My STAMP SALE is in full swing. I still have some left. Thank you to those who already purchased some of them.
Today's card is something I made over a year ago. Before I went on vacation, I had to look for older cards that I hadn't shared on my blog yet and, lo and behold, I had quite a few. This is another publication reject and I can't say I really blame them :). The coloring was a little sloppy on this one.
Before I show you my very first blog candy of the year, here's a card using my well-loved stamps, GinaK Designs' Many Wishes (dandelions), Vintage Backgrounds (text) and Heartily Yours Additions (sentiment). The papers are Webster's Pages. Speaking of Gina K Designs, the previews have begun for our January release. Go to Gina's blog for more info.
Just a little tidbit about my Heartily Yours Additions set: I designed the sentiment on my card below with my girls in mind. I had always wanted to be a mom and God blessed me three times that way. The reason I haven't shared anything creative in awhile on my blog is because I've been enjoying just hanging out with the girls while they're on Christmas break. And we don't start school again until next week, which makes me a happy mama :-).
Now, on to my first blog candy of the year to celebrate 500+ blog followers, 900+ email subscribers and 228K hits! I will be doing some more of this later on that will include my new stamp designs and dies! I've been blessed by your regular visits and kind comments and I hope this little giveaway will bless you back somehow. Thank you!
This little giveaway includes some of my favorite things:
18 yards of hand-dyed seam bindings (in 6 colors, 3 yards each)
2 yards of European lace (one cream and one white)
a stack of paper doilies
a dozen mini red roses
3 pink small roses
2 big tea roses
3 paper wheats
40 yards of red twine
40 yards of blue twine
a copy of my latest Gina K Designs, Gleefully Yours (previews start on Thurs, available for sale on Thurs, Jan 6th) OR if you purchase this set on Thurs, you can pick another of my GinaK stamp sets.
How do you win? There are three ways:
Simply leave a comment telling me how you found my blog. I'm just curious :-)
Leave another comment if you are or become a follower.
If you want to, leave another comment if you post the photo of my giveaway with a link to this post on the sidebar of your blog.
I will pick the winner randomly on Tuesday, January 11 and post it on my blog. Have a great day!
Hello, stamping friends. I hope you had a wonderful holiday celebration. I'm still enjoying the break since my girls are still off this week. Do you find it hard to go back to routine after a long pause? I know I do, so I'm just going to enjoy my time adjusting this week before school starts on Monday.
I do have cards to share because it's GinaK Designs' preview week. But, first I have a card to share for StampTV's sketch challenge today. I used my well-loved sets, Grand Damask and Heartily Your Additions stamp sets. The papers are Pink Paislee's Cupid.
Finally, I haven't forgotten about my giveaway. I have so many things new this month that I was having a hard time to decide if I should wait till I am able to share about them all with you. Some of my new designs will have to wait until CHA at the end of the month (and I hope you will like them like I do). So, I decided since I can't all share my new designs at once, I'll divide my giveaways over the next few weeks.
My first giveaway will be tomorrow that includes my new GinaK Designs stamps to be released on Thursday, Jan 6th. So make sure you all come back. :-)
My husband and I are going to try to do a quick shopping trip today. We window shopped with the girls last week, so we already know what to get them (but they have no idea). And I need to shop for our 2 Christmas dinners.
I used to love shopping way back when, but when it involves driving in the snow, and not finding everything you're looking for (like celery), pay twice or more than US prices ($4/lb for a skinny turkey), and driving back home in more snow...then it's not so fun anymore. I used to dislike Walmart or K-Mart or anything like that, but now I wish we have one nearby! Now, if I'm really wishing...I'd love to have a Costco here :-). Then, I wouldn't need to dedicate two precious shelves of my teeny-tiny freezer for our chocolate chips and pecan stash :-).
Well, on to my card for today. This is for Stamp TV's Color sketch challenge to use Bubblegum Pink, Black and white. I used one of my first GinaK sets called Elegant Post. The sentiment is from Heartily Yours Additions. The papers are Webster's Pages' Hollywood Vogue.
I'm participating in a VERY special blog hop tomorrow for a dear friend, so see you then!
I've been so busy that I almost forgot to submit these for the Moxie Fab Card Style Challenge that deadlines today. It was so much fun to finally meet Cath at CHA. She's as nice as I imagined who has a very soft soothing voice that I've always wanted. (I have a very low voice and I've been mistaken too many times for a boy on the phone :-).
Anywho, here are my cards. The first two are for the Fun and Cute Category, which is one style I struggle with a lot. The fish and sentiment are from the Stamp TV Eclectic Summer set. This card uses the Cosmo Cricket Nutmeg papers and chipboard. The sentiment is from Heartily Yours Addition by Gina K Designs.
And this one for this week's Card Patterns sketch. The deadline is tonight! Find more info on the Card Patterns blog. I did an emboss resist technique again. I think it's one of my favorites now. The flowers are from the Big and Small Flowers by Hero Arts. The sentiment is from my Heartily Yours Additions set.
I've been busy preparing for some friends visiting next week. I am also teaching my last card class for the school year next Saturday. I have been cutting, measuring, designing cards and putting together kits for at least 20 people. I'm so thankful my girls like to help!
Happy Monday, everyone. I hope you had a fabulous weekend. It's been chilly here, so we didn't venture out much, except to go to church. I don't mind it because it's just the perfect stamping weather.
Gina has started the snippets on her blog. Go check it out! I can't wait to show you my new set. Can anybody guess what it is? I'm always looking for a Guest DT to highlight my stamps. I'm thinking of having one with a 2-3 month commitment. Let me know what you think and I may have a Guest DT call right here on my blog.
--->>>I just want to add that I don't think I'm so important as to have my own DT. LOL. It just saves me time to not have to agonize whom to ask every month. There are so many choices, but I feel bad asking so many of my friends because everyone is busy. And this summer, I will have less time for stamping as my family and I will be busy on our furlough trip to the US. I will be halfway around the world from my craft table and will be doing a whirlwind tour of the West Coast. I will be needing a really committed and helpful Guest DT then. <<<---
I hope you will join us this week at Card Patterns with this super easy sketch.
Today as the Gina K Designs team feature my latest stamp designs, Heartily Yours and Heartily Yours Additions, I am glad to give you an opportunity to help with me the Haitian people who continue to suffer the aftermaths of a natural disaster.
My heart goes out to them and wish I could be there to help with the disaster relief. Since that is not possible, I decided to help in other ways: to pray for them and give towards their physical needs. And I want to share that opportunity with you as well.
I designed some vintage Valentine bingo cards that are so very trendy right now. The colors coordinate with GinaK's Green Apple, Smoky Slate, Passionate Pink and Lipstick Red. The download is FREE, but if you would like to donate, it would be wonderful! All proceeds will go towards a charity, The Children's Hunger Fund, that I truly support. I have a few very good friends who work with CHF and 99% of donations given to them goes straight to the people in need.
I would like to ask, though, that you do not share, redistribute, or sell the actual file without prior permission. Please direct your friends here to get their own copy. Feel free to sell items you create using my art and even submit for publication and/or challenges. I just ask that you give the appropriate credit and link back to my blog when you do. Thank you. To download, just click on the image below.
And if you would like to donate, please click on the "Donate" button below and it'll take you to Paypal. You do not need to have a Paypal account to donate. You just need a valid credit card account.
Now, it's your turn! Please hop over to Gina's blogto add the direct link to your blog post showcasing Nina's Heartily Yours and Heartily Yours Additions stamp sets in the Mister Linkey Box. Gina will have a special prize for the one link that she chooses out of all the participating bloggers - check out her blog for the details.
One last thing, if you could remember to pray for our family. We've all caught a stomach bug and have been taking turns getting sick. It's no fun, esp when the parents are sick too. Thank you.
I was gone for a few days and didn't have time to link up to Alice's beautiful cards she made last week using Heartily Yours and Heartily Yours Additions. Aren't these beautiful? I love the color combo she used.
And look what I got in the mail? This beautifully colored card (the image was wonderfully illustrated by my talented friend, Jane) was sent to me by Alice. I have seen this on her blog and I admired it then. But it's so much prettier to see in person. I love it! I'll have another card to put on my shelf for inspiration. Thanks, Alice!
The blog hop for Heartily Yours begins Monday night, 10pm, CST. I hope you will join us. I have a special treat for you and you will be able to give towards the earthquake victims of Haiti.
Here are the cards I made the last couple of weeks for the Moxie Fab World's Start to Finish Challenge. I've already shared these on my blog, but I didn't want to link each one, so I put them all in here.
Card #1: The car and sentiment are from Heartily Yours. For the inside of the card, I used the stamp stamps from Tami's Special Delivery set and "Sweetheart" is from my Special Fathers set.
Welcome to GinaK Designs Square Pegs blog hop. Melanie designed this set to go with her Hip to Be Square set, but the images work well on their own, as you can see from my projects below.
Finally, I wanted to make a card with a homey feel, since it is a get well soon card. I used my current favorite DP, October Afternoon Farm Fresh, which goes well with many GKD papers.
Now, it's your turn! Please hop over to Gina's blogto add the direct link to your blog post showcasing Melanie's Square Pegs Stamp set in the Mister Linkey Box. Gina will have a special prize for the one link that she chooses out of all the participating bloggers - so check out her blog for that information.
This card combines two current Moxie Fab challenges: Start to Finish and Color Play. The color combo is something I've never done before, but I'm pleased how well they work together. I'm not familiar with Bazzill Paper colors, but I used what I thought were similar colors: GinaK's Vibrant Violet, Soft Sand and Lipstick Red, and Stampin' Up's Summer Sun.
I stamped the grid hearts from Happy Hearts and punched them out. The inks I used are: Vivid Purple, Brick Red, and Straw. I scored the middle, folded them, then glued together to get this fanned effect. The grid purple paper is by PTI and ribbon is by SU. the lace is a local find and the brad is by Recollections.
Here is the inside of the card. I stamped the same grid heart. The sentiment is from one of my latest stamp sets, Heartily Your Additions.
If you want a chance to win my Lovely Shelf stamp set, make sure you go to this post. I'm off now. Kris and I are going out for our anniversary date - Chinese food and a movie. Woohoo! I love my kids, but it's nice once in awhile to eat without having to cut anybody's food or make anybody stay seated. :-).
I have been dying to share t his wonderful news with you ever since my Guest DT agreed to design for me for my Heartily Yours and Heartily Yours Additions stamp sets. I have been her fan since I found her wonderful works of art over at the Hero Arts Flickr group. She has a distinct style that is cute, cheery and just altogether inspiring.
So, without further ado, please welcome the uber-talented,
I asked her a few questions so that we can all get to know her better.
1. How long have you been paper crafting and how did you get started?
I started scrapbooking about 3 or 4 years ago and got into card making not long after that. But I didn't start making cards seriously until the beginning of 2009 when I jointed the Hero Arts Flickr group. It's an incredibly warm and friendly group that gave me lots of encouragement and help!
2. What are your current favorite:
Techniques: stamping, distressing, coloring Tools: Cuttlebug and my Nesties Embellishments: ribbons and buttons Coloring mediums: Copic markers, distress inks
3. What inspires you to create? Define your crafting style.
All the awesome card makers out there in the Blog Land/World! Thanks for all the wonderful crafters that are sharing their fabulous ideas everyday. I am so inspired by you all! As for my style... I think I am trying to stay simple and clean, although I do get inky and distress-y at times! =)
4. Tell us something about your family. Where are you from? Other interests besides paper crafting.
I was born and raised in Taiwan. I came to California to attend college about 8 years ago. I met my sweet hubby not very long after I settled in the Bay Area. We got married in 2008 and now live in Northern California with our two lovely cat "children." I love reading, knitting , crocheting, too. But I am not spending as much time as I used to on these other hobbies since I am obsessed with card making now... =)
5. Do you have a favorite quote/verse that you live by?
Never give up! Whenever things don't come out the way that I expected, I'd keep trying and see if I can make them work by changing the designs or elements a little. Chances are if I give it a little more time and patience, my projects would turn out fine. Sometimes I just have to keep trying if I have my mind set on a certain project. I am pretty stubborn that way. LOL!
Alice and I share a similar history of being born and raised in Asia, having both met our husbands in CA. I think that's so cool :-). Now, feast your eyes with some of Alice's creations. She also used the Car Favor Box template.
And here's the top of the box. Can you tell why I asked her to design for me with these sets? She's so good, isn't she? Head on over to her aptly named blog, Alice's {Little} Wonderland (because you'll just oooh and ahhh with wonder as you browse through it) to see more eye candy.
This little giveaway includes some of my favorite things:
This card uses the Cosmo Cricket Nutmeg papers and chipboard. The sentiment is from Heartily Yours Addition by Gina K Designs.
This card is for the Moxie Fab Elegant and Classy Category that uses my Fine Furnishings and FF Addition sets.
This card uses the Basic Grey Origins papers and Layers of Colors Nature Walk set.
The last cards are for the Vintage Shabby Chic Category, which competes with the Elegant style as my favorite :-). The background roses and bowl are from Layers of Colors' Vintage Roses set.
Finally, this vintage card uses October Afternoon's Report Card papers, Unity stamps and SRM Stickers (Live Life Schooldays) for the sentiments.
And this one for this week's Card Patterns sketch. The deadline is tonight! Find more info on the Card Patterns blog. I did an emboss resist technique again. I think it's one of my favorites now. The flowers are from the Big and Small Flowers by Hero Arts. The sentiment is from my Heartily Yours Additions set.
Here is my card after I flipped the sketch sideways. All supplies are by GinaK Designs. I used my Heartily Yours and Heartily Yours Additions set. The well was colored with Copics. The card base is Lipstick Red. The DP is October Afternoon Farm Fresh.
And if you would like to donate, please click on the "Donate" button below and it'll take you to Paypal. You do not need to have a Paypal account to donate. You just need a valid credit card account.
The blog hop for Heartily Yours begins Monday night, 10pm, CST. I hope you will join us. I have a special treat for you and you will be able to give towards the earthquake victims of Haiti.
Papers: GKD Innocent Pink, Lipstick Red, Oct Afternoon Farm Fresh
Here is a matching Flower party favor box using the flower image and "XOXO" stamp again from Square Pegs.
Finally, I wanted to make a card with a homey feel, since it is a get well soon card. I used my current favorite DP, October Afternoon Farm Fresh, which goes well with many GKD papers.
Check out these links for even more inspiration:
Here is the inside of the card. I stamped the same grid heart. The sentiment is from one of my latest stamp sets, Heartily Your Additions.
If you want a chance to win my Lovely Shelf stamp set, make sure you go to this post. I'm off now. Kris and I are going out for our anniversary date - Chinese food and a movie. Woohoo! I love my kids, but it's nice once in awhile to eat without having to cut anybody's food or make anybody stay seated. :-).
And here's the top of the box. Can you tell why I asked her to design for me with these sets? She's so good, isn't she? Head on over to her aptly named blog, Alice's {Little} Wonderland (because you'll just oooh and ahhh with wonder as you browse through it) to see more eye candy.
