DDD: Hit the open road!

 

Hello friends!

In just a few more weeks, summer will be upon us.

School is almost out here and I'm counting. down. the. days!

 

For many, summer means a time for traveling and hitting the open road, 

enjoying the warm and wonderful weather.

While we are fortunate here in South Florida to have nice weather almost always,

 I imagine for those of you up north or abroad, summer means being outdoors!

 

 

So!

It's the 15th of the month ~

and that means it's time for the DDD card group to share our cards

that we've made with the kits from two hostesses:  Carol and Shelly!

The DDD = Dueling Darlings Divas -vs- Dazzlers,

a friendly duel between friends with a themed card kit

They had a fun theme for us this month:  Motorcycle Masculine cards :)

  

I received a card kit from Carol ~ all I did was add cardstock and glue

and designed this card :)

Motorcycles, says Carol, makes her think of leather, 

road trips and freedom riders!

I love that!

 

 

My card is rather plain and I tried to use at least one of each thing in the kit ~

 the paper, image, sentiment, ribbon + the cool brads that look like spikes!

 I purposely left the image uncolored

to give it a nice balance against the busy road map designer paper.

I added the sentiment and die cut that with a banner die, and it reads:

"Four wheels can move your body,

but two wheels can move your soul."

How about you, my friends?

Do you have any summer plans?

Where is the open road taking you?!

 Thank you, Carol and Shelly, for your theme for this month's duel theme ♥

Thanks for your visit today!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day

to all the moms, gramma, aunties, fur mamas and beyond!

I hope your day is extra special

and all the wonderful moments that today holds are yours!

 Today I'm showing the card that I made for my daughter.

She's the one that gifted me our beautiful grand-daughter ~

one of the most beautiful blessings!

I absolutely fell in love with this Unity Stamp Company image

and it reminded me of my daughter and her love for Alice.

She's an AMAZING mama!

Extra love to all!

♥

Big hugs, bigger blessings!

~Kelly

One for Mother's Day ♥

Hi friends!

I have a combo card today ~ otherwise known as a two-fer :)

It's almost Mother's Day

and in addition to counting down the days until summer 

being a mom, I'm also a grandmother, daughter, friend ♥

Which means I make a lot of Mother's Day cards!

The CCEE Stampers challenge this week:  Create a card for Mother's Day

or a card suitable for a mom.

The timing is perfect for a mom card theme

because I created this one for a special friend.

I received this darling image for the 3M card group

and we were to create any card we liked with this image.

It was Jeanette's turn to send an image and this one was her choice. 
This is LDRS Creative Story Time Holly.
 

I have a few LDRS stamps (but not this one!) and loved that this stamp

1. has a book!  Swoon!

2. is large enough to be the focal point

3. is so versatile ~ she can be for any occasion!

For the CCEE Stampers, you can see what the Design Team
made with gorgeous samples of Mother's Day cards here.

We'd also love if you link up a card, too!
The Mr. Linky is at the bottom of the post and you can link up your own card!

For the 3M card group, 

it's just the 3 of us.

1 image, 3 different cards! 

You can see Barb's card here and Jeanette's card here.
And that's it for me today!

Thanks for stopping by :)
Big hugs, bigger blessings!
~Kelly

RSG: Show off your (ugly) paper!

"Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible

 things before breakfast."

~ Alice in Wonderland

Hi friends!

Oh, I do love the name Alice ...

it's my new granddaughter's name! ♥

My daughter's little girl shares the name with this classic

 and beloved storybook character

and it just makes me smile when I hear it :)

   “I’m late, I’m late! For a very important date!

 No time to say ‘hello, goodbye,’ I’m late, I’m late, I’m late!”

Oh, White Rabbit ~ me, too!

My card was for the Ready, Set, Go Challenge on 4/17

and the theme was:  Ugly paper!

ugly paper??

Now I'm “curiouser and curiouser!”

This was Jeanette's theme for us and this is what she said:

 

 In keeping with the idea of April Fools pranks and the unexpected,

  I want you to use two things on your card:

 the UGLIEST piece of designer paper that you can find in your stash

 (We have them, right? And we never expected to be asked to use those ugly papers!)

 and one of the stamps in your collection that has not yet seen ink, at least not by you.

 It's okay if it's a used stamp you purchased but have not yet used.

  Oh--and please post a picture of the patterned paper before cutting it apart!

Ready? Set? Go!

 This month was a little hard for me ~

as I don't see paper as 'ugly' :)

I either liked it when I bought it or had a specific challenge in mind

or it was a gift! 

So I'll call this: challenging paper!

Here is mine:

 

And finally, my card!

I used the adorable Alice - Life is full of Wonder from Stamp Anniething.

I chose this stamp as the first time inking

for my granddaughter, Alice.

I colored it pink (instead of the traditional blue) to match the dsp.

The sentiment is from another stamp set 

and I thought the wording was fun :)

To see what the other ladies created,

you can see Barb's card here and Jeanette's card here.

 I think I'm up for the next challenge but I could be wrong ...

Because we're all mad here!  :)

Thanks for stopping by!
Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

CCEE: Celebrating Outer Space!

Hi CCEE Stamper Fans!

Blast off! 

It's May!
 That means a brand new month 
and it is time to introduce our new hostess:  Frances!
She has a wonderful line up of challenges this month ~ stay tuned!

Tomorrow 3rd May is International Space Day 
and the 4th of May is Star Wars Day ~
May the FOURTH be with you! :)

I've created 3 seperate cards for this challenge because I
got out the distress oxide inks and had
way. too. much. fun! 
Since it was space themed, I used my Space Explorer stamp set
from the always perfect Torico's Birdie Brown series at My Favorite Things.

Here's card #1 ↓

 

 Here's card #2 ↓

 And card #3 ~ the string idea was inspired by this YouTube video!

 

 And all of the friends in one place! ↓

All of my images were colored with Copic markers or promarkers

and the dies used were also from My Favorite Things,

except the Space Explorer set.  

These have been cut out with my Brother Scan n Cut,

and the embossing is actually a combo of something new I tried.

I was going for a crisp impression by using a combination of white ink

and white embossing powder ~ and while it gave a grainy, almost moonlike

appearance, it's not something I'd probably try again :)

I'm just OVER THE MOON with these cards and 

so excited with how they turned out ~
Mission Accomplished!

Thanks for your visit!

Big hugs bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

Cake, Candles, Calories!

Hello, friends!

Orange you glad it's Monday?

I know - me either!

But I am glad you stopped by my blog ~

I have a brand new stamp set to show you from The Project Bin.

  

 This super fun birthday stamp set is called Birthday Girl

and it has fun sentiments and such a gorgeous font ♥

My card is bright, bold, vivid ..

with lot of orange :)

The Challenge Your Stash card group, hosted by Jenn,

is to create a card with her favorite color, orange,

and to use a button(s) somewhere on the card.

 

 Here is another sentiment from the set, on the inside ↓

 You can find this stamp set in the shop here.

There's also an inspiration blog where you can see the wonderful

cards from the Design Team each week day.

 

Here's another look at the stamp set and card:

 

Thanks for stopping by today!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

 

Celebrating Arbor Day!

 Hi friends!

Today's card is for the final April challenge at the CCEE Stampers

with our hostess, Lynn!

Her challenge for us this week is TREE-mendous!

She writes: Tomorrow is Arbor Day!

 Therefore, I am asking you to let a tree 

  be the star of your CCEE design this week! Pull out your favorite tree stamps and join us in celebrating Arbor Day. 

Here in South Florida, we have the most beautiful tabebuia trees 

that blossom only for a few weeks in the spring.

  They burst with beauty and vibrant colors of pink, lavender and golden yellow!  As I'm driving, I often see the wind rustle through the branches

 and they float down to the streets, similiar to falling snow.

Oh, it is a sight to behold!   

 For my card today, the star-of-the-card tree is from the My Favorite Things stamp set(s) Sending Blessings.

I used my prismacolor markers to color the trunk 

and dotted around the branches with the tip of pinks/peach markers,

 giving it a small dot to represent the tabebuia.

 I colored the Pure Innocence girl and the puppy (from a different MFT stamp set, Birdie Brown's Friends at First Sip)

 The border/hills are from various dies in my stash :)

  There is a matching sentiment to this card, on the inside :)

In addition to stamped trees, remember that Arbor Day is a wonderful way

to see how trees can benefit your community!

We've adopted several fruit trees from our local adopt-a-tree program

and our backyard is flourishing with avacados, mango, lychees

and a hybrid sour orange tree ~

as well as a sea grape and, of course, palm trees!

Be sure to stop in the CCEE Stampers blog and see what the Design Team

has created and link up your cards!

If you chose to use an online gallery, or something other than your blog

use the keyword CCEE1917.

Thanks for stopping by!
Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly 

Bonjour!

 Good morning, friends!

One of the most wonderful cities I've been blessed to visit

in our travels is Paris!

It was on my long Bucket List 

and it has resonated with my soul each trip we've made.

 I fall in love all over again with this enchanting city each time!
 J'aime la France ♥

 

From the architecture to the history,

the art and culture and quaint cafes and restaurants,

there is so much to love.

On our most recent trip, our hotel was off the cobblestone beaten path,

tucked neatly behind the bustling Champs-Élysées busy-ness.

To see all of Paris in a week, we chose the best mode of transportation

 in order not to miss a thing:  our feet!

Only the day trips to Colmar, Palace of Versailles (etc) were by rental car

and, holy bananas, driving through the Arc de Triomphe?!!

life. changing. 

 It was devastating to city the news of the Notre Dame Cathedral

and my heart was on Paris when I created this card.

Rather than see the city as it is,

I wanted to create a softer card remembering how it was ♥

To create my little Paris scene, I used the stamp set 'In Paris'

 from My Favorite Things

and colored them with my Zig Clean color brush markers.

The background was sponged with Ranger Ink Spun Sugar

distress oxide inks 

and the sentiment, also from the In Paris set, was added with Momento

Tuxedo Black ink. 

Oh how this scene evokes wonderful memories :) 

Wishing you a happy day of blessings and 

focusing only on the beautiful things!

  Vivre la vie pleinement ♥

Big hugs, bigger blessings!

~Kelly

I turtley adore you!

Three wonderful years ago  ...
this happened!

While many were getting ready to celebrate Easter,
I was beginning my new Design Team with The Project Bin ♥
I was so lucky to be selected by Denise, owner/creator of TPB stamps!
She's such a kind soul and a beautiful person
and these 3 years have been a wonderful journey.

And it just keeps getting better and better!
Her stamps are so innovative and unique 
and really bring joy to the stamping community.
 That's really something to shellabrate! 

  

Today, I'm sharing a card that I've created with the new stamp set:
Love your shelfie.

It's SOOOOOOOOOOOO cute!! 

I've made a little scene with a lot of different dies
and fussy cut the turtle as he/she's walking through the forest. 

And the inside, where I've carried over a little of the paper 
and used another sentiment in the stamp set.

Here's a peek at the side to see the dimension:

 You can find this adorable stamp set here in the shop
as well as seeing it complete ↓

Thanks for stopping by today
and helping me shellabrate this joyous moment!

And just a quick reminder:  Spencer's Set is $5 this month
(regularly $10) in honor of April = Autism Awareness Month.


Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥
~Kelly

DDD: Out of This World!

 Hello friends!

I'm back with a 2nd post ....

I took a little trip to outer space ~ via paper!

Today is the day that the Dueling Darlings card group

 reveals the cards we make from a card kit!

We are divided into two teams: 

 The Divas (where I'm at) and the Dazzlers. 

There is one theme, 2 different card kits sent to each team, 

and then we show what we've each created!

and the April theme:  Out of This World!

LJ sent The Divas this adorable card kit with a robot, rocket,

planet and a little boy with a rocket.

I chose just to focus on the robot and showcase the equally fun Doodlebug paper.

Terry S is the hostess for The Dazzlers 

and these two really picked a theme that rocket-ed our worlds!

♥

But aside from being Tax day here in the US,

it's also posting day and I wanted to make sure I was on time!

Just like taxes :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Big hugs, bigger blessings!

~Kelly

TPB: April = Autism Awareness!

Hello friends!

I hope you had a wonderful weekend!

Today's post is so very special ~

so special, in fact, I'm spinning! :)

 April is World Autism Month

and today I'm showcasing the super Spencer's Set from The Project Bin.

Denise, owner and creator of Spencer's set,

is so innovative and created a stamp set very unique

to celebrating those familiar with autism ♥

And even more special ....

This stamp set is only $5 throughout this month!

The regular price is $10 so now is the time to scoop it up!

Even better, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to 

the Autism Research Institute.

 Today I've created a spinner card using the wonderful stamp set,

2 pennies, some markers, paper, foam dots and glue!

I started with a blue card base ~

typically the color used for Austism Awareness.

The "Light It Up Blue" campaign shows not only understanding

of autism awareness but acceptance and support!

 From there, I created the slide portion with a die from Mama Elephant,

and stamped/colored and cut with my Scan N Cut the puzzle heart stamp

and stamped the sweet sentiment onto the card stock.

Fun fact! 

The heart die from the In My Heart is the PERFECT die to use

with the heart from Spencer's Set!

Here's a little video of the slider in action!

Click on the → 

Mondays are the day I post to the blog at The Project Bin.

This card and Tamie's terrific card are being showcased today ~

you can take a peek here! 

And here's another look at Spencer's Set:

Thanks for stopping by!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly