Happy Saturday! I hope you all have some fun plans for the weekend. Today I had an intense training session with my trainer, went to breakfast with my siblings and tonight we’re celebrating my sisters 21st birthday. I’m hoping to get some stamping done before a publication call ends…..lots of fun stuff planned!

Oh, I am so excited about this post. Lots of fun stuff in this one! Today I have a super fun card featuring a new stamp I bought by Memory Box. Isn’t that polka dot trunk cute? I had fun coloring those little birds and the leaves. After I finished the card looked like it need something so I added some “nests”. I have had these burlap bags for a while and never used them. Isn’t it cute?? I thought it was pretty genius. ;)

Okay, so moving on to my super exciting news…..I am going to be published in CARDS magazine! When I got the email I literally screamed. (My little brother even came upstairs to see if I was okay!) As most of you know, being published was one of my goals this year- I didn’t dream it would happen so quickly! The issue will be released in August- can’t wait for you all to see! To me, CARDS is THE magazine to be in. The best of the best are featured there. I feel so incredibly honored and blessed to be a part of it.

Thanks for stopping by! Hope you were inspired!

Thank you all so much for your well wishes, words of encouragement and prayers! I know I can always count on my blog friends to cheer me up! Today is much better than yesterday, but I’m still not feeling quite myself. The past few nights I’ve been going to bed before 9. *gasp* That just goes to show you that I really am not myself- oh yes, and I haven’t stamped for four days! Thankfully I have a large slew of cards that you haven’t seen before…..

Today I’m showcasing what might be, in my opinion, the best baby card I have ever made. I love these colors together! I’m using the adorable Tweety Bird Border and Small Solid Button again- I just can’t get enough! I think this card encaptures everything I love: buttons, scallops, dots, pink, aqua and brown. The only thing missing is rhinestones! :)

For those who don’t follow me on Twitter, I want to let you know that I’ll be at the CHA SuperShow in Illinois on July 30 & 31st. I hope to meet lots more of my crafting friends! Are any of you planning on attending? I had so much fun in Anaheim I didn’t need to think twice about attending this one!

That’s all for now. Hope you were inspired!

Stamps: Small Solid Button, Tweety Bird Border, Mega Mixed Messages, Dots Background

Paper: White, Brown Kraft, Dark Chocolate, Aqua Mist, Bitty Dots Basics

Ink: Vintage Sepia, Tea Dye Duo
Other: Marvy Super Jumbo Scallop Square punch, Marvy Mega Scallop Square punch, Raspberry Fizz grosgrain ribbon, SU! scallop border punch, button, twine

Monday greetings!

I hope you all had a good weekend. Did you do anything fun? I went to a fancy dinner/ auction with my sisters at the Four Seasons hotel in Seattle this weekend. Oh my goodness, that hotel was gorgeous and the view was spectacular! I felt like a movie star- they had valet parking, opened the doors for us, took our bags up to our room, filled the ice and pulled down the covers at night! I could get used to being treated like that! :)

Today I have a fun baby card for my friend. Last year I made this card for her newborn daughter. She loved it so much she framed it! There was just a tiny bit of pressure for this card. *wink* I knew I had to customize it- it makes the card so much more special. It’s a little hard to tell in the picture but there are dots on the cream cardstock….I could never leave that much blank cardstock!

On a personal note, these past few weeks I’ve been dealing with some stuff that hasn’t been fun. I have no motivation or urge to do anything. Cardmaking and even going to the gym feels like a chore. I’ve gone through depression throughout my life but that doesn’t make it any easier to handle. Really hoping that this phase goes away soon– it’s lame! If you think of it, I’d love prayers….knowing I have friends out there thinking of me will really help.

Thanks, guys! You know I’m usually pretty cheery so if these past few posts haven’t seemed like that, this is the reason! (I did try to hide it, but I don’t know how successful I was.)

Stamps: Teeny Swiss Dot, Small Solid Circle, Fresh Alphabet, Baby Button Bits, Dots Background

Paper: Cream, Brown Kraft, Dark Chocolate, Aqua Mist

Ink: Vintage Sepia, Versamark, Tea Dye Duo
Other: Marvy Super Jumbo Scallop Square punch, Marvy Mega Scallop Square punch

Hi there!

Do you ever buy/ receive a stamp set and you just can’t put it down? That’s totally how it’s been ever since I received Look Up. I can’t stress enough how fun, easy and versatile this set is. Since I showcased the big hot air balloon yesterday, I thought I’d share some of the other beauties included in this set.

For the first card I used the amazing banner stamp. LOVE LOVE LOVE it! When I made this card I squeeled- it’s so fresh and yummy! You may have noticed that I used a sentiment from You’re Dandy. I told ya, it’s easy to mix and match Courtney’s sets!

Here’s a closer peek at the banner. I chose to just stick with the Bitty Box Basics, but you couldn’t totally mix up the patterns to add some variety. The card looked a little flat so I added some pearls- I thought that was a nice touch. ;)
Next up is a card featuring the medium hot air balloon, birds and frame design from Look Up and a sentiment from Key to my Heart. This card was super simple to make, I literally made it in 15 minutes. (I know, shocking for me! I’m notorious for being a slow card maker!)

Well, I hope these cards prompted you to check out the stamp sets. They truly are a whole lot of fun to use. Be sure to visit Courtney’s new website and check out her awesome blinkie!

{Pastel Birthday Banner card supplies}
Stamps: You’re Dandy, Look Up

Ink: Vintage Sepia, Tea Dye Duo
Other: decorative pearls, paper piercer, Fiskars Upper Crest border punch

{Pastel Hot Air Balloon card supplies}
Stamps: Key to my Heart, Look Up