woohoo! MFT Teaser Time! It's to DIE-for!

Love this time of the month and so will you! The next 5 days are packed with lots of great new MFT products! Sit back and enjoy! Today we are sharing peeks to two new stamps following the great gardening theme that's been added to the boutique. I always love Stephanie Fizer's work and she has done it again with another FABulous flower set called How Your Garden Grows. There are new digi papers to coordinate AND an awesome new die-namics flower die! I can't get enough of these dies, all of them! For today's card I decided to make my own designer paper. There are lots of different flowers and sizes of flowers to work with along with some fun flower centers. You're gonna love it. See those felt flowers? Yep, created fast and easy with one run through of my big shot and the Flower Trio & Leaf Trio die-namics die. I added some coordinating buttons from the Earth Girl and Girly Button collections. I also used the fun, open scalloped scallop die and Framed Greetings die (currently sold out, sorry!). I also added a fun ribbon treatment with my FAVE perfect plaid ribbon in red!
I finished the card off inside with some more of the same flower and die-namics goodness! This is one of my all-time fave color combos-turquoise, red, and kraft!
I've also got another peek at the Clearly Sentimental about Gardens set. It was last month's triple scoop, and now it's available to purchase if you didn't earn it for FREE last month. I love it and it's a great compliment to many, many sets releasing this month and in the boutique already. As much as I loooove this stamp set, I'm really ga-ga over the dies I used on this card. EEEEE! it just makes me squeal. Can you count them?Most you should recognize, but 1 is brand new. Do you know which one? Okay, I can't stand it.....it's the tree and leaves! The tree is the same one from the awesome stamp set, Sheltering Tree. Now there is a die to match. No more cutting out that tree, and just in case you were thinking you have to have them both (why not? but.....) you don't. The tree works all by it's self. Can you see the details on the tree....the cool new thing about this die is that it embosses the woodgrain at the same time you are cutting it out! It's genius, I tell you, just genius! So, I used 4 different die-namics dies here-cloud trio, sunshine, fresh cut grass, and the new Sheltering Tree & leaf trio! I decided to add in a layer of the sweet new ruffled ribbon in yellow.
Of course I didn't stop at the outside, I had to add some flowers to the inside. These are from the new set, How Your Garden Grows. Oh, yeah, there's one more new die here, too! It's a new mini scallop-a staple for all stamping supplies! Yes, you may have a punch that does the same scallop, BUT your punch doesn't cut through felt, fabric, cork, acetate, and all the other materials you can cut with the die-namic dies! You've got to have these!
Don't forget about this month's Guest Designer Contest! You can read about it here. It's soooo worth playing along, the PRIZE is Fabulous! Can't wait to see what you all do for it.
All, right, I've had enough to say today. BUT I will leave you with one last piece of news. Be sure to read it-a PRIZE is involved. Today, there is a prize hidden on one of the designer's blog posts. As you make your way through the Teaser Time posts, simply leave a comment on each blog, for your chance to win one of the Brand Spankin' New stamp sets being released on August 4th. A winner will be chosen from the comments on the pre-selected blog before tomorrow's teaser list goes live, and will be posted on Kim's blog HERE. Be sure to check tomorrow to see if YOU are the winner. You can play along each day for your chance to win. We will be giving away NINE new stamp sets this week! As always, you can find the master list of participating designers HERE Kim's blog. She'll have the list up and ready to go by 11 am.

new stamps for me

I held out as long as I could. I swear I did, but then, well, something just overcame me and I somehow placed a little order with The Cat's Pajamas. EEEEE! I'm loving them and can't wait to create more. Last week was their new release and I picked up a few things new and then this sweet Joy Ride stamp from their last release (thanks to Jackie and Becky! and everyone else I keep seeing using this image! Ha!). I also got a little bit of the devine twine TCP carries, thanks again to Jackie. You're the best. so this card uses Karen's Sweet Sunday sketch from this week. Paired it all up with some fun Cosmo Cricket dp-Joy Ride! Then I couldn't stop at just one card. The other new set I ordered was a perfect fit with this week's TCP inpsiration challenge. You can read all about that here. All the pink and orange just makes me happy!
I think the best thing about these cards is that I stamped it just for fun! Loved the sketch, the inspiration and the stamps and just created! It's so refreshing to do that!
Tomorrow starts our MFT sneak peeks! Can't wait to show you what I've been up to! See you back here then.

Day 3 with TSG Peeks!

***second post for today-Please Scroll down for my Hip Hop card!***

Today we have sneak peeks of two awesome stamp sets that were illustrated by our newest TSG artist, Torico! Hopefully you just arrived from Kim's blog. If not, then please hop on back to the TSG blog to get started.

Some of our loyal There She Goes friends, CraftyMathChick from the Friday Night Chats has been asking for a dog themed stamp for soooo long and Kelli has been wanting some “cute little fat bumblebees” and as soon as I started working with Torico, I knew that she would do an amazing job on both of these type of sets :)I promise that you will LOVE these cute images! They are just DOG-gone, Bee-utiful! Hehehehe, sorry. I just couldn't resist the humor! Feeling punny today ;)

Puppy Love is a 4x8 stamp set that includes a total of 39 stamps and will sell for $18. I seriuosly, can't get over just how sweet all the images are in this set. And let me tell you, there are a TON of images to choose from and lots of sweet sentiments and accessory stamps to go with the main images. This one is one of my faves. Love that sweet little pup holding the sign. I made it say, "i Ruff You". There are quite a few sentiments that fit on that sign. Here's a close up! I used cork again, to give it a realistic wood-feel! Bee Happy is a 3x4 stamp set that includes a total of 27 stamps and will sell for $7. Here's a quick peek at what I did with one of these adorable little fat bees. I added some stickles to the wings and popped up one of the flowers. Would you like a chance to win both the Puppy Love and Bee Happy stamp sets? Here’s what you need to do: go to each of the Trendsetter’s Blogs and leave a comment on their Puppy Love / Bee Happy Blog Hop Challenge post. After you have finished checking out the eye candy and have left some love, return to the TSG Blog to add your name to the Mr. Linky at the bottom of this Blog Hop Challenge post. A winner will be chosen randomly using a random number generator to receive their very own Puppy Love and Bee Happy stamp sets. The winner will be announced Saturday (July 31st) during the Release Party Chat.

Make sure to stop by the TSG Blog on Friday to see new TSG Tips & Tricks sheets featuring the brand new stamp sets! The Tip Sheets will also be available to download as .pdf files so that you can print them out to keep on hand for easy access during stamping.

Up next in the TSG line up is the very talented, Mercy! Off you go to see her beautiful creation.

Hip Hop, at home while I feel like Everyone is away!

I have a love/hate relation with this time of the year. It's CHA week and I love the buzz of all the excitement in the air. I love seeing all the new products that are coming our way, AND I love to hear all about the great stories and friendships being made with everyone in Chicago. I HATE this week, because I have yet to make it to a CHA show. I feel so left out :(

I am so honored and blessed to be designing for the companies I do. I Truly love them and I would be over-the-moon excited to be meeting my fellow team members. Deep sigh.....there's always next year, right? Okay! Enough of a pity party. On to the FUN stuff! It's Hip Hop day with Unity and {ippity} and I'm super happy you are here!

I LOVE the card I made this week. I used one of Mercy's Tuesday Sketches (It's one of my faves ever! I think I've made 3 cards with it. MTSC83) and was inspired by this FABBY card by Julie Lacey (Jimmie featured it on the Sunday Fave post!).
I love the music score from Music of My Heart. Such a classic background stamp. I stamped the sentiment from the same set and cut it apart to make it fit my circle!
New {ippity} is coming soon, Aug. 12! Are you ready???? I am and I can't wait for you to see how fabulous the new stamps are. Sneak Peeks start next week!
Maria is up next! Check out what she has for you today. If you get lost along the way, you can always hop on back to the Unity blog and Angela will point you in the right direction! There's also a great tutorial on the {ippity} blog.

TSG Sneak Peak Day 2

I'm here with day two Sneak Peeks for There She Goes Stamps. Hopefully you just arrived from Jodi's blog!( Isn't she amazing?) If not,then start back at the beginning so you can follow along with all the amazing projects and posssibly even win a prize! There She Goes is proud to add another stamp set to the Stamps For A Cause collection! Kristy K. contacted me back in April with an idea for a stamp set about a cause that was close to her heart- Cancer Society's Relay for Life. I couldn’t help but get caught up in her enthusiasm and knew that this is something that I wanted to pursue. For each Winning The Race mini set sold, TSG will donate $4 to the American Cancer Society!

Winning The Race is a 3x4 stamp set that includes a total of 10 stamps and will sell for $7 (with $4 being donated to the American Cancer Society)

This set came to me with perfect timing. Wait, that sounds horrible, because, really, there is NO good timing about Cancer. A month ago, a close and dear friend was diagnosed with breast cancer. On July 1, at age 35, she underwent a double mastectomy and last Thursday she started Chemo! I'm still struggleing with this, trying to understand it all. We always joke how stamping is cheaper than therapy and I really felt the truth in that last week as I created this card. I was in tears as I created this and when it was finished I felt proud to be a part of such a wonderful cause. My friend, Jess IS winning the race against this horrible disease. Keep on fighting, girl!

I also decided to whip up a few thank-you notes. These are little 3x3 cards and they are the perfect way to say Thanks to anyone who donates to the cause. The second mini set that the Trendsetters are showing off is called Kindred Spirits. This beautiful mini set includes two different sized flower outlines as well as textured silhouette flower images that can be stamped underneath to add wonderful dimension to any project!

Kindred Spirits is a 3x4 stamp set that includes a total of 7 stamps and will sell for $7.

OMG! I have to say I loved working with this set. It is an amazing two-step set and the fact that these stamps are acrylic and you can see where you are stamping makes these flowers sooooo easy and FAST! They turn out beautiful everytime. Looks like I worked hard watercoloring them. How about the color combo? I love this too-espresso, marina mist, daffodil and tangerine tango. Ahhhhh! I really love these new SU colors.

Would you like a chance to win both of the mini sets Winning The Race and Kindred Spirits? Here’s what you need to do: go to each of the Trendsetter’s Blogs and leave a comment on their Winning The Race / Kindred Spirits Blog Hop Challenge post. After you have finished checking out the eye candy and have left some love, return to the TSG Blog to add your name to the Mr. Linky at the bottom of this Blog Hop Challenge post. A winner will be chosen randomly using a random number generator to receive their very own Winning The Race / Kindred Spirits stamp sets. The winner will be announced Saturday (July 31st) during the Release Party Chat.

Make sure to stop by the TSG Blog on Friday to see new TSG Tips & Tricks sheets featuring the brand new stamp sets! The Tip Sheets will also be available to download as .pdf files so that you can print them out to keep on hand for easy access during stamping :)

Mercy is up next! I can't wait to see what she created, it's always beautiful and never disappoints! See you tomorrow for more sneak peeks!

It's TSG Release Sneak Peek Time!

It's always so exciting when release week rolls around. Can you feel the excitement? There She Goes has lots in store this month and I just know you're going to love it! Hopefully you just came from Kim's blog, if not, then start back at the beginning of this hop with the TSG blog!

First up is another amazing set by Chris Dark. This set is Asian inspired and includes many beautiful images that you are going to love to use on a regular basis!

The Journey is a 6x8 stamp set that includes a total of 20 stamps and will sell for $24.

I chose the beautiful cherry blossom branches to work with. They are two individual stamps, so it makes building your tree really easy. I stamped in momento tuxedo black ink, colored with copics and then cut them out. You can't really see it in this photo, but I added a drop of crystal effects to their centers and then attached clear, micro beads to the flowers. It's really pretty and gives a great texture. I kept the rest of the card simple and pretty with some Webster's pages lace and designer paper. Added a bow with some vintage cream grosgrain and the inspirational sentiment to finish it off!

Would you like a chance to win the The Journey stamp set?

Here’s what you need to do:

go to each of the Trendsetter’s Blogs and leave a comment on their The Journey Blog Hop Challenge post. After you have finished checking out the eye candy and have left some love, return to the TSG Blog to add your name to the Mr. Linky at the bottom of this Blog Hop Challenge post. A winner will be chosen randomly using a random number generator to receive their very own The Journey stamp set. The winner will be announced Saturday (July 31st) during the Release Party Chat.
Make sure to stop by the TSG Blog on Friday to see new TSG Tips & Tricks sheets featuring the brand new stamp sets! The Tip Sheets will also be available to download as .pdf files so that you can print them out to keep on hand for easy access during stamping :) Jessica is so good like that!
Alrighty, off you go to see what beautiful work Mercy has cooked up for us today!

H{ippity} Hop!

Good morning. I'm here, finally with my card. It's been done in my head for days, does that count for anything? hehehe!

We had a wonderful 4 days at the lake with my parents, so no crafty time. But today is a different story...lots and lots of stamping going on today. Love that!

This week's H{ippity} Hop challenge is A 1,2,3 challenge-the cool thing is, you get to pick your 1,2, 3! Be sure to use keywords, Ippity and IHHC34 when uploading to SCS.



My card I used 1 piece of pattern paper (from OA, thrift shop), 2 stamps (from Because of You and Music of my Heart) and 3 ribbons (the gingham, olive twill, and cream twine!). Need some {ippity}-I've got a few sets left. Email me your order today!

Stop by the {ippity} blog for the full line up!

Check out the TSG Blog!

***SCROLL DOWN FOR MY FWF POST***

I've been the featured Trendsetter over on the There She Goes Blog this week. Hop on over there to check out what I've done. Today I posted about this simple and sweet hostess gift.

Gettin' Dirty with FWF!

I'm having fun playing along with some of the Dare to Get Dirty challenges this week. Are you playing along? Don't know what I'm talking about? You can read about it all here, but you have to be a fan club member to play. Membership does have it's rewards!!! I have always been proud to support my favorite stamping site!
I pulled out some Unity stamps, a few past Kit of the Months and got busy. These were total procrastination creations, was totally supposed to be working on other stuff, LOL! To be honest, LOVE when that happens, sometimes my fave creations are born.
This first one was for a texture challenge by Amber. Love this jar and it had never seen ink. I inked it with versa mark and then some new Cherry Cobbler ink and hit with some clear embossing powder. It's so shiny and pretty. Love the look of tickets, so I pulled those out of the same kit, inked 'em, cut 'em out, and attached them with some twine. Some other products I added-PTI polka dotted impression plate, MFT felt, open scallop die, and spiral tab punch with Basic Grey's manilla basics dp.

And then this one was a two-fer. Lathisa Yoast was this week's featured stamper. Her gallery is A-mazing! I CASED a fun banner card of hers and combined it with Ryann's Embrace the White Space challenge. My banner was super easy to put together thanks to the MFT banner day die-namics die! The dp is a random assortment of retired SU papers in razzleberry, tangerine tango, and bermuda bay. So festive! Sentiment was done by combining words from this KOTM.

Thanks for stopping by. I'll be back on Monday. Enjoy the weekend!

Hip Hop On Thursday

Happy Thursday. You know what that means.....Happy Hip Hop! Keeping it clean and simple, lots going on around my house. It's all good, but I'm without a computer for a few days!

It's nice to let the dp shine with a great sentiment from Where You Should Be. What's better than a You are Fabulous sentiment? Paper is Bo Bunny and I used an SU border punch down the side. Stop by the Unity blog and {ippity} blog for LOTS of inspiration.
Maria is up next on the hop! Have fun!

Be a VIP!

It's My Favorite Things VIP time again. You know you want your stamps early-so don't miss out on this fabulous package. Plus, you only have this 1 day to take adavantage of the full VIP kit.
If you're just getting started, be sure to hop on back to Kim's blog for all the details. If you just came from Christina's blog, then you are in the right place!

This month we have another super fabby Who's That Girl-last month she planted, this month she's harvesting! Yep, it's Who's That Harvest Girl! Wait till you see the samples-there's some cool stuff!

The VIP package is for everyone, but it's only available for 1 day-so don't wait.
Here's what you get:

August VIP (July 20th 10 PM EST through July 21st) :

• 
  Who’s That Harvest Girl? VIP $36



• Who’s That Harvest Girl?Girly Net Ribbon Collection (2 yards each of netted ribbon in Lipstick Red, Cool Green, White Tulle, Sassy Black, Girly Pink)



• 5 yards 5/8” Black Saddle Stitch Ribbon



• Olivia Basic Grey 6 X 6 patterned paper pad



• Set of 10 Scalloped A2 Notecards in Black Linen



• Garden Goodness mini stamp set (FREE, $9 value)
  
  **Additional release on VIP night**:
  



• Strawberry Carton and Strawberries Template $3.95

That sure is a lot of MFT goodness! This WTG set is so easy to to work with. It's so fun filling her basket with different things.

I decided on strawberries today. We love these de-lish red berries, We eat them all year long, but the best is early summer when we go picking and can have them fresh every day. I make strawberry jam, strawberry pies, strawberry muffins, and this year we even made homemade, strawberry Popsicles. Yummmm!
I used some of my favorite October Afternoon dp, Farm Fresh, to make this thank-you card. I used some MFT Perfect Plaid ribbon, Earth Girl wooden buttons, and a flower die cut from MFT Garden Veggie collection of felt to give this a real down-home, farm fresh feel! OH, yeah and look at my kraft ric rac ribbon! It's really cs, but looks like ribbon in real life thanks to the

Jumbo Ric Rac die-namics die and ribbon re-creation texture board.

Used many of the same elements to finish off the inside of the card. Don't those berries just look de-lish sitting on top of my border?
Thanks for stopping by. Off you go, there's LOTS more to see. Up next is Cindy! Have fun and happy shopping!

TSG-I Challenge You!

*** it's a 2 post Monday-scroll down for my H{ippity} Hop post!***

It's my week in the Trendsetter Spotlight over on the There She Goes Blog. One of the fun things about this week is I get to pick the challenge. You can see all the details on the TSG blog , but in a nut shell, I challenge you to use Chipboard and Polka dots on your creation today! Here's my card. I couldn't help myself and used the oh-so-cute polka dot scallop from Polka Dot Pals. The rest of the stamps come from Art is the Window.
A quick little chipboard flourish, inked up with some craft ink and a twill bow-this card was complete! Simple and sweet just like pie.
Come play along for a chance at a $5 gift certificate to the TSG store-it's almost release time again, and your gonna want some extra cash!

H{ippity} Hop Monday!

Good morning my stamping peeps! OOOO, did I have fun with this week's challenge. Yes! I actually have a challenge card for you this week. LOL! Eryn has a fun one for you, it's working with color. How about Yellow, Turquoise + an accent color! Use keyword IHHC33 when uploading to SCS.
I decided to use 2 accent colors and think they all look so fresh and summery together! I added new leaf and razzleberry as my two accent colors! They look great with my beloved leaves from Where You Should Be. The Thanks comes from Music of my Heart, oh and the pretty polka dots are from Love in Return!

Want some {ippity} stamps? You can purchase them here! I've also posted a little announcement on my sales page. You can read about it there,too. Please email me if you would like to buy any stamps.

Check out the {ippity} blog for the full line up of wonderful inspiration.
Oh, and don't forget, the NEW RELEASE is coming soon-mark your calenders for Aug. 12!!!

Dare to Get Dirty!

The time has come again to get Dirty along with the current Dirty Dozen and fellow Dirty Alums. We have a whole line up of challenges for you this week. It's a way for us to say thank-you to our dedicated Fan Club members. Not a member? Well you can join today and help support SCS-it's the best crafting dollars I spend each year.

Today kicks off the fun. I created a sample for one of the challenges hosted by Ryann Salamon. She is challenging us to embrace the white space. New challenges will go live at 8 am each morning. HERE! Come read what it's all about! Get Dirty if you Dare?

supplies:

cs-kraft (SU), my mind's eye (so sophia line)

ink: pomegranate (SU)

stamps: MFT clearly sentimental about you

Acces: rolled flower die-namics die, glittered garnishes, MFT cork, PTI woodgrain impression plate, PTI beautiful bloomsII #3flower die, MFT bakery blend button, shimmerz spritz, sewing machine

The Dirty Dozen July Gallery is now open. Come check out what's in the air. It's another great reason to be member!