CCEE: National Drop Everything and Read Day!

 Hi friends!

There's a new challenge at the CCEE Stampers blog

and it's one dear to my (bookworm) heart!

Tomorrow is National Drop Everything and Read Day!

Lynn is our hostess for the April challenges

and asked us to create a card which features a favorite book, favorite book character(s), or a reading theme stressing the importance or value of reading.

Ohhhhhh perfect for a bibliophile like me!

 

 For my card, I've used the perfect Our Story from Birdie Brown at

My Favorite Things stamps.

What is SO much more amazing with this adorable stamp set

is that I picked it up in th.e real life brick and mortar MFT store!

It was a DREAM come true trip for me 

and I'm still on Cloud 9 remembering it ♥

To create this card, it took a little bit of creative imagination!

I wanted to go with a wallpaper type look

and thought it would be unique to use my distress inks on designer paper

rather than white cardstock.

I used washi tape to mask as I sponged along and blended with

 Cracked Pistachio, Scattered Straw and Squeezed Lemonade.

I do love the look of it and am THRILLED with how this card turned out :)

The sentiment is stamped onto the kraft cardstock - a match to the 

card base and the inside, which I left purposely uncolored.

You can see what the rest of the CCEE Design Team created 

for National Drop Everything and Read Day here.
  If you'd like to play along in this challenge.

you can link your card at the blog or

 If you post it in an online gallery,

  please include the keyword CCEE1915 in your card description.

Happy day to you

and thank you for stopping by!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

3M: PURRfect cup of coffee!

 Hi friends

 and happy rainy Tuesday!

Rainy days are perfect for staying in, comfy clothes,

 a cup of something warm and soothing and a book!

At least I have the cup of something warm! :)

I still have drop off and pick up and errands that couldn't wait ..

not so fun!

But what is fun - 

the 9th of every month where the 3M posts a card based on one image!

Our hostess this month is Barb 

and she sent us this adorable coffee Kealy from Whipper Snapper. 

This kitty truly knows the way to my heart ~

show up with a Starbucks! 

♥

I'll try to get a better picture later

when it's brighter and the SUN comes back out to play!

Meanwhile, Barb's card with this image is here

and Jeanette's card is here.

We are the 3M strong,

and, if Barb's calculations are correct, in our 5th year!

I'll be back in a few minutes with another post ~

busy day on the blog!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

COF: Magic Picture Changer!

Hi friends!

I hope you are having a wonderful weekend!

There's a lot of magic in mine ~

as in the Magic Picture Changer from Lawn Fawn!

The Crafters of Faith card group has such a fun challenge this month

from our hostess, Dawn.
Her scripture this month is Romans 8:17-18 ... 

... if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
 18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy
 to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. 

She asked us to create a card that reveals the image or sentiment.

A wonderful birthday fairy (that rhymes with my husband!)

included this wonderful die in a birthday present for me 
so I thought it would be fun to use it!

 

This card is just adorable and such a fun twist to the reveal process!

It was definitely a challenge!
There's a learning curve to creating this type of card

and this was my very first attempt

(and you may remember from this post that I get be a little craft-timidated!) 

 but .....

Was it challenging:  Check!

Was it fun?  Oh yes!
Would I create this card again?  Absolutely!

I followed this video from Lawn Fawn on YouTube to create my card.

There are many but I found this one is so precise and fun to watch!

From this to this ~ the magic is revealed if you allow Him to show you ♥

It's truly an Easter day for us ~

we're off to take my new granddaughter to see the Easter Bunny today!

She turned 6 months old yesterday 

and we're hoping she does well ♥

Thanks for stopping by!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

Strawberry festival time!

Hi again!

 Cardmaking, for me,  is a funny thing.

Some days I work forever on a card ...

just. one. card!

And I look back at it and think you have got to be kidding!

And then there are other times an idea pops into my head

 and I crank it out superfly quick,

 faster than my eyeballs can gather all the supplies

 and my hands can get it together!

Today's card is the latter :)

Florida has an AMAZING strawberry festival

  right smack dab in the middle of our state. 

 It's filled with a fair with rides, booths with strawberry goodies of every kind, concerts, a rodeo and petting zoo, a large open air market to shop 

and so much more! 

We haven't gone in years but we have such fond memories 

and would bring back bushels full of strawberries! 

Bunny Love from Altenew is such a sweet spring stamp set

and fun to bring out at Easter time!

I used hues of red white and a pop of blue ~

the red gingham was a nod towards the farmers markets.

 

 I created this card with the Challenge Your Stash card group 

where we were to create a card with a bunny on it.

There so many cute bunnies on this one to chose from!

 

What's your favorite way to have strawberries?

I love them sliced and tossed into my salads,

smothered in chocolate,

even skewered and added quickly to the grill with my summer veggies!

Thanks for your visit today!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

CCEE1914 ~ Read a road map!

Hello, friends!

Our hostess for the CCEE Stampers is the Lynn

 and here's her first challenge of the month:

Tomorrow is National Read a Road Map Day!

 In honor of it, let's create a card which incorporates a map or has a travel theme.

What a fun challenge! 

Thank you, Lynn!

We love to travel, instilled in me as a child as we jetted around the globe

in our military family.

Now, our family tries to get away as often as we can.

I adore old road maps!

I still have many from the AAA days when you could call them and request a city/state

and our series of the Rand McNally road atlases.

Now ... we just pop an address into the GPS or ask Siri ;)

For my card today, I've used a very old stamp set 
called Hanna Stamps: Going Places.
It's perfect with the traveling girl stopping to read her map!
This is a hybrid card - half colored with copics, half with promarkers!

To create the little cityscape scene behind her,
I stamped her/masked it off and then stamped the buildings.
The inside has a sentiment which reads:  Bon Voyage!

Speaking of traveling, I seem to have lost my mojo.
Perhaps it's too many irons in the fire, 
perhaps it my sweet little granddaughter that commands much 
of this Oma's attention :)
So if you happen to see it, please send it back my way!

Be sure to see the rest of the Design Team by stopping at the blog here!

 Thanks for your visit today!
Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥
~Kelly

Spring Break has come and gone ...

... but with fun sentiments from The Project Bin

 and incredible brads from Eyelet Outlet, 

it can stay forever!

 

Spring Break is over for us :(

My son is back in school, my daughter is back in college,

but the memories of us having a wonderful last few days of 

the wonderful ocean and outdoors will linger ♥

From the beach to canoeing, we enjoyed the gorgeous Florida sun and surf!

This card was created with that in mind

with the polka dot sunshine to the billowy ocean waves

and, of course,

the Eyelet Outlet brads that bring it to life!

The waves were created using different colors of cardstock

and a hillside die and Bella Blvd speckled paper for the sun-inspired backdrop.

I've used Summer Fun from The Project Bin and stamped it right on the paper.

There are sweet little stars that adorn this particular stamp in the set

but I masked them off to use just the wording!

I've also used 3 different sets of brads from Eyelet Outlet:

Sea Shore Brads (underwater)

Palm trees (on the shore) 

Seagulls (in the sky and in the waves with his little legs tucked under the water!)

 Here's the stamp set in its entirety:

And that's my card for today!

I hope you are having some crafty fun today, too!

Before you go,

I'm excited to share the brand new stamp set from TPB:

Love Your Shelfie!

Denise, creative mind behind The Project Bin, 

has done it again with this absolutely adorable 17 piece stamp set,

complete with this sweet turtle and party hat and so. many. sentiments!

Now THAT'S something to shell-a-brate! ♥

 

Thanks for stopping by!
Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

Hope you're doing JAW-SOME!

Happy Friday, friends!

Thank you for the sweet birthday wishes!

You are all so sweet and special to my heart ♥

I hope you are having a jaw-some weekend!

I've created a sweet shark card for the inspiration challenge on SCS

and used this bedding as a springboard for my card.

This is an older Avery Elle shark stamp and die set but still a favorite!

My son loved loved LOVED sharks as a younger boy

and we had shark everything :)

This card was fun to make because it involved some paper,

dies, distress ink, markers and some elbow grease!

I wanted to create waves so I reversed my cloud die from CC Designs

and turned it into waves.

I used my distress oxide inks in Salty Ocean and Faded Jeans

and blended them with my blending tool.

Once that was finished, I stamped the sentiment right onto the card,

and added the shark and surfboard on popped up foam and 

added a quick border.

Easy Peasy!

 

 Tomorrow, we'll be at my last birthday excursion

and although it's a surprise, I'm told it involves water!

Hopefully, we won't bump into any of these ocean friends ;)

  Thanks for your visit today!

     Big hugs,  

~Kelly

National Pencil Day + Giveaway!

Hi friends! 

 

 I'm getting a late start to the day's posting ~ 

but, hopefully, with good reason.
I've been in bed for 3 days with the flu :(

I'm in 'take it one day, one hour at a time mode!

And the saddest part ..

today is my birthday! 

Oh this one is a year to remember ~

and praying I'm well enough to enjoy some of it this weekend, too!

 

Onward to my tardy card ...

 this is my last post as the March hostess for the CCEE Stampers.

Tomorrow is National Pencil Day.

The DT have created cards featuring a pencil image

or colored the image with colored pencils ~ or both!

I've used an interesting frame from Hello Bluebird that is slightly larger
than the A2 card size.
The card, when standing, looks similiar to an easle style - pretty neat!
This is the inside,
which is the finished statement to the sentiment on the front. 

Before you go, 

You know what they say about birthdays - celebrate!

I am celebrating my birthday with a big giveaway

of stamps, matching dies, and other crafty goodies on my Instagram

(winner will be chosen only on Instagram, so hop on over!)

 You can find me HERE if you'd like to take a look! 

 

Thanks for stopping by!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

You're my best BUD!

Hi friends!

I have a Technique Tuesday card on a Tuesday! :)

I love love LOVE flower images!

They are such ethereal beauties ~

adorning the ground with sprinkles of colors that delight the senses!

My birth month is March 

(my birthday is this week - already?! I'm still 29, I hope! Tee hee!)

and my flower is the daffodil!

 

 I fell in love with Technique Tuesday's birthday stamps

and added them to my collection some time ago.

I've spotted several of the Fresh Peonies cards on Facebook

in the Technique Tuesday group so I took a closer look!

AND!!!!!

Decided to join the Greenhouse Society's monthly flower subscription.

At the beginning of each month, TT releases a brand new flower stamp

 (and matching die, should you chose it)

so it's like a surprise each month in your mailbox!

It was this line in the description that totally sold me ...

"Using these flower stamps and matching dies, you can create a garden of beautiful, handmade cards!"

Oh. the. vision!  

So I went back and ordered from the beginning of this year, 2019

and I'll post them in order.

This is the January flower ~ the daffodil or Beautiful Narcissus.

Special thank you to Shelley who patiently and sweetly answered all my emails :)

Here is my CAS card (or Clean and Simple) ↓

My mum was born and raised near London, England 

and has the most amazing green thumb!

I can remember every year, she grew amazing gardens

and knew exactly just what to plant, when and how.

We moved so often, but as soon as we did - I'd find the library,

and she'd start a'plantin!

 I remember throwing open our upstairs bedroom windows

and the smell wafing up from the fresh flowers planted below ~

a memory etched forever in my mind ♥

One year - she *thought* it would be a good idea to get some fresh

     uh ...

manure from the local farmers. 

Except ........ she didn't tell us!

Not the best of times to throw the windows open!

LOL!!

 At least on our cards, we can color pretty flowers 

and they'll be perfect - and odorless *wink!*

Lastly, here's a fun fact for you about my beautiful birth month flower:
*This popular and easy to grow flower salutes spring with a burst

 of possible colors – white, cream, soft yellow or bright yellow as well 

as orange, pink and even lime-green.

I think the lime green would be one gorgeous flower!

 Thanks for stopping by today on this terrific Tuesday!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

Behold! Christ is Risen!

 Hello friends!

It's Spring Break here in Miami, Florida 
and I'm SO HAPPY that little man is out of school!
We have a fun week planned with many activities
(and it's my birthday week!)

Spring Break also means Easter is near!
What a wonderful time to start on sending out your Easter/Spring cards,
and I'm getting a good start with Spring Zen from The Project Bin.

I love this versatile set - 
so perfect for lovers of coloring and zentangling!
It has a beautiful 'doodle' look to the images which makes coloring so easy,
especially tailoring the colors to each individual receipient!

My card today is bright and bold ~ representing the sunset 

which was made with my new ray of light stencil

and MFT orange zest ink and Catherine Pooler Coral Cabana and Ranger's Squeezed Lemonade.

I colored the cross in coordinating colors with my prismacolor markers

and stamped the sentiment on top of the sponged ink with Momento Black.

For the month of March, I planned a birthday card 

but ended up posting two last week.

I'm happy to have met my personal goal 

AND

2 of the cards were given out on a birthday - oh the smiles it made!

My heart was happy! 

And Easter is just 26 days away - so head on over to The Project Bin,

and take a peek.

Oh! Shipping is FAST!

Here's a look at the set:

 

  Thanks for stopping by today!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

 

Celebrating Smoke and Mirrors Day!

Hi friends!

I'm the hostess for the month of March 
with the CCEE Stampers card group and found a new-to-me 'holiday' to celebrate!

Next week is National Smoke and Mirrors Day.

The celebration is based on magicians' illusions, 

where magicians make objects appear or disappear with retracting mirrors

and confusing bursts of smoke.

My challenge?

Wave your magic wand and create a card with a surprise element!

I made my very first ever pivot pop-up card!
I am always so craft-imidated by a lot of the interactive dies 
that I see on social media but decided to give it this one a try ...
it was great fun!

I used the amazing Lawn Fawn pivot die which is so. very. special ♥
It's not just a die that does wonderful things ~
it was a gift to me from one of my besties, Barb!
I hoped to use it for my daughter's baby shower invitations
but she had another idea of what cards she wanted ~
so here we are!

♥

The stamp set I used for this card is from Lawn Fawn ~
it's called Oh Gnome ~  I adore these little cuties!
 
Here is the front of the card ↓

Inside ↓

Oh these gnomes have stolen my heart!

Here's a short clip of how it looks when it pivots, or twists, open ...

You can find this challenge and play along by clicking the linky 
and also see what the Design Team has created today!
Each card is super adorable and has a fun surprise element :)

You can find the link up on the challenge blog here
as well as see the DT cards or on their individual blogs:

Anne Harmon

Joanne Grzelak

Liz Williams

Lois Bak

Lynn McAuley

Maryann Einam

Vicky Gould

Kelly McKown-Santi

Thanks for stopping by!
There's truly GNOME one else like all of you!
 
Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥
~Kelly