Peter Pan Riley and Captain Hook Riley (Adventures of Peter Pan),

 Detective Riley  (Sherlock Holmes), 

Mad Hatter Riley (Alice in Wonderland) 

and Riley Pottermoose (Harry Potter)

 Here is what I made and how I made it: 

• First, I started with a container of jumbo clips found at a local off brand store.
• Next, I stamped out the Riley and Sophie stamps onto #110 heavy weight white cardstock (this step is important - they need to be durable and stand up.)
• I ran those through the cuttlebug with a simple circle die, then used the coordinating scallop die in different colors of cardstock in the same fashion.
• I colored all the Riley and Sophie stamps with my prismacolor markers, then joined them with adhesive and added some enamel dots. 
• I glued the colored cardstock (back of the circles) to the jumbo clips.  I used Aleene's tacky glue and let it dry overnight (24 hours = best!)
• Last, I decorated simply and then added a tag with some baker's twine with the "Life is a Fairy Tale" stamp. 

Now, whenever my son needs a bookmark, he can take one out of the can

and mark his page or share one with a friend,

like this quick example ↓

For more inspiring projects, the Riley and Co stamps blog

has amazing creations,

including the new Mushroom Lane stamps!

You can also follow along on Facebook where you'll not only see more

inspirational creations, including the monthly stamp club kit,

but upcoming events and blog hop information - check it out!

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Big hugs, bigger blessings! ♥

~Kelly

Bible Journaling with The Project Bin!

 I did it!  I did it!  

 I had two crafty goals set for myself in 2016: 

 Watercoloring (as you may have seen in this post!) which still makes me swoon!

  I am absolutely in my glory when I get to sit and paint ♥

And my other creative goal was to start in bible journaling,

a fad that has taken off like crazy in the crafting world.

It's such a wonderful way to combine faith and creativity,

reading and journaling The Word.

 

Let me start by saying,

I'm a novice :)

Like I'm not even baby steppin' - I'm still crawling!  LOL!

But, that's what I love so much about the process of creativity -

just roll up your sleeves, grab some brushes and pens and just have at it!

I have a long way to go, yes.

And I'm okay with that
 and look forward to the year ahead to enhance my bible journaling skills.

So, here is my first attempt at making a faith based coloring page!

I was beyond blessed to receive this NIV Journal the Word bible for free
from Zondervan Publishing for a review.
It is heavenly!  It has a simply gorgeous cover,
delicate pages and ample journaling space,
which as you can see here I just kept it simple with some doodle flowers
and leaves and an expressive yet bold sentiment stamp from 
The Project Bin stamps,
the #bff stamp set!  

I'm not overly familiar with the book of Hosea,
and this is just where I happen to land to give this a try!
What a wonderful way to read along while coloring and stamping ..
what wasn't familiar before, can be!

Please be sure to stop in over at The Project Bin
and see the many stamps they have for cards, scrapbooking,
bible journaling and so much more!

Big hugs, bigger blessings!
~Kelly

I'll add my card to these challenges:
PDE Linky Party (ABAC)
DLArt Challenge #195
 

A little different holiday magic .............

Morning friends!  

 Hard to believe in just 6 more sleeps, it will be Christmas.

I'm.   Not.  Ready! 

Just 3 weeks ago, I was going full steam ahead and 3/4 of the way finished ....

and then hit a wall.

December is just TOO busy!

But, one important reminder I had this holiday season

was to think (way) outside the box
and creating a card that was not in my comfort zone.

I needed a card for someone close to me that hasn't had it easy ...

nothing has been handed to her and life has been hard.

And she's not the sunshine and unicorns and rainbows type of girl!

She does, however, enjoy skulls and crossbones :)

I thought of a perfect card for her using the Prickley Pear 
 sugar skull stamp set (Day of the Dead) and matching die

and my watercolors for a bright pop of painted color.

The vellum was a perfect way to add a sentiment 

yet keep the integrity of the splash watercolors in tact ~

as well as create a perfect pocket for the ornament on the inside!

 The inside of the card - with the ornament

I don't know if she will have a tree at her little place she calls home.

But I want her to know she's thought of ♥ 

Big hugs, bigger blessings!
~Kelly

A Hug in a Mug!

Hi friends!

I know - that title sounds a bit like sentence from a Dr. Seuss book :)  

Coffee IS a hug in a mug!

I absolutely adore my Starbucks!

Anytime.  Anywhere.  Anyplace ♥

I get seriously excited when I know it's red cup season,

that is like my own personal little mini Christmas!

Of course, I'm a 'Bux fan all year long

but the holiday cups are the cutiest :)

I get a kick out of the Coffee Lover's Blog Hops every time

they come around, in all seasons that we celebrate.

So I'm glad I was able to play along again this winter.

Today's card is one that I channeled my love of snow and winter -

blues and whites and some winter coffee paper :)

I've used Coffee Is a Hug from Riley and Company stamps

funnybones collection.

Off to the side is a coffee cup stamp, die cuts and paper pieced coffee sleeve

all from Prickley Pear Stamps and dies.

To learn more about the hop, or to link up your card, 
you can find all the information here :)
I'll link up my card as well to join all the coffee, tea, and cocoa friends!
 

Thanks for stopping by today

and 

CHEERS! ♥

Big hugs, bigger blessings!
~Kelly