The Sparkling Scrapper

Stamping Together Divas: Winter/Snow Cards!

2012-01-28T08:46:00.000-08:00

Hi! Thanks for stopping by to get a closer look at the card I made for our latest Stamping Together Divas challenge!

Our theme for this one is winter/snow...good thing I made this one a few weeks ago, because after the snow storm we had in Washington last week, I don't think I would have been in the mood to make one!

Normally, when we get snow here it's a few inches or a light dusting. This last storm dumped 13 inches where we lived and knocked our electricity out for 3 days...what made it even worse is that our apartment is all electric! Being without electricity for several days sure makes me appreciate having it!

I've lived in snowy conditions before...when I first married Scott, I moved up to Watertown, New York, where he was stationed. This is a picture I took in 2007...it makes me cold whenever I look at it...LOL!

On to something much sweeter! Here's my card for this challenge, using one of my favorite Imaginisce stamps:

Supplies: card base, Copic markers, kraft cardstock, image stamp (Imaginisce), sentiment stamp (Paper Smooches), snowflake accent (Imaginisce), patterned paper (My Mind's Eye), embossing folder, scalloped circle die (Spellbinders), ink (Tsukineko Brilliance)

Hope you have a wonderful weekend! I'll be helping my fellow Diva Sparkle in her booth at the Craft & Hobby Association (CHA) Show in Anaheim, CA!

To see what the other Stamping Together Divas created for this challenge, visit the blog! And, if you've been inspired to create your own winter or snow themed creation, we'd love to see it! Just link it up at the Stamping Together Divas blog! Thanks for stopping by, and see you there!

Flutter By Wednesday #187

2012-01-25T00:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Wednesday and welcome back for another Flutter By Wednesday challenge! Thanks to everybody who played along with us last week...your creations were fantastic!

If you weren't able to join us last week, I hope you'll play along with us this week! Our challenge for this week is embossing (any type). Don't forget your fairy, butterfly or angel on your entry!

My card for this week features an adorable digi (Party Pinkette August) from Tickled Pink Stamps!

I made this card for my niece, Olivia, who recently celebrated her 8th birthday! I used both dry embossing (the pink cardstock mat around the stamp) and heat embossing (for the sentiment). Olivia loved that I made the girl on the card look like her!

Supplies: image (Tickled Pink Stamps), felt butterfly accent (SEI), patterned paper (Basic Grey - Sweet Threads), sentiment stamp (Paper Smooches), ribbon, glitter brads, cardstock (Stampin' UP!), embossing powder, watermark ink, Copic markers, card base, opaque white and silver glitter pens.

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Flutter By Wednesday Design Team: Danni, Anna, Amanda, Harriet, Karen, Kristie, Leanne, Lynette, Mary, Michelle VP, Michelle, and Nancy!

There's no sponsor for this week's challenge, so you can enter more than once if you'd like! Just remember to use any type of embossing, and include your fairy, butterfly or angel on your entry!

I'm traveling to CHA this weekend, but I'll be checking back to see what you've created for this week's challenge! Link up at the Flutter By Wednesday blog! Thanks for stopping by and see you there!

colourQ #121

2012-01-24T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge!

It's so good to be back in the routine of crafting and blogging...we were without power for almost 4 days after a massive snow and ice storm hit our area of Washington state. It's so good to have things back to normal again!

Here's my card for this week! The stamp set I used is a Lawn Fawn mini set that I got from my "Secret Elf" Sandy at our craft group's Christmas gift exchange. The ribbon was given to me by my fellow Royal Court member Rochelle!

Supplies: card base, image and sentiment stamps ("My Cup of Tea" - Lawn Fawn), ink (VersaMark watermark ink, Tsukineko Brilliance, Stampin' Up Classic ink in Riding Hood Red and Crumb Cake), cardstock (Stampin' Up!), ribbon (Stampin' Up!)

and here are our colors for this week:

To be considered for this week's colourQueen, make sure to link your creation at the colourQ blog by Sunday, January 29 at noon Central Time! Don't forget to display the challenge colors and link back to the colourQ blog in your entry post.

As always, The rest of the colourQ Royal Court have created some fantastic and fun projects with this week's colors! You can see them on the colourQ blog or by visiting their personal blogs. (The links are to the left under the thumbnail of this week's challenge colors.)

I'll be traveling to CHA in Anaheim this weekend! I can't wait...it's my first time there and I'm helping my friend Sparkle with her booth for Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps! Hope you all have a wonderful week and weekend! I'll be back tomorrow with my Flutter By Wednesday card!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ!

Flutter By Wednesday #186

2012-01-18T00:00:00.000-08:00

Thanks for stopping by to see what I've created for this week's Flutter By Wednesday challenge! This week's challenge is open, so anything goes (just don't forget your fairy, butterfly or angel on your creation)!

Thanks to everybody who played along with us last week...so many fabulous flutterings out there! I hope you'll find time to play along with us!

Here's my card, which features one of my all-time favorite patterned paper collections (Crate Paper's Pink Plum)!

Supplies: patterned paper and rub-on graphics (Crate Paper - Pink Plum collection), sentiment stamp (Stampin' Up!), digital stamp (Some Odd Girl Stamps - Kimono Kaylee), Stickles, brads, Copic markers, card base.

Are you ready to flutter along with us? The FBW team have created some lovely creations to inspire you! To see what they've created for this week's challenge, visit: Danni, Anna, Amanda, Harriet, Karen, Kristie, Leanne, Lynette, Mary, Michelle VP, Michelle, and Nancy!

Thanks for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create for this week's Flutter By Wednesday challenge! Since we don't have a sponsor this week, you can enter more than once! (don't forget your fairy, butterfly or angel!) Link up your creation(s) at the Flutter By Wednesday blog! See you there!

colourQ #120

2012-01-17T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! Thanks to everybody who played along with us last week...so many stunning takes on the challenge! If you weren't able to join us last week, I hope you will this week!

We've had snow here in Washington state this weekend...so it's been nice to stay in and get some crafty projects done! The snow is definitely pretty, but I'm not a big fan of driving around in it!

Here's my card for this week! I haven't paper pieced an image in some time, but I thought this stamp is perfect for it! I used some Studio Calico paper for the kimono, and some SU Wisteria Wonder card stock for the sash and trim.

Supplies: patterned paper (polka dot - Echo Park Dots & Stripes Christmas, Studio Calico), card stock (Island Indigo, Wisteria Wonder, Rich Razzleberry - Stampin' Up!) glitter brads (Making Memories), Copic markers, image and sentiment stamp ("Good Fortune"- Pure Innocence), ink (Tsukineko Brilliance), white satin ribbon, card base.

and here are our richly inspiring colors for you to play with:

To be considered for this week's colourQueen, make sure to link your creation at the colourQ blog by Sunday, January 22 at noon Central Time! Don't forget to display the challenge colors and link back to the colourQ blog in your entry post.

Thanks so much for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ!

Flutter By Wednesday #185

2012-01-11T00:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Wednesday and welcome back for another Flutter By Wednesday challenge! Thanks to all who fluttered along with us last week! And even if you weren't able to play along, I hope you'll find time to join us this week!

This week's challenge is to "get rid of the winter blahs"...so we want to see bright colors on your entry! (In addition to a butterfly, fairy, or angel, of course!)

Here's my card for this week's challenge! The main image is a digital stamp from The Greeting Farm:

Supplies: card base, sentiment stamp (Hero Arts), digital stamp (The Greeting Farm - Summer Fairy), patterned paper (Basic Grey - Indie Bloom), embossing folder (Sizzix), Copic markers, Stickles, Spellbinders Labels 8 die, foam tape, brads.

So, are you ready to flutter along with us? The FBW team have created some gorgeous bright and cheery creations to inspire you! To see what they've created for this week's challenge, visit: Danni, Anna, Amanda, Harriet, Karen, Kristie, Leanne, Lynette, Mary, Michelle VP, Michelle, and Nancy!

Thanks for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create for this week's Flutter By Wednesday challenge! Since we don't have a sponsor this week, you can enter more than once! Link up your creation(s) at the Flutter By Wednesday blog! See you there!

colourQ #119

2012-01-10T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! I had fun with this week's set of challenge colors, and finally used a digi that I've had for a while, but was never sure what to do with it!

Thanks to everybody who stopped by to visit for this weekend's DeNami blog hop! I also had a lot of fun seeing what everybody made for the hop! Can't wait to do it again! If you missed it, scroll down to the previous post or click here!

Here's my colourQ card for this week...it's a mini card, about 4 x 4 inches.

Supplies: white cardstock, Melon Mambo, Pretty in Pink and Pumpkin Pie cardstock (Stampin' Up!), grey and orange striped patterned paper (Echo Park Dots & Stripes), Spellbinders Lacey Circles die, digital stamp (Some Odd Girl), sentiment stamp (Paper Smooches), twine (Whisker Graphics), button (Stampin' Up!), Copic markers, ink (Tsukineko Brilliance)

and here's our fun colourQ for you to play with!

To be considered for this week's colourQueen, make sure to link your creation at the colourQ blog by Sunday, January 15 at noon Central Time! Don't forget to display the challenge colors and link back to the colourQ blog in your entry post.

We're also welcoming a new member to the colourQ Royal Court: Silke Ledlow! We're all so excited to have her join the team!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ!

DeNami Valentine Blog Hop!

2012-01-08T05:55:00.000-08:00

Hi! You've probably arrived from Ruza's blog, and now you're visiting me (Suzanne)! Thanks for stopping by to see what I've created for this month's DeNami Blog Hop!

My first project is a quick treat packaging idea:

I made a tag for each treat using the heart stamp from DeNami's Sugar Cookies Trifles stamp set, stamping it once on kraft cardstock, then again on white cardstock in brown ink. I layered the white stamped image on the kraft image, and colored the "sprinkles" with a marker.

The sentiment on each tag was stamped with watermark ink (from DeNami's Love Sentiments Petit Fours set), then heat embossed with white embossing powder. I used an opaque white marker to create the border, adhered the heart to the tag, then adhered the red strip onto the kraft tag.

Then, I filled a paper cupcake wrapper with candy and placed it in a clear treat bag. The tag is then tied to the clear bag with a combination of red raffia and red/white twine.

Here's a close-up of one of the bags:

My second project is a pencil topper. I stamped and colored DeNami Design's Puppy Love Circle stamp, then used a metal die to cut out the image. If you have a coordinating circle or scalloped circle punch, that will work, too!

I rolled a 1/2" strip of white cardstock around the top of the pencil, securing the end with adhesive. I rolled a glue dot onto the seam of the rolled strip, then adhered the stamped image. Finally, to strengthen the topper, I cut a 2 1/2" long strip of white cardstock, rolled adhesive on the strip, then lined it up with the back of the topper and adhered it. The extra strip helps to keep the design from curling.

Don't forget to leave comments on all of the participants' blogs for a chance to win a $20 gift certificate to DeNami Design's web store! You have until January 9, 2012 at 11:59 pm Pacific Time to leave your comments!

Your next stop on the hop is Tammy's blog! I'm sure she's created something sweet to show you! If you need to get back on track, visit the DeNami blog for a list of all of the hop participants! And be sure to leave them some love to let them know how much you've enjoyed the hop!

I hope you've been inspired by my projects! Thanks so much for stopping by!

Flutter By Wednesday #184

2012-01-04T00:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Wednesday! You may have arrived at my blog (The Sparkling Scrapper - Suzanne) from Karen's blog! Welcome to my first post as one of the new members of the Flutter By Wednesday Design Team!

I'm so excited to join fellow new members Karen, Lynette and Leanne and the rest of the team to bring you fabulous and inspiring creations each week!

For our first challenge of 2012, we're sponsored by Bugaboo Stamps! One lucky person who plays along with us this week will win seven free Bugaboo digis!

We'd also like to send out a huge THANK YOU to everybody who played along with our December challenge! We loved seeing all of your fabulous creations!

Here's my card, which features a super cute Bugaboo fairy! (I drew the mouth on her face...it's a quirk of mine.):

Supplies: patterned paper (My Mind's Eye - Honey Pie mini pad), sentiment (SRM Stickers), twine (Whisker Graphics), digital stamp (Bugaboo Stamps), Copic markers, border punch (Fiskars), brads, card base.

So, are you ready to flutter along with us? Be sure to visit the entire FBW team to see what they've created for this week's challenge! Your next stop on the hop is Lynette! If you lose your way, you can always go back to the FBW blog or scroll down for the master list!

Thanks for stopping by!

I can't wait to see what you'll create for this week's Flutter By Wednesday challenge! (Don't forget that your entry must contain a butterfly, fairy or an angel!)

FBW Hop List:

FBW Blog
Michelle VP
Karen
Suzanne - you're here!
Lynette
Amanda

Kristie

colourQ #118

2012-01-03T21:35:00.000-08:00

Hope you had a wonderful holiday season! Sorry I'm running a little behind today! I meant to take my picture last night and schedule my post, but my camera was still in my suitcase from the holidays, and my early-rising husband had already gone to bed!

Thanks to everyone who submitted projects for last week's challenge...there were so many gorgeous entries! I hope you'll find time to play along with us again this week!

Here's my card for this week's colourQ challenge (#118)!

Supplies: card base, felt snowflakes and cardstock (Stampin' Up!), border punch (Martha Stewart Crafts), image and sentiment stamps (Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps), button, twine, patterned paper (Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses, Echo Park Dots & Stripes, aMuse Studio red woodgrain), ink (Tsukineko Brilliance), Copic markers, decorative scissors.

And here are our colors for this week...don't they make you look forward to spring?

To be considered for this week's colourQueen, make sure to link your creation at the colourQ blog by Sunday, January 8 at noon Central Time! Don't forget to display the challenge colors and link back to the colourQ blog in your entry post.

Thanks so much for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ!

Unscripted Sketches #139

2011-12-31T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Saturday and Happy New Year's Eve! I'd like to share my final card as a member of the Unscripted Sketches design team...I'm transitioning to a new opportunity in 2012!

After being a member of the team for over a year, I thought it was a good time to step aside and create a spot for a new designer to step in and become a part of the team!

Unscripted Sketches was the first design team that I joined, and I'm so honored to have had the opportunity to create with the fabulous ladies on the team! I wish each of them the best, and I plan to play along with Unscripted Sketches again soon, and I hope you'll find time to play along, too!

Here's my card! I took the picture when we were traveling for Christmas...since I didn't have my light box with me, I had to improvise!

Supplies: card base, patterned paper (Basic Grey - Out of Print), image and sentiment stamps (Priscilla - Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps), embossing folder (Sizzix), adhesive gems (aMuse Studio), ink (Tsukineko Brilliance), Copic markers.

Here's our sketch for this week (I rotated it for my card):

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I hope you have a safe and wonderful new year celebration...see you in 2012!

colourQ #117

2011-12-27T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! If you recently celebrated Christmas or Hanukkah, I hope you had a wonderful holiday! We're back from a short trip to visit with Scott's family in California!

I'm sure you'll have fun playing along with us this week if you have time...our last colourQ of 2011 lets you get creative with the color combo!

Here's my card...I know it's Christmas-y, but I got these stamps right before Christmas and couldn't wait to use them:

Supplies: card base, embossing powder (black & white), Copic markers, sheep and sentiment stamps (Memory Box), snowflake stamp (Imaginisce), patterned paper (Stampin' Up! - houndstooth; aMuse Studio - red woodgrain), ribbon, ink (VersaMark, Tsukineko Brilliance), brads.

For this week's colourQ, you get to pick part of the combo! My extra color was red (of course!), but you can pick any one extra color and create something wonderful to share with us!

To be considered for this week's colourQueen, make sure to link your creation at the colourQ blog by Sunday, January 1 at noon Central Time! Don't forget to display the challenge colors and link back to the colourQ blog in your entry post.

Thanks so much for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ!

Unscripted Sketches #138

2011-12-24T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Saturday and a merry Christmas Eve! It's time for another Unscripted Sketches challenge! If it's Christmas or Hanukkah where you are, I hope you're enjoying the holidays!

Here's my card for this week:

Supplies: fox image and sentiment stamp (Lawn Fawn), flower image stamp (aMuse Studio), patterned paper (My Mind's Eye mini pad - I think it's the "Be Merry" collection, which is retired, but somehow I found a mega pad at a local craft store.), Copic markers, embossing powder, adhesive gems, card base, deckle scissors.

and here's our sketch! I hope you'll find some time to play along with us this week!

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan!

And also, don't forget to link up your entry for this week's challenge at the Unscripted Sketches blog for the chance to be picked as one of this week's Top 3!

colourQ #116

2011-12-20T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! Today, I'm going to knock out my Christmas baking (or at least try to get most of it done)! I'm making peanut butter fudge, chocolate crinkles and peppermint bark...and sugar cookies if I'm feeling really ambitious!

This year, I've really enjoyed baking and cooking from scratch. It's rare that I use a box mix these days, but I will if I don't have a lot of time to make something for an event. I do, however, try to make sugar cookies for my monthly craft group meeting...since they may not let me come over if I don't! (Just kidding...I think!)

Here's my card for this week (no coloring...eek!):

Supplies: card base, kraft cardstock (PaperTrey Ink), image and sentiment stamps (aMuse Studio - Nordic Noel), white embossing powder, white opaque marker, adhesive pearl, twine, embossing folder (Sizzix), green cardstock (Stampin' Up!), ink (VersaMark).

And here are our colors for this week! I hope you'll find some time to play along with us!

To be considered for this week's colourQueen, make sure to link your creation at the colourQ blog by Sunday, December 25 at noon Central Time! Don't forget to display the challenge colors and link back to the colourQ blog in your entry post.

Thanks so much for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ!

Some Odd Girl's 2nd Annual Holiday Hop!

2011-12-19T08:11:00.000-08:00

I'm excited to be a part of this year's Hol-ODD-day Hop at Some Odd Girl Stamps!

My card is for the "Non-Traditional Colors" category, and features the fun and festive "Bright Lights Kaylee"! I had so much fun coloring her sweater to match the paper, then adding Stickles to the lights to make them twinkle!

Supplies: image (Bright Lights Kaylee - Some Odd Girl Stamps), sentiment (aMuse Studio), paper (Crate Paper - Snow Day), card base, Copic markers, Spellbinders die, Stickles, lace (KaiserCraft), corner punch, snowflake accent (Imaginisce), cardstock (Stampin' Up!), embossing folder (Sizzix).

To keep hopping along, pop back to the Some Odd Girl Stamps blog! This hop runs from Monday, December 19 through Wednesday, December 21, so you have lots of time to check out all of the fantastic Odd creations!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Unscripted Sketches #137

2011-12-17T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge! I changed a few things on this week's sketch and made this festive card:

Supplies: card base, image and sentiment stamps (Paper Smooches - Santa Paws), ink (Tsukineko Brilliance - Graphite Black), paper (Echo Park - Holly Jolly Christmas), Copic markers, cardstock, twine (Divine Twine).

I love this stamp set! I usually color my dogs grey (black doesn't show up that well) to match my dog, Midnight, who is a black dachshund mix. I love that the dog in this set is a dachshund!

Here's our sketch for this week (I rotated it for my card and placed the sentiment in the smaller rectangle):

I hope you'll find time to play along with us this week! This is a very versatile sketch that can be modified for lots of different creations!

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan to see what they've created with this week's sketch!

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to link up your entry at Unscripted Sketches for a chance at being selected as one of our Top 3 for this week!

colourQ #115

2011-12-13T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday! Hope you had a wonderful weekend! This past Saturday was my monthly craft group meetup and Secret Elf gift exchange! It's always great to get together with my friends and have fun getting crafty!

While I was there, I made my card for this week's colourQ challenge. At first, I wasn't sure what I was going to make, but I started playing with some paper and a border punch and came up with this card:

Supplies: patterned paper (Crate Paper Peppermint mini pad), cardstock (Stampin' Up!), card base, rub-on sentiment (Pebbles), border punch (Martha Stewart Crafts), red grosgrain ribbon, button brads (Making Memories), star punch.

and here's our festively colorful inspiration for you to play with this week!

I hope you'll play along with us this week!

To be considered for this week's colourQueen, make sure to link your creation at the colourQ blog by Sunday, December 18 at noon Central Time! Don't forget to display the challenge colors and link back to the colourQ blog in your entry post.

Thanks so much for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ!

Denami Blog Hop: Gift Wrapping!

2011-12-11T05:55:00.000-08:00

Hi! Thanks for stopping by to see what I've created for the DeNami "Gift Wrapping" blog hop!

You should have arrived from Wendy Harril's blog, and now you're at my blog (Suzanne Bier)! In case you get overwhelmed by all the fabulous gift wrapping ideas along the hop and lose your way, you can always go back to the DeNami blog to get back on track!

For this hop, I made a small gift bag that you can make out of any size of paper to fit your gift! (I used 6"x6" cardstock.)

Supplies: cardstock, watermark ink (VersaMark), white embossing powder , snowflake stamp (DeNami Med. Lacy Flake), sentiment stamp (DeNami Contempo Christmas), ribbon, tissue paper.

First, stamp (and heat emboss, if you want to) your design on two 6"x6" squares of heavy patterned paper or cardstock. One square will be the front of your bag; the other will be the back. Then, score in 1" on the bottom and sides of each piece of paper.

Before doing any folding or cutting, you can use a border punch or decorative scissors on the top of each square to make your bag look a bit fancier when it's complete. (It's easier to cut or punch at this point, because it's so much harder to do it evenly later; I learned that the hard way!)

Cut a slit along each side of each square in the lower corners of each sheet, fold in the bottom and sides to create a "box" bottom. Then, adhere one bottom to the other, nesting one half inside of the other to make a bag. I've found it's easier to adhere the sides at the same time. Just put adhesive on the outer sides of the half that you are nesting inside the other.

Then, punch two holes in the top and thread ribbon through each side to create handles.

I also created a matching gift tag and threaded it through the ribbon before I made the handles. If you add a tag later, it's easy to tie one on the handle with twine!

Don't forget to leave comments on all the blogs you visit for your chance to win a $20 DeNami gift certificate! One random participant and TWO lucky commenters will win! You have until December 12, 2011, 11:59 pm PST, to leave comments on ALL of the blogs (to be eligible for a prize).

Your next stop on the DeNami hop is Lani Misner! I'm sure she's got something fantastic for you to see!

Thanks again for stopping by!

Crafty Contagion Challenge: 12 Days of Christmas!

2011-12-10T05:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Saturday! This week, the Stamping Together Divas have all contributed to this week's challenge at our Crafty Contagion blog, which is inspired by the 12 days of Christmas! Each of us chose one of the days and then created a card inspired by that day!

My card was inspired by the "10 Lords-A-Leaping." My first thought was to use frogs, and then I dressed them up for Christmas:

Supplies: card base, image stamps - (Santa hat - Paper Smooches; frog - Stampin' Up!), ink (Stampin' Up!) sentiment (Making Memories rub-on), glitter brads, Copic markers, cardstock, (Stampin' Up! & Bazzill), patterned paper (My Mind's Eye - 12 Days of Christmas), corner rounder, pom-poms.

The rub-on sentiment actually said "happy holidays," but I borrowed an "o" from another of the sentiments and used it in place of the "a" to make my custom sentiment.

There are 11 more fantastic cards for you to see! Head over to the Crafty Contagion blog to check them all out!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I hope I've inspired you to craft something fun and festive!

Unscripted Sketches #136

2011-12-10T04:58:00.000-08:00

Welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge! We're featuring a very versatile sketch for you this week!

If you haven't played along with our challenges before, every Saturday morning, we post a sketch for the week. Flip the sketch, rotate it…make a card, a scrapbook page, or anything your imagination comes up with! There’s no right or wrong way, as long as you’re using the Unscripted Sketch as the inspiration and basis of your creation!

Here's my card! I've been wanting to use these stamps for a while, and I thought this week's sketch would work well with them:

Supplies: image and sentiment stamps (Paper Smooches - Santa Paws), ink (Tsukineko Brilliance), Copic markers, card base, cardstock (Stampin' Up!), Liquid Applique, white opaque pen, patterned papers (My Mind's Eye - 12 Days of Christmas), brown grosgrain ribbon.

I hope you'll find some time to play along with us! We'd love to see what you'll create with this week's sketch:

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan! And also, don't forget to link up your entry for this week's challenge at the Unscripted Sketches blog for the chance to be picked as one of this week's Top 3!

December Karber Preview: Fairy Set!

2011-12-08T20:47:00.000-08:00

If you missed yesterday's first sneak peek of this month's releases at Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps, click here to check out Hockey Oliver! All of the new stamps will be available on Saturday, December 10 in the Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps store!

I'm pleased to bring you a peek at the Karber clear stamp set for this month! It's a fairy set, and comes with three fairy stamps, two sentiments and two accent stamps (a star and a rainbow).

I used one of the fairies, a sentiment and the star accent for my card:

Supplies: card base, image and sentiment stamps (Karber Fairy Clear Set), patterned papers (Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses, Crate Paper Snow Day), Spellbinders die, Stickles, Copic markers, foam tape, brads, cardstock (Stampin' Up!)

Be sure to visit all rest of the SCRS designers for more peeks of the Karber Fairy stamp set. Sparkle will be giving away a Karber Fairy stamp set to one lucky person! For a chance to win, you need to comment on all of the designer's blogs (list below).

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Karber Preview Team to see the magical cards they've created with this month's stamp release! And while you're there, leave them some love for your chance to win the Karber Fairy Set!

Corinne Mercado
Kadie Ensley
Margie Cortina
Mary Johnson
Peggy Toole, Sponsorship Coordinator
Suzanne Bier, Newsletter Coordinator (you're here!)

After you've visited the team, visit the SCRS blog and comment on the Karber post. You have until midnight EST each day to comment. The lucky winner will be announced the following day!

And by the way...

Karber is giving away a Spellbinders Grand Calibur to one lucky customer! For your chance to win, either purchase digis from the Karber Shop or rubber stamps from the Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Store. The contest runs until January 7th! For all the details, visit the Karber blog!

And, Josh is the featured character this month at the Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Store!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

colourQ #114

2011-12-06T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge!

I was able to start my Christmas shopping yesterday. I really wanted to start earlier, but it's kind of hard to do when you're not really sure what to get someone and you have to wait for their actual Christmas wish list! I picked up some stocking stuffers and also gifts for two of my nieces, some fabric for two gift projects, and ordered a gift for my husband.

This week, we're adding another dimension to our normal colourQ challenge: to create "anything but a card." I decorated a kraft gift bag for my project:

Supplies: kraft gift bag, cardstock (Stampin' Up - Certainly Celery, Whisper White), leaf punch (Martha Stewart Crafts), patterned paper (My Mind's Eye), brads (Basic Grey), rub-on (Making Memories).

Since Cool Caribbean has been retired for a while, I tried my best to match the color with paper that I had available. I punched the leaves out of Certainly Celery and paired them with a brad to make holly. I punched border strips from white cardstock to make the border around the panel, and then adhered the panel to the bag. The sentiment is a rub-on that I had in my stash.

For your reference, here are our colors for this week:

I hope you'll play along with us this week!

To be considered for this week's colourQueen, make sure to link your creation at the colourQ blog by Sunday, December 11 at noon Central Time! Don't forget to display the challenge colors and link back to the colourQ blog in your entry post.

As always, The rest of the colourQ Royal Court have created some festive and fun projects with this week's colors! You can see them on the colourQ blog or by visiting their personal blogs. (The links are to the left under the thumbnail of this week's challenge colors.)

Thanks so much for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ!

Unscripted Sketches #135

2011-12-02T22:31:00.000-08:00

Happy Saturday! It's time for another Unscripted Sketches challenge!

Just when I thought I was done with my Christmas cards for this year, I'm pretty sure there are a few more left to make! I think the hardest part is figuring out what the design will be! This week's sketch at Unscripted Sketches would be a very easy one to work with!

Here's my card (I rotated the sketch):

Supplies: image stamp (Snowbunny Lucy - Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps), sentiment stamp (Imaginisce), snowflake stamp (aMuse Studio), ink (VersaMark, Tsukineko Brilliance - Graphite Black, Stampin' Up! - Chocolate Chip), embossing powder, gem brad, Copic markers, patterned paper (My Mind's Eye), card base.

Here's our sketch for this week! Instead of the four smaller pieces, I substituted one larger accent.

I hope you'll find time to play along with us this week! Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan! You can link up your entry for this week's challenge at the Unscripted Sketches blog! See you there!

colourQ #113

2011-11-29T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! If you're in the U.S., I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving, and if you're from somewhere else, I hope your weekend was awesome! THANK YOU for taking time to stop by my blog!

We had a very low-key Thanksgiving weekend...we cooked at home. Scott was recovering from a cold, and lovingly shared it with me...so I'm taking it easy for a few days! I'm pretty bummed that I missed out on crafting with my friends this weekend, but hopefully we can reschedule!

Here's my card for this week's colourQ! I'd love for you to play along with us if you have the time!

Supplies: card base, cardstock (Stampin' Up!), image and sentiment stamps (aMuse Studio), ink (VersaMark and Stampin Up! - Night of Navy), embossing powder, adhesive gem, Sizzix embossing folder.

and here are our frosty, winter-y colors for this week!

To be considered for this week's colourQueen, make sure to link your creation at the colourQ blog by Sunday, December 4 at noon Central Time!

As always, The rest of the colourQ Royal Court have created some phenomenal cards and layouts with this week's colors! You can see them on the colourQ blog or by visiting their personal blogs. (The links are to the left under the thumbnail of this week's challenge colors.)

Thanks so much for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ!

Crafty Contagion Challenge: Leftovers!

2011-11-26T02:05:00.000-08:00

It's my week to join the rest of Team B for the latest challenge at Crafty Contagion, which is to use leftovers (also known as scraps) on your creation!

Crafty Contagion is a new challenge blog that my group of stamping buddies (the Stamping Together Divas) set up for us to share cards and projects we've made, to challenge each other and inspire YOU!

We issue a challenge every two weeks, and I hope you'll find some time to play along with us! Just grab your stash of paper scraps and jump in!

My card uses several scraps from Basic Grey's "Nordic Holiday" mini pad! They were left over from earlier projects I made for the September DeNami blog hop:

Supplies: patterned paper (Basic Grey - Nordic Holiday; Bo Bunny Double Dot, pink polka dot paper - from stash), cardstock (Stampin' Up!), card base, image stamp (The Greeting Farm - Beanie Anya), sentiment stamp (Paper Smooches), Liquid Applique, ribbon scrap, embossing powder, adhesive rhinestone, Copic markers, card base, ink (Tsukineko).

The snowflake embellishment is an extra that I had left over after I finished making our Christmas card for this year.

Thanks so much for stopping by! I hope you'll find time to play along with us!

Unscripted Sketches #134

2011-11-26T02:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge! If you celebrated Thanksgiving this Thursday, hope it was wonderful!

Here's my card for this week, it's a few days late for Thanksgiving, but I still wanted to share it with you!

If you’re discovering Unscripted Sketches, every Saturday morning we post a sketch for the week. Flip the sketch, rotate it…make a card, a scrapbook page, or anything your imagination comes up with! There’s no right or wrong way, as long as you’re using the Unscripted Sketch as the inspiration and basis of your creation!

Supplies: patterned paper (Bo Bunny), cardstock (Stampin' Up!), sentiment stamp (Stampin' Up!), image stamp (DeNami Design), embossing folder (Sizzix), ribbon, glitter brads, card base, ink (Stampin' Up!)

I rotated this week's sketch for my card:

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

I can't wait to see what you'll create for this week's Unscripted Sketches challenge!

colourQ #112

2011-11-22T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge!

We've been having some crazy cold & rainy weather (with a tiny bit of snow thrown in) lately, so I've been in a hot tea and hot chocolate mood! That "warm" feeling inspired my colourQ card for this week:

Supplies: card base, patterned paper (Fancy Pants, Bo Bunny Double Dot), card stock (Stampin' Up!), image and sentiment stamps (Paper Smooches), brads, ink (Stampin' Up!)

And here are our colors for this week:

Don't forget to link your entry at the colourQ blog! To be in the running for this week's colourQueen, make sure you've linked up before noon Central Time on Sunday, November 27! I can't wait to see what you'll create!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Unscripted Sketches #133

2011-11-19T05:59:00.000-08:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge! This week, we have an optional piggyback challenge for you...no pre-patterned paper! If you stamp, doodle, or emboss solid cardstock, that will work; just no pre-patterned designer paper.

Keep in mind, the piggyback is optional, and if you use patterned paper, but still use the Unscripted Sketch as your inspiration, it won't disqualify you from being considered for this week's Top 3! It's an additional challenge to stretch your creativity!

My first instinct was to skip the piggyback this week, but I took on the extra challenge and made my own patterned paper and stamped a pattern on different scraps of cardstock for the bottom half of my card. I embossed another piece of cardstock for the top half of my card:

Supplies: card base, cardstock scraps (Stampin' Up!, shiny cardstock - not sure of the manufacturer, but I bought it at JoAnn), image stamps (Lizzie Anne Designs), sentiment stamps (Paper Smooches), Copic markers, foam tape, glitter gel pen.

...and here's our sketch for this week! There's no right or wrong way to play along, as long as you're using the Unscripted Sketch as the inspiration for your creation!

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

I can't wait to see what you'll create for this week's Unscripted Sketches challenge!

colourQ #110

2011-11-15T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge (#110)!

We have some more fabulous fall colors for you to play with this week! Here's my card:

Supplies: cardstock (Stampin' Up!), card base, ink (Paper White - Impress Rubber Stamps, Crumb Cake - Stampin' Up!), sentiment stamp (Paper Smooches - Sentiment Sampler), image stamps (Lawn Fawn - Harvest Season), embossing folder (Cuttlebug), twine, button.

Here are our colors for this week's challenge:

Don't forget to visit the rest of the colourQ Royal Court for additional inspiration! You can see them all at the colourQ blog or at their personal blogs! (The links are on the left under the thumbnail of this week's challenge colors!) To be considered for this week's colourQueen, make sure to link your entry at the colourQ blog by noon Central Time on Sunday, November 20!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

P.S. The "Thankful" challenge at Crafty Contagion is still open! It's the blog that my craft group started so we can share what we make between meet-ups and to inspire all of you to create with us!

DeNami Blog Hop: Anything But A Card!

2011-11-13T05:55:00.000-08:00

Hi! Thanks for stopping by to see what I've created for the DeNami "Anything But A Card" blog hop!

You should have arrived from Karen Baker's blog, and now you're at my blog (Suzanne Bier)! In case you get overwhelmed by all the fabulous projects along the hop and lose your way, you can always go back to the DeNami blog to get back on track!

For the hop, I created an easy project that you can use as a quick gift for a friend, co-worker, or anyone! With the holidays coming up, I thought this would be perfect! All I ask is that if you decide to share this project with others, please link & give credit to me & my blog!

Supplies: Denami Petit Fours Stamps (Chocolates set), sentiment (Love Sentiments set), cardstock, twine, ink, Copic markers, plastic container (Crystal Light drink mix)

I saved an empty powdered drink mix container, then stamped and colored a strip of cardstock (3" wide x 9" long) to cover the middle. To center the strip, I adhered it to the container, wrapped the strip around and adhered the other side on top.

I stamped the sentiment onto cardstock, used a die to cut the scalloped circle and a slightly larger one to create the tag. Then, I punched a hole in the tag, threaded it with twine, and wrapped the twine around the container, tying a bow to finish it. Then, I filled the container with candy!

Don't forget to leave comments on all the blogs you visit for your chance to win a $20 DeNami gift certificate! One random participant and TWO lucky commenters will win! You have until November 14, 2011, 11:59 pm PST, to leave comments on ALL of the blogs (to be eligible for a prize).

Your next stop on the DeNami hop is Laurie Willison! I'm sure she's got something spectacular for you to see!

Thanks again for stopping by!

Saturday: Unscripted Crafty Contagion Day!

2011-11-12T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Saturday! Hope all of you in the U.S. are having a safe and happy Veteran's Day weekend!

Today is my monthly craft group meetup and I have a card to show you for this week's Unscripted Sketches challenge! I'm using another one of my Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps (Stella Strawberry):

Supplies: card base, Copic markers, ink (Tsukineko Brilliance - Graphite Black), gingham paper (aMuse Studio), card stock (Stampin' Up!), polka dot paper (scrap from my stash), lace (KaiserCraft).

Here's our sketch for this week! I hope you'll play along with us!

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team to see what they've created with this week's sketch: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan! After you've been inspired, link your entry at the Unscripted Sketches blog for a chance to be picked as one of this week's Top 3!

And, there's a new challenge at my craft group's blog (Crafty Contagion). We post a new challenge for fun every two weeks. This week is a "thankful" challenge!

I post cards on the even numbered challenges, so I don't have a card for this week. But, If you have time, I'd love for you to visit and play along with us!

Hope you have a crafty week! Thanks for stopping by!

Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps: Karber Preview!

2011-11-10T21:00:00.000-08:00

Hi! Thanks for stopping by to check out my card for the Karber Stamps sneak peek! This stamp set will be available along with the other two new Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps this Saturday, November 12!

Here's my card, featuring the new Karber set, "Hawaii Kawaii"!

Supplies: card base, patterned paper (Basic Grey Lauderdale mini pad, Bo Bunny Double Dot - Sunflower), card stock (Stampin' Up!), Copic markers, foam tape, adhesive pearls, Spellbinders dies.

The set also comes with an additional sentiment (Mahalo) and a cute pineapple stamp that some of the other Karber team members used on their cards!

Be sure to visit all rest of the SCRS designers for more peeks of Karber's "Hawaii Kawaii". Sparkle will be giving away Karber "Hawaii Kawaii" to one lucky person!

For a chance to win, you need to comment on all of the designer's blogs (list below). Then visit the SCRS blog and comment on the Karber post. You have until midnight EST each day to comment. The lucky winner will be announced the following day!

Corinne Mercado
Kadie Ensley
Margie Cortina
Mary Johnson
Peggy Toole, Sponsorship Coordinator
Suzanne Bier, Newsletter Coordinator

Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Store
Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Blog

Thanks so much for stopping by!

P.S. If you subscribe to the Sparkle Creations Monthly Scoop, you already know that Rin is this month's featured character! All Rin stamps are 15% off starting this Saturday until November 24th!

If you don't subscribe to the SCRS newsletter yet, it's easy to sign up! Just visit the Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps blog and enter your e-mail address under the "Subscribe" link near the top right side of the page!

colourQ #110

2011-11-08T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! I'm sure you'll love what we have in store for you this week! I'm trying to get ahead with my challenge cards, and am finalizing my Christmas card design. I'd like to get most of the prep work done before my craft group meetup on Saturday, so we'll see how that goes!

Here's my card for the latest colourQ:

Supplies: image and sentiment stamp (The Angel Company), ink (Soft Suede - Stampin' Up!), cardstock (Soft Suede, Dusty Durango, Pool Party, Peach Parfait - Stampin' Up!), ribbon, brads, Sizzix embossing folder, patterned paper (aMuse), card base.

It's the first time I've used the stamp set...I love stamps that feature sewing images and sentiments, although I don't sew as much as I'd like to, especially on my cards. Someday, I hope to have a dedicated craft room so that I can have space to do both!

And before I forget, here are our colors for you to play with this week!

Thanks so much for stopping by! And also, thanks to everybody who is gracious enough to leave me comments! Y'all are fantastic!

Unscripted Sketches #131

2011-11-05T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge! Thanks so much to everybody who played along with us last week! If you didn't get the chance to play along, I hope you'll join us this week!

If you’re just finding out about Unscripted Sketches, every Saturday morning we post a sketch for the week. Flip the sketch, rotate it…make a card, a scrapbook page, or anything your imagination comes up with! There’s no right or wrong way, as long as you’re using the Unscripted Sketch as the inspiration and basis of your creation!

Here's my card:

Supplies: card base, Copic markers, patterned paper (My Mind's Eye, Bo Bunny Double Dot), image/digi stamp (C.C. Designs - Latte Monkey), sentiment and flower stamps (Paper Smooches - Hot Concoctions set).

And here's our sketch for this week! I rotated the sketch for my card and added the sentiment to the right side of the card instead of in the middle.

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan! They've created some simply fabulous things to show you!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's Unscripted Sketch!

colourQ #109

2011-11-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! I can't believe it's already November! We don't celebrate Halloween (we don't have kids), but if you did, I hope you had fun!

I think you'll enjoy this week's set of challenge colors! They're very fall-ish!

Here's my card:

Supplies: card base, Copic markers, cardstock (Stampin' Up!), lace trim (KaiserCraft), adhesive pearls, embossing folder (Sizzix), Spellbinders Lacey Circles & Small Circles dies, foam tape, patterned paper (aMuse), sentiment, accent & image stamp (Abigail Apple, Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps)

and here's the colourQ for this week:

The rest of the colourQ Royal Court (as always) have created some gorgeous cards and layouts with this week's colors! You can see them on the colourQ blog or by visiting their personal blogs. (The links are to the left under the thumbnail of this week's challenge colors.)

Don't forget to link your entry at the colourQ blog! To be in the running for this week's colourQueen, make sure you've linked up before noon Central Time on Sunday, November 6! I can't wait to see what you'll create!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Unscripted Sketches #130

2011-10-29T00:01:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge! I flipped this week's sketch and used it to make a Halloween card. I found that this sketch is very versatile, especially if you change it by flipping it or changing the dimensions of the four rectangles!

Every Saturday morning we post a sketch for the week. Flip the sketch, rotate it…make a card, a scrapbook page, or anything your imagination comes up with! There’s no right or wrong way, as long as you’re using the Unscripted Sketch as the inspiration and basis of your creation!

Supplies: image and sentiment stamp ("Franken Josh" by Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps), paper (Cosmo Cricket Haunted & Basic Grey scraps from Green at Heart and Oxford mini pads), brads, cardstock (Stampin' Up!), card base, ink (Tsukineko Brilliance in Graphite Black), Copic markers.

Here's our sketch for this week! I hope you'll find time to play along with us!

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I hope you have a wonderful weekend! Don't forget to link your entry for this week's challenge at the Unscripted Sketches blog! See you there!

Crafty Contagion Challenge: Pumpkin inspiration!

2011-10-22T01:00:00.000-07:00

Hi! Thanks for stopping by for a closer look at my card for the latest challenge at Crafty Contagion!

It's a new challenge blog that my group of stamping buddies (the Stamping Together Divas) set up for us to share cards and projects we've made, to challenge each other and inspire YOU!

We issue a challenge every two weeks, and I hope you'll find some time to play along with us!

This week, PUMPKINS are our theme! Whether you're inspired by the color, a jack-o-lantern, pie, a pumpkin spice latte, or something else, we'd love for you to play along!

Here's my card! I was inspired by the color of pumpkins and the richness of fall colors! I sent the card to my Mom a few days ago:

Supplies: Copic markers, image and sentiment stamps (Autumn Rin - Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps), paper (Bo Bunny), ink, cardstock (Stampin' Up!), gold gel pen, adhesive rhinestones, twine, embossing folder (Cuttlebug), button.

Thanks so much for stopping by! I can't wait to see what pumpkins will inspire you to create for our challenge! Make sure to link your entry at the Crafty Contagion blog! See you there!

Unscripted Sketches #129

2011-10-22T00:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge!

If you’re just finding Unscripted Sketches, every Saturday morning we post a sketch for the week. Flip the sketch, rotate it…make a card, a scrapbook page, or anything your imagination comes up with! There’s no right or wrong way, as long as you’re using the Unscripted Sketch as the inspiration and basis of your creation!

Here's my card! I rotated the sketch to the side. Instead of a large title, I used a strip of navy patterned paper. I arranged the image of the magical items and the sentiment in the place of the two rectangles on the sketch, and put my main image in the larger open area.

Supplies: image and sentiment stamps (Magical Mathilda, Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps), Copic markers, ink (Tsukineko Brilliance - Graphite Black), patterned papers (Bo Bunny), foam squares, gold gel pen, Star Dust Stickles, card base.

And here's our sketch so you can play along with us!

Hope you're able to get crafty with us this weekend! Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan!

Thanks for stopping by!

colourQ #107

2011-10-18T07:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! This week, our colors could be used for a fall or Halloween card, but I chose to make a holiday card in non-traditional colors!

Supplies: image stamp (Imaginisce Cottage Christmas), sentiment stamp (Studio G), Rich Razzleberry and Lucky Limeade cardstock (Stampin' Up!), card base, Copic markers, glitter gel pen, orange striped paper (Echo Park Dots & Stripes), ink (Stampin' Up!), adhesive rhinestones, embossing folder (Sizzix)

Here are our colors for this week! I hope you'll play along with us!

The rest of the colourQ Royal Court (as always) have created some amazing cards and layouts with this week's colors! You can see them on the colourQ blog or by visiting their personal blogs. (The links are to the left under the thumbnail of this week's challenge colors.)

Don't forget to link your entry at the colourQ blog! To be in the running for this week's colourQueen, make sure you've linked up before noon Central Time on Sunday, October 23! I can't wait to see what you'll create!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

colourQ #106

2011-10-11T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! Our colors for this week might be a little spooky, but don't be scared!

Here's my card:

Supplies: pumpkin, witch hat, letter stamps (Lawn Fawn), dog stamp (Paper Smooches), patterned paper (Echo Park Dots & Stripes), cardstock (Core'dinations - black, Stampin' Up! - orange), Copic markers, Stampin' Up marker in Crushed Curry, ink (Tsukineko Brilliance - Graphite Black), adhesive gems, card base.

and here are our colors for this week, inspired by a fun bee backpack:

I hope you'll play along with us this week! I enjoy seeing what everyone makes with our colourQ! The rest of the colourQ Royal Court have created some fantastic cards and layouts with this week's colors! You can see them on the colourQ blog or by visiting their personal blogs. (The links are to the left under the thumbnail of this week's challenge colors.)

Don't forget to link your entry at the colourQ blog! To be in the running for this week's colourQueen, make sure you've linked up before noon Central Time on Sunday, October 16!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

DeNami Fall Blog Hop!

2011-10-09T05:42:00.000-07:00

Hi! Thanks so much for stopping by to see the card I made for DeNami's Fall Blog Hop! Hope you're having fun checking out all the fun & festive creations along the way! This is my second time participating in a DeNami hop, and I can't wait to show you what I've made!

You've probably arrived from Wendy Elliot's blog, and now you're visiting me (Suzanne Bier)! If you get lost along the way or want to start from the beginning, you can always go back to the DeNami blog!

Here's my card:

Other supplies: cardstock, grosgrain ribbon, card base, glitter glue.

I used the dogs from two DeNami Petit Fours sets, (Playful Puppies and Cuddly Pals). The background was made with the Candy Corn stamp on kraft cardstock, stamped in brown ink and colored with an opaque white marker and alcohol markers.

I drew the costumes on each dog with a matching marker, and then colored them in!

Thanks again for stopping by! Don't forget to comment on each designer's blog for your chance to win one of TWO $20 DeNami gift certificates! One of the designers will also be randomly chosen to win a certificate! You have until Monday, October 10, 2011 at 11:59 pm Pacific Time to leave comments on all the blogs and be eligible for a prize!

Thanks again for stopping by! Your next stop on the hop is Michele Gross!

Unscripted Sketches #127

2011-10-07T23:59:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscriped Sketches challenge! My card for this week is a birthday card that I made for my crafty friend, Sheila! She's part of my circle of crafty friends that I'm meeting up with today!

Supplies: patterned paper (My Mind's Eye, aMuse - gingham), cardstock (Stampin' Up!), image stamp (The Greeting Farm, retired "Me Time Anya" set), sentiment stamp (Paper Smooches), punch (imaginisce), ink (Tsukineko Graphite Black), glitter brad, Stickles, Copic markers.

Here's our sketch for this week! I hope you'll play along with us!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Hope you have a wonderful, crafty weekend! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's Unscripted Sketch!

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Mary, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan! And most of all, don't forget to link up your challenge entry at the Unscripted Sketches blog!

Karber Stamps Preview: "You Are So Sweet" set!

2011-10-06T21:00:00.000-07:00

Hi! Thanks for stopping by to check out the card I've made with this month's Karber stamp set! It's called "You Are So Sweet" and will be available in the Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Store this Saturday, October 8!

You might notice a change in the Karber stamps...they will now be released as acrylic cling stamps instead of unmounted red rubber, and instead of two individual stamp releases, there will be one 4" x 6" set released each month!

Here's my card! I only used two images from the set and one of the sentiments.

Supplies: Image and sentiment stamps (Karber Stamps "You Are So Sweet" set), patterned paper (Bo Bunny Sweet Tooth), card base, Copic markers, foam tape.

Be sure to visit all rest of the SCRS designers for more peeks of You are So Sweet. Sparkle will be giving away You are So Sweet to one lucky person! For a chance to win, you need to comment on all of the designer's blogs (list below). Then stop by the SCRS blog and comment on the Leslie post. You have until midnight EST each day to comment. The lucky winner will be announced the following day!

Corinne Mercado
Kadie Ensley
Margie Cortina
Mary Johnson
Peggy Toole,Sponsorship Coordinator
Piali Biswas
Suzanne Bier, Newsletter Coordinator

Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Store
Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Blog

Thanks so much for stopping by!

colourQ #105

2011-10-04T08:50:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! It was awesome to see all the beautiful cards and layouts inspired by our 2-year celebration! If you didn't have the chance to play with us last week, I hope you'll join us this week!

Here's my card! I made it for my sister-in-law and her husband, who celebrated their wedding anniversary yesterday! (It was also my birthday yesterday, so my husband & I went out to dinner!)

Supplies: ink (Chocolate Chip - Stampin' Up!), stamps (Lawn Fawn), cardstock (Pear Pizzazz, Wisteria Wonder - Stampin' Up!), twine (Whisker Graphics), patterned paper (Bo Bunny)

Here are our colours for this week:

I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ! The rest of the Royal Court have created some simply marvelous cards and layouts to show you! You can visit them individually by clicking on their blog links to the left under this week's colors, or all at once at the colourQ blog!

To be considered for this week's colourQueen, make sure your entry is linked on the colourQ blog by noon Central Time on Sunday, October 9!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Unscripted Sketches #126

2011-09-30T22:11:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge! Thanks to everybody who played along with us this week...if you didn't get the chance to play, I hope you'll join us this week!

I've been sick with a cold, so I haven't been able to make more cards than the ones for my DT challenges. I'm hoping to be better before my birthday on Monday!

Here's my card for this week's Unscripted Sketches challenge! I picked up this cute stamp set yesterday, and I couldn't wait to use it on a card!

Supplies: stamps (Your Next Stamp), cardstock (Stampin' Up!), paper (My Mind's Eye "Stella & Rose" collection), adhesive pearls, Copic markers, embossing folder (Sizzix), letter stickers (Webster's Pages)

and here's our sketch for this week! Instead of putting the sentiment sideways, I rotated the two left rectangles and made a little banner for the sentiment. I added the pearls to help balance the design.

Before you get crafty, take some time to check out what the rest of the Unscripted Sketches team created with this week's sketch: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Mary, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's Unscripted Sketch!

colourQ #104

2011-09-27T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge (#104)! We're celebrating 2 years of colourQ challenges this week ... congratulations to Arielle and my fellow members of the Royal Court!

In addition to our regular challenge, each of the members of the colourQ Royal court CASE'd a previous colourQueen with this week's set of challenge colors! CASE-ing, as it has been explained to me, stands for Copy And Share Everything, which includes the layout and it can also include other elements of the original project.

Here's my card:

which was CASE'd based on Julie Gearinger's winning card for colourQ #59. I copied her layout and was even able to use the same embossing folder for the background:

My card also uses this week's colourQ combo (#104):

So, there's a bonus challenge for you this week...to CASE the card of a previous colourQueen while using the combo of colours above. Arielle has compiled ALL of the winners in one photo album (The ColourQueen Hall of Fame), which you can check out HERE!

I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ and which former colourQueen will be your CASE inspiration! The rest of the Royal Court have created some simply stunning cards and layouts to show you! You can visit them individually by clicking on their blog links to the left under this week's colors, or all at once at the colourQ blog!

To be considered for this week's colourQueen, make sure your entry is linked on the colourQ blog by noon Central Time on Sunday, October 2!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Unscripted Sketches #125

2011-09-24T01:28:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge! Thanks to everybody who played along with us last week...if you didn't get the chance, hopefully you'll join us this week!

Here is my card:

Supplies: paper (Hopscotch - Basic Grey), cardstock (Stampin' Up!) ink (Chocolate Chip - Stampin' Up!, VersaMark watermark), ribbon, flower accent (Basic Grey), image and sentiment stamp (The Angel Company), Copic markers.

And here's our sketch for this week:

Hope you have a wonderful weekend! Last night, Scott & I saw Duran Duran live in Everett...definitely one of the best concerts I have been to! Today is my monthly stamp group meetup...I can't wait to spend the day crafting with my friends!

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted SketchesDesign Team: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Mary, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan!

And don't forget to link up your entry for this week's challenge at the Unscripted Sketches blog! See you there!

colourQ #103

2011-09-20T12:01:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! I'm sure you'll adore this week's combo of fun, happy colors! Here's my card:

The berries were free digital stamps from Paper Smooches. I arranged my design and printed it out on white cardstock. Then, I printed out berries on Poppy Parade and Wisteria Wonder, cut them out and paper-pieced them on top of the white (I colored the leaves with a Copic similar to Pear Pizzazz).

The sentiment is also a free Paper Smooches digi, and I printed it on Calypso Coral. Before matting the card on the base, I tied it all together with some twine!

Here are our colors for you to play with this week!

The rest of the colourQ Royal Court have some simply stunning projects to show you! Visit them either at their personal blogs (the links are on the left under the thumbnail of this week's colors) or by going to the colourQ blog!

To be considered for colourQueen, make sure your entry is linked up on the colourQ blog by noon Central Time on Sunday, September 25!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ!

Unscripted Sketches #124

2011-09-17T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge! I hope you all had a wonderful week...it has turned nice and cool here in Washington...I can't wait for fall!

The card I made with this week's sketch is for my Mom's birthday on the 28th. I made sure to include lots of purple since that's her favorite color (and mine, too)!

Supplies: paper (My Mind's Eye "Happy Go Lucky" mini pad), sentiment and flower accent (The Greeting Farm), main image ("Relaxing Charlotte", Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps), Copic markers, foam tape.

Here's our sketch for this week. I adapted it for a standard-sized card instead of a square one. I hope you'll play along with us...you can do so much with this one!

If you’re just finding out about Unscripted Sketches, every Saturdaymorning we post a sketch for the week. Flip the sketch, rotate it…make a card,a scrapbook page, or anything your imagination comes up with! There’s no rightor wrong way, as long as you’re using the Unscripted Sketch as the inspirationand basis of your creation!

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Team: : Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Mary, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan!

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you have a wonderful weekend...I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's Unscripted Sketch!

colourQ #102

2011-09-13T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! If you're still catching up on the DeNami Designs blog hop and are looking for my post, click HERE or scroll down to the next post. Thanks!

My card for this week features some of my own hand-drawn digis and a typed sentiment. I made a mistake when I put my card together, and used Lucky Limeade instead of Certainly Celery...I have no idea why I did that! OOPS!:

Supplies: images (self-drawn plain and fancy glasses), typed sentiment, adhesive pearls, Stickles, embossing folder, cardstock (Lucky Limeade - Stampin' Up!), Copic markers.

Here's the correct color combo for this week's challenge...

Hope you have a great week! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ!

The rest of the colourQ Royal Court have made some gorgeous examples for you to check out! You can see them all at the colourQ blog (where you can also link up your entry for this week) or by visiting their personal blogs...just click the links to the left under the thumbnail of this week's challenge!

To be considered for colourQueen, make sure your entry is linked up on the colourQ blog by noon Central Time on Sunday, September 18!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

DeNami Tasty Treats Blog Hop!

2011-09-11T06:00:00.000-07:00

Thanks so much for stopping by to see my cards for DeNami Design's Tasty Treats Blog Hop! Your previous hop was to Ayana Posadas and now you're visiting me! (Suzanne Bier)

I'm so excited to be a part of the fun...it's my first time participating in a DeNami hop!

I made two cards, and couldn't decide which one I liked better, so I'm posting them both! (To get a larger view, you can click on each photo.)

My first card features stamps from Denami's "Sugar Cookies" Trifles set and the sentiment is from the "Love Sentiments" Petit Fours set:

And my second card features the "Chocolates" Petit Fours set:

As you're hopping, don't forget to leave sweet comments along the way! DeNami Design will be giving away TWO $20 gift certificates to TWO lucky people who comment along the hop!

If you lose your way, you can always go back to the DeNami Design blog and start at the beginning! Your next stop on the hop is Dana Seymour! Thanks so much for stopping by!

Unscripted Sketches #123

2011-09-10T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge! Since today is 9/10/11, and we're posting challenge #123 this week, we've got a special (and of course, optional) piggyback challenge for you: use NUMBERS on your entry!Here's my card for this week's challenge:

Supplies: Patterned paper (My Mind's Eye - number paper, Sassafrass - striped paper, Basic Grey Nook & Pantry - yellow paper), circle punch, Thickers, typed sentiment, embossing folder, scrap of orange cardstock.

and here's the sketch that we're playing with:

I included most of the elements in the sketch; instead of dividing the top part into four sections, I used one big section, and then used four circles and chipboard letters/numbers in the place of the smaller squares near the middle.

That's one of the many fun things about Unscripted Sketches...there's no right or wrong way to play along, as long as you're using the Unscripted Sketch as the inspiration and basis of your creation!

Flip the sketch, rotate it…make a card,a scrapbook page, or anything your imagination comes up with!

And, you can always "count" on the Unscripted Sketches Team to inspire you! Don't forget to visit them: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Mary, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I hope you'll play along with us this week at Unscripted Sketches!

Sparkle Creations Sneak Peek: Karber Fairy

2011-09-08T21:00:00.000-07:00

Hi! Thanks for stopping by to look at the second of two sneak peeks at the Karber Rubber Stamps that are being released this Saturday at Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps! Yesterday, some of the other Design Team members previewed "Mummy Oliver." Visit the SCRS blog to check him out!

Today's peek features Karber's "Fairy" stamp! Here's my card:

Supplies: image (Karber Fairy - Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps), Spellbinders die, paper and sentiment die-cut (KaiserCraft), Copic markers, border punch, card base.

Be sure to visit the rest of the SCRS designers for more peeks of Fairy. Sparkle will be giving away a Fairy stamp to one lucky person! For a chance to win, you need to comment on all of the designer's blogs (list below). Then head on over to the SCRS blog and comment on the Fairy post. You have until midnight EST each day to comment. The lucky winner will be announced the following day!

Amber Hight
Elena Joldersma
Kadie Ensley
Mary Johnson
Peggy Toole, Sponsorship Coordinator
Piali Biswas
Suzanne Bier, Newsletter Coordinator

Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Store
Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Blog

I hope you've enjoyed these two previews of the Karber stamps that will be released along with the Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps this Saturday, September 10 in the SCRS Store! The rest of the SCRS Design Team has one more stamp to preview for you this week...visit Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps tomorrow for all the details!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Sparkle Creations Sneak Peek: Karber Witch Millie

2011-09-06T21:00:00.000-07:00

If you're looking for my colourQ #101 post, click HERE or scroll down to the next entry. Thanks!

Hi! Thanks for stopping by to look at the first of FOUR sneak peeks of stamps being released this Saturday at Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps!

Today's peek is the first of two Karber stamps releasing this month, Witch Millie!

Here's my card:

Supplies: image stamp and sentiment: (Witch Millie - Karber Rubber Stamps), patterned paper (Cosmo Cricket Haunted), border punch (Fiskars), black grosgrain ribbon, adhesive gems, Copic markers, Spellbinders circle die, Stickles, card base.

Be sure to visit the rest of the SCRS designers for more peeks of Witch Millie. Sparkle will be giving away a Witch Millie to one lucky person! For a chance to win, you need to comment on all of the designer's blogs (list below). Then head over to the SCRS blog and comment on the Millie post. You have until midnight EST each day to comment. The lucky winner will be announced the following day!
Amber Hight
Elena Joldersma
Kadie Ensley
Mary Johnson
Peggy Toole, Sponsorship Coordinator
Piali Biswas
Suzanne Bier, Newsletter Coordinator (you're here!)

Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Store
Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Blog

I'll be back on Friday with a preview of the second Karber stamp to be released this month! Thanks for stopping by!

If you subscribe to the Sparkle Creations Newsletter, you've already found out that our featured character this month is Emily! To celebrate, Sparkle is having a sale on all Emily images this month! Here are the details:

If you don't subscribe to the Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Monthly Scoop, it's easy to sign up! Just visit the Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps blog, enter your e-mail address under the "subscribe" graphic to the right and click "go!"

colourQ #101

2011-09-06T07:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! We had so many gorgeous entries for last week's 100th challenge, and I hope you were able to play along with us!

Here is my card for this week's challenge. It features a digital stamp from The Wax Fruit Company, which is the digital stamp store owned by my fellow DT member and the original colourQueen herself, Arielle! I typed the sentiment.

Other supplies: white cardstock, colored cardstock (Rich Razzleberry and Orchid Opulence - Stampin' Up!), polka dot paper (Cosmo Cricket Pixie-Licious), Copic markers, QuicKutz embossing folder.

Here is our delicious color combo for this week:

I can't wait to see what you'll create for this week's challenge! To be considered for colourQueen, make sure your entry is linked up on the colourQ blog by noon Central Time on Sunday, September 11!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Unscripted Sketches #122

2011-09-03T10:03:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge! Thanks to all who played along with us last week, and if you weren't able to play along, I hope you'll give this week's sketch a try!

Here's my card for this week:

Other supplies: image stamps (Birthday Josh and Celebrating Chloe - Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps), typed sentiment, card base, cardstock (Stampin' Up! Soft Suede, Bo Bunny Peacock Double Dot), patterned paper (My Mind's Eye Fly A Kite mini pad), Copic markers.

and here's the sketch it's based on (I changed the proportion of the first column to work with the size of the sentiment):

Need more inspiration? The rest of the Unscripted SketchesDesign Team has you covered: Arielle, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Mary, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan! Don't forget to link your entry at the Unscripted Sketches blog! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's sketch!

Thanks for stopping by!

Paper Smooches August Sparks Challenge

2011-09-01T22:32:00.000-07:00

Hi! Thanks for stopping by to get a closer look at my card for the August Sparks Challenge at Paper Smooches!

This month's challenge is based on an inspiration photo:

For my card, I chose the color scheme of fuchsia, white, light blue and brown and the rhinestones. I used image stamps from Paper Smooches' "Santa Paws" set and the sentiment is from PS's "Sugar Rush" set.

Other supplies: polka dot and striped paper (Echo Park Dots & Stripes), kraft cardstock (PaperTrey Ink), ink (Tsukineko Brilliance - Graphite Black and Stampin Up! - Soft Suede), Spellbinders die, adhesive rhinestones, twine, Copic markers, foam squares, card base.

Thanks so much for stopping by! This challenge runs until Wednesday, September 7. For all the details and to check out the other entries, visit the Paper Smooches blog!

colourQ 100!

2011-08-30T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! This week, we're celebrating our 100th challenge, and we've teamed up with Clean & Simple Stamping!

This week's challenge is a little different...You choose ANY of our past colourQ combos and pair it with the featured sketch from Clean & Simple Stamping (called a Fall-to-Layout, or FTL).

So, here's my card for this week:

Supplies: image and sentiment stamps (Lawn Fawn Stamps), ink (Chocolate Chip - Stampin' Up! and silver ink for needle), embroidery floss, twine, Copic markers, green striped paper/red polka dot paper (Echo Park Dots & Stripes), polka dot paper (Bo Bunny Double Dot - Peacock), card base.

which uses the colors from colourQ #63 with the sketch:

With so many fabulous colourQ combos to choose from, there's no reason NOT to play along with us this week! I had a hard time picking a "favorite" combo, so I chose one that I really liked! While the inspiration photo was Christmas-related, I used one of my favorite non-Christmas sets for my card!

And our ever-thoughtful Arielle created a handy way to see all of the past colourQ combos on one page (which might make your choice a little easier)! Just click HERE for the "Compendium of ColourQ"!

I can't wait to see which past colourQ you'll create with for this week's challenge! To be considered for colourQueen, make sure your entry is linked up on the colourQ blog by noon Central Time on Sunday, September 4!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Unscripted Sketches #121

2011-08-27T07:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge (#121)! Here's my card for this week:

Supplies: patterned paper (October Afternoon), image and sentiment stamps (Hero Arts), cardstock (Stampin' Up!), card base, Copic markers, ink (Tsukineko Brilliance - Graphite Black).

I'll admit, this one was challenging at first, but after I decided to use one larger image and divide it up into smaller rectangles, then put it together like a mosaic or puzzle, everything else seemed to come together!

I'll let you in on another little secret...I didn't realize until after I had put all of my elements in place that I had assembled the grid part of the sketch upside down! Good thing the card still opened and closed correctly...LOL!

Here's the sketch for this week...don't let it scare you! You really can have a lot of fun with this one once you start putting the pieces together! You'll also notice that I placed my sentiment in one of the rectangles, even though there's no specific place for it in the sketch.

And remember, as long as your entry is inspired by this week's Unscripted Sketch, there's no right or wrong way to play along!

Still stumped? The rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team has plenty of inspiring ideas to help you play with this one! Don't forget to visit them: Arielle, Becky, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Mary, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan!

Hope you have a wonderful weekend, and I hope to see you playing along with us this week at Unscripted Sketches! Thanks so much for stopping by!

Moxie Fab World Square Sketch Challenge

2011-08-25T17:05:00.000-07:00

Hi there! Glad you stopped by to look at my card for the "Square Sketch Challenge" at the Moxie Fab World blog! It's part of the celebration for the latest special issue of Paper Crafts Magazine, "Card Ideas for Paper Crafters."

I had fun with this one...I don't normally do big elements on my cards, so it was great to stretch my creative horizons and come up with something new and innovative for this challenge!

Here's my card:

Supplies: card base, cardstock (PaperTrey Ink), twine (My Mind's Eye), scrap of paper (Crate Paper), Crop-a-Dile, glue, embossing folder (Sizzix), Spellbinders die.

My first thought was to create a large flower, like on the sketch, but I changed my mind and decided to create a twine heart in its place! I'm so happy with how this came out!

And here's the sketch it's based on, created by Go-to-Gal Kim Kesti:

Thanks so much for stopping by! This challenge runs until Monday, September 19 at midnight EST. For all the details on this and the other sketch challenges, visit the Moxie Fab World blog!

If you missed my entry for the Moxie Fab World's "Vertical Sketch Challenge," scroll down or click here! Thanks again!

Moxie Fab World Sketch Challenges: Vertical Sketch Challenge

2011-08-25T16:55:00.000-07:00

Happy Thursday and thanks for stopping by to look at the first of two of the cards I'm submitting to the latest round of challenges at the Moxie Fab World blog!

To celebrate the release of the special issue "Card Ideas for Paper Crafters," four sketches have been presented for paper crafters to play with, and present their ideas for using this sketch in an innovative way!

I made two cards today...the first is for the "Vertical Sketch Challenge." Here's my card:

Supplies: patterned paper (Bo Bunny, My Mind's Eye), typed sentiment, image stamp (A Muse Studio), letter stamps (Lawn Fawn), star punch, cardstock (Stampin' Up!), corner rounder, card base, Copic markers.

And here's the sketch it was based on, created by Go-to-Gal Julie Campbell! (I flipped the sketch for my card):

For all of the details on this challenge, visit the Moxie Fab World blog! You have until midnight Eastern time on Monday, September 19 to upload your entry!

My next post is for the "Square Sketch Challenge." Hope you'll stop by!

CPS #232

2011-08-24T21:27:00.000-07:00

Happy Wednesday! Just wanted to make a quick post to show you my entry for this week's Card Positioning Systems challenge (#232)!

Here's my card:

Supplies: image and sentiment stamps (Cheerleading Emily, Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps), ink (Tsukineko Brilliance), striped paper (Echo Park Dots & Stripes mini pads), card base, Copic markers.

And here's the sketch it was based on (because my main image was larger, I changed the proportions on the sketch):

Thanks so much for stopping by!

colourQ #99

2011-08-23T07:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! We've got a great set of colors for you to play with today...at least two of them will get you thinking about fall!

Here's my card! The bikes and sentiment are by aMuse Studio. This was also the first time I tried partially embossing cardstock for my card front. I'm very happy with how it came out!

Supplies: stamps (aMuse Studio), card base, white cardstock, colored cardstock (Stampin' Up!), Copic markers, Stampin' Write marker in Crushed Curry, ribbon, glitter gel pen, scalloped circle punch, Sizzix embossing folder, ink (Tsukineko Brilliance in Graphite Black).

Still not sure how you'll use these colors in your entry? You're in luck! The colourQ Royal Court can help! They've created some tasty examples to show you with this week's set of colors. You can see them at the colourQ blog (where you can also link up your entry for this week), or by visiting their personal blogs ... just click the links to the left under the thumbnail of this week's challenge colors!

I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ! One last thing...to be considered for colourQueen, get your entry linked by noon Central Time on Sunday, August 28!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge #131

2011-08-22T16:31:00.000-07:00

Welcome! Thanks for stopping by to get a closer look at the card I made for this week's Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge! I don't often make Halloween cards, but I couldn't resist making one with this sketch!

Here's my card:

Supplies: card base, patterned paper (Cosmo Cricket's Matilda), image stamp (Broomstick Lucy - Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps), sentiment stamp (Stampin' Up!), border punch (American Girl Crafts), adhesive gems, Copic markers.

and here's the challenge sketch:

Thanks so much for stopping by!

For all the challenge details, and to link up your entry, please visit "the sweetest thing" blog!

PageMaps Card Contest

2011-08-22T16:15:00.000-07:00

Thanks for stopping by to look at my card for the sketch contest at the PageMaps blog! This contest runs until midnight Mountain Time on Sunday, August 28.

Here's my card:

Supplies: image and sentiment stamps (Shopping Emily, Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps), card base, paper (Basic Grey Out of Print), Copic markers, adhesive rhinestones, ribbon (The Girls' Paperie), border punch (EK Success/Martha Stewart)

and here's the sketch for the challenge:

For all the details on this challenge, please visit the PageMaps blog!

Thanks again for stopping by!

Unscripted Sketches #120

2011-08-20T09:50:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge! This week's sketch also has an OPTIONAL piggyback challenge...to use buttons on your project!

We'd really love for you to play along with us this week, and whether or not you choose to incorporate the piggyback challenge into your project is up to you!

Here is our sketch for this week:

I completed my card before the piggyback challenge was announced (we are lucky enough to get the sketches several weeks before each challenge), so there are no buttons on my card.

I made this card for my Mom & Dad's anniversary, which is next week!

Supplies: patterned paper (Bo Bunny; green polka dot - Prima Animal Bash), cardstock (Stampin' Up!), digital image (Some Odd Girl Digital Stamps), typed sentiment, Copic markers, adhesive gems, heart punch, Stickles.

For more inspiring cards made with this week's sketch, please visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Team: Arielle, Becky, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Mary, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan!

Hope you have a wonderful weekend! Scott & I are going to see the new Conan the Barbarian movie today and then have a lunch date! Don't forget to link up your entry for this week's challenge at the Unscripted Sketches blog!

Thanks for stopping by!

Card Patterns #129 Sponsored by Sparkle Creations!

2011-08-20T09:48:00.000-07:00

Hi! Thanks for stopping by to get a closer look at my card for this week's Card Patterns challenge (#129) sponsored by Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps! One lucky winner this week will receive Cruisin' Chloe and Traveling Josh!

Here is the Card Patterns sketch:

And here's my card, featuring Sparkle Creations' Bookworm Ruby:

Supplies: card base, patterned paper (Basic Grey's Oxford Collection), cardstock (Stampin' Up!), stamped image and sentiment (Sparkle Creations), border punch (EK Success), adhesive pearls (KaiserCraft), Copic markers.

For all the details on this challenge, and to link up your entry, please visit the Card Patterns blog! Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Some Odd Girl: Complementary Colors Challenge!

2011-08-19T11:44:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday! I'd like to share my entry for Some Odd Girl's "Complementary Colors Challenge" with you!

In case you've forgotten from your art classes or school, complementary colors are two colors opposite each other on a color wheel like this one:

I chose orange and blue (with a little red-orange and blue-green mixed in) for my card, which also features SOG's Shy Mae digi! (Lucky for me, hair and skin don't count toward the two colors, since I tend to color many of my images as brunettes!)

Supplies: card base, navy cardstock scraps, patterned paper (blue dot - Crate Paper Neighborhood Mini Pad; orange dot - SEI Sunny Days Mini Pad, blue marble - Pink Paislee, Orange - Crate Paper Pink Plum), digital stamp (Some Odd Girl), typed sentiment, Spellbinders circle dies, Copic markers.

If you have time, stop by and see the entries and DT creations for this challenge at the Some Odd Girl blog! The deadline for entries is Tuesday, August 23 at midnight EST!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I'm getting together with some crafty friends for a little shopping and dinner, and I get to meet one friend in person for the first time! Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

colourQ #98

2011-08-16T12:03:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge (#98), which is inspired by these cool crocheted flowers and leaves:

I kept my card relatively simple:

Supplies: card base, cardstock (Soft Suede - Stampin' Up!), patterned paper (Cosmo Cricket Nutmeg - green woodgrain, Sassafrass Nerdy Bird - turquoise), flower accent (Basic Grey), Copic markers, digital stamp (Some Odd Girl Digital Stamps), sentiment stamp.

Hope you have an awesome week! Not much is going on here except crafting & catching up on season 3 of Damages. I'm hoping to get out this week to get my bangs trimmed before I meet up with some crafty friends on Friday evening!

For more cool inspiration, visit the rest of the colourQ Royal Court at the colourQ blog or by clicking their individual blog links to the left under the thumbnail of this week's challenge colors! To be considered for colourQueen, make sure you get your entry linked up at the colourQ blog by Sunday, August 21st at noon Central Time!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Unscripted Sketches #119

2011-08-12T22:57:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge! Here's the sketch for this week:

And here's my card! I concentrated on the smaller section of the sketch to create my card.

Supplies: Paper (flower pattern - Jillibean Soup; polka dot pattern - Cosmo Cricket), image and sentiment stamps (Stampin' Up - Turtle & Company), flower accent (Basic Grey), Copic markers, adhesive gems, ribbon, cardstock, card base.

Thanks so much for stopping by! Today is my monthly craft group meetup...not sure what I'll be working on, but it's always fun! Hope you have a wonderful, crafty weekend...and don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team: Arielle, Becky, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Mary, Monique, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan!

I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's Unscripted Sketch! Be sure to link your entry at the Unscripted Sketches blog!

Sparkle Creations Sneak Peek: Soda Jenny

2011-08-11T21:00:00.000-07:00

Hi! Thanks so much for stopping by to see what I've made with Soda Jenny, the second of two Karber Rubber Stamps releasing this month at Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps!

Here's my card with the simply adorable Soda Jenny stamp (the sentiment is also included):

Supplies: image and sentiment (Karber Rubber Stamps), paper (Imaginisce Berrylicious - fruit pattern, Cosmo Cricket Pixielicious - green polka dot pattern), ribbon, Copic markers, Spellbinders die, Fiskars border punch.

Be sure to visit the rest of the SCRS designers for more peeks of Soda Jenny, because Sparkle will be giving away a Soda Jenny to one lucky person! For your chance to win, leave a comment on each designer's blog (list below), then head over to the SCRS blog and comment on the Jenny post. You have until midnight EST each day to comment. The lucky winner will be announced the following day!

Elena Joldersma
Kadie Ensley
Mary Johnson
Peggy Toole, Sponsorship Coordinator
Piali Biswas
Suzanne Bier, Newsletter Coordinator (you're here!)
Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Store
Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Blog

I hope you've enjoyed the previews you've seen so far! All of the stamps we're previewing this week will be available in the Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps store on Saturday! Thanks again for stopping by!

Sparkle Creations Sneak Peek: Shopping Millie

2011-08-09T22:40:00.000-07:00

Thanks for stopping by to check out the card I made with the first of two Karber Rubber Stamps releasing this Saturday at Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps! Today's sneak peek is Shopping Millie (and her coordinating sentiment)!

Supplies: card base, ribbon, stamp and sentiment (Karber Rubber Stamps), brads, Spellbinders dies, Copic markers, patterned paper (Fancy Pants My Family collection)

Be sure to visit the rest of the SCRS designers for more peeks of Shopping Millie, because Sparkle will be giving away a Shopping Millie to one lucky person!

For your chance to win, you need to comment on all of the designer's blogs (list below). Then head over to the SCRS blog and comment on the Millie post. You have until midnight EST each day to comment. The lucky winner will be announced the following day!

Elena Joldersma

Kadie Ensley
Mary Johnson
Peggy Toole, Sponsorship Coordinator
Piali Biswas
Suzanne Bier, Newsletter Coordinator

Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Store
Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Blog

Also, Oliver is our featured character this month, and we're having a sale to celebrate! If you're receiving the Sparkle Creations newsletter, you've probably read his character profile!

If you're not receiving the newsletter, take a few seconds to sign up! Each edition gives you sneak peeks at our upcoming releases, exclusive special discount codes and all the latest scoop from Sparkle Creations! Sign up by visiting the Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps blog!

Join me again on Friday when I'll preview the second Karber Rubber Stamp being released this month! Thanks for stopping by!

colourQ #97

2011-08-09T06:15:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday and thanks for stopping by to look at my card for this week's colourQ challenge, which is inspired by these fun & funky flip flops:

The black paired with the bright colors inspired me to create this rockin' card:

Supplies: Designer paper and cardstock (Stampin' Up!), embossing folders (Sizzix), guitar stamps & sentiment (a Muse Studio), adhesive rhinestones, Spellbinders circle die, ink (Tsukineko Brilliance), ribbon.

Thanks again for stopping by!

Be sure and visit the rest of the colourQ Royal Court to see what they've created with this week's colors! You can visit their blogs by clicking on the links to the left under the thumbnail of this week's challenge colors...and then link up your entry at the colourQ blog!

Don't forget, to be in the running for this week's colourQueen, make sure your entry is linked by Sunday, August 14 at noon Central Time!

Unscripted Sketches #118

2011-08-06T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge! I'm looking forward to a nice, relaxing weekend with my husband. We may go down to Portland either today or tomorrow and check out their Saturday (and Sunday) Market!

Hope you'll enjoy playing with this week's sketch:

I changed some of the proportions for my card:

Supplies: image stamp (The Greeting Farm - Oliver & Amelia "Summer Fun")paper (My Mind's Eye - green striped paper, Echo Park Dots & Stripes - orange paper, Echo Park Splash -blue circle/red paper, Bo Bunny Double Dot - yellow), ink (Tsukineko Brilliance), Copic markers, typed sentiment.

Hope you'll have waves of fun this weekend creating your card or project for this week's challenge! Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches Design Team: Arielle, Becky, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Mary, Monique, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan! And last but not least, visit the Unscripted Sketches blog to link up your entry for this week!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

colourQ #96

2011-08-02T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! This week's colors were inspired by some beautiful bedding:

And those colors inspired me to create this nautical card:

Supplies: image and sentiment stamps (a Muse Studio), cardstock (Stampin' Up!), card base, border punch (EK Success), brads, Copic markers, striped paper (Echo Park Dots & Stripes), rhinestone, ink (Tsukineko Brilliance in Graphite Black)

Thanks so much for stopping by!

For further inspiration, you can visit the rest of the colourQ Royal Court by using the links on the left under the thumbnail of this week's challenge, or by stopping by the colourQ blog, where you can also link up your entry for this week's challenge!

To be considered for this week's colourQueen, make sure you're linked up by Sunday, August 7 at noon Central Time!

Unscripted Sketches #117

2011-07-30T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday and welcome back for another Unscripted Sketches challenge (#117)! Hope you've been having fun with our Christmas in July celebration! As we're coming to the end of the event, don't forget, we still have prizes to give away!

Arielle, one of my fellow design team members, has her own digital stamp store named Wax Fruit Company, and she's giving away a set of all the images she's released this month in her store (that's at least 12 images)!

For the details on this giveaway, please visit the Unscripted Sketches blog!

Here's the card I made with this week's sketch:

Supplies: paper (Basic Grey Oxford 6x6 pad), image stamp (Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps - Bookworm Ruby), sentiment stamp (aMuse Studio - Clever Girls set), Copic markers, flower accent (Basic Grey Out of Print collection)

and here's the original photo of the sketch for you to create your own Unscripted card or project!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Don't forget to visit the rest of the Unscripted Sketches team to see what they've created with this week's sketch: Arielle, Becky, Billie, CherylAnn, Debbie, KathyJo, Linda, Loes, Mary, Monique, Rudlis, Sarah Kaye, and Susan!

And when you're ready to post your entry, visit the Unscripted Sketches blog to get linked up!

colourQ #95

2011-07-26T07:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday and welcome back for another colourQ challenge! This week's colourQ was inspired by this cute owl figurine and features three new Stampin' Up! colors:

Here's my card for this week:

Supplies: cardstock (Stampin' Up!), embossing folder (Sizzix), stamps (aMuse), Copic markers, ink (Stampin' Up!).

This card was relatively simple to put together, and it's also a gate fold card. Both the image block and the sentiment block are only adhered on the left side to allow the card to open. I used temporary adhesive to stick them down to take the picture.

You can also visit the rest of the colourQ Royal Court by clicking on their blog links at the left under the photo of this week's challenge colors, or at the colourQ blog (where you can also link your entry for this week's challenge)! To be considered for colourQueen, link your entry before Sunday, July 31 at noon Central Time!

Thanks for stopping by! I can't wait to see what you'll create with this week's colourQ!