Hula Scene!

With my shy personality, I normally don't like to be the center of attention and I sure don't like to cause a scene. However, this Hula Pig (879E) is causing a scene and telling everyone to get your 'hula on' for this week's DRS Designs Blog challenge! The theme is to create a scene using any image, die cut, paper, or technique.

 

This scene was created by using the masking and sponging techniques. The Hula Pig, the Sandcastle (090G) and the Palm Tree (886G) images were masked and then the sky and the beach sand were sponged. I used Copic markers to color in the stamped images.  Next, I used the Top Note Die to cut out my scene from the white cardstock it was created on and then matted it with pink cardstock before adhering it in place on a light blue cardstock base. I stamped the Sending You Sunshine Greeting (094D) on a flag banner and embellished it with a small red flower that was held in place with a tiny pink brad. The final step was adhering it to the card front as shown.
 

Do you like to create scenes with your stamps? I encourage you to join me in the Create A Scene challenge and enter your creation to win a great prize from DRS Designs. Good luck! 

Thanks for stopping by today!

 

Smiles,

Jennifer

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Lighthouse Sunset

Hey Everybody!
Have you seen the new color challenge on the DRS Designs Blog? I love it!!!! Here's the inspiration photo:

 

Maybe it's because I'm the Mother of 2 boys and I see colors like these all the time, but they inspired me to create a masculine card. I coordinated them with DRS Designs Lighthouse stamp (461G) and thought the yellow, orange and blue would make a gorgeous sunset.  I think I was right! ;-)

 

 

I colored the image with Copic Markers and then used Nestibility dies to cut it out and layer it with coordinating cardstock. I embellished it with a spiral clip and tied some twine in a knot around it.  The A2 size cardstock base was made from Navy cardstock and I layered half of it on a diagonal with orange and light blue cardstock as shown.  I stamped the Small Birthday Wishes" Greeting (020B) at the bottom and adhered the embellished image in the center.

 

Too bad I don't have any masculine birthdays left for this Summer.  This beauty will have to wait until next year! ;-)

 

Have a great day!

 

Smiles,

Jennifer

 

 

 

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Seaside Birthday!

  One of the things I love about where we live in Michigan is that we are close to the water. Growing up as a little girl, it wasn't uncommon for us to spend the weekend on my Grandfather's boat. Swimming and picnic lunches were what the Summers were all about! This Seaside Dock image (1111K) by DRS Designs reminds me of those times. If my Grandfather was still alive, this would have been the perfect birthday card for him.

 

  

I colored the Seaside Dock and the Anchor (434G) with Copic markers. Both of them were matted in red and then with blue. I stamped the first line of the Beach Birthday Greeting (480G) just above the Seaside Dock image. The remaining portion of the greeting was stamped inside the card. I simply embellished this card with two red brads in the bottom right corner, and my card was complete!

Thanks for taking the time to stop by today, and have a wonderful 4th of July weekend!

  

Smiles,

Jennifer

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Sitting Here, Thinking Of You!

We are getting ready to go on our Summer vacation in just a few short weeks, but oh, what I wouldn't give to be sitting in this chair right now! Doesn't this look lovely? I love the way this turned out! I can imagine myself sitting here, thinking of just about anything with an umbrella drink in my hand!

This little scene was created with several stamps from DRS Designs and lots of masking.

  

Adirondack Chair (450C)

Palm Tree (886G)

Sea Grass (128L)

 

The clouds the water in the sun or all done by sponging colored ink. I added a little bit of color to the palm tree and the chair with Copic Markers. The sea grass was stamped at the bottom in green and brown inks. And a white gel pen was used to add some wave accents to the water. I split up the Sitting Thinking Greeting (398F) on either side of the stamped scene to accommodate the layout. I hope you like this as much as I do!  

 Do you have any plans by the beach this Summer?

 

 Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

 

Smiles,

Jennifer

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On Father's Day!

For some reason whenever I see a lighthouse, it makes me think of my Dad. I guess this is why I tend to go with beachy, seaside scenes when I pick my Father's Day cards, and that's exactly how I felt when I received the new Lighthouse stamp (461G) from DRS Designs new release.  Of course, I had to use it to make this year's Father's Day card!

 

 

The colors I chose to make this card with were inspired by the color challenge on the DRS Designs Blog this week.  Here's the inspiration photo:

The light house image was colored with Copic Markers, and I matted it with a red, scallop rectangle.  The back ground was embossed with the Anchor Embossing folder and trimmed in red.  I used a turquoise cardstock base and stamped the "On Father's Day" Greeting (034D) in the lower left corner. I assembled the background as shown and I embellished the matted image with a navy banner, layered with a smaller pink banner before adhering it into place just off center. As with all my cards, I know my Dad will love this!!!
Curious about this Lighthouse stamp and the others from this release? Go check them out on the DRS Designs website! they are now available for purchase!!!

 

Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!!

Smiles, 

Jennifer

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Beachy Birthday!

 

Yeah! Today I'm celebrating a new DRS Designs Blog challenge AND new stamps!  Yep, DRS Designs has a new release coming out and it's screaming SUMMER!!!  The new challenge posted for this week is perfect for showing them off--take a look at what I created for their "Just Beachy" theme!

 

 

I used the masking technique to add this new Mermaid (472F) to the Brush Beach Sunrise (768L).  The way she's chillin' on the beach reminds me of one of my favorite Disney movies, The Little Mermaid! I colored the scene with Copic Markers and then stamped the Beach Birthday Greeting (480G) over top of the sand and water.  This greeting is also part of the new release.  The card front was simply embellished with a little matching purple fish brad placed in the lower right corner. Then, the stamped scene was adhered to violet cardstock and adhered onto a dark purple cardstock base. 

Hope you like it as much as I do!
Thanks for stopping by!

Smiles,

Jennifer

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Sandcastles and Sunshine

  Hi Everyone!  In honor of the first day of Summer today, this Sandcastle and Sunshine card was created for the new color challenge on the DRS Designs blog using sand and sea colors, and the Splitcoast Ways To Use It Challenge, "Sand." It seems like forever since I've created a card for 2 different challenges, but since they both involved using sand, it turned out to be pretty easy!

I'm loving this new Sandcastle image (090G) that DRS Designs just released.  It's perfect for this time of year and paired perfectly with the Sending you Sunshine Greeting (094D). Together they make a cheerful card.  Wouldn't you agree?

 I colored the image with Copic Markers and used a wave border on the background layers.  A salmon pink cardstock panel was embossed with the Tiny Bubbles Embossing Folder and the seam where it was added near the wave border was covered with grosgrain ribbon tied in a knot. I added 2 dark brown brads to the lower left corner, which completed the look. 

I hope your Summer is off to a fabulous start!

Thanks for stopping by! 

Smiles,

Jennifer

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A Little Sunshine!

Today I am sharing a little sunshine with this card!  It shows off 2 new stamps recently released from DRS Designs, the Sandcastle (090G) and the Sending You Sunshine Greeting (094D).  I've also used the Polka Dot Background (688P) to create my own pattern paper on the light blue panel.

This Sandcastle image makes me want to just drop everything and run to the beach! Do you get that feeling?  I colored it with Copic Markers and sponged blue ink for the sky while it was in a Nestie die. This creates a nice, white frame around the image that doesn't necessarily need matting.  The layout used here was from the Splitcoast Sketch challenge, SC487. I love this layout! This is actually the second time I've used it and I'm sure I'll put it to use again in the future as well.  The yellow panel in the back was dry embossed and after adding a strip of blue cardstock to the right side, a brown grosgrain ribbon was added to decorate the bottom. A starfish brad embellished the greeting nicely and all of the panels adhered together were placed on a kraft A2 cardstock base. 

I hope there is warmer weather trending where you live and that you're able to enjoy it! 

Thanks for stopping by!

Smiles,

Jennifer

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Beach Sympathy

Hi Everybody! 
Hope you all had a nice long holiday weekend!  The last 5 days have been very busy for me and I didn't get a chance to share my card for last week's DRS Blog Challenge until now. 

My goal for completing their challenge to use punches was to come up with a layout to mass produce some sympathy cards. Below is the layout I came up with however it turned out to be more involved than I thought and this was the only one I made.

I really like the focal image used on this card. I heat embossed the Sea Grass (128L) on glossy cardstick and sponged each part of it with the appropriate color ink. Then it was matted with kraft cardstock. The One Line Heartfelt Condolences was stamped on a banner and the edges were inked with yellow ink before matting it with kraft cardstock. The sentiment and image were adhered in placed as shown on a light blue card front that was embossed with the Swiss Dots embossing folder. A decorative corner punch was used in the upper left corner and a yellow brad was added there as well.  The cardfront was then adhered to an A2 cardstock base made from kraft cardstock.  The finishing touch was adding some punched butterflies that were decorated with coordinating rhinestones.  

Thanks for stopping by and be sure to check out all the details for the paper punch challenge HERE.

Smiles,

Jennifer

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Summer!

I know Memorial Day usually marks the beginning of Summer, but for us now that it's the 4th of July, Summer is truly here! Since Memorial Day the weather has been decent--temps in the 70's but we've also had tons of rain as if it's early Spring! However, as of this week true Summer weather has arrived--we have the hot 80 degree temps with the muggy, humid weather that we are used to for Summer.

Ironically, the challenge this week on the DRS Designs Blog is Summer Sun, Summer Fun!  DRS Designs is giving away a $10 store voucher to one lucky winner.  I don't qualify for the prize, but I played along anyways.  Here's my Summer Challenge card:

I created the beach scene first by stamping the starfish and the bucket from the 4 in 1 Beach Background (1099D).  Then, I masked them and stamped the Seagrass (128L) over top.  I sponged on brown ink for the sand and used Copic Markers to shade the sky and color the starfish, bucket and grasses.  

In the center I added the Summer Wording Square (826G) that was colored with Copic Markers,  fussy cut, and adhered with foam tape for dimension.  I added yellow Stickles to the sun's rays for a bit of bling. Some yellow pearls and some twine wrapped around the top of the card front completed this A2 card nicely.

I hope you're having a fabulous Summer! 

Thanks for stopping by!

Smiles,

Jennifer

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Retirement Wishes!

Hello fellow Stampers and card makers, happy Monday to you all!

Today I'm sharing with you DRS Designs next sponsorship that began yesterday, August 7th and runs this entire week. 

 It's with the Cupcake Inspirations Blog.  The challenge is to use the cupcake picture below for your inspiration--it can be used for color, shape, texture or however else it may inspire you.  

**DRS Designs is giving away at $10.00 Store voucher to one lucky participant just for playing along--it could be you!

This photo inspired me to use it as a color challenge--the dark pink, green, and bright turquoise colors popped right out at me! I used them to create this Happy Retirement card.

I know when I retire I'd love to spend it on the beach, and I'm sure some of you would as well.  For this reason I picked the Brush Flamingo scene stamp (1054L) for the focal point on this card. It was colored with Copic Markers and I paired it with the Best Wishes Retirement Greeting (942D).  I didn't get too fancy with my embellishments on this card--need to keep things quick these days as my newborn baby is demanding a lot of attention! *wink* I used a decorative border punch, a ribbon scrap attached with a standard staple, and some clear rhinestones gems that I colored with my Copic Markers to match.  If this card has sparked your interest, (which I hope it has!) make sure to check out all of the other stamps in DRS  Designs Retirement Collection. 

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

Smiles,

Jennifer

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For You Dad!

Father's Day is right around the corner...are you ready?  Here's the card I made for my Dad. 

This Stampabilities Beacon of Light stamp is one of my favorites for creating a masculine card.  I colored it with Copic Markers and inked the edges with Vintage Photo Distressing ink.   The sentiment tag I created was made using a stamp from The Angel Company.  I sponged it with distressing ink while it was still in a Nestie die to give it the white frame look.  I thought the twine and eyelets embellishments gave it a very nautical feel.  Would you agree? 

Thanks for stopping by and for leaving me a comment. I greatly appreciate them and enjoy reading every single one!

Have a great day!

Smiles,

Jennifer

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Sea Shells By The Sea Shore

Along with the other new "Fun in the Sun" releases from DRS Designs was this Conch Shell image. It's a great complement to all of the beach theme stamps, but for today's card I decided to pair it with this "Take Time to Laugh" sentiment. I love the soft, serene feel this card has.

I'm really happy with how this clean and simple card turned out. I don't do "clean and simple" very often because I have a hard time accepting all of the empty space and my perfectionist eye really wanted to add more to this one--a few brads here, a metal clip there, and I think it needs a touch more ribbon too! BUT, I was trying to take a new turn with this one, so clean and simple it is! LOL!

Here's a close up of the conch shell that I colored with Prismacolor Pencils and Gamsol. I love that peachy, coral color!

Stamps: DRS Designs- Conch Shell (F1107), Take Time To Laugh Sentiment (E026)
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black, SU! Creamy Caramel
Paper: Smooth white cardstock by Office Depot, Textured cardstock by American Crafts and Bazzill
Accessories: Prismacolor Pencils, Gamsol, Nesties, Cuttlebug and Cuttlebug Swiss Dots Embossing Folder, Ribbon unknown
Finished Card Size: 4.5" x 5.5"

This card is the theme to how I'm going to handle this week--Cool, calm, and collected! I plan on relaxing a bit as it's the calm before the storm per say. My sister-in-law is getting married on August 8th, so with all of the wedding festivities that will be going on next week, it will be a little hectic around here. I'm her Matron of Honor and she'll be getting ready for the big day at our house. I know it will be a lot of fun, and it's probably going to feel like Hollywood with the Photographer and Videographer at my house, but until then we have a lot on our Honey-do lists to get ready. Earlier this week we finally got our sod put in--yeah, no more DIRT! I'll have pics to show you of all our new landscaping too. So, that's definitely one less thing to worry about for next week--check!

Have a great day!

Smiles,
Jennifer

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