What Happens in Germany, Stays in Germany

Today brings a card for my sister, who has spent the last ten days with her German national boyfriend in Berlin. My sentiment is a take on the American TV ads regarding Las Vegas, where whatever goes on there, stays there. She will love this card, and can share it with her love.
The new challenge at Ike's World Challenges is to create "anything but a square." I don't do many square cards (too much postage when mailing), so this was an easy one for me. I feel I am still getting my feet wet as a new DT member at Ike's blog.
Anywho, did you know that the colors of the German flag are Red, GOLD and Black (I missed that question on Trivia Crack). I used the national colors to design the background of my card, and to frame this cute image, called Leiderhosen, from the Germany Bundle over at Ike's Art Store. The bundle comes with seven images!!
You still have time to link up your project in this challenge for your chance to win free digis of your choice. You don't have to use an Ike's Art image, but you get your name in the draw twice each time you do! I like those odds, don't you?! And if you join the Ike's Art Fan Page on Facebook, there are several freebies with which to play to your heart's content. So snag them and come on over! And as always, crafters, have fun!

Challenges I am Entering:

Crafty Sentiments Sponsors Challenge This Week

Today brings a new challenge from Craft Your Passion. This week's sponsor is Crafty Sentiments, and I got to play with this cute digi image called "Sweetheart Bunnies."
After coloring my image with Copics, my go-to coloring media, I fussy-cut it out and popped it onto an embossed card face. To make the embossing pop a bit, I inked the raised edges of my "scene." I used a paint chip from my stash of papers to frame it all, punching the top edges.
My sentiment is an Oprah Winfrey quote, which reads, "Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo," and continued on the inside, "but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down."
I threw on a scattering of jeweled butterflies and flowers, a fantastic find at my local Goodwill store last year.
I love this image, and hope you do too. You can find it and so many more cute images at Crafty Sentiments Shop. Whether you buy or not, the theme of this week's challenge is Anything Goes, as always, at Craft Your Passion challenge blog. Come on over and play with us!!

Other Challenges I am Entering:

Suzy Bee's Blooming Challenges - Embossing

Alphabet Challenge blog - F is for Friendship

Stempelsonnen challenges - Anything Goes

Crafty Creations - Photo Inspiration

Pile It On - Cute animals

BINGO! with Bugaboo

Time to get your game on at Catch the Bug challenge blog. There isn't much time left to play, and the theme is BINGO. I chose the vertical row of Bling, Pastels & a Bugaboo image:

I colored my Bugaboo image, Ava Latte, with Copics and framed her with a die-cut, adhering her onto embossed and inked cardstock. My card base is white cardstock with a stitched-border frame.

I Stickled parts of my image, and added jewels for that touch of bling. A punched flower and sentiment finish off my card.

 Other Challenges I am Entering:

Hiding in My Craft Room - Freestyle
Suzie B's Blooming challenges - Use a Die or Punch (I used both!)
Our Creative Corner - Colour Your World (Blue skies, partly cloudy, yellow daffodils)
Scrap It with a Song - (pop song Shake it Off-NOT until I have my coffee!!)

QKD Has New Releases Just in Time for Spring

Did you attend the new release party at Queen Kat Designs on Facebook?  I was one of the lucky commentators to score a free QKD digi of this image.  It's called Lizzy Love #25 by artist Lizzy Love!  How cool is that?! So this is what I did with my new digi.

I colored her with Copics. Her original look sports a shamrock headband, but I decided to place flower sequins on the shamrocks for a pure spring look.  Then I distressed the edges and framed her with cardstock before adding her to an embossed and sanded card face.
I embellished with sparkling buttons, circle borders and some jute.  My sentiment is from a K&Co sticker sheet. I finished off my card with white gel pen lines around the perimeter of the card and boxing around my sentiment.
I don't know about you but I am SO ready for Spring. After spending Spring break in Seattle, where Spring is blossoming in the greenest greens and the boldest colors, it was so difficult to return to the last remnants of mucky snow and brown brown grass in Chicago. Ugh!
So I'm daring Mother Nature to catch up with my crafting by washing her hands of winter and welcoming Spring in all its beauty! Come on, Mom, let's see some sunshine and blooms and greenery!!  Are you with me, crafters?!
We would certainly love to see some cards and projects using QKD stamps and digis.  Please share them with us on Facebook!!  You never know when another contest will pop up!  besides, you can get some very awesome inspiration there.
Like what you see?  Stop by the Shop and have fun!

QKD Card Today

Hey, crafters!  I have a fun card to show you today.  I stamped up a Queen Kat Designs image called Frog Queen by the lovely and talented Sandra Caldwell.   I love this image and have used it often.

After coloring it with Copics, I framed it with cardstock first and then with another square piece of cardstock whose corners I punched (with my favorite punch).  I popped it onto a base of stitched cardstock and embossed paper.

I embellished with an acrylic sentiment, a couple stray beads and some sequins.  I like the look of the card.  the scene almost looks like an alien queen from another planet selfie!!  I have a friend who loves frogs so this card is going straight to her mail box via snail mail.

Do you still mail out cards or letters?  I do.  There's nothing more satisfying than getting mail out of the mailbox to open and read.  I try to send my grandkids mail, even if it's just a card.  The youngest, Bella, loves getting mail addressed to her (she's 6).

Embossed Thank You! Challenge from Squigglefly

Happy New Year!  The first Squigglefly challenge of the new year is to make an embossed Thank You card using a Squigglefly digi image.  I used a January new release from Cheryl Grant Alger called "A Good Read Maddie."

I adhered an embossed card front onto the base of my card, turning up the top right corner for a bit of a twist.  Once I colored my image with Copics, I used a design scissors to cut it out and framed it with pieces of pink and blue cardstock.  A few sequins and a butterfly embellish my card and I can write inside the card to send off to a generous friend who remembered me this Christmas.

One of my resolutions this new year is to participate in more challenges.  You can do the same by playing in this week's Squigglefly Challenge Blog for your chance to win a free digi!  Start the new year off with some inspiration and creativity!

Who's the (em)Boss?

This week brings a new challenge from Squigglefly:

"Add something embossed to your card, it can be any of the wonderful backgrounds that have embossing in them, any of the spellbinders that have embossing, any brass stencils that use dry embossing, or add a great embellishment or cardstock that already comes embossed"

In addition to the new theme, if you use a Squigglefly digi, you will be in the running for a free digi!!  Don't have a Squigglefly image yet? Check out the FREEBIES at their store.

My card front features embossed white core cardstock, which I love to distress to get that textured feeling.  The card showcases a July new release from Squigglefly called "It's a Jump Rope Kind of Day", designed by artist Cheryl Grant Alger.  I colored him with Copics, then used a Sakura gel pen for a shimmery look on the jump rope.

I embellished my card with an adhesive-backed chain of crocheting (not handmade) and an earring whose "ring" and mate I lost.  Which proves I am a crafter-I never throw away something that maybe might have the possibility of a use in my crafts).

I hope you like my card, and it has inspired you to try a little embossing in your crafting.  For more inspiration, check out Squigglefly's blog and their Facebook page!!

Holly Fairy in Red

I had so much fun with this new Queen Kat Designs December release stamp!!!  The stamp is called Holly Fairy and is by artist Catherine Swinford.  The first card I'm showing you is a simple corner fold card.  I stamped and then embossed in red on some CTMH double-sided Christmas patterned paper.  I left the coloring to a minimum to let some of the pattern show through.
When I folded the corner, I knew I wanted to layer it with red cardstock to frame the scene.  I put a bling snowflake where I would normally have put a big blossom, and added a few sprinkles of jewels.  Then I pulled the whole scene together with some faux stitching around the edges.
My sentiment is a metal tag from Tim Holtz Idealogy Word Bands, reading: "Possibility begins with Imagination".  Very simple, very pretty, very easy!!  And it will go in the mail at regular postage rates!  That's a win-win card!
QKD is releasing some gorgeous fun stamps this month--go check them out at the Shoppe!