Thinking of You this Christmas

The new Magnolia-licious Challenge blog is hosting their very first ever challenge which is 'Playful Pink & Happy Yellow'. I also chose to join in the fun at Magnolia-licious Highlites. The amazing Barb Hardeman challenged us to make a shaker card. Now I haven't made a shaker card in years so I had to dust the old cobwebs off of my brain first. LOL But I think it turned out cute. Tilda is thinking of you as she sits in front of a snowy country scene resting her arm on a candy cane. Doesn't she look dreamy? LOL

This is one of my most FAVorite Magnolia stamps called 'Longing Tilda' which you can find at Diana's Magnolia-licious store. I used my Copics to color her.

I'm also entering these challenges:
Die Cut Dreams Christmas Club: Challenge #44 Christmas Anything Goes
Fussy and Fancy Challenge: Christmas with no red or green
Stampin for the Weekend: Winter theme
Creative Inspirations: Winter Woodland
Simon Says Stamp Challenge Blog: Sparkle!
Top Tip Tuesday: Buttons (1 or more)

As always........I sooooo appreciate all of the sweet, sweet comments you leave. It truly makes my day a bit brighter. Thank you so much!

Card recipe:
Copics: E0000, E000, E21, R20, E30, E31, E41, E35, RV10, RV11, RV000
Nitwits DP (decorative paper)
Wild Orchid Crafts flowers
Martha Stewart 'Arctic Snowflake' punch
Candy cane from Michael's (Christmas section)
Pink crystal buttons from Walmart
Sentiment is computer generated
Sakura 'Jelly Roll' white pen (highlights on cheeks & dots around shaker)
Distress Ink 'Spun Sugar'
'Star Dust' Stickles
Sulyn Glitter 'Crystal'
Stampendous 'Crystal Snow' white ultra fine glitter

Huggies & Blessings ~♥♥♥~

A cute Pirate for you!

This cute little Pirate is for my granddaughter Alexis (20) just because I love her so much & she 'gets' my cardmaking passion. She's an amazingly talented artist & can appreciate........even my feeble attempts at art. LOL She's so very sweet & loving. She loves pirates (& Johnny Depp of course) & her dream is to work for Disney some day. By the way......her FAVorite color is purple (with black at a close second).

Anywho..........this cutie patootie stamp is called Jolly Roger Tilda & I see that Diana has her in stock right now. You can pick her up at the Magnolia-Licious store.

I've colored her with Copics (numbers below). Can you see the moon shining over her shoulder? LOL I had so much fun making this card. This is the inside (before I wrote a personal message to my sweet Baby Girl). This Word Art is available at Create with TLC from a set called "Wishes". Paulette is so very generous with her beautiful Word Art & vintage graphics on her blog. If you haven't visited her blog yet.....then you just don't know what you're missing.




Card details:
Copics used: E000, E0000, E30, R20, W00, W0, W1, W3, W5, V000, V12, V15, V17
Martha Stewart butterfly punch "3 in 1"
Distress Ink "Black Soot"
Glossy Accents on Tilda's boots
Stickles glitter: Black Diamond, Star Dust, Diamond
Black glitter on butterfly: Stampendous
Nesties: Labels One (inside sentiment) and Circles (moon & background circle)
Vellum from my stash
Cuttlebug folder "Tiny Bubbles" (for vellum circle)
Tim Holtz distressing tool
Prima Flowers "Fabric Fancies"
Gemstone Brads in Flowers "Recollections"
Gray Deco Pin by Making Memories "Wedding"
DP from my stash (I think it's called Rock Star)
Pirate Buttons by "Dress It Up" (map, sword & treasure chest)
Adhesive for DP is Memory Tape Runner XL by ThermOWeb (love it)

I'm also entering this card in these challenges:
Cute Card Thursday: “Gently” (use parchment, vellum or tissue paper)
C.R.A.F.T. Challenge: “Dry Embossing”
Just Magnolia: “Week 80 Anything Goes”
Crazy 4 Challenges: “Square Card”
Stampin for the Weekend: “Challenge #50 Sketch with a Twist…..”(must add a butterfly......mine is under the flowers)
This is the sketch I followed (I flipped it to the left a quarter turn):


Thanks for looking and as always.........I sooooo appreciate you taking the time to tell me what you think.

Huggies & Blessings ~♥♥♥~

Beware!

I made these cute.....uh I mean SCARY (BOO) little Coffin Treat boxes for my teenage granddaughters (plus one of their friend's who lives here part time) & for my daughter (cuz she'll always be my little teenager...heeheehee) . They absolutely flipped over them. I got the template & tut from Martha Stewart crafts HERE. I used double sided cardstock so I wouldn't have to wait for glue to dry. LOL I am sooooo impatient.

This is the inside of the 'coffin'.......(lid is propped up on the left side). Of course these were full of chocolate..........their FAVorite thing in all the world.....LOL.



I got this idea from the amazingly talented Jodie from Oz. Check out her cute Coffin Treat Box here. And while you're at it.....browse around the rest of her site.......you will be amazed.......her cards & creations are stunning! Thanks Jodie!!!

So if it's toooooo late to make these for your cute little Trick or Treaters this year.........be sure to bookmark this page. I'll also try to remember to post this a bit earlier next year.

I also made my usual Blessing Mix. It is a traditional Thanksgiving recipe but for my family......it just wouldn't be Halloween without it. I've used variations of this recipe throughout the years. I used to add pretzels but my crew is sick of pretzels. LOL So I just use Bugles, Goldfish crackers, peanut M&M's & honey roasted peanuts. I didn't add the candy corn either cuz I think we've had just about enough. LOL I've had a little 'candy corn' shaped bowl on the kitchen counter for at least 2 weeks now. So we're "over it". LOL

Here's the original yummy recipe for you.......

2 cups Bugles brand corn snacks
2 cups small pretzels
1 cup candy corn
1 cup dried fruit bits or raisins
1 cup peanuts or sunflower seeds
1 cup M&Ms-brand chocolate candy
16 Hershey's-brand chocolate kisses

You can put these in little treat bags or just ziploc bags cuz it will be gone lickety split. LOL It makes for such a nice treat. So whatever you add or delete from the list (I saw one variation that used 'red hots' instead of 'candy corn').......just make it your own family tradition. Your family will thank you for it. My family would cry their little eyes out if I didn't make it. LOL

For those interested in the symbolism behind the traditional American Blessing Mix.........

BUGLES: Shaped like a Cornucopia or Horn Of Plenty - A symbol of our Nation's abundance
PRETZELS: Arms folded in prayer, a freedom sought by the founders of our country
CANDY CORN: Sacrifices of the Pilgrim's first winter. Food was so scarce that the settlers survived on just a few kernels of corn per day.
NUT OR SEEDS: Promise of a future harvest, one will reap only if seeds are planted and tended to with diligence
DRIED FRUITS : Harvest gifts of our bountiful land
M&Ms: Memories of those who came before us to guide us to a blessed future
HERSHEY'S KISS: The love of family and friends that sweetens our lives.

I also made some traditional Rice Krispie treats to balance out all the chocolate. LOL Can you tell we love sweets. LOL

Have a happy & safe Halloween!

Huggies & Blessings ~♥♥♥~

Get Punchie & Tie a Bow

I came across this video while visiting Donna at Ruby Slippers. She shared this video showing the new Martha Stewart "Punch All Over The Page" punch (soon to be released). But what intrigued me was the little tut that Peggy shared on tying a bow onto a card (it's about 4 minutes into the video). Check it out & tell me what you think. I thought it was a terrific idea on how to keep your ribbon from sliding all over the front of your card. Cute idea! Thanks to Peggy at CropStop.com.

(btw.....Peggy's "Big Mouth" is actually the Crop-A-Dile II Big Bite....LOL)

Have a FABulous day!

Huggies & Blessings ~♥♥♥~

Oh Happy Day!

Wowsers!!! My precious youngest granddaughter, Shaye, is turning 15 years old today! I cannot believe it's been 15 years since my beautiful daughter gave birth to our Shaye. She's still our Baby Girl since she is the youngest in our little family. What a character she is. She's beautiful, funny, smart & so very talented with a quick wit. She's such a joy to have around. This picture shows her cute personality.


Sooooooo I thought I'd make Shaye a cute Tilda card in her FAVorite color.........purple! This was so much fun to make. I used the darling Magnolia stamps 'Tilda goes shopping' and 'Boutique' from the beautiful Bon Voyage collection. You can get them both at Diana's store Magnolia-licious.

I used a digi image for the 'Oh Happy Day' button that I got from the amazingly talented Paulette from Create with TLC. She also offers many freebies of her beautiful Word Art & graphics on her blog 'Create with TLC'. If you haven't been to her blog........you are really missing out. She is so generous with her artwork. Thank you, Paulette!

Now onto the other details of this card:
Punch: 'Daisy chain' EK Success
Nesties ‘Classic Scalloped Circles large’ diecut (can't live without my Nesties)
Tim Holtz ‘Tonic Paper Distress tool’ (I love this tool)
Inkssentials ‘Ink blending tool’ with foam (love it)
Distress Ink: Dusty Concord (dark purple)
Stardust Stickles glitter glue (my absolute FAVorite) (it looks like a 'glob of Stickles is on the necklace in the Boutique window but I promise you it doesn't look like that IRL......hahaha)
DP: from my stash
Copics used:
Skin: E000, E0000, E21, R20
Hair: E30, E31, E41, E35
V000, V12, V15, BG0000, C0, C1, C3

I'm also entering this in a few challenges:

Top Tip Tuesday: #7 Anything Goes (up to 3 entries)
Stamp Something: Use a digi image (my Oh Happy Day button)
Colour Create Challenge Blog: Challenge #56 ~ Purple, Aqua & White

As always...........thank you for looking & your sweet comments always make my day a little sweeter!

Huggies & Blessings ~♥♥♥~

Longing for you........

Magnolia-licious Highlites is having a fun challenge this month hosted by the uber talented Angie Hunt (if you have never visited her blog, you are in for a treat for your eyes........she is amazingly talented). Angie challenged us to use a brown paper bag in some way on our project. I cut out my brown paper bag for the 'trick or treat' little sign with my 'Long Classic Scalloped Rectangles Small' Nestie. The stamp was from a set my sweet friend Nora sent to me last year. I added some bling to my flower brad as well as the outer edge of the tags using 'Black Diamond' Stickles glitter glue (luv that stuff). I also punched out a trim piece using my Lattice EK punch. OY was that a problem......my brown paper bag was much too thin & my punch wasn't playing nice (just ask my dear friend Charlene how much trouble I had.........LOL). But I managed to salvage a piece with Charlene's help (thanks a bunch) & then layered a strip of black sparkly ribbon that I purchased at my FAVorite LSS (local stamp store).

I made my huge flower using my Nesties 'Peony' die cut in graduated sizes. I layered it after 'Stickling' the daylights outta the edges with silver & cinnamon. Then added a huge brad in the center from Michael's.

My stamped image is the ever cute Tilda called "Longing Tilda". I don't see her in stock right now but you can let Diana at Magnolia-licious know & I'm sure she'll be happy to help you. Tilda is colored with my Copic markers & her dress, hair bow & little purse are glittered with Star Dust Stickles (did I tell you how much I love that stuff? LOL). The little purse was from a little $1 set of stamps from Michael's (I knew those would come in handy some day....LOL).

Lastly I distressed the card base, 'trick or treat' tags & flower with Black Soot Distress Ink.

These are the Copics I used:
Skin: E00, E000, E0000, R20
Hair: E30, E31, E41
Dress, hair bow & purse: C0, C1, C3, C5

I am also entering these challenges:

Top Tip Tuesday: Anything Goes
Allsorts Challenge Blog: Bingo ~ Punch, Tags, Ribbon row
Crazy 4 Challenges: Challenge C4C59 Fall/Autumn
A Spoonful of Sugar: Halloween
Stamp Something: Halloween Something
Totally Tilda Challenges: Halloween theme using a Tilda
The Creative Cottage Challenge Blog: Challenge 25 - Halloween
One Stop Craft Challenge: Challenge #102 Halloween
Fussy and Fancy Friday Challenge: Challenge #21 Halloween
Stampin' for the Weekend: Challenge #49 Halloween/Fall
Really Reasonable Ribbon's Ramblings: Challenge #10 Halloween card & of course ribbon

Whew...........that's a lot of challenges. LOL

Thanks for looking & please let me know what you think of my little card.

Huggies & Blessings ~♥♥♥~

Enjoy the sweet moments

The ever amazing Suzanne Dean challenged us to create a monochromatic card/image for our Color Me Creative Challenge groups bi-monthly challenges........open to everyone. This was my first time participating cuz ya know.....life just has a way of getting in the way of my crafting time. LOL

Anywho...........I only used Copic "R's" to create this card.........hence her rather reddish face or is she blushing.....LOL This was my first time ever doing a monochromatic card so it was a bit challenging but I think it came out alright. The card is actually prettier IRL (in real life). I'm not the greatest photographer.....hahaha.

This cute little Tilda image called "Baking Tilda" can be found at Diana's Magnolia-licious store. I used my little Bow-Easy to make the cute little bow. The sentiment was computer generated & thought up by little ol' me. LOL Then I punched it out with my Marvy Uchida scalloped oval punch. The butterfly is a Martha Stewart 3-in-1 butterfly punch with a little added bling. The swirlie blings are Recollections. I used my Nesties "Curved Rectangles" to cut around my image. And my handy dandy Tim Holtz distressing tool (love that thang). And lastly......I think.......I used the lattice EK punch to make the little strip behind my image.

I am also entering this card in the following challenges........
Papertake Weekly: Sketch
Crazy 4 Challenges: Bling
Paper Sundaes: Things with Wings
Totally Tilda Challenge Blog: Glitter & Sparkle
Just Magnolia Challenge Blog: Anything Goes
Tuesday Throwdown: Punches
Pixie Dust Studio Pixie Challenge: Swirly Swirls

Thanks for looking & I would love to hear what you think. Have a FABulous weekend! TGIF

Huggies & Blessings ~♥♥♥~

Special Treat Today

Today is the 25th of the month which means it's time for the Magnolia-licious Christmas All Year Long Blog Hop!

For an extra treat be sure to check out Norma's stunning White Christmas creation HERE. It's absolutely amazing!

So get hopping!
Huggies & Blessings ~♥♥♥~

Getting punchie.........

I was wandering about "Inspiration Tips, Techniques & Tutorials" today & found this wonderful video tut on "Making Paper Hydrangeas" with a heart punch by Valita's Designs & Fresh Folds. She also shows how to make little curly type vines with an oval punch.



Have fun creating! I'm definitely going through my punches today to see what other 'outside of the box' uses I can find for them........how about you? LOL

Huggies & Blessings ~♥♥♥~

A seriously cool Topiary

I was visiting my friend Andrea at The Paper Purse today & she shared this seriously cool Paper Flower Topiary featured on My Mind's Eye Blog complete with free instructions.

Isn't it beautiful! I can see it made in varying colors & sizes.....from a tiny petite version to the large one they made. I can see a cute little vintage birdie or two hanging around it or a butterfly or two or three. You could even glitter it up or turn it into a cute Christmas tree. (you can see my imagination working overtime. LOL) The possibilities are endless!

Thanks a bunch for sharing this Andrea!

Huggies & Blessings ~♥♥♥~

Remembering on this day..........

MyHotComments

Distress Ink Video TUT by Tim Holtz

I just came across this Tim Holtz video where he shares various Distress Ink techniques for we cardmakers (or is it "us" cardmakers...LOL). He is soooo uber talented.

In this video he shares how to achieve various looks by using his Distress Inks in several ways........"Wrinkled Distress", "Wrinkle Free Distress", simple backgrounds with his Ink Blending Tool & a rubber stamping technique using various Distress Ink colors to achieve an awesome look.



Hope you enjoy this video as much as I did!

(Just a side note: I wanted to post it here so I always know where to find it.....LOL)

Huggies & Blessings ~♥♥♥~

Sharing an Embossing TUT by Tim Holtz

What a FABulous idea "THE" Tim Holtz just shared on his blog. (If you're not a follower.....you are really missing out on some great stuff.)

Anywho.............I just HAD to share his TUT with you. I'm aaaaallll about sharing (hence the name "Sharr-a-hug".....LOL.....I like to share more than just hugs.....LOL). Okay.....nuff about me.....onto the 'share'.

Tim shared HERE how to emboss those long strips of paper or in this case.....a long tag.....that just doesn't seem to fit in your embossing folder. He even gave permission to cut (gasp) his beautiful "Texture Fades" embossing folder.

So get your handy dandy craft knife ready and give it a try.

Thanks for checking in with me.

Huggies & Blessings ~♥♥♥~

Thank You!

Wowie!!! I just noticed that I passed the 12,000 visitor mark on my blog & so I wanted to take this opportunity to thank all of you for visiting me from time to time. I'm sorry that I don't post very much. Life always has a way of robbing me of my craft mojo. I hope to get it back soon & start crafting again.

Thank you all so very much! It touches my ♥heart♥ that you take the time to visit my blog.

Huggies & Blessings ~♥♥♥~

This is dedicated to the one I love.....

Today is my 37th wedding anniversary! Soooooooo many memories to reflect upon. I was looking through my wedding album this morning & getting a little misty remembering that very special day so many years ago. The Lord has blessed us with a good life.....full of love & joy. I couldn't ask for a better husband to go through this life with. I am so very blessed.

So this is dedicated to the one I love.............Frank! Love you, Babe! Here's to 37 more..........♥♥♥MWAH♥♥♥

Thanks for sharing my very special day!

Huggies & Blessings ~♥♥♥~