Riley's New Challenge!!

Good Morning, sweet friends ~

 still flying right along in these unbelievably crazy days, trying to catch my breath and keep a smile on through sheer exhaustion!  It's been one event after another but despite the insanity, I know how absolutely blessed we are.  Our son just finished up school on Friday and we anxiously await his sisters finishing in 2 more weeks, including one of whom will be graduating and the other moving on to the same high school :)  

Today marks the new Riley and Company bi-weekly challenge and this week, our hostess is Jovita!  She brings us a fun challenge: "anything but a card" -  how crafty, challenging + creative!

Being an avid reader, my mind went straight for a bookmark *wink!*

Using the newly released stamp "Strong", an absolutely lovely sentiment, I created this simple book marker with bold colors of yellow and blue. And the best part even yet ... this entire bookmark was made from everything scraps!  Tiny slivers of dsp, left over ribbon and buttons that needed a turn :)

To play create a card using Riley and Company images. Once you have created your card/project come back here and place a comment with a link to your card/project to this post so that we can see what you created. If you upload your card/project to SCS don't forget to include the keyword RILEY1113.  We can't wait to see what you create!

Don’t forget to check out the rest of the Design Teams blogs today so see what they created for this challenge - you can find them in my sidebar!

I leave you with this beautiful quote today :)

Promise yourself to be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.

Look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true. 

Think only of the best, work only for the best, and expect only the best. 

Forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future. 

Give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others. 

Live in the faith that the whole world is on your side so long as you are true to the best that is in you!

--Christian D. Larson

Big hugs to you, Bigger Blessings!
~Kelly

Hello, Graduate! :)

Blessings on this Sunday morn! :) 

 Life has hit full throttle here and I just can't seem to find time to craft or blog, but that just means life is busier and blessed more than ever in other wonderful areas :) With 4 kids, schools ending, a bevy of activities and ceremonies for each, and *surviving* Prom week (yes, week - what a production!) with dd18 and her circle of friends, and moms, all joining us here in our home for the photos and the mommy's *after* party.  Our oldest daughter is also graduating High School in a couple of weeks and starting college in the summer (rather than take off in the Fall) and it's been a whirlwind.  Needless to say, we booked a week long vacation for the end of June at a resort to unwind, relax and sleep!  If I could have sat down to write myself a letter to know what these past few months would be, I still would not be anywhere near prepared but that's the beauty of God's plan for us and knowing that our lives are filled with the presence of God in all things, even in the busy-ness :) I look back and reflect my mantra for this year: Simplicity and think - wow, this month more than ever am I feeling WHY I chose that word!  Lord, hear my prayers.

So how about I'm behind in creating my own card kit!  ::: Oops! :::  Apologies!

With the Dueling Darlings duel this month, Jeanette and I were the hostesses with a wonderful theme: 

Making Memories, Celebrating Moments!

Since May is traditionally the month of celebrating Mother's Day, many anniversaries, upcoming June weddings, Holy Communions and Confirmations, graduations and so much more, we thought we'd take this time to celebrate the moments that mean so much!  

I knew I wanted to make a graduation card kit this month around (one of the perks of being the hostess - so much to chose!) so I sent the Divas identical card kits using this theme.  Here is my take on my card kit!

 I searched the 'net looking for the perfect papers to match the stamp I chose to use, Tessa Tassles from Kraftin' Kimmie.  In my search, I found Carta Bella's Beautiful Moments and I bought just by the name :)  And wow, are these papers lush and gorgeous!  I had trouble deciding which paper to choose so I sent the girls all of them, along with ribbons and an assortment of embellies and topped it off with the crown jewel - Tessa Tassles from Kraftin' Kimmie ~  how I adore Kraftin' Kimmie stamps!

We also asked the teams to share a celebratory moment that was special to them.  For me, I think one of the best moments was seeing my husband finally become Dr. Santi and holding our 1 year old daughter (yes, the same one just now graduating!) - she clapped her little hands when they called his name to my enthusiatic "there's daddy" - having no clue what was really going on, but she was happy to be there none-the-less!  It's incredible to think he'll be doing the same for her in a few weeks at her graduation, too :)

Blessings to each of you and be sure to stop by and see all the Dueling Darlings to see what they made this month!

You can find them in my sidebar right over there ~~~}

Thanks for stopping by and wishing you a blessed, 
beautiful SONday :)

Big hugs, Bigger Blessings!
~Kelly

Card Making with Skittles!

Hi everyone!!  I'm so excited to be a Guest Designer for Carri at Double Click Connections :)   Carri is one of the most creative and inspiring designers, always making something whimsical and sweet to make you smile.  I've known Carri in the blogging world for years now and I can tell you ~ she is very talented as well as one of the sweetest, nicest ladies ever!   I'm delighted to showcase the magnificent Skittles that she creates.  You can find them here in her store - take a peek!

Not only are the colors vibrant and rich, but they are so versatile!  You can use these on a variety of projects, including cards and scrap-booking pages.  A little dab of glue and you are good to go!  Carri was so generous and send me these 5 gorgeous colors to work with ~ Latte, Sailboat Blue, Sunset Orange, Wild Plum and Purple Twilight ~ divine!  For my first card, I used every color!  I paired it with this cutie TGF image and added the Skittles to the coordinating colors off to the side.  With the brightness of the MME paper, it gave great allowance to use the rainbow of colors and IRL, the colorful Skittles just make this card burst!  And for Megan, I colored her with prismacolor markers and paper pieced her outfit and hairbow with matching paper to the card.

 (post edited - further deets to follow!) :)

These Skittles were so much fun to work with and Carri is so generous - you will absolutely love to craft with them! There are plenty left to continue this crafting trend :)  Please stop on by her store and take a look at the variety of colors available!  

Thanks for stopping by!

Big hugs, Bigger Blessings!

~Kelly

Entered into:  TGF - Retro/Bring on the sun
ColorQ - color challenge

The "Almost" card! :)

 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: 

but the word of our God shall stand for ever. 

~Isaiah 40:8

Oh, how I love the book of Isaiah!  It's such a powerful reflection of our salvation and God's promise to provide us a redeemer.  I can't imagine what it was like to walk in the times of these powerful prophets and preach the gospel but what beautiful words we have to reflect on, especially when they are as beautifully described (and harsh at times) as Isaiah.

I reflected on this verse a few weeks ago at bible study and it was the inspiration behind my long overdue card.  The ever so sweet Lynn of T.U.I.C. blogging group gave us a challenge (awhile!) back to create a one layer card with a flower.  Eeek!  I couldn't do it!  I tried and messed up more cardstock than one person should, lol.  I couldn't get it right no matter what I tried so I added a couple pieces of DSP and ehh .... no much better but here it is :)

I loved the challenge, Lynn, and hope to do better on the next one!

I did, however, continue on with my stamping goal of inking up my old SU stamp sets - yay!  This one was probably my 3rd or 4th stamp set that I bought - a true oldie but goodie!  Although it's a sympathy set, I chose to leave the inside blank on this one as it's not intended to be used as one.

Thank you, Lynn, for inspiring my card creation :)

Big hugs, Bigger Blessings and 

have a blessed SONday!

~Kelly

Word Art Wednesday - Anything Goes!

Riley's sending sunshine! :)

Hi there!  Happy Tuesday :)

{lots of pictures to share today 

so the final product is here, at the top!}

Today's post is for both the new Riley and Company challenge and the Crafters of Faith - so if you happen to be stopping by for either, they are one in the same! :)

The new Riley and Company challenge is up and running and the hostess this week is ME! :)  Since the end of April represents Earth Day and many 'greener' issues concerning our beautiful planet, and since I'm a huge fan of recycling - both IRL and craft-wise, I thought it would be nice to use the recycling theme with our cards this week.  So "Let's Recycle!"  Anything from wrapping paper to newspaper, cereal boxes, mesh bags, ropes and tags - the sky is the limit!  

What did I recycle this week?  A canvas frame!  I bought it in the $1 bin at a particular store with a big bulls-eye on it (smile!) but my son wasn't so interested in painting it.  So I look at it again and thought "cool, let me just re-purpose it!"  I gave it a good 'ol slather of paint - love the mixed media behind this project! 

And in order to keep up with April's theme for the Crafters of Faith to use "April Showers bring May Flowers", I inked up/colored Rainy Day Riley and added a matching flower and sentiment to the bottom from an embellishment sticker pack, sand a plethora of buttons, of course :)  My son absolutely ADORES Riley and said "So cool!" when he saw the finished project and asked if he could hang it on his wall :)  I am thinking of making him a set of 4 to keep as a shadowbox set - one Riley for each season! (we have Spring covered, lol!)

 

Be sure to link up your cards to the Riley and Company challenge blog using the "Let's Recycle" theme.  If you use a gallery to upload your cards, please use the keyword Riley0913.  AND, be sure to stop in and see what the Riley DT have created this week and our lovely Crafters of Faith as well - you can find them in my sidebar.  

Big hugs, Bigger Blessings!

~Kelly

Calendar Girls ~ New Beginnings :)

 Good Morning!
It's the 28th of the month and that means the Calendar Girls group

 post our cards with a theme chosen by the hostess :)

 This month, our hostess is the effervescent Carol with a beautiful April theme.   I have so many cards with the same theme of flowers/recycling due around the same time so my thoughts went into a different direction 

with the theme "new beginnings" :)  This year, I've been working 

towards my personal goal to use the stamps that I've had in my collection

(for a long, long time!) and use the stamps that have been gifted to me.  Like this one today!  So my new beginnings isn't a wedding or a new baby, but rather the beginning of using what's new in my stamp collection.  I added the recycled items as a checked ribbon (from an old holiday ornament and a wooden button that I've had saved for a special card.

Here is Carol's theme:

As the saying goes April showers bring May flowers....

To me April showers clean the earth of its worn out snow, dust and dirt along with nurturing new seeds and life to our surroundings (gardens, yards, trees, etc.). It also, to me signals new beginnings....so for this month I would like for you to create a card that does just that...it could be a wedding card, a baby card, even a New Years card...OR it could be a card that uses something worn out or pre-used and develop a new use for it...ex: mesh bag from fruit...used once to hold fruit: new beginning...used on the card...repurposed.. I know all of you are very talented crafters and I can hardly wait to see what you come up with...

Have fun with this challenge...     ((hugs)) Carol 

And here's my contribution!

I used the stamp from Whipper Snapper (a generous and cherished gift from Barb!) It's Raggedy Anne - colored with prismacolor markers and added to a simple card base of Kraft, pacific point and red to keep the red/blue theme that the image beckons.  I left the inside blank for now as I need to write a little note inside :)

Be sure to stop on over to the other Calendar Girls blogs to see what they've created with this theme!  

Big hugs, Bigger Blessings!
~Kelly


Entering into:  SimonsaysStamp- Anything Goes
QKRStampede - Favorite things (dolly, ribbon, button)
Craftyribbons Challenge - Ribbon

We go together ....

like Salt 'n Pepper :)

20 years ago today, almost at this hour, I married my husband - the exact other half of me.  As I look back on this blessed day and reflect on our beautiful wedding day - I smile.  I smile because I know that on that day and each one since, we have had a life together that asks for nothing less than what it's been up to now.  A life of faith, 4 beautiful children, and a bond that after 29 years together {I think we had the world's longest dating/engagement} :) is still as strong today as it was then, if not stronger ~ although I do jokingly tell my husband he can stop taking the "in sickness and in health" part so literally :)

He's truly a rare gem of a man ~ with so much beauty in his soul, it's almost hard to imagine the depths of his love and I know that I am absolutely, unequivocally blessed.

Might I add, he's also one funny man, too.  Which comes in handy when you are married to a 'Dr. Phil' ~ he knows when that little bit of humor will unravel my attempt at being tough and unbreakable ;)   Many friends when we met that we could not be more different ~ like salt 'n pepper!   Naturally, I was inspired to create a quirky little card for my hubby with the sense of humor and amazing burst of love :)  

Side view of the card

 

Here is the card inside, left blank :)

I followed the TAWS challenge to use a color photo for inspiration - lots of orange and blue (awesome Miami colors, too!) I inked up the stamps and sentiment from the TAWS Kitchen Gadgets 2 stamp set.  This card was a blast to put together.  I love creating cards with 1. lots of bursts of color and 2. using different elements for embellishments ... I'm such a tactile crafter and just love touching and rearranging all the things to go on the card.  It somehow ends up looking a little collage-y in the end, but it's such fun!  

I used up some Basic Grey Lauderdale papers from a mat stack

Thanks for stopping by today! 

I'll be entering this card into the TAWS Be Inspired #26

 challenge here!

Big hugs, Bigger Blessings!

~Kelly

I love Recycling! :)

Happy Earth Day!!

What a beautiful day this is to celebrate the gift of our Earth! 

 I love recycling and the idea of it ~ a happier, greener, more beautiful earth!  And, in a family the size of ours, it's often a necessity ;)  It's not uncommon to take the empty oatmeal container and turn it into a drum for a school project - or the shoe box becomming a nature habitat for Science class :)  I was so proud of my son for getting a blue ribbon in the Science Fair for his recycled project of taking an old mason jar and painting it, cushioning the top with foam and filling with thread upon thread with pins in the cushion top as a sewing 'kit' for his grandma.  She got quite a kick out of it :)

We're always saving 'this or that' and the list is HUGE!

Me?  I'm all about saving ribbons, buttons, tags, twine and more - you never know when you'll need them for a small project! Like crafting!

I love, love using cardboard as a embellishment - there is something about the corrugated feel to it that makes it fun to use. So when creating this card for Earth Day, I went straight for my favorite color combo:  Green, blue and brown!  I used a Bugaboo image, hug a tree, and added 3 recycled items to this card:  Cardboard, a button from an old kids dress, and bakers twine from a package.  Ta-da! 

In order to keep up with my personal LINY card challenge(use every stamp, including those gifted to me), I added a Miracles sentiment to the inside.  I've had this beautiful stamp for a few years now and although I'm humbly embarrassed that I can't remember who gifted it to me, I appreciate it! This card wouldn't have been complete without it :)  I propped up the tree on 3D dots to give it extra dimension - this card is SUPER thick, esp from the side :)

Be good to your Earth! Not just today, but every day :)

Let's keep the oceans clean, the forests intact, the vast farmlands healthy and growing.  

Big hugs, Bigger Blessings!
~Kelly

"Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours." (1 Chronicles 29:11)

Entered into:  The Kraft Journal: Recycling
Digi Darla - Recycle
CraftyBoots - Recycle
JoannaSheen - Recycle
CraftyBloggers Network - Anything Goes

Riley's all about Spring!

Happy day, everyone!

  It's always fun when a new Riley and Company challenge is beginning ~ just like Spring for so many of you :)  This week, our challenge is brought to us by DT member, Cindy, who asked us to create a card based on the flowers of Spring.  

For my card today, I went with a bold black colored cardstock.  Doesn't seem much like a Spring color, right?  I can't think of too many times I've actually crafted with it, other than Halloween but why not shake things up a little, hee hee!  Especially since when I crafting, I went straight for this paper pad I found at Tuesday Morning for a whoppin' .49c :)  It's filled with lots of bright colors, including the teal/green/black combo and I said to myself ... "Self!  Make it work!"  *smile!*  I inked up Daisy Chain Riley and colored it with prismacolor markers to match the colors pulled from the flowery dsp and added minimal embellishments.  

We'd love to see what you create with this new challenge ~ you can link up your cards on the Riley and Company blog.  And be sure to stop in and see what the DT have created using the new Spring flowers theme. 

If you use a gallery for your cards, please use the keyword Riley0813.

 Happy crafting!

Big hugs, Bigger Blessings!
~Kelly

The Dueling Darlings are in *Bloom* :)

Happy Monday, sweet friends!  

 I can't believe it's been a week since I've posted  - and even longer since I've crafted :(  I've been absolutely swamped here with the 4 kids and their schools/schedules - not to mention their End of year Chorus shows, after school activities, appointments, Taylor Swift concert and more  ::: whew! ::: 

And today is the 15th of the month and that means the Dueling Darlings post our card kits!  This month, our kit was sent to us by Tami and this month's duel chosen by Tami (for the Divas) and Darlene (for the Dazzlers) chose the theme of: Flowers!  What a beautiful theme.  Tami sent us this beautiful stamped image of a sunflower by (I think!) Delta Creative Sunflower II.  I colored it with prismacolor markers and added a bit of sunburst stickles to give it a bit more pop, and then propped it up on 3D dots.  I fussy colored this one imagining that as God created the flowers, he created each one unique and beautiful! Tami also sent a matching Bloom sentiment so I added that to the inside of the card, and carried over some of the left over dsp to the inside as well.  My eye went straight for the earthy colors of dsp and aside from the cardstock, everything is from Tami's kit.  Overall, it's a pretty simple card layout but I'm happy with how this 'sunny' card turned out! :)  This is one of those "I promise it looks better IRL" cards, LOL!

 

In addition to creating a card, Tami and Darlene asked us to share what our favorite flower is.  My favorite flowers are tulips!  I adore them!  I fell in love with tulips when we first moved to Germany ~ my mom planted rows of them in a garden she created.  We visited Holland one year and that was it - It was beyond replaceable as my favorite flower from them on :)  

Coincidentally, my second favorite flower is the sunflower!  We even have a field close to our home with wild sunflowers growing there and it's a gorgeous view, especially with the setting sun behind them.  I'll try to take that picture one day for you :)   Thank you, Tami, for a beautiful card kit to work with.  I hope I did it justice, and really enjoyed working with the Sunflower image and your lovely card kit!

Big hugs, Bigger Blessings!
~Kelly

Entered into: Simon says stamp: Spring Flowers

I hope you dance :)

Good Morning!  I hope your weekend was a blessed, wonderful one :)  

I'm happily continuing onward with my "Use Every Stamp" Challenge :)  What I usually do is grab a few SU! sets, mostly at random, and create :)  Like this card!  It was next in line of the "UES" pile and oh how it makes me smile at remembering my own daughters twirling around in tutos and ballet slippers.  I've used this stamp set once before but it was so nice to ink it up!

I found this wonderful sketch and just knew it was the one I wanted to use :)  I inked up the SU! Dance Sketches and fussy colored the image 

as there aren't really clear, crisp line to follow and I wanted to have

 the same link with the markers.  The inside is using one of the 

sentiments that come with the set and such beautiful words ~ hopefully we'll always have a little dance in every day!

Big hugs, Bigger Blessings!
~Kelly

Entered into:  Sketch and Stash Challenge - Sketch
Cutie Pie Challenge #41 - Favorite Films - The Black Swan
Kaboodle Doodle - Any Shade of Pink (Pixie Pink)

Howdy, Pard'ner!

Happy Weekend, all!

It's a whole lot rainy and yucky here in Miami, 

but onward we roll with the kid's weekend activities ;)

And I'm still moving along with my personal challenge this year

to "Use Every Stamp" as per the MCC challenge.

It's almost my BIL's birthday and I wanted to make a card

to reflect him, which is hard, since he does 'one of each!' 

He's raised and trained quarter horses for many years now, as well as did his fair share of rodeoing in the past :)  So I thought inking up my Bronc Buster stamp set would be fitting - keeping it pretty basic as he won't mind - LOL! 

As a confirmed batchelor (unlike his brother - my dh - with 4 kids!), he'll be tickled to see a card from his "olden days" :)   

Both images are stamped in Early Expresso ink from SU!

as well as the dsp - Western Sky from my hoarded stashed pile :)

I kept the embellishments to the bare minimum as I didn't want to 

add any flowers or over embellish it.  I added some hemp cord and hemp ribbon to give it that 'western' feel.  

And that's about it from me today!

Have a great weekend, friends!
Big hugs, Bigger Blessings!
~Kelly

The Boo-Boo card ...

Good morning, sweet friends!  

Yes, I made a boo-boo!  And even though I'm one of the clumsiest people ever, the boo-boo is actually my card! :)   

You know those moments when you are gettin' your craft on and you make a silly mistake?   Sometimes I catch myself looking at the 'error' and think "uh-oh, time to start over." But the real challenge is looking at it again - rethink it and craft onward :) 

That's exactly what happened to me when I inked up my Sweet 'N Sassy stamp set "Poppies and Greetings", a set I've had for forever-and-ever.  I inked up this darling stamp, and placed it on the paper, right where it was supposed to be - easy peasy!  Until I lifted it back up and realized a splotch of ink went with it!  Doh!

Rather than just start over, I challenged myself to a little creativity and just restamped the image again, cut out one of the flowers and added it over the splooch :) 

Take a peek at the boo-boo card, all mended and blended and healed up with love and care....

I started with the boo-boo ........ 

and ended with this! 

Here is the inside of my card - left blank for now :)

I added an extra blossom and an extra stem, propped it up for more dimension and then gave it a sprinkling of yellow stickles.
I'm so pleased with how this card turned out and how cheerful it feels, which is super since it started out as a boo-boo! :)

I would love to hear your boo-boos that you've made and how you turned them into something wonderful!  As always, thanks for stopping in today!

Big hugs, Bigger Blessings!

~Kelly

Riley Challenge: Int'l Children's Book Day :)

Hi, friends!  Just a little while ago, I tucked little man in after reading a few chapters of the book "we" are currently on *smile* :)  He cherishes the nightly 'mommy and me' time we have, snuggled up in his little bed, reading page after page of his current book.  It's truly bliss :)   

And today - April 2nd - happens to be Hans Christian Andersen's birthday and International Children's Book Day!  So Riley and Company stamps bi-weekly challenge is all about children's books, brought to us by the ever fabulous, Frances!  The theme to create with your Riley stamps this challenge:
Create a card/project using a children's book as your inspiration.   LOVE LOVE this challenge!

For my card today, I thought a little outside the box in order to create a card that I cherished when I was little, and in turn, all 4 of our kids have had this as a favorite, too.  Perhaps you've read - or own your copy of - The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams.  I remember the first time I read it to my children, I had teary eyes and their little faces looked up with such despair.  Fear not, it does have a happy ending:) Oh how I adore that book so much!

Here's the inside of my card :)

I went with a simple card design since the papers have such bold colors.  I colored Riley and his rabbit friend, Buster, with prismacolor markers and left the inside blank for now. 

Want to play along????

If you would like to play along with us of course we would love to have you! AND - if you do, you could be in the running to win free rubber ... One lucky person per challenge will win our Logo Riley image which isn't available for purchase. You will also get the chance to display a winner's button on your blog. So get stamping Riley fans :)

To play create a card using Riley and Company images.  

Once you have created your card/project come back here and place a comment with a link to your card/project to this post so that we can see what you created. If you upload your card/project to SCS don't forget to include the keyword RILEY0713. We can't wait to see what you create!

Be sure  to check out the Riley and Company Design Team's cards on their blogs - you can find them in my sidebar!

And in the words of the cherished Hans Christian Andersen, I leave you this:

“Just living is not enough," said the butterfly, "one must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower.”― Hans Christian Andersen

Big Hugs, Bigger Blessings!
~Kelly

Entered into:  Twisted Tuesday- Animals and Flowers 

Mornin', Nurse Margaret!

LOL, isn't she sweet!  *chuckle!*   With my daughter, we've had our fair share of appointments lately and I can tell you - I'm glad we haven't run into any nurses like Margaret! 

Today is April Fool's Day - a day all about jokes :)  But one thing not so funny is that it's time to say goodbye to Bugaboo as a Guest Designer :(   Thank you, Bugaboo, for the opportunity to work with your images and team - it was great fun!

Since today is all about jokes, I thought I'd showcase this hilarious Nurse Margaret and her thoughts on joking ~ apparently, none!  But don't worry - you'll see her again.  May is National Nurse's Month - maybe she'll be happier by then, hee hee!

Spring Break is over here and it's back to school.

I already miss the babies but it will be good to get them back on some sort of schedule - and me, too! 

Have a fabulously fun day!

Big hugs, Bigger Blessings!

~Kelly