Happy New Year

Just wanted to pop in and wish you all a healthy and happy 2010!

Also, I wanted to fill you in on a few holiday sales:

Stamper's Dream is having a sale on all Prism Paper and Spellbinder's dies. The new JustRite release is also on sale. Check it out HERE.

My Favorite Things is having a Countdown to Savings sale. You can find all the details and specials HERE.

Gina K Designs has been having a Christmas sale that runs through this evening. Get a FREE stamp set ($20.95 value) with any $35 purchase. More details HERE.

Gina K New release sneak peeks begin on SUNDAY!!! See you then!!!

Thanks for stopping by!

Merry Christmas

Wishing you a Very Merry Christmas! All stamps from Holiday Cheer Stamp TV Kit (Gina K Designs).

See you in 2010!
xo

Clarification...

I am so sorry. I didn't mean for so many of you to come to the wrong conclusion on that last post. We are all fine.

1. My husband hurt his back last week. His injury has caused intense leg pain and nerve weakness in his foot. We are unsure if he will be transported to another "undisclosed" location or be sent to Germany for surgery. It has been a week full of ups and downs with this as it looked like he was possibly going to come home....and now...no clue???? He is trying to do everything he can to stay and fulfil his commitment and the good news is that the steroids and injections are giving him some relief. It's a waiting game.

2. My son's birthday is this week. He is the one most affected by his father being gone. He is doing well but is, once again, being riddled with some irritable bowel (type) issues. (NOT fun with a first grader who is in school all day.)

3. I usually take time off for Christmas break. I am just taking a bit of extra time with all the added responsibilities I have this year. I find that if I am busy thinking about other things....I cannot make anything nice anyway!

So, I am just trying to lighten my load so that I can handle everything around here...

Thank you so much for all the emails/calls. We are good.

Merry Christmas y'all and SEE you in the new year!

HUGS and xo

Happy Holidays!

Some things have come up that have made an already hectic/busy time even more so. I am taking off from blogging for a bit as my kids need me more than ever and my heart is just not into stamping right now.

I wish you a happy and healthy holiday season........See you in 2010!

Blog Candy Winner

Hi everyone! Today was a busy day. I was at my son's school volunteering for most of it and then had to take my daughter to the dentist.

Sorry for the delay in posting the Milestone Blog Candy winner. Random.Cara chose #119. Congratulations to Marsha who said "I enjoy looking at your blog everyday. You are an incredible artist and I love seeing what you post for the day.(Have even CASED some of your cards) Congratulations!"

Marsha, please email your address in the next few days to claim your prize.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks to all of YOU for all the wonderful comments you left on the blog candy post. :)

HUGS!

Inspiration on a Platter

Yippee!!

Check it out HERE! Hope you will play along.....I would love to see what you create!! Thanks Cath!

Happy Tuesday y'all!

Old Country Christmas

Happy Monday!
Today I have a quick card to share. When I am thinking of some ideas for cards or just have a creative block, I often check out some of my favorite sites for a good challenge to get the juices flowing. I came across the Christmas in the Old Country challenge on the Moxie Fab blog and just had to give it a try. Here is what I came up with:I created a traditional old country "charm" card...using colors that I thought evoked a feeling of earlier times (cranberry tart, fresh asparagus) . I kept the design very simple because, to me, old country=simplicity.
I cut the tree shapes out of cardstock and inked the edges before attaching them to the card. I used a Martha Stewart punch for the heart and added a button with a hemp bow. The sentiment (from Warm & Cozy Christmas) is embossed on the red cardstock. A strip of Basic Grey doilies cardstock and some machine stitching complete the design.

Sometimes the perfect start to the week is a GREAT challenge!

Materials used: Stamps-sentiment-Warm & Cozy Christmas (Gina K Designs); white embossing powder, versamark, heat tool; cardstock-cranberry tart, fresh asparagus, kraft, white (Gina K Designs); button (Gina K Designs); hemp; heart punch (Martha Stewart); sewing machine.

Don't forget to enter to win my "Two Years of Blogging" Candy below! Thanks so much for stopping by!

Milestone Blog Candy

EDIT: This contest is now closed. The winner is posted above!

Thank YOU so much for your comments, readership and friendship over the past two years. This has been such an amazing adventure.

Here is the blog candy package I put together for one lucky winner:

Contents include:

Basic Grey Nook and Pantry Collection Do Me a favor pack (6 boxes and 20 tags)

JustRite Stampers What's Cooking Stamp set

JustRite Stampers Special Occasions Font (Uppercase 296 character font set in three sizes)

Cornish Heritage Farms Shiver Me Timbers stamp set

Gina K Designs "Just So Hoppy" stamp set

Fiskars Texture Plate Assortment Pack

Cosmo Cricket Jack's World Blackboard chipboard pack

Karen Foster Design medium casual snap stamps

My Sentiments Exactly Casual/Multi upper/lower numbers

Basic Grey rub-on pack

Fancypants Simply Stated stamp set

Stampin' Up! A Wish for You stamp set

Making Memories Metallic paint effects kit

Studio 18 Flocked note cards & envelopes

American Crafts Baby double sided ribbon

Robin's Nest - peony - embellishment jar

Stampin' Up! classic stampin' spots- rose red, certainly celery, tempting turquoise

Over twenty different chipboard shapes/tags/ assortment

The fine print: You have from now until Tuesday night at 8: 00 p.m. central time to leave a comment on this post. In your comment, I would LOVE to hear what you favorite thing about my blog is or what makes you keep coming back to your favorite blog. I will announce the winner on Wednesday. The winner will have four days to email me with his/her address. If the winner fails to email me by the deadline, I will pick a new winner. You may only post one comment. (However, my wonderful subscribers can post two times, as always!)

Thank YOU so much for stopping by!!

JustRite Week at Stamper's Dream

Happy Friday!!! (At last!) I am so excited because my sister is coming to visit me and the kids this weekend!! Yipeee!

This week it is JustRite week at Stamper's Dream. Today, I am sharing a card created with the new release from JustRite stampers. Stamper's Dream has all of the new releases in stock (and lots of other JustRite favorites too!) Here is my card:

REMOVED FOR PUBLICATION

I used the "Celebrate" (from Just a Note Borders & Centers) star and stamped it on the cardstock to make the topper for the chipboard tree.

I created the fun design underneath the tree panel by taking one of the beautiful 2" Square Decorative Frames and stamping it on cardstock. Then I cut off each side to layer it underneath the image.

Materials used: Stamps-Just a Note Borders & Centers, 2" Square Decorative Frames (JustRite Stampers); cardstock-white (Gina K Designs), red (SU!); ink-red, olive (SU!); Cuttlebug snowflake embossing folder (Provocraft); red adhesive dots; chipboard tree (Making Memories); rhinestone star stickers (Recollections); ribbon-Hobby Lobby.

Be sure to check out the awesome creations the "Dream" Team posted this week. Here is the schedule in case you missed any. (They are amazing so you WILL want to check them out!)
Monday - Michelle, Denise , and Laurie
Tuesday - Denise , Amy , Tosh and Michelle
Wednesday - Silke , Denise and Michelle
Thursday - Silke , Laurie , and Michelle
Friday - Tosh , Amy , Michelle and me

Pssttt!......I finally got it together! Blog Candy will be posted this weekend (and it includes JustRite stamps!). Thanks for your patience and thanks for coming along for the ride! It has been an AWESOME two years! HUGS!!

Gina K Preview Day 3

Hi everyone! Thanks for all the great sympathetic comments on yesterday's spill. Today has been MUCH better. I noticed that my purse had some sticky stuff all along the side of it today (?)....which got me thinking how old it was and that I am sure my kids would LOVE to buy me a new purse for Christmas....so they did. They just don't know it yet! (I can make lemonade outta anything!)

Tonight, the Gina K Design team is previewing the new set Sweetest Memories (the new one FREE with three). I came up with a SIMPLE design to showcase one of my favorite quotes ever (that just happens to be in this set!)

This is literally a five minute card! Gotta love that. For some reason--I DO love it...all that white space and the color blocking---yum! I paired this set with the boat from Lazy Days of Summer. I stamped the boat image on three pieces of cardstock (two are the new colors that Gina K will be releasing Thursday night--Ocean Mist and Crème de Menthe!) and I added some orange. Simple!

Materials used: Stamps-Sweetest Memories, Lazy Days of Summer (Gina K Designs); Memento black ink; cardstock-white, ocean mist, Creme de Menthe (Gina K Designs); dandelion (American Crafts); ribbon striped pumpkin pie (American Crafts); corner rounder punch (Creative Memories).


AND......................

The next thing I want to share with you is a new addition to Gina K Designs....Perfect Patterns. A few months ago I posted a gift card (money) purse on my blog and was inundated with emails from people wanting the template. So, the first template being offered through Perfect Patterns is my Purse Gift Card Holder.


Here is a gift card holder I created with the template:

I used some tan leather cardstock, some neutral buttons, some chocolate kiss cardstock and the stamp set-Signed with Love! (for the tag!)

This was easy to create with the template and it will be the perfect way to present gift cards and money to all the ladies/girls on my list.

You can now purchase the pattern HERE!

Materials used: Perfect Pattern-Gift Card Purse Perfect Pattern template (Gina K Designs); stamps-Signed with Love (Gina K Designs); caramel ink (SU!); neutral buttons (Gina K Designs); cardstock-tan leather, chocolate kiss (Gina K Designs);eyelets; Cropadile; paper piercing tool.

Now head on over to Gina's blog to check out more designs with her set-Sweetest Memories:

GinaK {Sweetest Memories}

Then, visit the designers participating in the previews tonight:

Cathy, Emily, Erika, Jessica, Lee, Lynn, Melanie, Nina, Tami, Theresa

****Our Release party will be held tomorrow night (Thursday!) over on SCS in GinaK's Forum from 7-10 pm CST. We'd love to have you join in the fun! There will be contest questions, challenges, chatter, and lots more samples from our designers throughout the party!

Thanks for stopping by!

Sticky Situation and Gina K Preview Day 2

Hello everyone!

Today started with a bang. I was at the grocery store and dropped a syrup bottle on the ground when trying to transfer it from my cart to the check out counter. Even though it was a plastic bottle, it did break and syrup splattered everywhere. So, I asked the lady behind the counter for some paper towels...(she was not happy). She handed me some paper towels and a spray cleaner. I turned to go clean up the mess (don't they have someone there who does that?) and............yep, dropped the cleaner bottle.....it cracked. (giggle!) WHAT is that floor made of anyway???

That was pretty much how my day way today...... FYI: Syrup is very sticky, just so you know!


Today the Gina K Design team is previewing another two sets that will be released Thursday night! First, here is a card I created with Rupa's new set- Warm and Wonderful:

I LOVE the sled in this set and the sentiment is just perfect. So I combined them and added a bit of heart (love) and this makes a sweet card for someone who is far away during the holidays. The sentiment reads:

Love

is missing someone

whenever you're apart,

but somehow feeling warm inside

because you're close in heart.

The sled was stamped on white pure luxury with Copic markers and then adhered to the main panel.

Materials used: Stamps-Warm and Wonderful (Gina k Designs); Memento black ink; Ranger tea dye distress ink; sponge; Copic markers; cardstock-kraft, ivory (Gina K Designs); designer paper-Grandma's Christmas Soup (jillibean soup); Norm's News (October Afternoon); metallic dots (Jo Ann's); hemp; bells; ribbon (The Paper Studio); small heart punch.

Next, here is what I created with Theresa's set Life is Good :

There was something about that buck.....I knew I wanted to make a card with him and ended up making a more masculine design. I used some dp and the Calendar Grid stamp for the background and then added a sentiment inside the sun.

Materials used: Stamps-Life is Good, Calendar Grid (Gina K Designs); ink-Vintage Photo distress ink (Ranger); summer sun, more mustard (SU!); sponge; circle punch (SU!) ;designer paper-Autumn stack (Recollections); Ribbon-FV Trims Lizzie (Making Memories); hemp (SU!); small circle punch; brads; stapler.

For even more ways to use these fabulous stamp sets, please check tonight's featured Illustrator's blog:

Theresa Momber {Life is Good}

Then, visit our Designer's blogs participating in the previews tonight:

GinaK,
Carolyn <--You are here
Cathy,
Cindy,
Donna,
Emily,
Erika,
Jessica,
Lee,
Lynn,
Melanie,
Nina

We also have one of our special Center Stage Spotlight Designer joining tonight:
Peggy Wainman

Thanks for stopping by!

Gina K Preview Day 1

Hello! Welcome to day 1 of the Gina K Designs previews!!! Today the design team is sharing projects created with Lovely Shelf and Tech Talk!

For my first card, I used Lovely Shelf and created a birthday card for my baby sister (who is celebrating her birthday today! Happy Birthday Clare!):

I stamped the greeting right onto the card base and then added the border around the flower vase using a ruler and a black artist pen. I left the word "sister" right next to the flower (it is how it comes when you get the stamp sheet) because I knew I wanted to make a birthday greeting and thought it would be a great placement of that part of the sentiment.

After coloring the flower vase with Copics, I added some stickles to the center of the flowers. The bottom part of this card features the two new pure luxury colors that will be added to the store on Thursday--Ocean Mist and Crème de Menthe. Beautiful!!! Love these colors!

Materials used: Stamps-Lovely Shelf; Memento tuxedo black ink; Copic Markers; cardstock-white, Ocean mist, Crème de Menthe (Gina K Designs); ribbon-Offray; stickles- Tiara (Ranger); slit punch (SU!); black artist pen.

Next, here is my card using Tech Talk:
This set has lots of images to create the perfect desk but I wanted to focus more on the love notes....so I paired the cute envelope with the laptop and fun greeting. Since the computer is the primary way my husband and I communicate...I thought this would be perfect.

Materials used: Stamps-Tech Talk (Gina K Designs); Memento tuxedo black ink; Copic markers; cardstock-white-Gina K Designs); designer paper-Everyday, Long Time No See (American Crafts) ; adhesive stickers (Recollections); ribbon (SU!); corner rounder punch; sewing machine.

For even more ways to use these fabulous stamp sets, please check tonight's featured Illustrator's blogs:

Nina Brackett {Lovely Shelf}
Melanie Muenchinger {Tech Talk}

Then, visit the designers who are participating in the previews tonight:

GinaK, Carolyn, Cathy, Cindy, Donna, Emily, Erika, Jessica, Lee, Lynn, Tami, Theresa

We also have two of our special Center Stage Spotlight Designer's joining us with samples as well:

Cheri Weston
Melissa Shultz

Blog candy is coming soon!!!! Still gathering all the items!!!

Thanks for stopping by!

Gina K Sketchy Challenge and Happy Thanksgiving

Hi everyone! Donna contacted me on Friday and asked if she could use THIS card I made as the inspiration for the StampTV sketch challenge this week.

Of course I said OK! I also decided to jump on board and create another card that fits the sketch. I thought this gingerbread couple would look so cute in this layout:
All stamps are from First Christmas, one of my all time favorite holiday sets!

Materials used: Stamps-First Christmas (Gina k Designs); cardstock-ivory, pure luxury white (Gina K Designs); Memento tuxedo black ink; SU stamp and Write Markers-red, black; designer paper-Urban Prarie/hayloft (Basic Grey),Lentil Soup/toasted cumin (Jillibean Soup); yellow/Autumn stack (Recollections); Copic markers; hemp; adhesive stickers (Michael's); slit punch (SU!).

So....do you want to play along for your chance to win a Gina K Designs stamp set valued 24.95 or less? You will have a week to play along and the winner will be randomly selected from all the entries. Head on over to Donna's blog for all the details and the link to the challenge thread on Stamp TV.

Happy Thanksgiving tomorrow to all my friends in the States!!! I will miss my family (in PA) and my hubby (overseas). xoxo

Thanks for stopping by!

Quick Ornament Card

Hi everyone! Happy Monday.......here I am posting when I said I wouldn't be!! (Famous last words!)

Actually, I wasn't supposed to post tonight but found out that I was signed up for the Gina K hop tonight just a few hours ago!

No worries---we are hopping around showcasing Tami's brilliant sets- Calendar grid and Calendar Bits & Pieces. My mind is swimming with ideas for these sets so I just whipped out one of those ideas and came up with this: (Yes, that is an ornament....just in case anyone asks!) I used the grid design for a background again. This time I embossed it in silver to go with the elegant ornament.

I used the small snowflake in the Bits & Pieces set to decorate my hand cut ornament. The snowflakes are embossed in silver and I added some silver stickles to the centers (for more sparkle.) The "December" is from the set as well and I just added some Cuttlebug die cut numbers below it to complete the date.

I used the Bow Easy to tie the bow---with some fun wired silver ribbon.

All cardstock is from Gina K Designs.

For more inspiration, please visit Calendar Bits and Pieces' illustrator, Tami Mayberry. Then, hop around to the following Gina K design team blogs:

Carolyn, Erika, Donna, Jessica, Lee and Nina

{the GinaK Designs CSS team}
Deb, Sharri, Sue, Melissa.
{Tami's Guest designer}
Jennie Harper

Make sure you stop by Gina's blog to leave your comment for a chance to win this amazing stamp set for free! Remember to check our Idea Center for even more samples, tutorials, and links!

PS--I totally missed that my blogaversary was last week AND I am quickly approaching 400,000 hits.....so stay tuned for FUN stuff coming! Thanks, friends, for visiting!!

Simple Sunday...on a Saturday!

EDIT: Apparently I am tired. I was scheduling this for tomorrow and I obviously am clueless about the date. Woopsie:) Happy Saturday (almost Sunday!)

Happy Sunday (.....as in 4 days till turkey day........akkkk!)
My daughter and I went to see New Moon yesterday....and we loved it. Definitely can see why so many "switched teams" with this movie. As for me---I remain on Team Edward (but it is JUST because of the books!)

I created this awhile ago and never posted it.....

The balloon is from Eclectic Summer and the sentiment is from A Year of Leaves (both Gina K Designs). I thought it would be cute to create a "Missing you" card with this image so I, of course, had to trail a few punched hearts....easy and cute.

Blog Awards: I KNOW I am bad about mentioning these but I am trying to improve (smile!) Thanks so much to Rhonda and Christi who gave me this award. (Because I already did this a few posts below, I didn't fill out the survey again!) Just wanted to say thanks!!! Rhonda also gave me this award:

Thanks so much! Now I am passing them along to all of you! Have a GREAT day!
Thanks for stopping by!

Friday Flurries

Happy Friday......Is it just me-or are the weeks flying by?

I have to get my act together! I doubt I will be blogging much next week as I am hosting thanksgiving dinner for the first time ever. My husband's family is coming so I have to get the house ready AND learn how to cook in just a few days! Wish me luck!

I created this card last night with the new MFT set Pure Innocence-Flurries of Love: I love this new line. The images are so sweet.

Everything on this is pretty self explanatory. The snow is liquid applique. The image is colored with Copic markers.

Materials used: Stamps-Pure Innocence-Flurries of Love (My Favorite Things); cardstock-ivory, white (Gina K Designs); designer paper-the Mod Retro Stack (DCWV); Copic markers; liquid applique, heat tool; ribbon (SU!); sparkle burst brad (Karen Foster Designs).

Hope you have a great weekend....I am going to see New Moon tomorrow with my daughter! Cannot wait!

Thanks for stopping by!

Vintage Tag

Hi there! I am battling a cold so this is gonna be short and sweet~sorry!
Tonight the Gina K Design team is showing you some more designs with Nina's Vintage Borders set.

I decided to create a tag using many of the stamps in the set--the ornate flourish, the music background, the sentiment and the intricate lace design.

I paired these elements with the snowflakes from the Stamp TV set-Holiday Cheer , the bird from First Christmas and the greenery from Tropical Flowers.

The stamps in Vintage Borders are the perfect backdrop for all of your stamped images.

Now how about some more inspiration with the Vintage Borders stamp set? First, check in with the Illustrator of this versatile stamp set, Nina Bracket, and her friend Lisa Hjulberg , who is joining in the blog hop tonight.


Then, stop by these GinaK Designer's & Center Stage Spotlight blogs for even more samples:

Asela, Carolyn, Cindy, Emily, Erika, Jessica, Kurtis, Lee, Lynn, Tami, Theresa and Melanie

Deb, Melissa, Karen, Sharri, and Sue

Before you finish hopping, be sure to check in on Gina K's blog to enter your comment for a chance to win Nina's Vintage Borders stamp set. If you already have purchased Nina's set, you can substitute any Gina K Designs stamp set valued at $23.95 or less.


For those of you are who looking for a quick and easy Christmas card idea, check out the Vintage Borders Card Kit available online in Gina K's store tonight. The Kit includes the step by step tutorial as well as all the card stock cut to the exact measurements needed to make 4 cards. For more details and photos of this card kit, see Jessica Fick's blog link as well as this Class Kit link.

Thanks for stopping by!

FLAT is in!

I have been trying to create some designs that would be very simple to mail and require no additional postage.

Today, I made this card, which features Polar Love by My Favorite Things.The only touch of texture on this is the fringe ribbon....but it is very thin and does not bulk up a card for mailing. (I am thinking about this a lot these days as I am currently sending a TON of mail out!)

This set is so sweet--I just LOVE the bears holding onto the heart. I colored the scarf and then added the extra lines to make it striped. I added a bit of crystal stickles to it to give it a bit of sparkle. I stamped the sentiment and then cut it up to add along the designer paper.

Materials used: Polar Love (My Favorite Things); Memento black ink; Copic markers; stickles-crystal (Ranger); cardstock-white, ivory (Gina K Designs); designer paper-Cosmo Cricket, The Paper Studio; corner rounder punch; fringe ribbon (Hobby Lobby).

Thanks for stopping by today!

Baby Bear

Whew! What a weekend......great weather and we were running all around....

We got the neatest package from my husband....he sent my daughter a children's book. In the back of the book is a DVD of him reading the book to her so that she could read the book along with him. It was the greatest thing and she LOVES it. This is a service of the USO and it is just an amazing gift. The other two kids cannot wait to get theirs.

Ok......I finally finished this card that I alluded to on Friday. This card was completed 10 minutes at a time (literally!)
The idea for this card popped into my head when I was working on the card in the post below. This design works for a new baby--boy OR girl!

I thought this sweet bear from First Christmas (Gina K Designs by Asela Hopkins) would look so cute sitting in the moon with some sparkly stars all around:

See....the Santa hat looks like a cute little baby hat when you use it in this way. This stamp will get a lot of mileage from me that is for sure!

I paired it with a sentiment from Tag Lines! (Gina K Designs).

More details: The little adhesive stitching is from Cloud 9, something I have had in my stash for awhile and have never used. I covered the sticky stars (I got from Jody Morrow HERE) with doodlebug glitter so the stars really sparkle. I created the moon by cutting a circle with a Nestability die (Spellbinders) and then cutting it into a crescent. I just added some sponging around the edges.

Materials used: Stamps-First Christmas, Tag Lines (Gina K Designs); cardstock-white (Gina K Designs); blue (SU!); designer paper- Lime Green Linen (The Paper Studio); Memento black ink; ink- barely banana, bashful blue (SU!); sponge; Copic markers; redline star shapes; doodlebug glitter-yellow; 3D Gel stickers, Travel (Cloud9 Design); brads (SU!).

Hope you all had a great weekend! I did!

Thanks for stopping by!

It's a GIRL!

Hello! I am so excited because my baby sister is having her second daughter today!!! She was scheduled for a c-section this afternoon so by the time you are reading this--I will be an aunt (again!) EDIT: Sweet baby Carolyn (!) was born today. She weighed in at 8 lbs and 12 oz! So excited to meet her. Congrats Clare and Dave!

My daughter Lauren and I spent the morning shopping for her new cousin!!!
Since I knew the blog hop for Asela's First Christmas set was tonight---I decided to get the new baby card ready to go! (It is only fitting that I used a bear on my sister's card because we used to call her "Clare Bear" growing up!)

As you can see--I used the bear in the set to make a new baby card. You can even mask off the hat but I think it looks so cute with the hat on so I just made it pink. (You can color it blue for a baby boy!)

I used pure luxury cardstock for the image and framed the designer paper with some tan leather and All Spruced up.

Materials used: First Christmas (Gina K Designs); Memento black ink; Copic markers; rubon-American Crafts (IM phrases); cardstock-pure luxury white, all spruced up, tan leather (Gina K Designs); designer paper-SEI; slit punch (SU!); corner punch (SU!); pom pom ribbon (Jo Anns); sewing machine.

I am working on another sample with this set but didn't have the time to get it done. Ah....life sometimes gets in the way! Will post in the near future!

Wanna see more designs with this beautiful set? Stop in at Asela Hopkin's blog (our featured Illustrator tonight) and see what she has prepared for us.

Then, check out the design team blogs:

Donna, Erika, Jessica, Lee, Melanie, and Theresa

and the CenterStage Spotlight Designer's blogs:

Deb , Sharri , Diana, Karen

Remember, the Idea Center has lots of tutorials, photos, and links that will provide even more ideas for you with this stamp set!

And, if you haven't already done so, be sure to leave a comment on GinaK's blog for a chance to win this stamp set tonight too! If you have already purchased this set, you may swap it out for any other GinaK stamp set valued at $23.95.

Thanks for stopping by!

Thanks Veterans and Calendar HOP!

First and foremost----Happy Veteran's Day! Thank you to all those who have served or who are currently serving our country. Hugs to my hubby, who is in an "undisclosed location in Asia." (his words verbatim).

<<-----Hubby in action. If this photo doesn't make you feel secure......then I don't know WHAT will! (giggle!)

*****

Gina K Designs is releasing two new sets by Tami Mayberry tonight---Calendar Bits & Pieces and Calendar Grid. The grid is just that---a grid that you can add the calendar dates to---or use for fun invitations or save the date cards. Calendar Bits & Pieces includes TONS of stamps to fill in your calendar or create scrapbook pages, cards, etc.

I created two projects today to try to show you the versatility of these sets. I am sure you will see LOTS of ways to use them on the hop tonight.

First, I used the Calendar Grid to create the fun background of this card. I used the words from the Bits & Pieces set to create a sewn on sentiment:

Materials used: Calendar Grid and Calendar Bits & Pieces (Gina K Designs); bashful blue ink (SU!); white cardstock, tan leather cardstock (Gina K Designs); designer paper-Early Bird-Cosmo Cricket; flower stickers (Martha Stewart); buttons (Making Memories); ribbon-Funky Vintage Trims, Lizzie (Making Memories); sewing machine; slit punch (SU!).

Next, I created a desk calendar using the Grid in a traditional way:I found a stand up photo album at Dollar Tree and thought it would be perfect to alter for a desk calendar. All the little stamps and the words and numbers are in the Bits & Pieces set. Wouldn't it be cute to create holiday desk calendars for grandparents with photos of the kids on the backs of the pages? There are endless possibilities with these sets---Check out these links for more:

For some helpful tips on how to use the Calendar Bits & Pieces and Calendar Grid stamp sets, please be sure to check out Gina's blog and StampTV for a helpful video on just how quick and easy it can be to use! Both of these sets as well as the PDF version of the Calendar Grid image will be available for purchase tonight over on our online store.

After that, stop by our Illustrator's blog - Tami Mayberry for some projects with her stamp sets.
Here are the Gina K Designers who are joining us in the preview tonight:

Cat, Donna, Erika, Jessica, Lee, Lynn, Melanie, Nina and Theresa

You'll also want to check in on these CenterStage Spotlight Designer's blogs for more ideas:

Melissa, Sharri, and Sue

Thanks for stopping by!

Christmas Peace, Hope, Love

Hi everyone! Hope you are having a good week so far. Tonight Melanie is hosting a blog hop with her newest release from Gina K Designs called Festive Frame.

I love how you can use this set simply by embossing the beautiful flower frame or dress it up by stamping it and coloring it.

I chose to color it in for this card. I stamped the frame on pure luxury white cardstock, colored it with Copics, and then cut it out...omitting the double lines on the inside of the circle and on the outer edge of the frame:

I stamped one of the beautiful sentiments in the center of the opening in two colors of ink. After mounting the panel to the front of the card, I stamped the bird from First Christmas and added it to the card as well.

I used some All Spruced Up ribbon and the Bow Easy to create the bow. Finally, I added some gold dots to the corners.

Melanie Muenchinger, the Illustrator of Festive Frame has invited a couple of her friends to join in on the blog hop tonight, so click on their blog links to see the projects they've created for us:

Joan Ervin

Linda Payne

Wendy Price

Then, check in on these GinaK Designer's participating in the Blog Hop tonight:
Carolyn King
Donna Baker
Erika Martin
Jessica Fick
Lee Murphy
Melanie Muenchinger
Theresa Momber

And our fabulous Center Stage Spotlight Team:

Deb Felts
Diana S. Queen
Melissa Cash
Sharri Seffens

After you're done hopping to all the Designer's blogs stop by GinaK's Idea Center here: Festive Frame for lots more ideas on how to use Melanie's stamp set. And, don't forget to check in on GinaK's blog so you can leave your comment to be entered as a chance to win this stamp set, too!

Thanks for stopping by!

Blog Award....

My dear friend Michelle (Stamper's Dream) passed this blog award to me, and I will be passing it along to 5 others after I complete the questions.

The rules are to answer these questions in one word, which is harder than you may think!

1. Where is your cell phone? pocket

2. Your hair? brown

3. Your mother? selfless

4. Your father? wise

5. Your favorite food? Pizza

6. Your dream last night? none

7. Your favorite drink? diet a&w (two words...sorry!)

8. Your dream/goal? happiness

9. What room are you in? game

10. Your hobby? stamping

11. Your fear? snakes

12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? beach

13. Where were you last night? home

14. Something that you aren't? unapproachable

15. Muffins? choc chip

16. Wish list item? Cricut

17. Where did you grow up? PA

18. Last thing you did? laundry

19. What are you wearing? jeans

20. Your TV? on

21. Your Pets? none

22. Friends? cherished

23. Your life? full

24. Your mood? content

25. Missing Someone? yes

26. Vehicle? minivan

27. Something you're not wearing? hat

28. Your favorite store? Pottery Barn

29. Your favorite color? green

30. When was the last time you laughed? today

31. Last time you cried? month

32. Your best friend? Sister

33. One place that I go to over and over? school

34. Facebook? yes

35. Favorite place to eat? McAllisters

Now I need to pass this on to 5 more bloggers whom I visit daily and am always inspired by:

Tosh

Deb

Melanie

Kim

Gina

Be back with something crafty tomorrow...

Thanks for stopping by!

Slap on the Wrist

I woke up this morning to an email from my husband (who is currently in Kuwait). It said:
"Your blog....please refrain from placing pictures of my boy in frilly gold ruffles" (See post directly below this one!)
Oopsie....forgot he could access my blog from half way across the world!!! Hmmmmm.....might have to have some fun with this! (grin!)

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I apologize that I did not address the events that took place at Ft. Hood on Thursday on my blog. I had a post all typed and ready for Friday and did not go back to change it. I didn't realize so many knew that was our home base. Thanks for your concern.....We live off post and my husband is currently serving in Iraq so he is safe. (Go figure....safer there than at home!)
All of our friends on post are safe. Please keep all those families who have been directly affected in your prayers.

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Did you see the new Pure Innocence line from My Favorite Things? Awww.....total cuteness. I just love them all. I used My Balloon for this card and coupled it with a fun ribbon sun. I think the sentiment is just so sweet. Materials used: Stamps-My Balloon (Pure Innocence Line. My Favorite Things); Memento black ink; Copic markers; cardstock-white (Gina K Designs); designer paper-Mod Retro stack (DCWV); ribbons-scraps (SU, May Arts, Offray), orange grosgrain ribbon-May Arts.

Thanks for stopping by!