STAMPlorations sketch challenge

I came across a new to me challenge blog quite by accident recently.  I really like the sketch that STAMPlorations posted so decided to play along.

Here is the sketch:

And here is the card I made using their sketch:

I started out with a white card stock base and added pink a layer of pink card stock and a layer of design paper from the 6 x 6 paper pad - Head over Heels by Bo Bunny.  I added some pink ribbon and punched out 3 hearts with a MS punch and popped them up on 3D foam pads onto the ribbon.  The sentiment was stamped with Versafine Crimson Red ink and I also added some rhinestone hearts.  I I ever make another card using this sketch, I think I will add the ribbon and punched hearts a bit lower.

This card was made for a child at The Hospital for Sick Children here in Toronto.  I am on the Smiley Team for Kards for Kids and enjoy making cards for the children in the hospital.  I really like this card and am hoping that the recipient will like it as much as I do.

Thanks for stopping by and please leave me a comment!
 

Tuesday Morning Sketches #234

I have always enjoyed playing along with Tuesday Morning Sketches in the past as I love their sketches.  This week's sketch challenge was no exception.

Here is the sketch:

Here is the card I made following the sketch:

I started off with a white card stock base and then added design paper from Bo Bunny 6 x 6 paper pad - Head over Heels.  I used an EK Success punch to punch out the square and the sentiment which is stamped using Versafine Crimson Red ink is from SU's stamp set Sprinkled Expressions.  I added some pink ribbon and bow and also a heart charm which reads Made with Love.  The sparkly pink heart buttons are by Recollections which I bought at Michaels.

This card turned out better than I thought it would and will be going to a child at The Hospital for Sick Children here in Toronto.  I am on the Smiley Team for Kards for Kids and am having a blast making cards for the children.  I hope this card puts a smile on the recipient's face.

Thanks for stopping by & please leave me a comment!
 

CTS#61 Meets CAS.ology

As mentioned in a previous post; this winter just seems to be dragging and I can't wait for spring to arrive!

Once again, I have found 2 challenges that I was able to incorporate into one card.  I used the sketch from CAS(e) this Sketch and the color challenge at CAS.ology which is to use the color purple.

Here is the sketch:

And here is the card that I came up with:

I used a white card stock base.  The Spellbinder's square was cut and embossed on Bazzill purple card stock using my cuttlebug.  I cut the Pippi butterfly die by Memory Box with lilac glitter paper and also added some rhinestone bling.  The sentiment which is from CTMH - Butterfly Wings was stamped using Memento Grape Jelly ink.

I love this card but have not yet decided who the recipient will be.

Thanks for stopping by!  Don't forget to leave me a comment!

Anna/Oma

Code word NEW!!

That is the challenge at Addicted to CAS challenge.

Their logo for this challenge:

Here is my card:

I started with a red card stock base and used my Lifestyle Whimsy embossing folder on white.  The die cut is from Cottage Cutz - Love Blooms which I bought recently but have never used as yet.  I also added some tiny white pearls to the flowers on the die cut and tiny red pearls to the embossing portion of the card.  This die cut was difficult to cut using my cuttlebug and I had to turn the die 2 times to get it to cut properly.  In spite of this, I really like the die.  I'm not sure who the recipient will be for this card but hope whoever I give or mail it to likes it as much as I do.  

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A touch of Spring

This winter with its snow and below freezing temperatures has just seemed to drag and I can't wait for spring!!

I was going through my butterflies pinterest board and came across a card that I had pinned a long time ago but never got around to casing.  Here is the link to the card that I cased:  http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/2290266.

I love tulips and butterflies so this card was perfect to remind me that spring will soon be here.  I also love clean and simple cards that are easy to make but can still look elegant.

Here is my version:

White card stock base - SU's Tulip embossing folder - lilac glitter paper by Recollections - Whimsy embossing folder by Lifestyle.  I punched out the butterflies from the lilac glitter paper with my Creative Memories butterfly punch.  I am still debating if I should add some tiny rhinestones or pearls to the butterflies.  Sometimes there is beauty in simplicity.  I will be stamping an appropriate greeting inside the card once I decide who to send it to.
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Dynamic Duos meets Less is More

I came across 2 challenges and decided to incorporate both challenges into one card.  The first challenge I found was the Dynamic Duos Colour Challenge which is to use the colours Black and Hot Pink.  I wasn't sure what sketch to use until I came across the Less is More sketch challenge.

Here is the colour challenge:

Here is the sketch:

Here is the card I created:

White card stock base.  I heat embossed a Stampin Up heart stamp onto hot pink card stock and then punched it out using my Marvy heart punch.  The sentiment was stamped on the black strip of card stock which was layered onto a strip of hot pink card stock with Color Box Powdered Sugar which I got from the Stamps of Life.  I do not know which company the sentiment is from as I have lost the packaging it came in.  I also added some hot pink Pearl Gems by Forever in Time.

This card will be sent to a child at The Hospital for Sick Children here in Toronto.  I am on the Smiley Team for Kards for Kids HSC and am having a blast making cards for the children and hoping that my cards will put a smile on their face.  I hope the child who receives this card will like it as much as I do.
Thanks for stopping by!

Freshly made sketches #120

I was really tired when I got up this morning and had every intentions of going back to bed.  Then I saw this week's sketch at Freshly made Sketches and I was inspired to play along.

Here is the sketch:

Here is the card I made using my favourite decorative element - a butterfly.

Ivory cardstock base with pink cardstock.  The design paper is by Wild Rose Studio 6 x 6 paper pad - Butterfly garden.  The butterfly die cut is by Memory Box Dies - Pippi and I'm not sure why it looks yellow in my photo because I cut it with ivory card stock.  I added some tiny rhinestones to the body of the butterfly.  I had originally die cut the same butterfly and added pink glitter but I didn't like it very much.  I like the one I used much better.  I used a 2 inch scallop punch and popped it up with foam dots.  I also used Taylored Expression Banner Stacklets dies to cut the banners.  I also added a sentiment inside "You make my heart flutter." which is by CTMH stamp set - Butterfly Wings.

The photo is not very good as far as the colours are concerned.  It is not that bright in real life.  It's a bit more muted.


Thanks for stopping by!

Techno Stamper Monday Lunchtime Challenge

I really like this Monday's Lunchtime sketch so decided to play along and knew exactly which stamp set to use for it.

Here is the sketch:

Here is the card I created:

White card stock base, maroon and pinkish mauve card stock.  The design paper is from a 6 x 6 paper pad by Bo Bunny - Head over Heels Collection.  The banners and sentiment were stamped with Versafine Crimson Red ink and are from Stamps of Life Sampler2love stamp set.  I added a pink heart shaped rhinestone to the middle banner.  I fussy cut the banners as they were stamped too close together in order for me to use the matching die that I have for them.

This card will be going to a child at the Hospital for Sick Children here in Toronto.  I am on the Smiley Team for Kards for Kids HSC.  We make cards for the children in the hospital and have lots of fun doing it.  We have several sponsors and have contests where we can win stamps and/or paper.  I love how this card turned out and hope that the recipient will love it too.

Oh rats!  I waited too long to link up my card on the blog and now the linky list is closed!  Oh well, I still had fun making the card!
Thanks for stopping by!

Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #39

This week's challenge proved to be quite a challenge for me.  When I first saw it, I didn't have a clue as to how to interpret it into a card.  While organizing some of my dies, I came across the star die from Taylored Expressions and remembered that I had the perfect dies and sentiments from The Stamps of Life that would be perfect to go with the die.  Here is the sketch:

Here is the card that I came up with using lots of stars!

Here is the inside of the card:

I used a white cardstock base, navy and light blue cardstock.  The sentiments were stamped with Versafine Majestic Blue.  This card will be going to a child at the Hospital for Sick Children here in Toronto.  I hope that the recipient will like it.

Won't you consider joining us this week and creating a card using the sketch?  If you're lucky you might even be able to sport a Top Three badge on your blog.

Have a great day everyone!
Thanks for stopping by!

Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge 202

When I first saw this week's sketch; I wasn't sure which design paper to use but then I received my January Taylored Expressions Key Ingredients Kit arrived the other day.  I love the 6 x 6 paper pad - Love Notes by Crate Paper and after looking through it, I had no problem picking out 2 of the papers for this sketch.

Here is the sketch:

Here is the card I created using the sketch as inspiration:

I love how the card stock in the kit matches the colours found in the paper pad.  I stamped the sentiment from the kit with Versafine Crimson Red and added the small string of hearts under the sentiment and on the banner.  The small string of hearts is a clear stamp from Stamps of Life - sampler2love.  The larger heart is also from the Key Ingredients Kit which was fussy cut and popped up on some foam dots.  The colours of the heart design paper is actually a bit more muted than the photo shows.  I used 2 of the Taylored Expressions Banner Stacklets 1 to die cut the banners.  The base of this card is white.  This card will be going to a child at the Hospital for Sick Children here in Toronto.  I am on the Smiley Team for Kards for Kids HSC.  I am pleased with how this card turned out and I hope it puts a smile on the recipient's face.

Here is a picture showing this month's Key Ingredients Kit:

The Key Ingredients Kits include cardstock, 6 x 6 paper pad, matcing ribbon and a stamp set.  I have bought several kits in the past and have made quite a few cards with them.  The other feature of the kit is that it comes in a plastic storage bin and in that way you can easily store each kit in its own container.
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Try Stampin' on Tuesday #151

I love sketch challenges as I am not all that creative when it comes to coming up with a sketch for making cards.  I love this week's Try Stampin' on Tuesday sketch and knew exactly which papers and stamp I would use for the sketch which has a twist which is to use plaid on your card.  Here is the sketch:

Here is my card which was inspired by the sketch:

It is a very overcast day here today so this is the best photo I could take.  I started out with a white card stock base and the design paper is from a 6 x 6 paper pad - Sweetheart by Doodlebug Design Inc.  The stamped heart is by Stampin Up and was cut using a Fiskars heart punch which fits the stamped heart perfectly.  I die cut the banners with the smallest die from Taylored Expressions - Banner Stacklets 1 which has a total of 7 banner dies.  The 2 small hearts are by Stamps of Life sampler2love.  The sentiment was a freebie which I received with my January Stamp Kit from Stamps of Life.  The beige paper is from my stash.

This card will be going to a child at the Hospital for Sick Children here in Toronto.  I am on the Smiley Team for Kards for Kids HSC.  I am very pleased with how this card turned out and am hoping that the recipient will like it as much as I do.  I will be perusing my Pinterest board for more ideas for Valentine cards for Kards for Kids.
Thanks for stopping by!

Mojo Monday 328

When I saw this week's sketch at Mojo Monday, I knew I wanted to play along.  Here is the sketch:

Here is the card I created using this week's sketch:

White cardstock base, design paper is from a 6 x 6 paper pad from Doodlebug Design Inc. which I bought on Saturday at One Crazy Stamper in Bolton ON which has become my favourite Scrapbook store.  The ribbon is from my stash and the heart shaped rhinestones were bought at Michaels on Saturday as well.  I chose to use 2 small turquiose hearts just to add a bit of interest to my card.  The cut out heart is from a Martha Stewart all over the page punch and the sentiment is by Stamps of Life - sampler2love stamp set. The stamp set can be seen here.  I also have the matching dies to this stamp set and will be using both the stamps and dies for the majority of my valentine cards that I am making this year for Kards for Kids HSC.  I hope the recipient of this card will like it as much as I do.  I just love all the bright and cheerful colours on this card.

I would like to give a shout out to all our generous sponsors for Kards for Kids.  They are One Crazy Stamper, Your Next Stamp, Kraftin Kimmie Stamps, High Hopes Stamps, Class Act Inc.and one of the Smiley Team Members Sheri who is a Close to my Heart Consultant.  They so generously donate stamps and paper that Bela sends to us Smiley Team Members to make cards for the children at The Hospital for Sick Children here in Toronto.  We have a lot of fun and have different contests for a chance to win prizes.  If you would like more information about Kards for Kids, please contact me.
Thanks for stopping by!

Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #37

This week's sketch challenge had me stumped, until I remembered that I had a certain Martha Stewart border punch.  Once I remembered that, the rest of the card came together very quickly.  Here is the sketch:

Here is the card I came up with using the sketch as inspiration:

The sentiment stamps are from the Stamps of Life - sampler2love.  This set has all kinds of hearts, banners and sentiments for Valentines Day and I also have the matching dies.  The design paper is from an unknown source aka as my stash.  I also added some flat back rhinestones cuz it just isn't complete without a bit of bling!

Won't you consider playing along with us this week?  We are looking to fill some empty spots on the design team.  Here are the guidelines to be considered as part of the design team:

To submit that you'd like to be part of our design team please enter one of our challenges (enter every week for a higher chance to be chosen) and put DT at the end of your name when you submit.

Requirements of Design Team members:

• must participate every week (if we get enough members we may make this requirement every other week instead). We will always have sketches done for a full month ahead of time to make this easier.
• must have a blog to post details of your creation on
• must have facebook or email to keep updated on the sketches as we will have a group for all of this information.
• you will also be required to comment on our entrants each week.

I would love to see what you create using the sketch.  Don't forget to link it up on the blog and remember to tell them that Anna sent you!

I will be stepping down from the design team soon but will probably still play along with a lot of the challenges.

Good luck everyone!
Thanks for stopping by!

One Christmas I'll never forget!

We were hit with an ice storm on Dec. 22nd which was also my husband's 66th Birthday.  As a result there was a lot of trees damaged which in turn brought down power lines.  Our power was out for 6 days as Toronto Hydro was unable to keep up with all the outages all over the city.  Lucky for hubby and myself that our daughter who lives in Milton (about a 50 minute drive from us) let us stay with her.  Hubby went to work on the 23rd and 24th downtown Toronto and would drive to our house to check on the house and then would drive to Milton to spend the night.  My daughter's power is provided by underground cables so her power only went out for about an hour or so.  There was also a lot of tree damage in Milton.  Here is a picture of the tree that was blocking her driveway:

Her house is the one on the right.

The day before Christmas, my SIL still needed to finish his Christmas shopping and my daughter was working.  Amber went to Daycare so I got to spend an entire morning playing with Brooke and Sierra.  We played Monopoly Jr. and also told stories and read books.  I wanted to entertain the girls so they didn't play on their IPads.  However, when my back was turned, or when I went pottie, out came the IPads so I took them away from them and hid them.  The girls didn't really mind at all.  I think it was a novelty to have me playing and reading with them.  One of the gifts that Brooke got earlier in the month from her grandmother in Ottawa was a book - The Canadian Version of the 12 days of Christmas.  We had a blast singing the song.  The 1st day of Christmas in the Canadian version was a porcupine in a pine tree which Brooke quickly changed to And a porcupine gonna poke you in the butt amidst peels of laughter!

Christmas day, hubby and I drove to Toronto to pick up our son so he could spend Christmas with us in Milton.  We had so much fun watching the girls open their stockings and gifts.  3 yr. old Amber in particular was so excited!  Every time she was handed a gift, she would exclaim, "Another present?  For me?"  She was totally blown away by all the gifts everyone received.  She enjoyed helping the rest of us open our gifts as well.  Here is a picture of Princess Amber and her 2 sisters, 6 yr. old Brooke and 8 yr. old Sierra:

  Here are Sierra and Brooke helping my daughter Janice cooking Kraft dinner and Peameal Bacon one night.

On Christmas night, hubby and I drove our son Mike to his girlfriend's cousin's house in Brampton where there was a lot of damage from the ice storm.  We then went to a hotel to spend the night to give our daughter and her family a break.  On Friday, hubby was back at work and after work, when he checked the house, our power had come back on.  While the power was out, the pilot light from our 18 yr. old gas furnace had gone out.  He tried to light it several times but finally gave up and called the gas company to come and light it.  The repair man from the gas company finally came over on Saturday afternoon but he was unable to light it as well.   The heat exchanger had bit the dust.  As it would have cost just as much to replace and repair the heat exchanger, we opted to buy a new furnace.  I went home Sunday as I had to be there to meet up with the sales person from the Heating and Air Conditioning Co. which is owned by a friend of ours so we could pick out a furnace.  We stayed warm by dressing in layers and we also had 3 heaters in the house to keep us semi-warm.  We would move a heater in the bathroom to heat it up so we could shower and we also slept with a heater in the bedroom.  I sure hated that cold  toilet seat first thing in the morning though!   Our new furnace was finally installed on Thursday.  The following day, turned out to be the coldest day in 9 years here so we were very grateful to have a working furnace!  Our terminal box for the cable TV also bit the dust as had a lot of other people's and we were finally able to pick up a new box on Friday.  Hubby reserved one at one of the stores.  The cable company could not keep up with the demand for the terminal boxes.

This whole experience as horrendous as it might sound turned out well and has made me appreciate modern conveniences and the hospitality extended to us by our daughter.  Although, my daughter did say that if we hadn't come to her house, she would have been very worried about us.  When I think of the devastation that the people in the Philippines experienced with the storm that they weathered in November, makes my experience pale in comparison.  Our city did everything they possibly could to keep everyone safe and warm.  They opened up community centers and provided food and cots for people to sleep on.  Hydro workers came from other provinces and gave up their days off on Christmas to help out Toronto Hydro to restore power.  The city and province also provided grocery store gift cards to help people replace the food they lost to the power outage.  We were lucky in that we only had to throw out some chicken from our freezer which had thawed and then started to freeze again.  Even the milk in the fridge did not go bad.  We did not line up for one of the gift cards as we felt they should go to other people who lost a lot of food.
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