milk & cookies punch art card

I find myself making alot of masculine cards and don't have very many options. I'm sure you don't have this problem ;o) As an Engineer, the males outnumber the females so that's why I have so many masculine cards that I have to come up with...

This time around, I have two birthdays coming up soon: my little brother and a co-worker.

As I browsed my pinterest board for ideas and inspiration, I couldn't pinpoint any one that I felt would fit them. So, I googled for some more inspiration and ideas and finally ran into Dawn Griffith's cookies and milk card.

 
Dawn really nailed it with this card (as she does with all of her cards) and when I saw it, I knew I had to case it!

 Here's my version of Dawn's card:

My Tips:

•  don't waste good SU! paper, use regular copy/printer paper for the white behind the vellum.
• I used the 1 3/4" circle punch for my cookies then used the medium circles on the owl punch for the chocolate chips.
• to create the long sentiment, stamp the "you can never have....." the way you normally would on white CS, then trim each line as close to the words as you can. Combine the 1st two lines with some adhesive then flag the ends and sponge some ink on all the edges.
• use a sticky note to cover the 1st two lines of the stamp so you can just stamp the word "happy" directly onto the card front below the banner.
• use the gorgeous grunge stamp set to create the "cookie crumbs"for a simple yet fun touch to the inside of the card.

•  I used the fine tip of my pool party marker to create a slight shadow on the word "happy". 

Supplies used:

• cardstock/paper: early espresso, whisper white, pool party, baked brown sugar, vellum
• inks: early espresso, baked brown sugar, pool party (marker)
•  stamps: yippee skippee, gorgeous grunge
• punches: 1 3/4" circle (cookie), owl builder (choc chips), 1/2" circle (corners), 1 3/4" scallop circle ("bite" on cookie)
•  other: sponge dauber, paper piercing tool with template and piercing mat (for the strips of pool party)

I love the satisfaction of being able to look at a card I made and say, "yes, this is what I want!". I honestly don't get to say that alot. But, this time, I'm sure my birthday card recipients will get a kick out of this one. 

Let me know how I did. I would love to hear your comments.

Don't forget about Sale-a-bration! See THIS POST to know more.

until next time.....

Sale-a-bration 2014 is HERE!

A very HAPPY tuesday it is! Stampin' UP's (SU!) biggest sales event of the year has finally arrived! 

This event gives you the opportunity to:

• SHOP: Choose exclusive SU products provided in the brochure below with each $50 purchase. View all the current catalogs under the "Stampin' UP! catalogs" tab at the top of this page.
• HOST:  if you host a party/workshop, you earn $30 more in hostess rewards.
• JOIN: if you decide to join the SU! family, receive $150 worth of products for ONLY $99.

 

Click HERE to view the brochure

To begin earning your FREE exclusive products, shop at my online store by clicking on the icon to your left.

Oh baby baby

I finally got some "me time" in this weekend and had to put together a baby card for our adopted son's birthmother. She had another baby last week and she and her husband decided to parent this child. We are super happy and excited for them as they begin a new chapter in their lives! 

Isn't he so sweet?!

A happy and healthy baby Boy: Caleb born on January 8, 2014; 7lb 9oz; 20" long

To get my creative juices flowing, I recently pinned a cute card sketch that I've been wanting to use on Pinterest so I took advantage of it!

I pretty much stuck to the whole layout of the card sketch because I like the layers. 

Here's a slightly stepped up version...I simply added a border with the fine tip of my crumb cake marker and a ruler. 

 My tips:

• I used MDS (my digital studio) to print the "oh baby baby" sentiment on a 2.5" circle from the Hello World digital kit. I colored the words with crumb cake and pumpkin pie.
• use a small safety pin to attach onto the circle next to the sentiment to give it some dimension.
• I cut the baja breeze and island indigo rectangles to 3"x 1.75" then rounded the opposite corners with the corner rounder punch.

Supplies Used:

• cardstock: crumb cake, island indigo, *baja breeze, pumpkin pie, whisper white
• ink: crumb cake, versamark (for the bottle)
• stamps: *baby bundle, "oh baby baby" digital stamp
• punches: 2 1/2" circle, corner rounder
• embellishments: *trinkets
• ribbon: *baja breeze seam binding
• paper piercing tool and circle template
• polka dot embossing folder

NOTE: * indicates items are retired


I am looking forward to one day meeting this sweet little boy and I'm sure that our son would be happy to meet his little brother as well! 

Thank you for stopping by and don't be shy to comment about my latest creation! Until next time...

A baby shower invite using MDS

My Digital Studio (MDS) is one of the most amazing inventions when it comes to creating papercrafts!!!

I know I don't talk about MDS much, but seriously, you MUST try it. Although I don't create alot of digital papercrafts, there are times when digital is the way to go when you have a TON of invites to send out!

Take for example, the baby shower invitation that I have put together for my friend. 

This invitation was pretty much made for me once I downloaded it. All I did was change some colors with the HANDY stamp coloring tool,add some text, and change the project size to be postcard type. VOILA!!! Pure cuteness done in 10 minutes. I love,love, love the pops of color on the chalkboard design!!!


I downloaded this kit (and you can too) from HERE and it has everything you need for baby shower decorations! The kit is called Hello World.

Don't have MDS? You can download it for FREE for 30 days. Click HERE to begin.

Thanks for joining me! Until next time....

Stampin' UP! 2014 Occasions Catalog

Finally, the moment a lot of you have been waiting for.........the 2014 Occasions Catalog has been released for your viewing and ordering pleasure!

Click HERE to view the catalog and more!

A few things you need to know:

• don't forget about the Carryover list from the 2013 Holiday catalog. Available through June 1st. Click on the image to the right of this page to view.
• access the designer paper (DSP) list of coordinating colors HERE.
• Don't have a catalog? Get a FREE copy from me by e-mailing me at jretana06@gmail.com.
• Get a FREE stamp set of your choice when you earn 10 scissors! For more details, click HERE
• Go ahead, place your order today at my Online Store! Simply click on the link to the left of this page.

 
Watch all the videos below to see some awesome products that are featured in the catalog.