Come Join the Fun!

Be sure to play along for the next 12 days as Limelight is holding their version of the 12 Days of Christmas. I am actually kicking off the festivities with a challenge. The rest of the DT will be hosting a day, too. What's in it for you? Fun and Fabulous prizes! Yes, that's right, each day a fabulous prize will be rewarded to one lucky winner that plays along. The more you play, the better your chances of winning the Grand Prize will be. On December 13, Mandy will do a random drawing, and the winner will receive their choice of a Bundle Up! kit (Christmas card making kit). Each person can receive an entry for EACH game, etc. they do...so if you do all 12, you get 12 entries!! Here is the line up with links to each blog. If you get lost on who is hosting which day, stop back here or check out Mandy's blog!

Dec.1 Lisa-A Card Challenge
Dec. 2 - Lee Murphy-Inspriation Challenge
Dec. 3 - Jessica Russell-Guess the Xmas Song
Dec. 4 - Drew Cheshire-Xmas Movie Trivia.
Dec. 5 - Ryann Salamon- Blurred Photo.
.Dec. 6 - Becky Carafa-Xmas Bingo.
Dec. 7 - Brandi Parshley- Name that Christmas cookie
Dec. 8 - Sarah Anderson-Xmas Music Game
Dec. 9 - Jennifer Taylor-Gift Card Holder Game.
Dec. 10 - Tiffany Johnson- Xmas Mad Libs.
Dec. 11 - Katie Renz-Door #1, 2, 3.
Dec. 12 - Mandy Cheshire-Where's Waldo.

Don't forget, today is the last day of the Doorbuster Sale at Limelight!

Friday, November 28 - Sunday, November 30. We've worked out some fabulous savings with a few of our wonderful suppliers, and we are thrilled to pass those along to YOU! Don't miss these great deals this weekend...supplies are limited to the early birds (but we have plenty to go around)!*Pebbles, Inc. RIBBON IRON packaged with TWO assorted RIBBON PACKS - $10*Unity Stamp Company's LUKE 2:14 GLORIOUS ANGEL - $3.50*Unity Stamp Company's DELECTABLE DELIGHTS stamp set - $4.50*Odd Bird Planet's Snowman - $10 (This stamp is BIG!)*Odd Bird Planet's Beau Christmas - $6 (assorted, facing left or right)

Hugs, Lisa

Black Friday!

So did you go out and fight the crowds? I didn't, never have and don't think I ever will. That is just not my kind of thing-I just enjoy my sleep too much to get up THAT early! Hopefully if you did, you got some really great deals. It is Friday, so Stamp Something has another challenge for you. This week we are asking you to use Black somewhere on your creation (notice a theme here, the past two days?). I really try to stick to SUO (Stampin' Up! only) when I can for these challenges. Not because I have to, but because I want to. I just couldn't help myself to stray this week since I still want to play with all my new PTI ribbons and those yummy colors. Since black was my focus on this card, I wanted to bring in some color with the stamp images so I used the spotlight technique. This is such a non-traditional Holiday card, but I think with the satin ribbon, the elegant style of the stamp, and the touch of liquid pearls, it really works. Oh, and I also did up the inside of this card too. I loved that I could use the "frame" from the Top Note die. Nothing goes to waste! Give it a try and be sure to link your creation to the Stamp Something blog for a chance to win some fun blog candy sponsored by JessicaLynn originals! Stamping Hugs, Lisa

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope everyone is enjoying their Holiday. It is Thursday and so that means Brandi has another great sketch for us (and you) to try. This week we are stamping in honour of Black Friday. Yep, use some black in your creations this week. Don't forget the amazing prize up for grabs, a $10 gift certificate to shop at Limelight! Just remember to post to Mandy's blog with a link to your card. If you are uploading to SCS, please remember to use the keyword LLPC009. So here is my card. I used a ton of shimmer on this card thanks to the Bazzil Bling cs and Shimmerz paint! I also went ahead and did up the inside of the card. This is something I almost never do. I have been seeing alot of cards lately with the inside coordinating with the front of the card. It is especially a great idea when you use a dark color of cs for your card base and it is just another special touch you can add to a handmade card. Here is a close up of just how this card shimmers. It looks almost wet in the picture ( I embossed the images with black craft ink and then colored them in with blender pens before applying the shimmerz paint in Olive). Everything I used on the card can be purchased at Limelight. As I told you on Monday, there is an amazing SALE going on. Be sure to stop by and do some shopping! Mandy has put together some very cool Holiday Card Making Bundles-Bundle Up! Make it easy on yourself and pick one of those up! See what the rest of the Team did with this challenge.
Becky
JenMarie
Ryann
Katie
Brandi
Mandy
Jessica
And again, Happy Thanksgiving! I hope it was a blessed one! Hugs, Lisa

Ribbon Blooms-PTI Blog Hop

It is the 25th of the month and tonight is the Papertrey Ink blog hop. This is such a fun way to see many fabulous projects using the PTI products and gain so much inspiration. This month the challenge was to create something with handmade flower embellishments. I had every intention of finally putting some fabric through my big shot and die cut some fabulous fabric flowers. Well, it didn't quite happen for me. I am not a seamstress, or a quilter, so I don't have pieces of fabric just laying around. I guess time just got away from me. So, I went with the next best thing for me and that is ribbon! Yes, I created these beautiful ribbon flowers by simply stitching some linen thread up one side of the ribbon and then gently pulling the thread to create a gathered look. Once you reach the end of the strip of ribbon you just connect the two ends and find a way to "conceal" the middle. I added the buttons to finish the flowers off.
This project allowed me to pull out one of my all time favorite PTI sets, Beautiful Blooms. There are so many flower combinations in this set and I love the sentiments that are included. This sentiment is one of my most used when I use this set. Check out the color combo! I just adore the Ripe Avocado and Ocean Tides colors and I discovered how great they look with kraft, chocolate, and a touch of Summer Sunrise! Thanks for stopping by. I can't wait to see all the creativity that the rest of the girls come up with that play along tonight.

Hugs,

Lisa

I Just Had To

I squeezed this one in yesterday just because I had to try out these colors. I caved and ordered some of the yummy ribbons and these two colors (ripe avocado and ocean tides) from PTI last week. I have teacher gifts to make using the stuff I ordered, so it is all justified, LOL! The set is Christmas Labels 2008 and I was lucky enough to win it during last month's Blog Hop! Which reminds me, today is the 25th so it happening again tonight with a new theme for the projects-handmade flowers. I'm hoping to play, we'll see what happens later today.

I used one of my go-to layouts and played up the star from atop of the tree. I also added some dimension with the cool new Christmas Ornaments Cuttlebug embossing folder. Thanks for stopping by. I wish anyone who is traveling this Holiday to have safe travels! Hugs, Lisa

Busy Week!

I am sure it is busy for everyone. Does anyone know where the month of November went? If you do, let me know. I'd sure like to have seen it. I am amazed that this week is Thanksgiving. I am looking forward to it. My sister and her girls are coming down to stay with us, and Tim's sister is hosting the actual dinner on Thursday. I am only sad that my parents and brother can not make the trip down this year. Here's a quick card to share. If you are looking for some stamps to capture the true meaning of Christmas, I think Unity has a great selection. And guess what? LIMELIGHT carries them. This one is the single, Prince of Peace. With everything that is going on this week, I thought I'd give you a little heads up to the specials Limelight is running, so you can plan your shopping accordingly!

WHAT'S ON SALE!

In celebration of Black Friday coming up the day after Thanksgiving, we have some ROCKIN' sales for you! All week long, Core'dinations Black Magic 12x12 cardstock is 20% off! Also on sale are Pixee Stix Glitter in Licorice, Plain Ol' Black Fun Flock, and the NEW Kaisercraft Days 'Til Christmas chipboard countdown calendar! (Yes, we know the calendar is not a black color...but we didn't think you'd mind a sale!)

In addition to this, we are having a PHENOMENAL Doorbuster Sale Friday, November 28 - Sunday, November 30.

We've worked out some fabulous savings with a few of our wonderful suppliers, and we are thrilled to pass those along to YOU! Don't miss these great deals this weekend...supplies are limited to the early birds!*Pebbles, Inc. RIBBON IRON packaged with TWO assorted RIBBON PACKS - $10*Unity Stamp Company's LUKE 2:14 GLORIOUS ANGEL - $3.50*Unity Stamp Company's DELECTABLE DELIGHTS stamp set - $4.50*Odd Bird Planet's Snowman - $10 (This stamp is BIG!)*Odd Bird Planet's Beau Christmas - $6 (assorted, facing left or right)

Come play along with out DT and our sketch challenge for a chance to win a $10 Limelight gift certificate. The challenge will be posted on Thursday. Lots going on, didn't want you to miss out! Have a fabulous Monday, everyone!

Can't refuse Chocolate

I rarely get around to playing in the limited supplies challenge over at SCS on Fridays. My good friends Kristin posted two of the cutest cards yesterday and as usual, she motivated me to play. Besides, how could I refuse chocolate? The challenge was to use something related to chocolate: the color, the theme, the actual stuff. You know chocolate chip is one of my all time favorite colors to work with, so this was an easy one for me. I actually made two since Kristin also motivated me to use some of my rub-ons (they are on sale this month from Stampin' Up!). Here's what I came up with. They both use all SU products.


The first one is my favorite, although I do love the richness of color the riding hood red and chocolate chip create in the second card. Thanks for stopping by on a Saturday. Hugs,

Season of Thanks!

It's Friday,again. Boy are the weeks just flying by. Today for the Stamp Something Challenge you are asked to create something for Thanksgiving or a Thank-you something! I decided to do a scrapbook page this week. I was going to do a card with the Thoroughly Thankful set from SU when I changed my mind and thought this would look great blocked with a title and photo.
I kept the title simple, Thankful, with white Thickers. I used one of my favorite patterns from the Autumn Vine dsp pack. I added a tailored bow, but instead of another little piece of ribbon around the center, I used a button and linen thread. Yesterday I said I was going to share something personal. I normally don't share what my journaling says, but today I thought I'd tell the crafting world just what I am thankful for. So here's what it reads: There are so many reasons I am thankful, BUT my three Beautiful, Healthy, and Happy Boys are my Biggest Blessing! A little sappy, I know, but it is the truth. I love them with all my heart!
Be sure to stop by the Stamp Something blog and see what the other DT members did! and take some time this week to create something that says, Thanks! I also want to say thank-you to all of you who visit my blog! It truly means a lot to and keeps me going!

One other bit of info to share. Some of you may already know, but if not, check out these cute new stamps on Denise's blog. She has decided to take the plunge and start her own stamp company. Whimsy Stamps. Read all about her announcement here. The images are just adorable and she is even giving some away. I look forward to seeing the growth of this company! Congrats, Denise!

Okay, that's it for today. Have a great weekend. Hugs,

When things look like they were Made for Each Other!

Yes, I love that! Yesterday was the Wednesday Unity Addicts challenge. I wasn't going to do it. I had other things to work on, but then it hit me and I had to stamp it out! The challenge was an inspiration challenge. Here is the inspiration piece, isn't it just sooo inviting! I was really drawn to the pattern and the colors. So, what was the problem, well, I don't know. I guess I couldn't find the "perfect" stamp to use. Thanks to my messy craft room, I glanced down at the floor and saw the frame from the Unity November KOTM and green pattern paper from the Holiday Treasure dsp and WAM! it hit me! So I pulled this card together and I just love it! Isn't that chocolate kiss, just the cutest! I embossed it with choc. chip craft ink and clear embossing powder to make it more realistic! The top note die, that frame, and that designer paper just look like they were made for each other. That's all for today. Make sure you stop by tomorrow for a Stamp Something challenge. I've got something personal to share! Hugs,

Classic color combo!

You have to try it! The color challenge on SCS is Kraft, red, and black! I had so much fun creating these Clean and Simple cards yesterday. They are somewhat similar layouts, but they look totally different due to the different images and ribbon. I really need to get crackin' on my Christmas cards, I make about 60 of the same cards ( I actually die cut 60 kraft top note pieces yesterday, so I technically did get started on them, hehehe!) but for some reason I keep making single cards with all my other fun Christmas stamps. I do think the Merry & Bright set from PTI is one of the easiest sets to work with. I have loved everything I've created with it so far. On Monday I received my Unity, November Kit of the Month (KOTM) and it is just full of the most adorable images! This deer is my favorite! Didn't this just turn out so cute? I was going to make his nose red and sparkly, but decided against it when I added the naked chipboard heart. Instead of a Holiday card, I felt this would make a great Valentine card. Who wouldn't love to get this delightful deer?! Happy Hump Day! Hugs,

Sweet little Lily and Billy

The other week I received this adorable card from Brandi, welcoming me to the Limelight DT team. It was sooo sweet of her, Thanks girl! I have loved the Lily and Billy stamps by Pink Cat Studio since they first came out. I have Billy, but since I don't have girls of my own I have held off on ordering Lily. This card just makes me smile. I love the designer paper Brandi used and the bits of sparkle, and all the other little details she added. I was inspired to pull out my Billy and ink him up. So the next day, I made this card using sweet little Billy with the frog on his head. I made him using the color combo (pacific point, celery, and basic grey) from last week's challenge on SCS. It was perfect for this little boy card. I used the green parakeet tulle with this since it reminded me of a net you would use to catch a frog. You can get both of these sets and the tulle over at Limelight! Stop by and check out the specials of the week. I also just saw this on Mandy's blog, a big announcement if you are starting to feel the crunch of Christmas Card making. We (Limelight) are introducing THREE new kits this week, just in time for Christmas! We know how it is... you have the BEST intentions of creating handmade cards for EVERYONE on your list! But the date draws closer...and closer...and closer....you get the idea. ;) We have the perfect solution for you! Perfectly coordinating papers, cardstock, stamps, and embellishments to limit the guesswork! We'll even throw in some inspiration for how to use the supplies! The three card kits will be part of our Bundle Up! line (Get it??? BUNDLE Up?!? The products are BUNDLED together! And then Bundle UP because it's colder outside! HA!)...ahem....and will be offered in three different styles. We'll have a shimmery snowflake theme, traditional colors and meaning, and fun and funky contemporary. We can't wait to introduce them! STAY TUNED!! Stop by Mandy's blog to see the cards she created using the kits. I'm off to get some things accomplished this morning. What, exactly, I don't know, but yesterday was a LAZY day for me. Other than going to the bank and feeding the kids, I pretty much was a couch potato! It's okay to do this once and awhile! Hugs,

Scrapbook Monday

This was supposed to be scrapbook Sunday, but I never got to doing my post yesterday. I had a busy day preparing for my Holiday SAS and then spent the afternoon stamping with my girls. They loved the cards and everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves. I did no real stamping all weekend, well nothing new, but I've been wanting to share these two pages with you.

Both are layouts inspired by my Scrapbooks Ect. magazine. The first one is a page highlighting Joshua's Birthday. The other page is a fun one, catching Nicholas last winter swiping the bag of mini marshmallows. He would eat those any chance you got! This is why I love scrapbooking so much. I just love when I put a page together and it makes me smile while remembering a certain event or action. As always, thanks for stopping by! Have a great Monday. I think I am actually going to get started on my Christmas cards today!

Oh, and I'm doing my part to help spread the word on some fun blog candy-FREE Stamps! I can't believe that Sweet N' Sassy Stamps have been around for a year now and I am just discovering them (thanks to Crystal). Korin is offering up 6 sets to one lucky winner. Check out the details here if you are interested. You have until Dec. 1.

Hugs,

NMBS-Featured Swapper Case

One of my swap groups, NMBS, has a new feature on it's group blog (anyone is welcome to play along). Each month we have a featured swapper. This is the second month we have done it and it is a great way for us all to get-to-know each other a little better. This month's chosen one is Kelly Smith. She is just so cute, talented and she is expecting TWINS! You can read all about her here, and check out her blog here. I took a stroll through her SCS gallery and decided to CASE this card, I just loved the colors she used and I've been into my new snowflake set, Snow Burst, lately. I used Baja instead of the Soft Sky and I added a lovely Felt Flurry Large snowflake instead of the sentiment that Kelly did. I also left off the awesome cracked glass technique that she used on her card, but added shimmer with the Shimmery White cs from SU (this stuff is sooo pretty. If you have never used it, get some and try it!). Thanks for the inspiration, Kelly! Enjoy the spotlight this month! Hugs,

Queen Kat Stamp Something Challenge!

Today is Friday, Today is Friday! Yippeee! It is also a Stamp Something Friday! This week's challenge is a fabulous sketch by the wonderful, Vicki from Queen Kat Designs. I pulled out this festive polka dot dsp from the SU! Holiday Treasures pack and used that for my starting point. The snowflake is from the Season of Friendship set, isn't it a great image?! I used the word sparkle from the retired, Warm Words (can't wait for my new-to-me set, Short & Sweet to arrive!-more fun script words to play with). Everything else is pretty straight forward. Be sure to stop by the Stamp Something site and see what the other DT members did, and to check out the prize you could win for trying the sketch. Be sure to link your card for a chance to win! Good Luck! Hugs,

My Favorites from Limelight Sketch Challenge

Unity Stamps and rhinestones that glitter.

Basic grey wassail paper that reminds me of winter.

Piggy tales, pearls, urban prairie buttons

Warm, fuzzy dotted May Arts Ribbons and rub-ons! When the mojo's gone.

When I'm feeling, like I can't make a single thing.

I simply remember my favorite Limelight things and then I don't feel so bad!

We're not leaving you for Broadway! We're welcoming in the new DT members this week with a challenge featuring Our Favorite Things, from Limelight, of course!

The sketch challenge this week gives you lots of room to use any and every product from Limelight that you just couldn't live without! If you don't have anything from Limelight, feel free to use what you do have! Feel free to interpret the challenge in any way you want. Want to scrap a page of your favorite family moments? Go for it! Want to be-dazzle a card with all your favorite embellishments? We can't wait to see it! Just jump in and get crafting!
Sketch and Product Challenge with a focus on your favorite Limelight products!
Uploads to SCS should have the keyword: LLPC008
Participants should post a comment and a link to their card on Mandy's blog, all entries must be submitted by Sunday, November 16th, at midnight.

So there you have it, all the deets on this week's challenge. Brandi provided us with a wonderful sketch (doesn't she always. Thanks, Brandi!). So you probably want to see the sketch, huh? So there it is. I ended up squeezing it together a bit and creating a square card. I had such a hard time narrowing down my favorite Limelight products to something specific to use (you know, I love everything!, LOL!). So I went with some general product categories.

Here is the list of MY Favorite Limelight products: Unity Stamps (I used Jolly Little Winter on this card), Ribbon (the twill ribbon is awesome, and now Mandy got in some Satin ribbon-yummy!), and bling (here I used the Kaisercraft Black Rhineston and the new Shimmerz paints in olive). Let me tell you a little about the shimmerz paints on this card. It is hard to see in the photo, but man is this stuff shimmery. Everything I used to make this card you can get at Limelight (excpet the punches and copic markers).The ribbon on the card, was actually white twill and I turned it green and sparkly! I just used a sponge brush (note to self, get a fine tip paint brush. I don't have one, so I couldn't really add it to small spaces) and painted it on the ribbon. It didn't take a lot to cover the ribbon, but I did have to paint both sides. I set is aside to dry (and used my heat gun to speed up to process) while I put the rest of the card together. I love having a good white ribbon to transform into a color I need! I did add a bit of Shimmerz to the green gloves. It is easy to work with, you just paint and let dry. These paints are all the rage right now, check them out in the store. Mandy has many colors to choose from. Okay, so enough rambling.

Give the sketch a try and be sure to join us at http://www.limelightpapercrafts.blogspot.com/ You could win a Unity single stamp and package of Kaisercraft rhinestones of your choice!

Don't forget to check out what the other Limelight DT members did for this challenge. The links to their blogs are listed to the right or you can find them on Mandy's blog. I love to see how everyone else interpreted the challenge!

Oh, and check out the SALE going on at Limelight. Mandy put a few of our Favorite Things on sale.

Hugs,

More Simple Christmas

I know how pressed everyone is for time, especially during the Holiday season. I am all about the quick and easy Christmas card (although for some reason I don't always practice what a preach when it comes to my own personal cards, lol!). I wanted to show you how you can create a fabulous card with just some paper and ribbon. You can actually use designer paper and ribbon as the focal point of your card. Yes, I said that. It doesn't always have to be about the stamps. I just got this paper and ribbon yesterday from Limelight and I can't stop looking at it. It really is stunning, IRL! The paper is by TaDa, and it is called Twinkly Tidings-Razzle Dazzle. It is double sided and I used both sides here on this card. I was a bit hesitant on ordering this ribbon, but knew that it was by May Arts so I couldn't go wrong. Not to mention that I have yet to find a ribbon I didn't like or couldn't use in some way. I had no idea just how perfectly this matched this paper. I used the Bazzil Bling Diamond cs for my base and added a little sentiment embossed with copper embossing powder and called it done.

Hugs,

Organization

I am not the Queen of it. I'll admit it. Take a look in my craft room and you would see what I mean. But let me add that I do know where everything is and I like it that way. Yesterday morning I was came across this thread in the Unity forum and I felt inspired to organize my unmounted rubber (which is all my Unity stamps). I have been spoiled by SU and the great plastic cases all of the sets come in. If you have stamps from Unity then you know they come in the cutest little brown organza bags. I've started to accumulate quite a bit of them and my draw was getting a little full. I have to pull out almost every bag to find the set I want to use. It was starting to get annoying. Thanks to Natalie's (Dougnut) find at Target I knew I had to make a trip there to check them out. (I just tried to find a link to them online and couldn't find it.) It is a green little case and it is called a Scrapbook Activity Case. The best part is they are only $1.99!! I felt a bit liberated once I put my stamps in the case. I went from this mumbled, jumbled drawer to these two compact and organized green cases. I kept the sets together and then attached the lables to the outside of the green case with Dotto (just in case I need to rearrange my stamps some day). My store only had two, so I need to check out the other local Target for a few more. For now, I am quite happy! Want to know the other good things about getting organized, I will get a FREE Unity stamp out of it. For every 10 organza bags you return to Unity, they will give you a FREE stamp. How cool is that! It is a win, win for everyone!! Thanks for listening to me ramble, but I thought this might help someone else out there. There are other great ideas people posted on that thread, so if you are interested in seeing what others do check out the thread. Happy Monday! Hugs,

I'm a Verve Sketch Goddess!

I finished up the last two sketches for the Verve Holiday release. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that my lucky streak is still with me (I won Bunko on Monday). I have a Monstrous headache as I type this up, so I'm going to keep it super short and just show you the goods. I decided I should use my one and only Verve set (I hope to add more soon) on these last two cards. It is called Anniversary Birds and I bought it to make my DH's Anniversary card back in July. I think that is the only time this set has seen ink. I was happy to get them inky yesterday. Hope you like them!
Thanks for stopping by. Enjoy your day!

Hugs,

Amazing Sketches

Want some inspiration to work with today? Or do you need some inspiration to get stamping today? Julee (verve girl) always has AMAZING sketches to work with. Tonight will be the release party for Verve Stamps and she has issues a challenge. See the details here. To, keep it short, if you do all five sketches and upload to the I'm a Sketch Diva thread you could be one of the lucky winners to receive all the sets being released tonight (there will be 2 lucky winners!). I only own 1 Verve set and I really love the elegant style of the stamps, so I was motivated by this challenge to try and win some FREE stamps. Who doesn't like free stamps! Here are the first three sketches I got done yesterday. I've seen all five sketches and this first one is my FAVE!

I had the fourth one completed, but the more I look at it I DO NOT like it. I have time today so I'm going to re-work it and I'll share it with you tomorrow along with the final, 5th sketch. Even if you can't get to the sketches today for the contest, you should check them out. They really are fun ones! Have a wonderful Saturday! Hugs,