FAN OF KITTIE CARACCIOLO

I have been a fan of Splitcoast Stampers for awhile and have always gone to its gallery to get inspiration.  When I saw Kittie Caracciolo's  (She's Kittie747 on the gallery.) creations with flowers, I knew I had to check every card she ever posted.  I wanted to copy each and every one.

Here are a few of my cards inspired by...more likely...copied from Kittie's genius.  I'll post my supplies tomorrow on the Splitcoast gallery when I post the cards there. (screen name - carleneanne)

These first two are Sympathy cards.

This card could be used for any occasion.  I chose to put a Get Well message inside.

I just love this phrase for wedding/anniversary cards.  I embossed this one with black embossing powder.

This one was embossed with silver embossing powder.

It is difficult to see in this photo, but the white embossing powder really does show up on this one.

Another series of wedding/anniversary cards done with different embossing powders.  Can you tell...I couldn't decide which color powder I liked best!

Cards for any occasion.

CYCLE MANIA & Totally Stampalicious Challenge

Last week, I received my long-awaited order from Totally Stampalicious and knew that the first set I had to stamp was "Road Hawg."  My husband's friend just got a new "bike" and we wanted to send him a congratulatory card.  One of the sayings in the set is:

"Four Wheels Move The Body

Two Wheels Move The Soul"

If you knew our friend, you'd know that no other words in the world could better express his feelings for riding a motorcycle.  His enthusiasm has spread to my husband, who just bought his first motorcycle.  (Say a prayer he doesn't kill himself!)

In any event, I had all my images colored when I saw this week's Totally Stampalicious challenge to add texture.  I quickly had to redesign one of my cards to add texture.

Here is my submission:

Materials:
Stamps: "Road Hawg" (Totally Stampalicious)
Paper: White, navy, pale blue & silver metallic cardstock
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: Copic Markers, Black w/white stitching ribbon, Pewter Brads, Speed Limit sign (Generated on word processor & cut with Spellbinders Rectangle, "Steam Punk" embossing folder (Darice), Silver Stardust pen, Glaze pen

Here are the other "Road Hawg" cards I made.  I will upload them to Splitcoast Stampers Gallery tomorrow along with all their materials.  My screen name there is carleneanne.

GIRL TALK

Tami Mayberry has designed lots of stamp sets for Gina K.  In the past, I have shown a few of the cards I made with the "YOU GO, GIRL!" set.  Today, I'm featuring the "GIRL TALK" set.  The reason I love these sets is because they both come with a figure of a girl/woman inside a rectangular frame...but with LOTS of empty space to stamp one of the MANY sayings that come in each set.  This "GIRL TALK" set comes with 12 sayings, a heart, and a dollar sign.  It is hard to decide which to use because they are all wonderfully-funny.  Here are a few of the cards I made with this set.

American Crafts designer paper, "Amplified" (patterns - "The Mashed Potato," "Rockabilly" and "Fuzz Tone") were used in the first 8 cards.  The layouts, coloring and accessories vary, but all use Spellbinders Rectangles and Deckled Rectangles.  I will post these cards on the Splitcoast Gallery with a complete list of all the materials used.  My screen name there is carleneanne.

The next cards all use American Crafts "Everyday" designer paper (patterns "Yo!," "Gidday," "Good Morning," Salut" and/or "Aloha.")  Once again, the layouts, coloring and accessories vary.

Guess I better get stamping again...there are 5 sayings in the set I haven't stamped yet!  LOL!

Totally Stampalicious! Challenge - Favorite Embellishment

I rarely make a card without embellishments of one kind or another because I love the texture, dimension and coordination of color that they provide.  It is next to impossible to choose just one...but, if I have to...I would say my favorite is Sticko Dimensional Stickers.  They have a little dimension, come in a million shades and shapes, and don't add so much bulk to the cards that I have to put extra postage on them.  (Here in the US, it costs 20 cents more if cards are too thick.)  And because they are flexible, I don't have to put an extra piece of cardstock in the envelope to prevent the embellishment from tearing through the envelope.

Here are 2 of my favorite Totally Stampalicious! images with Stickos on them.

"Beer Guzzlin" Gus was colored with Copics.  The designer paper is American Crafts "Celebration."  Spellbinders Petite Ovals were used for the image and the words.

"Birthday Gus" was colored with Copics.  Again, I used Spellbinders Petite Ovals and Scalloped Petite Ovals.  The designer paper is from the "All Wound Up" Series by Daisy Bucket Designs.  EK Success rick rack border punch was used to cover the seam between the papers. 

Seashells By The Seashore

Sometimes when you buy a stamp, it is for a specific occasion or based on a specific theme (like the entire drawer of golfing stamps I have).  Every once in a while, you come across a certain stamp that you know you can use for JUST ABOUT ANYTHING!  That is the way I feel about Inkadinkado's "Seashells" stamp.

I've stamped it with dye inks, pigment inks, embossed it, and/or colored it.  It seems you can use any medium and still create a card that you would be proud to send for any occasion.

Here are a few of the cards I made.

This card measures 5 1/2 X 4 1/4.  It was stamped with gold (Encore) pigment ink on Gina K Luxury Ivory cardstock and embossed with detail gold embossing powder.  Spellbinders Petite Ovals and Cuttlebug's "Scrollwork" embossing folder were used.  The gold foil cardstock is from Recollections.  Foam tape was used to attach the ovals to the card base.

This black & white version also measures 5 1/2 X 4 1/4.  It was stamped with Versamark ink and embossed with detail black embossing powder.  Spellbinders Petite Ovals and Cuttlebug's "Scrollwork" embossing folder were used.  Foam tape was used to attach the ovals to the card base.

This black & white card measures 5 X 4 1/4.  (I made it smaller because I wanted the card base proportionate to the decorative border.)  It was stamped with Versamark ink and embossed with detail black embossing powder.  Spellbinders Deckled Rectangles and Fleur de Lis Rectangles were used.    Foam tape was used to attach the Fleur de Lis panel to the card base. 

This card measures 5 1/2 X 4 1/4.  It was stamped with Versamark ink on tan pearlescent cardstock and embossed with bronze embossing powder.  Spellbinders Petite Ovals and Cuttlebug's "Scrollwork" embossing folder were used.  Bronze metallic cardstock (don't know company) was used for the layers.  Foam tape was used to attach the ovals to the card base.
 

This card measures 5 1/2 X 4 1/4.  It was stamped with pigment ink on watercolor paper, embossed with bronze embossing powder, and colored with Twinkling H2O's.  The peach cardstock is from the Paper Company.  Spellbinders Petite Ovals and Cuttlebug's "Scrollwork" embossing folder were used.  Copper foil cardstock was used for layering.  Foam tape was used to attach the ovals to the card base. 

This black & white "shape" card was created with Spellbinders Lattice Rectangles.  The image was stamped with Versamark ink and embossed with Holographic embossing powder.

And, finally, this 4 1/4 by 5 1/2 "window"card was stamped on Gina K's Luxury Ivory cardstock with Memento Rich Cocoa ink and colored with Copics.  The window in the peach cardstock (Paper Company) was made with Spellbinders Petite Ovals and then embossed with Cuttlebug's "Rebecca" embossing folder.
 

Why I Love My Cricut Everyday Paper Dolls Cartridge

How I love my Cricut "Everyday Paper Dolls" cartridge for making cards for children. Everything is interchangeable. Even if the picture shows a boy golfer, you can make it into a girl just by choosing a hair style from another page. You can customize the skin color, hair color and accessories so it looks like a miniature of the child receiving the card. What is a better reaction from a child than to hear, "WOW! The kid on the card looks like ME!"

What made life even simpler was finding Peachy Keen Stamps and its "Everyday Character Face Assortment." Now, I no longer have to draw the faces...the stamps do all the work. Add a little blush, and you're done.

Here are a few of the cards I have made with the "Everyday Paper Dolls" cartridge.