Crafty Elves' Countdown To Christmas - April 2019 Edition!

Welcome back to the Crafty Elves' Countdown to Christmas!  My friend Debra Davison from Meticulosity and I have made a pact to create a Christmas card a week for 2019 and so far so good!   We're sharing our cards on the 25th of each month and guess what??  It's April 25th!  (Can you believe it??).  Tax season is over and I've made it through so it should be smooth sailing from here on out!

This month once again because of my "real" job I needed some quick cards that wouldn't take too long.  I had the Doodlebug Christmas Town 6x6 Paper Pad staring me in the face with it's adorable little mini sentiment pieces and I thought... yeah!  I got my pad in the Paper Sweeties Shop here!

I created seven cards for you today... six all using just the Doodlebug papers and some dies from some of my favorite makers plus a special one using a beautiful new to me stamp set from Papertrey Ink that I've been dying to ink up!  I'll start with a quick pic of each of the cards and a list of the products with links below it.  On most of these cards I used the following:

Kat Scrappiness Double Stitched Rectangles (I use these ALL the time!)

Cottage Kutz Nested Wacky Stitched Circle

Poppy Stamps Double Stitched Circles

CDD Mini Shaker Clip Dies (To cut out the sentiment images)

On this one for the gifts I used a great die set from The Cat's Pajamas called Presents.

With this one I'm playing along with the Die Cuttin' Divas Red Hat Society Day Challenge which is to use red and/or purple... this one's got a little red!

For this one... I had that kraft piece with the cutout circle in the corner... I had needed the circle piece for another card and saved this one... I was so glad I did... love that it's now a cutout on this and I popped up the kraft panel over the Doodlebug Design Paper.  I also used these Snowflake Dies from Paper Smooches.  Oh... and the Kraft paper I've used on these... Papertrey Ink and it is awesome! #robynmademebuyit

For this one I used a Jolly word die from Lil' Inker (I think this one is retired), those adorable mittens from Sunny Studio's Warm and Cozy Dies and that cute little Santa Hat from Taylored Expressions.

I'm playing along with Simon Says Stamp's Wednesday Challenge which is Anything Goes this week!

I should mention about that CDD little notepad die from the Mini Shaker Clip set... it was the perfect size to cut out most of these little sentiment cards from the Doodlebug paper!  It really didn't take me long and it was fairly easy to line up... I was SO excited to be able to cut them in this shape instead of just cutting out the rectangles!  The hat on this one is from the Sunny Studio Warm and Cozy set same as the mittens above and these Mini Snowflakes are from Lawn Fawn.

On this one the T.E. Santa Hat again, LF Snowflakes and that sweet stitched heart is from the same Mini Shaker Clip set from CDD that the notepaper die is from.

With this one I'm playing along over at Cute N Craft Christmas Challenge #11.

Well, of course I had to fit a cup in here somewhere!!  On this one I used Paper Smooches dies from the Coffee and Tea Dies and the Holiday Sweets Dies.  Perfect with this sentiment square!  Season's Eatings...lol!  Cracks me up!  And of course the cup is plaid!!

And last but certainly not least.. there is this beautiful deer from the Papertrey Ink Fawn and Flora Stamp Set... this is a layered stamp which I would normally not attempt... they make me cry... seriously...lol!  but this one was so easy to line up and I had no problem.  The flowers that come with the set were a little more challenging for me but I have a couple ideas and I'll attempt them again soon... but for this one, I decided to use some dies from Impression Obsession for those little flowers and Holly leaves and they worked out just fine!

Isn't she just the sweetest!?  Definitely gonna use her again.  I had to cut her out because I wasn't able to order the dies but I'll be getting those soon.  These Circles are from CDD and I think are retired but there is a new set here!

And then this sentiment die set is awesome from Papertrey Ink... it's called Holiday Double Cuts Dies and there are three word dies and they cut like butter... love them!

And that's it for me today!  I've chosen a winner from last month's post to receive some Happy Mail from me:

Crystal!  Please send me your snail mail at bzscrapper66 at gmail.com!  And yes, we'll play again... leave me some love and I'll pick a name and announce it in our next Crafty Elves Post on the 25th of next month!

Now be sure to hop on over to Debra's blog and see what she's cooked up for you today (and she's got a giveaway going over there too)!  Thanks so much for stopping!

Fabulous Favorites Challenge - Papertrey Ink

Good Monday morning!  (Is that a thing?  Let me get to the bottom of my cup and I'll let you know).  So... over at Papertrey Ink they've changed up the challenges a little bit!  Every Wednesday you can get all of the information you need for all kinds of ways to win some free Papertrey Ink stuff!  Some for commenting; answering questions; or participating by creating something!  Lots of fun and ways to win.

Today I'm playing along with Laurie's Fabulous Favorites Challenge.  Your mission is to create something using at least one Papertrey Ink product showcasing your favorite accessory.  Mine is sequins... it seems no matter what kind of card or project I create, you'll find a sequin on almost every one!  These cards are part of a set I'm creating as a sample for a coworker who has requested some notecards to give as gifts to some of her church friends.  Unlike me, I wanted to keep them flat for mailing, but I still wanted a little bit of bling on them and I happened to have some flat sequins that were just right.

I didn't have any PTI sequins so I used these from my stash, however I did have that gorgeous frame from the Fun Frame Dies.  That is definitely one of my fave PTI dies... I mean really... the plaid ones are my very favorite...lol... but for this project, the Fun Frame dies were perfect!  I only embellished one so that she could see them with and without and decide what she likes best.  Of course I'll add flowers and sequins to each later because these are for me!

Other dies I used on this one were the Inside Stitched Rectangles and Alphas are from Kat Scrappiness, the flower is from Divinity Designs, and the stitched half rectangles are from CC Designs.  Quick post today... have to get ready for work.  You have until tomorrow to play along over at PTI.. check out this post here for this week's challenges and you can link up to this challenge here!

Three Amigos Blog Hop Challenge #24 - Rainbows!

Welcome to this month's Three Amigos Blog Hop Challenge!  This time around it's all about Rainbow!  Here's how I was inspired:

I've used some Lawn Fawn Really Rainbow papers along with this adorable Paper Smooches Unicorn that I colored up during a class over at Our Creative Escape not too long ago!  The card kit was gorgeous, but not my design so I decided to use her and one of the pieces from the kit in a different way!

That paper, right?  So pretty!  It was perfect behind the frame that was in the kit and the window was cut using the Frame 1 die.

I filled it with all kinds of clear sequins I had in my stash... some from Pretty Pink Posh.. some from CDD and some from my LSS!

I built my sweet sentiment using the You're Sweet sentiment from the Pineapple Crush stamp set and that beautiful Birthday Wishes die from Papertrey Ink.

I have lots of rainbow ideas in my head so I think you'll be seeing lots of inspiration from me this month!

I'm playing along over at Paper Smooches.. the March Challenge there this month is Birthdays!  I'm also playing along at the Outlawz Twisted Thursday where the theme is Frames and Festive Friday with a Birthday Theme!  And it's Anything Goes over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge this week and I'm playing along there too!  And Magic is still going on a little bit longer over at Double Trouble and Use Your Stuff!  And I've used the middle row for Tic Tac Toe, Glitter, Image and Sentiment!

Now be sure to hop on over to Donna's and Susan's Blogs and see what they've created for your inspiration today!  And don't forget to create something rainbow and join us over at Three Amigos!

Papertrey Ink September 2018 Blog Hop

Today's the day for the PaperTrey Ink September 2018 Blog Hop!  This is the inspiration photo!  Isn't it beautiful??  I didn't have any pumpkins to use, but I went along with the color scheme, the plaid, the drinks and those big beautiful leaves.  Here's how I was inspired:

In case you didn't already know... I LOVE plaid... I think it's just so cool how diverse the patterns can be and the colors... and it feels cozy to me.... maybe because of flannel and the general homey feeling.  SO of course I had to get this beautiful plaid Oval3 Shape Shifter when it was released this month!  And I was so excited it came in time to use it for this project!  And it's awesome to make a shaker out of!  With the wide frame it's easy to add the pop up tape and I cut my clear layer using a plain old oval die that was big enough... easy peasy!

And this awesome new Merry Mug stamp set!  Love this one!  By the time I checked out last week I wasn't able to get the die... but it's easy enough to cut out and I will get the die when it becomes available again... I'm sure there will be other stuff I need to have by then...lol!  This cup is so cool because the main part of the cup leaves a strip in the middle and you have a couple choices of how to stamp that strip... I thought the one that said Yum was just right!  I used one of my favorite steam dies from Paper Sweeties for the steam.  

Those cool leaves and pretty little flowers are from the Grand Botanicals die set and that sentiment from Cozy Christmas was perfect!

So the Blog Hop runs today only!   If you don't have time to make something, then definitely sign up for the newsletter.  Usually an email will come earlier in the month stating the date of the hop and the inspiration photo so you have some time to make something and join in!  Even if you can't make anything it's fun to hop around and see how others were inspired.

Thanks for stopping! And be sure to come back soon and don't forget about this on Saturday!!!  Lots of sponsors and prizes and you get to sit back, have a cuppa, and hop and comment for your chance to win!

Feeling the Autumn?

Feeling the Autumn finally!   Well... on the inside anyway...lol!  It's still in the 100's here in Southwest Arizona so... but I do remember what autumn felt like in NY... I do miss Autumn... but not enough to return to where it Winters...lol!

I'm playing along with a couple challenges today!  It's been so long since I've played along with the Make It Monday Challenge over at Papertrey Ink and #334 is about Glitter Inlays.  I decided to make my project Autumn themed because I LOVE the colors of Autumn AND because Simon Says Stamp's Monday Challenge is Fall/Autumn!

As Lexi did in her video over at PTI, I die cut my shape that I wanted to use for the glitter inlay which is that awesome Plaid Mix and Mat die that is so elusive and looks like it's available right now if you must have it!  Of course it sells out a lot... it's AWESOME!  Anyway... I adhered the die cut to an adhesive sheet so that the sticky showed through the front and then took some ultra fine glitter from the Art Glitter store here in Arizona and brushed it over the top so that the glitter would stick in the sticky parts.  Then I brushed all of my excess off... cool right?  Yeah... you could put glitter paper behind it if you hate using glitter.  But I for one don't mind glitter everywhere including in my hair!  And it's so inexpensive compared to glitter paper.  Love this technique!  If you need a visual ... the video up on the blog is excellent!

Then I pulled out my Cozy Christmas stamp set from PTI... Kathy Schweinfurth made me buy this one because she has made SO many beautiful projects using it.  It took me a while to ink it up because.. well... it's been summer!  But hot beverages from a thermos aren't just for Christmas!  So I stamped my pieces in some fall-ish colors and cut them out... (I didn't get the dies... yet...lol).  I also used for the first time some fantastic dies I bought the last time there was a sale and can I say.. I'm in LOVE!  These Grand Botanical dies are fantastic... I cut my leaves from some previously watercolored paper... I added an orangey brown to the center part of the leaf for contrast.  The tiny flowers, also from this set I cut from some coordinating design paper and the centers do cut out, but I just added some yellow Nuvo drops as centers.  AND those branches!!  They were perfect cut from kraft and I added just a few flowers that haven't fallen off yet.  So many more dies in this set.. large flowers and a larger leaf.  So glad I got it (this one is not in stock right now, but if you must have it, just click Notify Me).  That's how I got my Plaid Mix and Mat...lol!  I needed some small steam and I found the perfect little die in the Coffee and Tea set from Stamp Simply!

I love using sentiments that aren't necessarily coffee related on my coffee cards... believe it or not, not everyone I know is as crazy about coffee as I am.. but it's ok... I love them anyway and they are still my friends!  Maybe they prefer cocoa or tea... idk... or soup?  But between you and me... there's coffee in that there thermos!  This sentiment from the MFT Hug In A Mug set.

That's it for me today!  Thanks so much for stopping!  Be sure to come back on Monday for Three Amigos!

Papertrey Ink Make It Monday #328 - Shadow Backgrounds

Popping in quick today to share with you my make inspired by this week's Make It Monday Challenge over at Papertrey Ink.  It's all about a "Shadow Background".

I used the Stemmed Statements stamp set for this one because I love it!  The idea is to stamp complementary images to the one you will use as your pop of color, but in a neutral color of some sort.. you want it to be just that... a background.  I stamped my images on CTMH White Daisy Cardstock using Heather Ink.  I started lower on the left side and slowly moved my images up as I went across the page.  You don't have to do this, however in Laurie Schmidlin's video she says she tends to prefer the diagonal layout and I must say I'm a bit partial to it myself.  I like the way it kind of gives my background it's own little crescendo.  I also decided to give my background some texture using the beautiful Rustic Burlap Impression Plate.  After I stamped, I embossed.

I ended up choosing a different flower for my pop of color... the geranium rather than the poppy.  I liked the amount of space it took up better.  But that's ok since there are all kinds of flowers in a proper garden.  And I added a clover also to create some symmetry with the background.

The size of this Lil' Inker Designs Celebrate Word Die was perfect for the space and I love the font.  I just added a couple glittery purple gems and done!  This was fun and something I'd do again for sure!

You have until 6am EST Monday the 16th to link up to this one!  You must use at least one PTI product.  You can find the rules and linkup here!

Papertrey Ink June Blog Hop Challenge

I created this card for two reasons... one for love and one for fun.  I happened upon a hop this past weekend, Stamping For Families.  A small group of crafty friends with large hearts.  I found we had something in common...we are all concerned with the tragedy going on right now in our country... children being separated from their parents.

This is not a political post and I won't be discussing with you my thoughts on that subject.  But whichever way your politics sway, you have to agree that separating children from loving parents is never the solution to a problem.  So I decided to join in and link up a card.   If you do feel the same way and want to help, there are some awesome resources and links at Sandy Allnock's blog here.

Also, I wanted to create something for this month's Papertrey Ink Blog Hop.  The gorgeous inspiration photo... literally made my mouth water. 

When I thought about what kind of card I would create, my thoughts immediately turned to this Words To Live By: Courage sentiment set by PTI.  I am wishing all of the families that are separated strength and courage until and after they are reunited.  It will be a long road with many struggles and obstacles even after.  My heart hurts for them.

And what better represents freedom, renewal, and hope but a butterfly.  And I decided to make a rainbow of butterflies.. as so often happens, the colors in the inspiration photo for the Papertrey Ink Blog Hop are what inspired me.  What a beautiful photo isn't it?

So that's it for me today.  I'll be back on Wednesday with something else.  If you'd like to support or link up to the Stamping for Families Blog Hop you can start at Sandy Allnocks place.  There are a few prizes being offered by some of the participating bloggers, but go for the love and inspiration. 

If you'd like to join along with the Papertrey Ink Blog Hop for June 2018, then you can link up here!  You must use at least one Papertrey Ink product and be inspired by the photo below... you know... the gorgeous one!

Thanks for stopping and if somehow you don't agree with this cause that speaks to me, then just tell me what you think about my card!

Papertrey Ink Create Along With Us Release Week Challenge June 2018

A quick post for today!  I wanted to play along with the Papertrey Ink Create Along With Us Challenge for this month as well as the Tall and Skinny Twist over at Outlawz for this week's Twisted Thursday!  ALSO, there's a new challenge called Double Trouble and my mom and her friends are running it.  They team up with other challenges each time and you get extra chances to win at their challenge if you also join the other challenge.  This time around they're teaming up with the Three Amigos.  I've used both die cuts and no design paper on this, so I'm entering it over there!  

Anywho, after some mishaps this morning, I was able to get this done and I love it!

For Create Along With Us, you should create something using inspiration from the DT makes for the release!  I was inspired by Stephanie Gold's design at the top of this post... the way she stamped her flowers coming up from the bottom of the card, the Kraft and white... but I really couldn't add my sentiment like hers because I felt it would leave too much space at the top, so I also gained inspiration from Heather Nichols creation here ... also the kraft... that sentiment at the top with mixed colors and dimension.

I also decided to add lots of dots ... still inspired by last week's Make It Monday challenge and I love to use Nuvo's to add "splatters" when I need control... although sometimes even they get a little out of control...lol!  I used the lavender from the Stemmed Statements set from PTI... LOVE that floral set... so happy I purchased it and the dies!!

And I chose this sentiment because courage is something I have to muster up right now.  Nothing earth shattering... just thinking about making a change with my job and I need to work myself up to it.  I'm not really afraid of change, however, I know my leaving would affect a lot of the people I love best there in a bad way, so I'm fearful of hurting them.  I know they would understand and wouldn't be mad... it's just the thought of making things more difficult for them.  Anyway, I love this Words To Live By Courage set!!!  And that beautiful butterfly from the Butterfly Blooms stamp set!  (I tried lots of dots on that one too like in last weeks beautiful creation by Michelle Leone but either she's very good at making tiny dots or her butterflies were bigger... and I do want that set to!...lol)

So gotta run!  Late for work!  Maybe I'm hoping they make my decision for me, but I don't think that's gonna happen!..lol!

Keep crafting and I'll see you again tomorrow with some Paper Sweeties goodness!

Papertrey Ink Make It Monday #324: Lots O' Dots

Popping in with a "quick" card I made for the Make It Monday challenge over at Papertrey Ink which is Lots O' Dots this week!  I had to make a birthday card for a co-worker's husband.  He's turning 70 this year and he is always baking for us at work!  Yes... he bakes.. and he's quite awesome at it!

So, I knew I wanted to use my new Shape Shifters Circle 1 Die and I knew it had to be manly and figured I'd use my Kat Scrappiness Condensed Number dies for a 70 and that's about it.  And when I saw the pretty butterfly in the inspiration video for this challenge, which I just happen to have (also new) it made me sad I couldn't use it..lol!  And I didn't really have any man stamps that would lend themselves to polka dots... in fact, I really don't have much in the way of man stamps at all... what can I say?  I loves me some girly papercrafting stuff.  I scrapbooked boy pages for almost a decade before I discovered cardmaking.

So, I pulled out my Authentique "Rugged" man paper and just started cutting things!

Isn't that Shape Shifter die pretty cool?  I placed a solid blue piece behind it in a dark blue so that the design still showed up, but wasn't too distracting.  I also had a blue diecut behind it and offset my top piece just a bit and popped up the top piece.

I cut the numbers once from the design paper and then three more times from cardstock and stacked them.  I just love the way it adds so much dimension.  Then I took the flames from some candle dies and added them to the top to make them number candles.

Then I cut my sentiment using the Boho Rounds Sentiments but didn't die cut the entire sentiment... all I needed was the word Enjoy.  I added it to the card and added some liquid glass to it.  I decided my dots would just be scattered dots on the paper.  I am not happy with the performance of these gold Nuvo Drops.  They didn't keep their shape and some ended up more flat than I wanted.  Note to future card making self.  But for these purposes, it'll work.  I also added some to the top left corner to balance out the card a bit.

There.  Done.  I need two other man cards this week and thank goodness I already have them made because this one took a lot out of me....lol!  I really do need to get better at this.  Maybe I'll try another soon.

Thanks for stopping and please do come back soon!

Coffee Lovers Blog Hop - Day 2 1/2

I'm back today with another card for the Coffee Lover's Blog Hop!  If you've never heard of it before, you should definitely check out the main blog hop post here for all of the details and rules and to check out the HUGE list of sponsors all offering prizes for playing along!  Just create a new project with a theme of Spring/Summer and Coffee, Tea, or Hot Cocoa; link it up; and you have a chance to win!  And for full fun and enjoyment, join the Coffee Loving Papercrafters group on Facebook here!  You'll need to answer a few questions when you join which helps us to make sure everyone who is there is there for the right reasons!  Hope to see you there!  Here's what I have for you today:

I LOVE to play along with the Make It Monday Challenge over at Papertrey Ink and this week the challenge is Above and Below (highlight a sentiment using the Above and Below technique).  So when I saw this week's challenge, I knew it would be perfect for a coffee card!  You only need to use one Papertrey Ink product to play along, but most of mine are.  And there is a new challenge each Monday!  I just love the Stemmed Statement stamp set.. the flowers are so pretty and not a huge undertaking to color.

And this Fancy Tea Cup die is so inexpensive and so pretty!  It comes with a die to cut both the top and bottom layers of the cup.  I used the Happiness die from Hop Super Sponsor Verve Stamps that is included in the Happiness In A Cup Die Set.  And scattered some of my favorite Shimmer sequins from Hop Super Sponsor Craftin Desert Divas around for steam.

The Cover Plate Die is from Papertrey Ink as well as the beautiful Fun Frames Die (One of my most used so far). 

So thanks for stopping by!  Hope to see you around the hop!  I stop at every stop so eventually if you play along, you'll hear from me at your place!  You can link up to your blog, or Instagram, Flicker... almost anywhere, but you'll get the most visits at those places where you don't have to log in as a member.   I stop everywhere I can!  Good luck!  Can't wait to see what you make!

And don't forget to thank all of the wonderful Sponsors for the Coffee Lover's Hop who offer up prizes!  I used products from these two today!