Chicken Birthday

Hello Hello ~

Popping in quickly to share a card I made for a swap recently. (well - recently = finished tonight!). this one is for Terry's Chicken Themed Swap. I pulled out an older Gina K Set (Poultry In Motion) for the chicken image, the sentiment is from a Tim Holtz Set.

I like how the colors came together for this card, despite using SU! DSP from 3 different collections.

Thanks for stopping by,

Hugs ~ LJ

Day 12 - 25 Cards for Christmas

Hello Hello ~

So I obviously missed a few days (oops) and I'm trying to get back on track. Today's card was made using a die set from Sizzix and the 'Home For the Holidays" Stamp TV Kit from Gina K Designs. The patterned paper is retired from SU, the Tree Embossing folder is also SU. I also the Cardinal Punch from Martha Stewart. 

The below picture shows the sentiment and snowflake stamp (with coordinating die) that came with the kit. Thanks for stopping by, Hugs ~ LJ 

Day 7 - 25 Days of Christmas Cards

Hello Hello -

It's time for another Christmas Card. I'm one week into my challenge - still posting cards every day (pats self on the back) I don't think I have ever posted 7 straight days so yay me. HA!

Today's card is fairly simple. I used the latest MOJO Monday Sketch (which is also the last sketch of the year). The stamp set i used was Holiday Button Bits from PaperTreyInk. I love this set. It makes the cutest cards.

You can see all of the cards I have created for this challenge by clicking on the 25CardsForChristmas tag/label at the bottom of this post!

Thanks for stopping by today! Hugs ~LJ

Day 6 - 25 Days of Christmas Cards

Hello!

Here again with another Christmas card. Today I went into my stash of neglected Christmas stamps (I have a few) :) and pulled out one of my old ElzyBells. For those that don't know, ElzyBells were cute little stamps that were made in the UK (I think) until about 3-4 years ago when the lady that owned them went out of business :( Sad. These are really cute images. Anyway, this is one of my favorite images, I kept the card pretty simple - as the image is pretty big. Hard to see, but there is silver and red bling on the tree (all of the ornaments have bling on them)

I remember always seeing Elzybells with blonde hair for some reason, so this one has brown hair.

Thanks for stopping by! Hugs LJ

DAY 5 - 25 Days of Christmas Cards

Hello ~ Hello 

Happy Monday! We had close to 5" of snow here yesterday (officially 5'7" in the city of Madison) so I thought it would be fun to share a "cool" penguin snow card today.  I used images from Lawn Fawn' SNOW COOL set. Thankfully I remembered to order the coordinating dies when I got this set - they make these fun scenes so much easier! My penguin stamp collection has grown a little bit over the past couple of years. My friend Donna loves penguins so I am always looking for new penguin stamps to use on cards. They are a pretty cute animal. 

All of the patterned paper is from last years SU! Holiday Mini Catalog (so it's retired). I used a scalloped card base from my stash. The stitched hillside borders and the square stitched die are also from Lawn Fawn. I heat embossed the white snow with White EP from SU!

Thanks for stopping by today! Hugs ~ LJ

Day 4 - 25 Days of Christmas

Hello ~ Hello

It's day 4 of 25 cards for Christmas - It's been really fun so far pulling out my Christmas stamps and creating a Christmas Card every day. Today's card is on the fun side, using a limited edition set that Simon Says Stamps put out last year by Lawn Fawn called "Merry Christmouse". They brought back the set this year for a limited time and it already sold out, but if you would like to see the entire set CLICK HERE

Below is what else I used on my card:

Cardstock: Gumball Green, Real Red, SU White
Patterned Paper: Retired SU DSP from my stash
Other: Spellbinders Card Builder Dies, SU Scallop Edge Punch, Red/white twine (Maya Road), Dimensionals, Copics

You can see the rest of my cards so far by scrolling down or clicking on the "25CardsForChristmas" label below.

Thanks for stopping by! Hugs ~ LJ

Day 3 - 25 Days of Christmas

Hello Hello!

Today is Day 3 of 25 Days of Christmas - and I'm sharing a card I made with the latest StampTV Kit 

from Gina K Designs  (Home for the Holidays). The stamp sets that were included in this kit are now available separately, and I have used stamps from two sets - Music Background and Christmas Greenery. You can find both sets HERE. For the music back ground stamp, it was easier for me to lay the stamp down on the ivory cardstock, carefully flip it over, and rub over it with a bone folder. I got a really clean impression that way. Larger photopolymer stamps work great for this technique. 

The background stamp was stamped with Gina K Fresh Asparagus ink and the sentiment is stamped with Gina K Cherry Red Ink. Patterned paper is all from an Authentique 6X6 Pad (Joyous Collection).  Most of the shapes/border was cut with Spellbinder's dies I recently got the Spellbinders Card Creator dies (both sets) and I love them. I found them at a really good price on OverStock.com. I used the SU Bird Builder punch as well. The bird's wing is popped up on a dimensional. 

Thanks for stopping by! Hugs ~ LJ

Day 2 - 25 Days of Christmas

Hello Hello ~

Happy Friday! And it's Day #2 of 25 Christmas Cards! 

My card today uses one of the Tim Holtz Blueprint Christmas Tree Stamp/Die combo sets. I picked this up earlier in the year with my 40% off coupon at Hobby Lobby! I love how the tree can be layered! All of the patterned paper is from Crate Paper (6x6 Peppermint Collection). 

I will have tomorrow's card posted a little earlier! :)

Thanks for stopping by - Hugs ~ LJ

Day 1 - 25 Cards For Christmas

Hello Hello ~

So at work today my mind was wandering (never a good thing) and I was thinking of ways to get more Christmas Cards made this year. I have so many Christmas stamps that have never seen ink or rarely see ink. So I thought of this CRAZY idea - to post 25 days of Christmas Cards......So a crafty countdown to Christmas......Will I actually do all 25 days? We will see! :) But I am going to give it a chance!

So today's day #1 (hey 24 days until Christmas!) and here is my card - I used this week's MFT Sketch for inspiration, and the sentiment is from an older MFT Set (retired) patterned paper is from My Minds Eye (6X6 All is Bright Collection).

Thanks for stopping by~ see you tomorrow (sometime)

November Duel - Give Thanks

Hello ~ I'm finally here with this month's duel card between the divas and darlings. Below is the description of this month's duel.  Carol is the hostess for the Divas - and I am part of that group :) 

 The theme Shelley and I (Carol) chose is "Give Thanks". With the Holiday Season upon us we reflect upon all that we have to be thankful for so as an extra we would like you to share (if you are comfortable with it), what you are especially thankful for.

The image on the front of the card is from Stampin Up. I used SU! Watercolor Crayons and a Blender Pen to color the image. The pattern paper is from K&CO and Carol included some coordinating embellishments to use on the card. 

Here is the inside of my card, i used my own sentiment from PTI, and the apple was cut-out from some of the patterned paper in the kit that Carol sent. 

I am thankful for many things. My family is a big part of my life, My mom, Sister Tracy, Tavi (my niece) and Scott. I cherish each moment I have with them. I am also thankful for a successful career, a roof over my head, and being able to do the things I love so much (travel and crafting) 

Thanks for stopping by! Hugs ~LJ

Christmas Swap Card #1 - Snow Snow Snow

Hello - Hello

Today I am sharing a swap card for Barb's Snow/Santa/Religious/3x3 Christmas Variety Swap.  I recently purchased the new Home for The Holidays StampTV kit from Gina K Designs. The entire kit is amazing. What I love is that there is so many types of holiday cards you can create, whimsical, traditional etc. and there is a GREAT music note background stamp, patterned papers, and card stock. Also some of the stamps have coordinating dies (which I love!) such as the snowman image above that I used in my card!

So this card is for the Snow Snow Snow group. I made 6 of these. Patterned paper is old - Martha Stewart Crafts, Red Glitter Paper from Hobby Lobby, bakers twine from my stash, the snow person is colored in with copics/prismas (I use a combination of both) and popped up with a dimensional.

Thanks for stopping by today ! Hugs ~ LJ

October Duel - All Things Fall!

Hello~Hello!

It's time for another duel between the Divas and Darlings!

Here is what Kadie wrote about this month's challenge:

This month Paola and I had trouble making up our minds because we LOVE FALL. Should we go with pumpkins or leaves or thankfulness?? So we just decided to go with it all. All Things Fall!

We've each sent you a kit filled with things that remind us of this season and we hope you will have fun putting together a card that speaks Fall to YOU! 

And if you feel so inclined, please share with us something you enjoy about Fall specific to the area you live in.

This months kit included the above image from Whipper Snapper designs, patterned paper from Lawn Fawn, and multiple embellishments to choose from! My card is 5.5" square. I used SU! Watercolor Wonder Crayons and a SU! blender pen to color the image. 

one of my favorite fall pastimes is going to Badger Football games at Camp Randall Stadium. Today is a HUGE game, #2 OSU is coming to visit #8 Wisconsin in prime-time event. (It's the ESPN GameDay game of the week) so downtown has been absolutely crazy all day. It's supposed to rain/storm later. But that is not going to stop me from going to cheer on the Badgers! Go Bucky!

Thanks for stopping by - Hugs ~ LJ

September Duel - Owls & Halloween

Hello Hello! 

It's the 15th of the month again - so it's time for another Diva/Darling Duel. This month's kits are from Barb (Divas) and Tracie (Darlings) and our theme is Owls and Halloween. 

The image is from Peachy Keen Stamps (out of Wisconsin), patterned papers are from Stampin Up (Night Owl collection). Barb also sent us various ribbons, buttons and brads. It wasn't originally planned, but I ended up making a halloween card without orange! 

The purple square panel started as white, I sponged it with Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Seedless Preserves) and a little bit of Black at the top. It took a couple tries to get the shading right. I had this in my mind right away to create a spooky sky. The image is colored in Copics and was fussy-cut out, then popped up onto the sponged panel with dimensionals. I also sponged the sentiment banner, that was more challenging, I wanted it lighter so had to sponge-off quite a bit first. The card size is 5.5" square. Added some sparkly black ribbon (love this ribbon) and some black brads for embellishments. 

Barb and Tracie asked to share a favorite halloween memory. My cousin (same age as me - he was born three months after me) was born on Halloween. So when he had is golden birthday (which would have been #31) His family threw him a surprise party at a local restaurant. We had a DJ for the night and it was really fun! 

Thanks for stopping by ~ Hugs ~ LJ

MFT Color Challenge #53

Hello ~ Hello

Over the weekend I had some extra time to play with a challenge. I haven't inked up any of my MFT Stamps recently so I took a look at MFT Color Challenge #53 and decided to give it a go with one of the Older Pure Innocent girls. I don't have the name of this one  (will add later if I find it). I matched up the MFT colors to SU! as best as I could :) Mostly Going Grey and Groovy Guava, along with some retired DSP. Here are the MFT Colors for the challenge:

Thanks for stopping by today! Hugs ~ LJ

MOJO464 - Flower of the Month Mystery Swap

Hello Hello ~

Today I am sharing a card for the latest Mystery Swap (a group I am swapping with on SCS). Darlene is our hostess this month, and she sent us images from an older SU! Set called "Flower of the Month". The set was in the 2001 SU Catalog. I was so happy to see an older set chosen for a swap. Don't get me wrong, I love the "new and fab" releases just as much as anyone, and I get so excited when new SU catalogs come out, but I love the older sets just as much. I think I actually still have this set in my collection. :) 

I used this week's MOJO Monday Sketch  for inspiration. The sketch was perfect for this image. The stitched square dies are from Lawn Fawn. I used some older SU! Prints 6X6 paper, and black basic grey mini brads. 

Thanks for stopping by - Hugs ~ LJ

Back to School

Hello ~ Hello

My card today is one of 7 cards I recently made for a challenge. It also fits this week's C4C Challenge - Back to School. This would be a perfect Thank You card for a teacher!

The apple image (and coordinating dies) are from the SU! Set Perfectly Preserved. I used Gina K Ink - Red Hot and Fresh Asparagus for my ink colors - I LOVE these two colors together! I paired it with some cardstock from Gina K as well (Craft, Red Hot, and Fresh Asparagus). The blue cardstock and the patterned paper is from SU. The card was finished off with some bling (Paper Studio) and American Craft Ribbon. I also used quite a few punches and the banner die is from MFT.

Thanks for stopping by today! Hugs ~ LJ

Going to Rio!

Hello Hello

It's the 15th of the month (really - where did summer go? It's already August) and the Divas and Darlings hostess this month have come up with a fantastic Olympic Themed kit to play with. I had such a fun time playing with this kit over the weekend, as it is the first card I have made in nearly three weeks (foot surgery has kept me away from my crafty business). 

The adorable image on the front of the card is a digi from Scrappin Doodles. The owner of the company graciously gave Judy permission to use these digis for our duel this month, so I invite you to check them out :) I don't normally use digi images myself, but these cute kids are giving me second thoughts. 

In addition to the images, there was some beautiful patterned and solid colored paper, ribbons, brads, sequins, and Olympic Ring die-cuts, some of which was used on my card which measures 5.5" Square. 

Here is the inside of my card (the sentiment was created by Judy) I colored it in with a red spica pen. 

Our additional challenge is to share our favorite Olympic Event. I can't pick just one actually :)  My favorites are swimming, gymnastics, and beach volleyball. My niece has been active in swimming and gymnastics but those two have always been favorites. My favorite sport, baseball, is returning for the 2020 Olympic games in Tokyo and I am really excited about that!

Thanks so much for stopping by - Hugs ~ LJ

Christmas in July

Hello Hello!

It's the 15th of the month, so once again it's time for another duel between the divas and darlings. Jeanette is the hostess for the Darlings, and Kelly is our hostess for the Divas. Kelly and Jeanette have been the "masterminds" behind this duel that has been going on for SO LONG. How long? Close to 4 years I think. It's amazing the lifetime friendships that have been created from a monthly card kit challenge. I love you both sooooo much. It's a huge blessing that you, and the other divas and darlings are part of my life.

So this month's theme is Christmas in July. I got sooo excited when I opened my package and found this Snoopy Doghouse from stampendous! The Charlie Brown Christmas special is one of my favorite specials! Kelly also sent us DSP from Paper Crate, and various embellishments to go with the paper and image.

Our extra challenge this month is "What do you do each year to get in the Christmas Spirit" I usually like to try to get my Christmas cards made early, although that never seems to really happen :( So my real answer would be the Christmas Music - usually starting in October (while I'm at work). Actually I could listen to Christmas Music year round. :) I get a lot done with Trans Siberian Orchestra is in my ears :)

Hope you enjoyed my card. Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs ~ LJ

June 2016 DD Challenge

Hello Hello, 

Today I am finally sharing my June Duel Card - for the duel between the Divas and Darlings. This month I was the hostess for the Divas and Darlene was the hostess for the darlings. We came up with a Pet Theme this month and decided to keep the challenge very simple since it's getting towards the busy part of the year - summer! 

Each of the Divas received a kit containing the following:

Images and sentiments from Kraftin Kimmie Stamps (A Furry Surprise) , Patterned paper from I heart my dog page kit , Paper Banner Ribbon, and burlap bow stickers , and various buttons, ribbons, and brads. 

Below is the inside of my card (sorry it's a little fuzzy) 

Thanks for stopping by - Hugs LJ

DD Challenge - May Flowers

hello ~ hello

It's the 15th of the Month, which means  it's time for another duel between the Darlings and Divas. Tami is our hostess for the Divas - and we have a fun "May Flowers" kit to play with this month. The Image is from Red Rubber Designs - she's sooo cute just sitting there with her flowers :)  The kit contained papers from Cosmo Cricket, dry embossed papers in green and red, as well as the embellishments you see on the card. :)

I used this week's MOJO Monday Sketch for my card. It fit the image and card kit contents to a "T". :)

I don't plant any flowers yearly, since I am a renter, but I usually have a basket or two on my front porch steps :) I am not what you would call a green thumb. :(

The Divas Are:

Barb ** Blog: Barb's Inkin' into Retirement
Carol ** Blog: Lost in my craft room
Judy ** Blog: Paper Hugs & Kisses
Kadie ** Blog: In My Minds Eye
Kelly ** Blog: *Sandcastle Stamper*
LJ  (me)** Blog: Bucky Girl
Suzy **  SCS Gallery
Tami ** : : : : BlueInks Design

And here are the Dazzlers: 

Dazzlers:
Darlene ** The World According to Bijou
Debbie ** The Ink Igloo
Jeanette ** Cre8tive Play: It's Cheaper than Therapy
Paola ** blog That's Amore! SCS Gallery
Shelly ** My creative rumblings
Terry A **  SCS Gallery
Terry L ** It's Totally Terry
Tracie ** Crafty Creations

Thanks for stopping by - Hugs ~ LJ

DD Challenge - May

Hello - Hello 

Finally here with my card for this month's duel between the divas and the darlings.  The theme Terry (Diva Hostess) and Suzy (Darling Hostess) picked Swing into Spring or Spring".  This is what Suzy wrote for the Divas:   So, our theme is "swing into spring" or "spring". Not sure how we decided to word it! Some of you haven't even seen spring yet!!  The second part of your challenge is to let us know what your favorite dessert that was made usually in the Spring....maybe something that was only made at Easter time. If you want...share the recipe! We can always use more dessert recipes!

I loved the kit Suzy sent - it's definitely full of spring - bright colors and a cute girl swinging on a swing (the image is from Stampin Up) 

I am not much of a cook so I don't have a dessert recipe to share. For easter this year (which really seems like a long time ago since it was early this year) my family went out for dinner to a local place that had a delicious Easter brunch......

Thanks for stopping by ~ Hugs ~LJ

For the Dogs!

Hello! 

I'm finally here with this months Duel Challenge - from Carol and Shelly, this month's theme is "For the Dogs". I had so much fun playing with this kit! This Whipper Snapper stamp (Good News Puppy) is one of my favorites! I picked out a sentient from one of my Kraftin Kimmie sets to go with it. 

the bonus was to share if we had any pets growing up. Throughout the years, I had a few pets that I loved so much! My first pet was a cat named Sparky. Sparky was a friendly cat. I also had few other cats (Smokey and Dolly) when I lived with my aunt and grandma. Dolly was adopted from the Vet Tech Program at the college I went to. She was very sick when we got her, and the school allowed students to take them home on the weekends so that they weren't alone. I used to take her home every Friday on the city bus in a cardboard box. Finally we were able to keep her for good.  My parents have had two dogs, Buddy, and more recently Tippy. 

here's dolly (she was a fat kitty - yes!) 

and here's Tippy, the current family dog (he's mid-sized - about 25 lbs) 

thanks for stopping by today! Hugs ! LJ

Hello Mickey!

Hello ~ Hello 

It's the 15th of the month so it's time for another duel between the divas and darlings. Our theme this month (chosen by Paola and Kadie) is "Being a Kid At Heart" I totally love this theme - Kadie sent us a fun & bright kit to play with, much of it Disney themed...Which made me even more happier! I have a soft spot for Disney - DisneyWorld especially! It's one of my favorite places to vacation.....such a happy place! 

Please excuse the poor photography this time - I took the photo last night with my iPhone and it didn't turn out as well as I had hoped :( My camera battery is dead so that is what I was stuck with. :) 

All of the items on the card with the exception of the solid cardstock (real red and white) were included in the kit. We had received some black Mickey Ear cutouts, I adhered one of them to the blue patterned paper and then cut it out for the balloon. I colored Mickey in with copics and then fussy-cut him out. He's so cute! (who doesn't love a mouse right???) 

I plan to give this card to my niece in the upcoming weeks - just because :) 

Thanks for stopping by! Hugs~ LJ

Freshly Made Sketches

Hello Hello - 

Sharing a card I created today for the latest Freshly Made Sketch Challenge  This card is really simple for me - I usually use many more layers than this, but I really love the simplicity of the design. 

Stamps: Oh Happy Day (Taylored Expressions) 

Ink: Basic Black, Pool Party (sponged background) 

Paper: Recollections white, Basic Grey Fiction 6X6 Pad (I am going to sooo miss Basic Grey!) 

Pink Bling,  Circle Spellbinders, coordinating dies for stamp set, copics, sponge,  label die from MFT. 

Thanks for stopping by! Hugs - LJ

MOJO433 - Grateful For You

Hello ~ Today I am sharing my card for MOJO433. The sentiment is from Simple Blessings (Unity Stamps)

I made 6 of these cards for the latest SOTC (Sisterhood of the Traveling Cards) we are a group of card-makers on SCS. It's a nice group of ladies I have become friends with. We take turns hostessing and picking out the theme (every other month). Judy is our hostess this month and she chose the theme of "Blessings" and asked that we incorporate a butterfly (or butterflies) into our card.

Thanks for stopping by - Hugs  ~LJ.

warm fuzzies

Hello ~ Hello

Tonight I am sharing a card I made for a monthly swap I am in on SCS. This month's theme was "warm fuzzies" and the requirement for this swap is to use Stampin' Up Images. I just realized tonight I had shared my February Card and not my January Card yet! A little bit out of order but that's ok! 

I used 3 different Stampin' Up sets: Love Bandit, Valentine Defined, Holidays and Wishes.

Thanks for stopping by - Hugs ~ LJ

First Comes Love...

Hello Hello

Today's card is for Barb's Congratulations Swap on SCS. I pulled out a really old set from My Favorite Things (Baby Firsts). I think the sentiment is kind of old-school for today's world, but it's still cute!  The patterned paper is from October Afternoon, and I used ribbon from Stampin' Up. 

thanks for stopping by! Hugs ~ LJ

MFTWSC263 - High Hopes

Hello ~ found some time over the weekend to play along with this week's MFT Sketch Challenge

I used one of my favorite MFT Sets - Up Up and Away (retired). Patterned paper is from Basic Grey.

Thanks for stopping by ~ Hugs LJ

MOJO430 - New Beginnings

Hello ~ Hello 

Today I am sharing my card for a monthly swap I am in that Makani is hosting on SCS. Our February theme is "New Beginnings". Our card "requirements" are to use Stampin Up Stamps. I chose to use an older SU! Set called Nursery Necessities. For my card I used an oldie but goodie technique, using my SU! Markers to color directly on the rubber stamp image. I like that you can kind of see the streaks on the bottom of the boat, as most boats look like that. I used MOJO Monday Sketch #430 for inspiration. 

Can't wait to see what I get back from this swap - although I will have to wait about a month to see them :) I finished these up early this time! 

Thanks for stopping by today! Hugs ~ LJ

Get Well!

Hello Hello ~

After a holiday break, it's time for another duel between the Divas and Dazzlers. Each month, the hostess sends out a fun kit with stamp images, patterned paper, and embellishments to create with. This month our hostesses are Barb and Tracie.

I love the kit Barb Sent this month! Our theme this month is "Soup - Get Well", Barb sent an adorable Whipper Snapper image to color, papers from SU! (Comfort Cafe - I love this collection!) and lots of pretty ribbons and other embellishments to use, some of which is on my card.

I'm not much of a soup-maker - but my favorite kind of soups are Chicken Noodle and Clam Chowder.

The Divas Are:

Barb ** Blog: Barb's Inkin' into Retirement
Carol ** Blog: Lost in my craft room
Judy ** Blog: Paper Hugs & Kisses
Kadie ** Blog: In My Minds Eye
Kelly ** Blog: *Sandcastle Stamper*
LJ  (me)** Blog: Bucky Girl
Suzy **  SCS Gallery
Tami ** : : : : BlueInks Design

And here are the Dazzlers: 

Dazzlers:
Darlene ** The World According to Bijou
Debbie ** The Ink Igloo
Jeanette ** Cre8tive Play: It's Cheaper than Therapy
Paola ** blog That's Amore! SCS Gallery
Shelly ** My creative rumblings
Terry A **  SCS Gallery
Terry L ** It's Totally Terry
Tracie ** Crafty Creations

Thanks for stopping by today ~ Have a great day! Hugs ~ LJ

MOJO Monday 429 - Unforgettable

Hello ~ 

Today (tonight?) I am sharing a card I made for a Valentines Swap that is due this month. I used a pretty old SU! Set called Have A Heart (it was retired in 2005 - that's how hold it is!)  Used this week's Mojo Monday Sketch for the layout.  One of my new years resolutions (I don't have many -as I never keep them-ha) is to blog 5X a month. along with that goal, I plan to try to use as many mojo monday sketches as possible, as I can count on a new mojo sketch there waiting for me every Monday ~ sounds like a good plan right? :) 

Thanks for stopping by - Hugs ~ LJ

Stamps: Have A Heart (SU - Retired) 

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black

Paper: Heart Pattern & Pink Patterned (echo park) red pattern (SU!), Real Red, Basic Grey, White Recollections, black (for small heart) 

Other: Circle Spellbinders, Corner Rounder Punch, Silver Brads, Triple Heart Punch