Pretty Pink Posh Blog

Craft Dash

Design Team Announcement!

I’m so excited the day is finally here- it’s time to announce the very first 10 Minute Craft Dash DT! I was so blown away by the amount of entries and the vast range of locations- I literally received applications all over the world!

I wanted to stick with a fairly small DT and I was able to narrow it down to six designers. Since I personally haven’t had the privilege of working with designers from numerous continents, I thought it would be fun to create a map to show all of the different locations. {Thank goodness for Google- my geography isn’t what it should be!}

CD_Designers_2

I hope you all are ready to meet these amazing and talented gals. Below are some fun questions to get to know them a bit and if you click their pictures, you’ll be taken to their blogs. PLEASE be sure to visit and leave them some love!

How long have you been crafting: About 7 years

Favorite colors to use on cards: I tend to use a lot of Kraft paired with brighter colors

Favorite crafting embellishment: I love using handmade embellishments such as flowers, butterflies and hearts

On average, how many cards do you create each week: About 3

How long have you been crafting: I’ve been crafting as long as I can remember! However, the papercrafting and card making bug bit me hard around 2 years ago.

Favorite colors to use on cards: I almost always use kraft and white on every project. It’s an addiction!

Favorite crafting embellishment: Stickles!

On average, how many cards do you create each week: Some weeks when the mojo is flowing, I can crank out 5-10 cards, but there are definite creative dry spells where I can go a couple weeks without making anything!

How long have you been crafting: I started scrapbooking in 2005 and card making in 2011, but I’ve been crafting since I was a little girl.

Favorite colors to use on cards: Teal, Red, anything bright except purple really, oh and not all on the one card LOL!

Favorite crafting embellishment: Patterned paper – at the moment anything gingham or spots!

On average, how many cards do you create each week: I average around 3-4 cards per week

How long have you been crafting: For as long as I can remember! I’ve always enjoyed making all kinds of things, and still do. I got into paper crafting about 6 years ago, and haven’t looked back since!

Favorite colors to use on cards: Anything… I like bold, I like soft, I like pastel, I like neutral… whatever mood strikes!

Favorite crafting embellishment: Lace, ribbon and stick pins. Almost everything I create uses at least two of the three, if not all.

On average, how many cards do you create each week: Hmmm… on average, I’d say about 10. Some weeks more, some less. I try to create every day, if possible!

How long have you been crafting: I started stamping in 2011 after seeing my mom making cards.

Favorite colors to use on cards: Pink and blue

Favorite crafting embellishment: Twine and blings

On average, how many cards do you create each week: I try to make one card a week during school time and in the holidays, usually 2 – 4

How long have you been crafting: I’m a newbie and have been crafting for just 6 months…

Favorite colors to use on cards: light blue+light green+white is my favourite colour combination…

Favorite crafting embellishment: Pearls, flowers are my favourite embellishments and you won’t find a single card without either of these! :) But I’m currently having a crush on lace trims too! :)

On average, how many cards do you create each week: Umm…this greatly varies… But I usually make 2-3 cards per week… when I’m in a mood to make CAS cards, I even make 4-5 cards a single day! :)

I know that these ladies are so excited to be joining the team and getting to know all of you and sharing their creations. Be sure to visit each of their blogs and leave them some sweet love!

The next challenge starts on Wednesday, Feburary 6th and we have a super fun theme! If you haven’t already, go like the Pretty Pink Posh Facebook page– you’ll get an exclusive peek at the challenge a day early!

Have a fabulous rest of your Friday. Thank you so much for sharing in my excitement about the first DT and peeking in to say hello.

Cards | Misc.

Happy Birthday Krista!

As the oldest of five kids, I always struggle a wee bit when my siblings have a birthday. It’s not for reasons you might thing though…. I have a wonderful relationship with each of my siblings. As each of them gets older, I’m reminded that they are growing up so quickly and their young “kid” days are over. However, I’m also grateful that we are all still close and getting older together has bonded us even more.

Today is my youngest sister’s 21st birthday. Recently many of you have gotten to know Krista- she’s contributed this post and this post. While you can get a small taste of her personality in her posts, it doesn’t even begin to encapsulate her personality and fun spirit. I wish each of you could meet her in person.

Krista’s personal style actually varies quite a bit from mine. She appreciate eclectic art a lot more and has a keen eye for colors, patterns and styles. Somehow she is able to mix together lots of “random” pieces and it always turns out amazing. Her room showcases this beautifully- I really should get her to do a post on it. Since I wanted to make her birthday card special, I tried to mix unique colors and patterns together.

Recently I went to a scrapbook store and they had a Studio Calico paper pack on sale. It wasn’t a pack I would normally go for, but there was something about the colors that was so beautiful. I’m so happy I got it- I was able to use three of the papers on this card!

The picture above shows off the papers and embellishments a little bit more. Did you notice the “st” stickers? Those were part of a pack I got from Target {in the dollar section} and never found a use for them. I’d say they work perfectly for this special card!

Right now Krista is in a transition stage and has a good possibility of moving to California for a chef job soon. Needless to say, I’m treasuring every last minute she is still here. I adore my little sister and am so proud of her. While I’m super sad to even think about her moving, I know that she’s going to do amazing things wherever she goes.

Thanks for stopping by and letting me share a little peek inside my relationship with my sister. I’ll see you tomorrow for the exciting 10 Minute Craft Dash DT announcement!

Projects

Valentine Heart Basket

I’m so excited that the day is finally here and I get to share this Valentine treat! If you follow the DeNami blog, you saw on Friday that Dana created a darling photo tutorial. I am utterly in love with Dana’s creative idea and am thrilled that she had the idea for us to do a downloadable PDF based off of her idea. {stay until the end of the post for the link}

Since I’m such a fan of pink and red together, I decided to bring them together for today’s post. Add in some hearts, bling and candy and you have a sweet treat {literally} all wrapped in one.

One of my favorite things about this project? I got to use some of the items I’ve been hoarding and they worked perfectly on this little beauty. A while back Wendy sent me a lot of pom poms, which I’ve been saving for special occasions. After playing with a few different options, I decided that the pink ones HAD to be used on this template. Don’t they look darling?

On the front, I put in some acetate so you could see the candies up close. After putting everything together, I realized I needed bling and added lots of red rhinestones to frame the heart. There just aren’t words about how much I love how this turned out– it’s going to be so hard to part with this basket!

Do you want to create your own adorable Valentine baskets? Click here to add the FREE PDF download to your DeNami shopping cart!

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you were inspired by this Valentine creation!

Craft Dash

10 Minute Craft Dash #10 Highlights

I have some exciting news….in a mere THREE days I’ll be posting the very first 10 Minute Craft Dash DT! I’m so honored and proud to say I have gals from all over the world joining my team. Each gal has a unique style- in fact, I don’t think it could be any more diverse! Hope you’ll join me on Friday for this fun announcement!

With the 10 Minute Craft Dash #10 closed, it’s time to announce the winner and favorites. While I love looking at all of the entries, this part is also my least favorite. I hate that I can’t choose everyone as a winner! If you aren’t a winner, or mentioned as a favorite, please don’t get discouraged– I hope you’ll continue to submit. We have some fabulous challenges coming up and you just never know, you could be the winner of one of them!

Without further ado, here is the winner from the last challenge…..

Congratulations to Chupa

Please email me (click the contact on the top right) with your contact info to claim your prize. Also, you get to grab the badge below and proudly display it on your blog!

Here’s your winner badge- you deserve it!

If you have played along in the 10 Minute Craft Dash before, you know that each time I announce some of my favorites. Goodness gracious, each time this decision is getting harder and harder! Be sure to stop by each of the blogs to take a look at the beautiful entries! {Ladies, feel free to grab the badge below and put it on your blogs!}

There will be a BRAND NEW 10 Minute Craft Dash challenge coming next Wednesday, February 6th. This time around it’ll be a theme and this will be the first challenge the DT will join in! Mark your calendars!

I will see you tomorrow for a Valentine project. Have a fabulous rest of your day!

Cards

Valentine Flowers

Valentine’s Day is approaching quickly and I feel so behind in creating all sorts of cute pink & red crafty items. It’s so hard to resist the huge aisles at the stores stocked with cute decor, candies, and stuffed animals. It’s literally everywhere. Despite being single at this stage in my life, I love this holiday. {I’ll blog about it more soon}

I have a huge stockpile of Valentine products and I’m hoping to get lots of cute items created and posted this week. Since it had been a few days since I was in the studio, I felt like my creativity was in need of a kick start. What better way than to start with some heart flowers? Oh how I wish there were flowers like this in real life!

While I’m definitely a pink lover, over the years my love for red has grown leaps and bounds. This color is so bold and looks amazing in all sorts of products. My favorites? Rhinestones and glitter! {Red nails are pretty fab though}

I’m so glad that you joined me today. Be sure to stay tuned all this week– I’ll have the 10 Minute Craft Dash #10 Highlights post , the DT announcement, the giveaway winner post and some other fun things mixed in. If you haven’t already, be sure to sign up to receive Pretty Pink Posh via email so you don’t miss anything!

Have a fabulous start to your week. Until next time….

Cards | Craft Dash

Springtime Flowers

You all know how to bring a smile to my face. I seriously love reading the blog posts that are submitted for the 10 Minute Craft Dash. Hearing the behind-the-scenes stories is my favorite part about the challenge. There have been quite a few posts where I have literally laughed at loud- you all make me feel like I’m right there with you! If you ever have a funny story that has to do with my challenge, feel free to blog it!

There are two more days in the 10 Minute Craft Dash #10 and I have one last card to share using this color palette. I must say that seeing all of the beautiful entries definitely inspired me for this card. I wanted to push myself and decided to stamp my own patterned paper within the time limit. My life saver? Colored ink pads!

Time it took to create: 9 minutes 25 seconds

I hope that you’ll join me tomorrow- I have a gift certificate giveaway starting! Recently I had a {new to me} company contact me and I will have all the details for you, along with some cute treat bags to share.

Until next time…..

NOT LISTED: pink pearls, pink and moss cardstock, moss ink

My Life

COURAGE

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At the beginning of the year, I did a blog post about my word for 2013. I’m really glad that I chose this word- it’s been a good reminder these last few weeks to take heart and find courage.

As I was laying in bed the other day, I started to jot down notes about my word. Since I try to be open and transparent with you all, I thought I would share some of the ways I plan on being courageous this year.

Courage to believe in myself
Courage to fulfill my goals
Courage to face my health issues
Courage to be optimistic about the future
Courage to have faith during difficult times
Courage to have big dreams in all aspects of my life
Courage to believe in people
Courage to take my blog to an even higher level
Courage to believe God has a plan in everything

Many of you have shared some of you words for 2013- change, trust, hope, faith, joy, strength, patience, loving- all of those are fantastic. If you didn’t share you word earlier, I would LOVE to hear it! Or if you did share it, I would love to hear how you plan on putting your word to action.

I’m thrilled that many of you have taken on different challenges with me. Whether it be to better yourself personally, saving for the future or creating a better atmosphere for those around us. I honestly LOVE hearing about you and your journeys and the things you’re learning and how you’re growing. Thank you for sharing your lives with me. You all mean so much to me. Truly.

Cards | Craft Dash

Sweet Birdhouses

I just came from leaving comments on the latest 10 Minute Craft Dash #10 entries. I am so excited to see many new names already popping up for this challenge. It’s a dream of mine to bring together creativity and people from all across the globe and I’m thrilled that my challenge is doing this. If you haven’t entered this challenge yet, don’t worry, you have until Saturday!

Since I love these colors so much, I wanted to play with them again. I pulled out my Wplus9 sets, Folk Art Florals and The Birds & The Bees. Both must-haves in my book!

CD_10_2a Time it took to create: 9 minutes 19 seconds

This color combination is so fresh and versatile. Since I created a Valentine’s card last time, I thought I would go for an everyday card this time around. This year I’ve been trying to be better about sending out cards to friends, so stocking up on my everyday cards has been helpful.

CD_10_2b

I’ve been a busy little bee prepping for the announcement of the first DT for the 10 Minute Craft Dash and getting details finalized for some upcoming sponsorships and giveaways. If you don’t already, be sure to sign up for email updates so you don’t miss any posts!

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I’m so glad that you stopped by today. Have a wonderful start to your week!

Random Loves

Random Loves for January

I hope you all are having a great weekend so far. After a long doctors visit yesterday, I’m ready to rest up and hopefully get lots of crafting done. All of these ideas are flowing in this brain of mine and I’m hoping they turn out like I envision. I suppose I’ll need to actually TRY them and see if they do!

If you have followed my blog, you know that each month I host a Random Loves post here on the blog. These posts are filled with random items I’m loving that month. It’s been so much fun to see YOUR lists over these months and check out the items you are listing. I’ve been introduced to many new things thanks to your suggestions!

Let’s get started on this month’s feature….

washi tape can be found here

How have I not mentioned this in a previous Random Loves post?! I am utterly in love with washi tape. I have been using it on all sorts of projects and can’t seem to get enough. Dozens of designs and colors and I’m still adding some to my collection! If you haven’t purchased your first roll, you must. Stat.

bowl can be found here

In my effort to organize my bedroom, I got some new shelving and some new decor. This pretty bowl was one of my recent finds at Target and I absolutely love it. I love how it’s modern, artistic and most of all, it’s a pretty place to store things.

lotion can be found here

I have loved the Victoria’s Secret Love Spell scent even since I was 16. Not matter how many years pass, I don’t seem to get tired of this scene. Recently while I was doing some cleaning, I stumbled across more items I had and couldn’t help but spray some on myself. Love this stuff!

necklace can be found here

It’s no secret that I enjoy sparkly jewelry pieces. On a recent trip to Nordstrom I saw this beautiful necklace and was eying it with my sister. Since I was supposed to be buying gifts, I passed on it and didn’t think anything of it. Imagine my surprise when my sister gave it to me for Christmas. I absolutely love it! The color is so pretty and I’m surprised at how many outfits it works with.

savings chart can be found here

I did a blog post earlier this week on the 2013 savings chart I’m following. It makes me so excited to hear that many of you will be doing it with me! I have already put extra money into my jar and love seeing it add up already! If you want to have an extra $1300 at the end of the year, I’d highly suggest following this chart! Be sure to leave a comment on my earlier post and let me know you’ll be doing it, too! :)

What are a few of YOUR favorite things at the moment? It can be drinks, shows, clothing, movies, etc…. it just might introduce me (and others) to some new things! I can’t wait to see your lists!

Uncategorized

Red Velvet Mini Donuts

I’m so glad that you liked my first post on the DIY Gumball Machine. Paulina has keeping me informed on the comments and has passed along the news that many of you have created one. It makes me happy to hear you tried it out!

Valentine’s day is coming soon… so I have a delicious and easy recipe for mini donuts that you can make for special someone! It’s so easy to make, Paulina can make it! :)

Red Velvet Mini Donuts

Recipe Type: Dessert

Author: Krista Nakamura

Serves: 2 dozen

Ingredients

12oz. All-purpose Flour
10oz. Granulated Sugar
3/4 oz. Baking Powder
1/8 cup Cocoa Powder
1T Salt
9.5oz. Buttermilk
3oz. Melted Butter
1T Vanilla
3 Eggs
1 Yolk
Red Food Coloring

Instructions

Mix all dry ingredients together in a metal bowl
Mix all wet ingredients together (excluding the food coloring) using a mixer
Combine dry ingredients with wet ingredients. Add food coloring to desired redness.
After combined, roll out dough onto a cutting board (that is dusted with flour) to a 1/2″ thickness
Cut to desired shape (using a cookie cutter)
Heat fryer at 375 degrees. Fry mini donuts for 3 minutes per side
Allow to cool. Dust with powdered sugar, granulated sugar, or sugar glaze (recipe above).

Sugar Glaze

1 cup Powdered Sugar

2T Water

1T Lemon Juice

Mix all dry ingredients together in a metal bowl

Mix all wet ingredients together (excluding the food coloring) using a mixer

Combine dry ingredients with wet ingredients. Add food coloring to desired redness.

After combined, roll out dough onto a cutting board (that is dusted with flour) to a 1/2″ thickness

Cut to desired shape(using a cookie cutter)

Heat fryer at 375 degrees. Fry mini donuts for 3 minutes per side

Allow to cool. Dust with powdered sugar, granulated sugar, or sugar glaze (recipe above).

I hope you enjoyed these little nuggets of tastiness! If you try them out or are planning to, post a comment! I thrive on comments… no seriously, I do! ;)