welcome home {SFYTT}

Happy Saturday, everyone! I'm here with the final SFYTT for February, but don't worry, there will be more coming in March. Before we leave February though, remember to play along with the sketch and link your card to Jen's slideshow to be eligible for her super dee-duper prize package and for your chance to be a future monthly guest designer for Jen's SFYTT challenges. Ok, let's get on with the sketch and then my take on it...

I decided to combine a few things that I love: October Afternoon paper (Farm Fresh), anything felt (tree top and bird wing), buttons (PTI), and Kim Hughes images (The Landing Pad tree trunk). Oh, I almost forgot--the discarded dictionary page...love the script stamps, printed papers and the real stuff! The sentiment is from PTI, another place I love! I hope my card brings you a little hope for Spring to soon arrive in your neck of the woods...

Ready for more inspiration? Here's the crew...
Jen del Muro & Mona Pendleton
Amy Sheffer
Kelly Lunceford
Leigh O'Brien
Susan Liles

Have a good one!
~Amy

TCP Tuesday #98

Hi folks! I'm a day late with my TCP Tuesday submission for Susan's challenge this week, but my energy has been zilch-0 lately, and it took me a bit longer to come up with something satisfactory to me. I think it's due to the extra-long winter we've had here, and my mojo has gone into hibernation! We're expecting a warm-up this weekend, into the 30's (whoo hoo), so I'm hoping the extra warmth will wake up Mo and/or Jo!

Susan is challenging us to make something "Spring-y" if you will, so I chose an image from Hearts and Flowers. This sweet little bee fairy makes me smile, so dainty atop that long stemmed bloom! I colored her with Copics and paper pieced her abdomen, or is it her thorax(?), using fun and dainty Basic Grey papers.

Because the bee fairy is so dainty and I didn't want her to get "lost" among the patterned paper, I glam'ed her up a bit with clear gen pen dots on her flower center, Diamond Stickles on her wings, pink rhinestones on her antennae, and Spica glitter on the flower petals.

Hope to see you before Saturday with my SFYTT card, but that's all for now!

happy BIRTHDAY, Mom!

My mom's birthday was this past Thursday and we're celebrating tomorrow with a little birthday lunch, so I decided to use this week's SFYTT for her card. The image I chose is from a retired SU! set, Botanicals; a set that I'll never give up. I used Copics to color the image, stamped the butterfly and script images from the set in Ranger Distress ink (Old Paper), and then cut it into squares. I love the whole "window pane" look, but I'm afraid my image should've have been a bit bigger? Not sure if the essence of the image got lost a bit... Anywhoo, I do love the end result and the colors I chose--a little bit Winter with a little hope of Spring. The sentiment is from PTI's Floral Fusion (Summer CHA set), and it fit perfectly in that little space. Almost forgot that I used another PTI set for the plum strip--Background Basics: Diamonds, love it!

Here is Jen's original sketch along with links to the SFYTT crew. BE SURE to check out Jen's post and PLAY ALONG because you could be the winner-winner-chicken-dinner, or is it weiner-weiner-chicken-dinner, of a FANTABULOSO prize package!

Jen del Muro & Mona Pendleton
Amy Sheffer
Kelly Lunceford
Leigh O'Brien
Susan Liles

Top Note Quartet

I've got a quartet of cards to share, all of which use the same simple sketch featuring my Top Note Bigz die from SU!. I haven't used the die for quite some time and forgot how much I love it. It wasn't intentional, but all stamps used are from PaperTrey Ink, and the "Miss You" card was made for Melissa Phillips' inspiration challenge.

Miss You...

Embrace Happiness...


Praying for You...


My favorite: everyday is a gift...


Thanks for stopping by and have an inspiring day!

Brrr...it's TCP Tuesday #97!

It's been a loooong winter here in WI, and I think just about everyone else around the US has also experienced true "winter weather" this year, so I thought I'd create a warm and cozy "cuppa" card to lighten the winter blues using Joanne's color challenge for the week: olive, light blue and cream.

My papers are from Cosmo Cricket (Girl Friday) and October Afternoon (Ducks in a Row), along with SU! ivory and PTI kraft. PJ's scarf is paper pieced as is his cuppa holder using the patterned papers. Love that scarf! If you haven't picked up A Beary Good Year, featured our newly named bear, PJ, what are you waiting for?! It's one of those sets you'll be able to pick up and use all year round...just sayin'...it's the gift that keeps on givin!..., ha! One last detail on the sentiment--it's from another TCP set, Poochie Christmas.

Be sure to check out the rest of the Cat Pack this week (links are on my side bar) to see what they've done with Joanne's warm and cozy color combo!

~Amy

valentine, I {heart} you...SFYTT

Hopefully you all tuned in last week for the big comeback of our weekly SFYTT and were able to participate for your chance to win Jen's super duper prize package! Each time you play along with the sketch and link your creation to Jen's blog, you'll have a chance to not only win the prize package (over $200 worth of amazing stamping stuff), you'll also be eligible to become Jen's Guest Designer of the Month...fun stuff!

I'm not head over heels in love with my card, but I've got DH and little George waiting to get on with the day, so I had to be satisfied. I kept telling George that if he sat behind me on my chair while I was stamping, I might mess up and then I'd have to start all over, and then it would take me even longer finish...I think I was subconsciously hoping that I'd have to start all over, but I didn't. That George...he's such a good helper at the sewing machine, at my stamp table, and he's recently taken an interest in my Big Shot as well...uffda, he's busy!

Ok, now that you've seen what I did with the sketch, let's mosey on over to see what Jen & Mona, Kelly, Amy, Susan and Leigh have come up with.

Stamps: Polka Dot Basics II (PTI); The Birds and the Bees (Kim Hughes, CHF)
Paper: discarded dictionary, October Afternoon, Cosmo Cricket (Early Bird)
Embellishments: button, linen thread, heart die (SU!), scallop edge punch (SU!), Aqua Mist grosgrain (PTI)

TCP Tuesday: A Beary Good Year!

It's a big deal kinda day at TCP with a fabulous blog hop featuring the release of A Beary Good Year...Alma's latest and greatest set featuring that sweet bear you saw in Happy Camper last summer, and then again in Give A Little this past holiday season. Today (2/9/10) is also the day that Who's That Bear will be revealed on Alma's blog, along with the winner of the contest...the winner that receives each new TCP stamp set for the next year!!

Besides the release of A Beary Good Year, the blog hop, and the Who's That Bear winner...we still have some work to be done, and that's the TCP Tuesday #96 Supply Challenge. I'm your hostess with the mostess, and here's this week's challenge: use paper piecing in your challenge creation this week.

Bears don't always have to come in shades of white, brown or black...give your bear a little makeover this week with some paper piecing. I've paper pieced the Valentine bear featured on my Bingo card with Cosmo Cricket Girl Friday papers. I've embellished with a big striped bow using this ribbon (available from TCP), and flanked my central image with a few Sweet Thing buttons.

If you don't have one of the TCP bears, pick out another TCP image and have some fun with it. Go a little crazy mixing those patterned papers. If you don't have any TCP images, that's ok too...we just love having you play along!

Once you've finished your TCPTUES96 creation, be sure to upload it to Alma's guestbook so we can see it. Now, here are the rest of the TCPTUES details followed by the blog hop list, so be sure to scoot right along to Joanne's blog--I know she'll have somethin' real nice for ya!

1. Each a week one of The Cat’s Pajamas DT members will host a challenge.
2. The challenges will vary {stamp, techinque, color, theme, sketch, etc.}
3. You will have until the end of the month to complete the challenge.
4. Post your design to the guestbook on this blog. Only designs posted to the guestbook are eligible for Swanky Stamper.
5. TCP stamps are not required, but of course, highly encouraged. {Unless it is a challenge calling for a specific stamp}
6. There will be one winner each month. They will be deemed that month’s Swankiest Stamper and get $25 in Cat’s Cash {money to spend on the TCP site!}.
7. Only designs posted to the guestbook will be considered for the Swanky Stamper.
8. The newly crowned Swanky Stamper will be announced on the First of the Month and have his/her winning entry posted on The Cat’s Pajamas website where he/she will reign for the entire month.

Hop along now...

Amy (me!)

Joanne
Leigh
Toni
Katie
Susan
Ana
Jenny
Jen
Tracy
Alma

Have a swanky Tuesday, everyone!
~Amy

Practicing my letters...

Here I am again with Pure Innocence...still not full...can't get enough of these cutie pies! This is a digi image from digistampcharacters, and you can also find PI girls in stamp form from My Favorite Things. As you can see, my little girl is practicing her spelling words or maybe just letter formations, just depending where she's at developmentally (each stage is sweet in my mind), and she doesn't even notice how darn cute she looks in her paper pieced argyle sweater dress (October Afternoon School Days) and matching kiwi tights.

My sketch is loosely based on Taylor's weekend sketch challenge (#99), so I'll be linking up over at Taylored Expressions as soon as I'm done blogging here. Not too much else for chit chat today...taking Kendra to Big Bowl for a belated birthday lunch after church. Do you all have plans for the rest of the weekend? Be sure to stop back on Tuesday for a TCP Tuesday's release of a brand spankin' new set from The Cat's Pajamas!

Until then...ta ta!

Saturday SFYTT is back with a bang!

We're baaaack...with Jen del Muro's popular Saturday SFYTT (Sketch For You To Try)! Hold onto your ink pads, girls and guys, because Jen has got a whopper of a treat for you this month. She's shaken up the SFYTT format a bit, made it bigger and better than ever, if you will. Here are the details for a prize package valued at over $200, and your chance to become Jen's March Designer of the Month (DOTM):

1. A new sketch will be posted on www.iheart2stamp.com each Saturday in February
2. There will be a Slide Guest Book that you can post your creation(s) at the post of each of those posts.
3. You will have until March 2nd to post your creations to the corresponding sketch. Be sure that each of your creations is posted to the correct Slide Guest Book.
4. You can enter as many times as you like, but must create a separate creation for each entry. All entries should be posted to your blog or online gallery, as well. Please use the keyword "SFYTT" for all online galleries.
5. All participants will also be considered for next month's Designer of the Month, as well.
6. A RANDOM participant will win the prize package and will be announced on March 3rd. Winner will have five days to contact me via email to claim prize.
7. The March Designer of the Month will be chosen and contacted March 3rd, but will not be announced until the first Saturday of March on www.iheart2stamp.com

Here's this week's sketch...

Here's my take on Jen's sketch...I used die cut hearts in a variety of mediums (felt, cork, paper) for the circles on the sketch, just because it's so darn close to V-day. Sneak peek of a TCP sentiment that will be released Tuesday, February 9th...papers by October Afternoon (Lucky Duck).

Here's a close-up of the sentiment cluster...don't you just love that pink/white polka dotted paper?! The texture on the pink heart comes from all the scratches on my Big Shot sandwich plates, so when I die cut the heart, instant texture...nice by-product, huh?! As you can also see, my sentiment is a big smudged...always in too much of a hurry, and the ink smudged when I edged the flag with some PTI chamomile tea dye ink. Stick pins are Maya Road and button is from PTI's vintage buttons in Aqua Mist.

I can't wait to touch base with the rest of the crew: Jen & February Designer of the Month, Kelly, Amy, Leigh and Susan. Have a great weekend, all!

Wish Big...

Today is my daughter's 17th birthday--aack, it just floors me that she's at this point in her life...on the threshold of adulthood, looking at colleges, finding out who she is, who her real friends are, teaching me about parenting and life on a daily basis...words cannot begin to describe the love I have for her on top of the admiration and the respect that I hold for her as she has made her way through the ups and downs of life and come out on top! Happy Birthday, dear daughter!

Making a birthday card for a teen, especially a teen girl is tricky...I love the card I made for her, but I'm afraid it's what I love...not necessarily what she'll love...time will tell!

And here's the inside...



Off to eat more of this cake that I made for her birthday...BTW, Kendra is a huge fan of 'Pioneer Woman', so I know she'll love the cake, if nothing else!

All stamps by PTI: Polka Dot Basics, Damask Designs, Star Prints