Happy New Home

First I just want to give a big thank you for all of your uplifting comments, thoughts and prayers. You have ALL put a smile on my face and in my heart. I am forever grateful because not only do I have an amazing network of friends in my life, I have wonderful, dear friends that I haven't even 'met' right here at my fingertips! BIG HUGS all around!

Okay, today I just wanted to share a gift I made for a co-worker who recently purchased a new home. I found these frames at the dollar store and I removed the glass. I stamped 'HOME' in choc. chip ink on So Saffron CS, cut out each letter and adhered them to a So Saffron panel with dimensionals. I also added some Stickles for a little sparkle, then I just layered my panels. The Always heart was heat embossed with Versa Mark ink and white embossing powder and added with dimensionals. I added some ribbon with a yellow button on top of a larger brown button (adhered with glue dots), and I made a card to go with it using my favorite 'Bloomin' Rose.



Let me know what you think, I love when you visit! Have a wonderful Monday and don't forget to smile a lot! :)
Hugs and Smiles~
Denise

Frame~
Stamps: Lovely Letters Alphabet, Always (SU)
Paper: So Saffron, Choc. Chip, Pink Pirouette
Ink: Choc. Chip, Versa Mark
Extras: Stickles, ribbon, buttons, cuttlebug, lacy scallop punch, rhinestone stickers, white embossing powder

Card~
Stamps: Bloomin' Beautiful, Beautiful Borders (SU)
Paper: Choc. Chip, So Saffron, Whisper White, Bella Rose dsp
Ink: black Archival, pink pirouette, regal rose
Extras: ribbon, butterfly punch (MS), markers, Stickles, button, word punch, oval cutter, dimensionals, half pearl stickers

Happy Father's Day

Hi! Just a short post for today, wishing all the wonderful dads out there a very happy Father's Day~ Enjoy your day!
Hugs and Smiles~
Denise

Stamps: Thoughts and Prayers (SU)
Paper: Choc. Chip, Bella Rose dsp, Baja Breeze dsp, white, baja breeze
Ink: Black Archival
Extras: butterfly punch (Martha Stewart), markers,button, ribbon, half pearl stickers, hemp

It's been a while

Hi guys~
I know it's been a very long while since my last post, and I apologize for not checking in. I've just felt so overwhelmed with everything, and fallen into a very deep depression. I hate to admit that because so many people go through much more than depression, it sounds so trite. For me it's a very dark and lonely place, even surrounded by people who love me, but I'm working hard to get through it. Thank God for the people in my life and stamping~ they are truly life lines.
Today is the last day of school and I made two of Olivia's teachers a special thank you gift. It's Lauren's Versatility Box, one of my faves and so fun to make. Here is the video tutorial if you want to take a peek. Inside both boxes is a mini sunflower planter, I found them at Target for $1 each.
Here is a view of the top of the boxes:




Here they are opened, I added a little pocket to the inside cover to store the planter's instructions:



And here is the top of the mini planter, I punched a 2" circle, secured ribbon vertically around planter and punched circle. Then I layered a 1 3/8" punched circle over secured ribbon, and added Stampin' Up!'s butterfly die to the top with a glue dot.



I hope you try this fun box, thanks Lauren for the wonderful inspiration!
Thanks for stopping by, and keep smiling a lot :)
Hugs and Smiles!
Denise

Paper: Choc. Chip, baja breeze, dsp- all SU
Stamps: Best Yet- SU
Ink: Black Archival
Extras: white gel pen, punches, butterfly die cuts (SU), ribbon, mini planters

Hi!

Hi everyone!
I can't believe how long it's been since I've posted! Our cruise was AWESOME! I'll post a few pics at the end of this post. It was really hard to come back to 'reality' ~ I actually went through some 'post vacation blues' for a while, and I lost my creative mojo. I'd sit at my desk, look at my stuff, and NOTHING! But I check out all of your awesome creations EVERYDAY, and you remind me why I love this craft so much! You guys really and truly amaze and inspire me!!
Well, it's now Spring Break, I've had some time to myself and guess what? I got some mojo back!! I sat down the other night and made 3 cards! It also helps that my dear friend and stamping buddy, Pam, lives 3 houses down, and talk about inspiring-- she really needs to get her blog up and running so she can share her amazing talents with you guys too-- Ya got that MDF?!!!!



Anyway, I was looking through an old Stampin' Up! catty, and fell in love with this color combo- Sahara Sand and bashful blue. (it reminds me of the beach!) So I pulled out my Bloomin' Rose and came up with these.
I used the Swiss Dots folder with my Cuttle Bug, all three cards have faux stitching, and of course there's tons of Stickles involved, because I LOVE sparkles!
Okay, now maybe I'll check out some of my favorite challenges to keep the juices flowing! :)
As promised, here a few pics from our trip-- hope you enjoy!
(Ours is the BIG ship!)
Thanks for much for stopping by, and keep smiling!!
Hugs ad Smiles,
Denise

I'll be Thinking of You

Hi all, and happy Saturday!
Just a short post today. I will be leaving early tomorrow morning for our Cruise vacation, so I will not be posting for about 2 weeks~ but don't forget about me!!
I don't know how I will survive without my obsession, I think I'll stamp some images to bring along to color and cut out~ I CAN'T go cold turkey!!
I'll be thinking of you all in the warm Caribbean sun :), and look forward to checking out all of your wonderful creations when I get home!!
Have a great couple of weeks, and KEEP SMILING A LOT!! :)
Hugs and smiles~
Denise

Life is Good!

Happy Monday!
Well, I got my snow day!! Right now the kids are fighting and I wish they were in school!! I can't believe I actually got two cards done.
The first is Saturday's Cupcake Challenge at Taylored Expressions. I used my Sarah Kay's Picnic of Daisies stamp and water colored her onto water color paper using my ink pads and a water brush (and a couple of markers). I got a little 'button happy' here!




My next card is from this week's sketch at Our Creative Corner.
My dear friend and stamping buddy, Pam got the Top Note die, so I made a bunch of them in different colors of card stock. I stamped the tree from Thoughts and Prayers onto a Sahara Sand Top Note using markers. The sentiment is from Make it Count, it's stamped on Sahara Sand cs in choc. chip ink, then punched out with an oval punch. The smaller part of the sentiment is stamped in Certainly Celery ink on very vanilla cs, then punched out with a small circle punch and popped up with dimensionals. The rest is pretty self explanatory.
Before I go I wanted to mention that Deena is celebrating her birthday today and she's having a party, check out what else she's been celebrating- she might even have some goodies to give away- go check it out!!
That's it for now, thanks so much for stopping by, and don't forget to smile a lot today! :

Hugs and Smiles~
Denise

Daisies for You
Stamps: Picnics of Daisies (Sarah Kay), One of a Kind (SU)
Paper: Not Quite Navy, So Saffron, Very Vanilla, Green Tea dp, water color paper
Ink: black archival, baja breeze, brilliant blue, barely banana, close to cocoa, choc. chip, certainly celery
Extras: markers, water brush, blender pen, buttons, lacy scallop punch (MS), cuttlebug embossing folder

Life is Good
Stamps: Thoughts and Prayers, Make it Count (SU)
Paper: choc. chip, very vanilla, so saffron, green tea dp, Sahara sand
Ink: choc. chip, certainly celery
Extras: oval punch, butterfly punch (MS), button, half pearl stickers, lacy scallop punch, top note die, markers

A Rose For You

Happy Sunday!!
We are awaiting what could be the biggest snow storm of the season here in Connecticut~ that means..... SNOW DAY TOMORROW!! Working in the school system I feel like a kid again when snow is coming, I LOVE SNOW DAYS!! In for the day, playing games with the fam, stamping, reading~ anything we want! It's not a 'Have to' day. On top of that, we are leaving next Sunday for a two week vacation. We're driving down to Florida, then shoving off on a ten day cruise to the Caribbean! I can't wait!!
Anyway, today's Featured Stamper at SCS is Kelly H. WOWZA! What a beautiful gallery! Browsing through some gorgeous creations, I finally chose this card to case. I loved the colors and layout a lot, but you have to change at least two things to case someone, so I changed the stamp set, dp and moved the elements a little. I also added buttons and a sentiment.

Stamps: Bloomin' Beautiful, One of a Kind (both SU)
Paper: very vanilla, basic grey, K&Co dp
Ink: black archival, soft sky, bashful blue, mellow moss
Extras: Oval cutter (Fiskars), ribbon, buttons, lacey scallop punch (MS), dimensionals, Stickles

Thanks so much for stopping by, and keep smiling a lot! :)
Hugs and Smiles~
Denise