TBS DT: You Hold The Key To My Heart

Hello dear friends! I hope you've had a fabulous weekend! The Husband, Finnegan and I trekked on down to North Carolina to visit with my in-laws. It was a beautiful weekend - Saturday I finally got to experience the "Carolina Blue" skies that my mother-in-law has told me about... stunning! We had a long To-Do list, which is kind of cool (we do like to help them when we can). It was nice to see Matthew and his Dad working on a grill surround thingy. They had oodles of power tools and measuring devices and Gatorade... actually, it was nice to see them working so well together. :)

It's Susan Monday over at The Beary Scrap Design Team blog, which really means I get to introduce the design team's weekly theme. This week we all worked with a sketch that we'll use as our next Beary Sweet Challenge on Friday. Be sure to check back for a great sketch!

I love the Basic Grey Capella papers.They're such wonderful prints and warm colors! I complemented the BG with Bazzill Basics in Mud Pie, and actually veered away from my normal white card stock base. (You'll see another here Friday.) I do like the "drama" of an all-dark base!

As embellishments, I sprayed all the crocheted flowers, rose buds and leaves with pearl Glimmer Mist - it's a lovely subtle sheen. The green flower in the bottom right is edged with Frosted Ice Stickles for a little added (but still subtle) bling. Hmm... can bling be subtle?

Anyway... I received a card from the oh-so-lovely and talented Elise of Paper Love Affair the other day and was WOW'd by her perfect Stickles edging. I was so inspired to try it on this card... not perfectly straight, but better than any effort before today. Thanks sweets!

Our sketch has a rough -or torn- edge, and I ran a little bead of water down the edge of the paper with a Brush2O, let it soak in a bit and tore the edges off. Once dry I edged with Cinnamon Stickles and layered with a bit of scrap crocheted lace.

Challenges, Please :)

• Beary Sweet Challenge #10 (10/1 - 10/14): Sketch
• Creative Card Crew (10/11): Bloomin' Marvelous!
• Fashionista Friday #48 (9/30): Flowers
• Practical Scrappers (10/1): Stamps
• Totally Tilda #6 (10/9): Glitter and Sparkle
• Magnolia Stamp Lovers (10/9): Lace
  

Card Recipe

• Stamp: Magnolia
• Paper: Bazzill Basics Mud Pie; Basic Grey Capella
• Medium: Stickles Star Dust, Cinnamon, Frosted Lace and Diamond; Glimmer Mist Pearl on flowers and leaves; Copic E00 for base skin tone; Color Box Fluid Chalk in Chestnut Roan for all edges
• Embellishments: Mulberry paper roses; My Mind's Eye Laundry Line Crochet Flowers; Kaisercraft pearls; old key, pearl pins, large green flower and pearl brad from stash
• Tools: MS leaf punch; Scor-Pal; Brush20 Water Pen
• Adhesive: Scor-Tape

Thanks for stopping in today! Don't forget you still have a few days to whip up a little creative somethin' somethin' for our Vintage themed Beary Sweet Challenge. You could win a $20 gift voucher to The Beary Scrap!

Cheers,
Susan

Beary Sweet Challenge #10: Vintage - Ends 9/30 - Come Join Us!

Hi there, crafty friends! Just popping in on this beautiful Saturday to let you know there are still 6 days to enter our

Beary Sweet Challenge #10: Vintage

Here is how the design team interpreted the vintage theme - click on the photos to go directly to each post for loads of details!

Susan (Monday)

Gini (Tuesday)

Patricia (Wednesday)

Jamie (Friday)

Remember, this challenge ends Thursday, September 30 at 11:59pm (EDT) *and* we'll have a new sketch challenge up on the 1st. Thanks for visiting, and we hope to see *you* in our challenges, too! You could win a $20 gift voucher (with free shipping!) to The Beary Scrap. How cool is that?

Cheers,
Susan

Copic Sketch Sale and X-Press It and Free Shipping... Oh My!

Great news at The Beary Scrap!

• There's whole new batch of Copic Sketch Markers in stock and ON SALE for $4.89. Wow!
• Copic X-Press It Blending Card in stock and ready for your new markers!
• FREE SHIPPING on $50 orders through Friday, September 24th (lower 48 states only). You *must* use this discount code: SEPT24 and place your order by midnight EDT. What a great deal! This offer is only available to newsletter subscribers and design team blogs. Are you glad you're reading me today? *grin*

Oh, and there's one more thing I have to tell you. I just received my My Mind's Eye order and OMGosh! It's really luscious paper and I can't wait to work with it. All the MME lines are on sale at least 10%!

So, happy shopping! I'm off to work on next week's card!

Cheers,

Susan

TBS DT: We're In Great Shape!

Hello friends! Hope everyone had a great weekend. We had bee-you-ti-ful weather once again. Ah, September! I love September for a lot of reasons - one of which is today is my 13th wedding anniversary. Husband and I started dating in 1992, married in '97 and here we are 13 years later, still laughing at with each other. *wink*

As you know, the design team has a new challenge every week to help introduce products available at The Beary Scrap. We do this in addition to our twice-monthly Beary Sweet Challenge - open to everyone on the 1st and 15th of every month. Our current BSC is a Vintage theme - check out our posting for all the info and some easy vintage suggestions in case you need 'em to play along. We hope you can join us before the 30th!

Ok, so this week the DT is experimenting with shapes. We challenged each other to make projects that are anything other than the standard square or rectangle.

I've had bird houses on the brain lately, and wanted to make a bird house card... major failure. HOWEVER, I've also been noodling the idea to update a stocking stuffer calendar I made last year for a craft fair. Since I have my 2011 calendars on hand, now is the perfect time to play around with design, right?

This is both very simple and very fun, especially with Echo Park's whimsical Life is Good. I dusted off my Cricut and used 2 cartridges - "Stretch Your Imagination" for the bird house and "Storybook" for the birdie and leaves. A little FYI to the Cricut folks - I cut the regular-sized bird house and it's layers at 5.5" (I have the original Cricut, hence the dust...), but I made my own template to make it a little longer. Both the birdie and branches are cut at 2".

Here's a rear view. This striped paper is a separate layer that allowed me to sandwich the branch ends. Even though the calendar will hang on someone's cubicle wall or refrigerator, I wanted it to look "finished" on the back (and you can see the bow in this photo, too).

I like how this turned out, although I definitely consider it a "prototype" that needs a few tweaks. Here's a link to the original calendar stocking stuffer, in case you're interested. It's one of a bunch of designs sold at the craft show last year.

Challenges

• Creative Prompts #30 (9/30): Mark It On The Calendar!
• Paper Play #37 (9/22): All Shapes And Sizes
• Pixie Dust Studio #40 (9/22): Fur or Feathers?
• Secret Crafter #101 (9/24): Anything Goes (LOVE the new Angel Boy and Bird Fairy stamps!!)
• Totally Gorjuss #48 (9/23): Wild Thing
• Corrosive #82 (9/25): Clean Up The Dust! (I dusted off the Cricut for this project)

Card Recipe

• Paper: Echo Park's Life is Good paper pack
• Medium: Glimmer Mist - Pearl on the birdie; Stickles Diamond on the embossed dots; Distress Stickles Walnut on the roof edges and around the hole; Color Box Fluid Chalk in Chestnut Roan for all the edges
• Embellishments: Bazzill Tulle Ribbon to hang; Kaisercraft Pearl in Latte for the eye; calendar and hook from stash
• Tools: Cuttlebug Embossing folders (bird and bird house)

Thanks for visiting!

Cheers,
Susan

Waiting For Santa, Vintage Style

I'm very honored. Thanks so much MMSC DT!

---

Hello hello! I hope you had a great weekend. the Husband and I took a little road trip on Saturday and hid indoors Sunday for the first rainy day in ages. It was nice to wake up to the sound of soft rain - especially since it was falling straight down and not into any of the windows left open overnight. Temps were in the 50's, so after Finnegan went out for a quick wee, we all snuggled tighter under the covers and slept in. I love the cooler temps paired with cozy blankies and warm snuggly bodies in the bed... have I mentioned that our dog sleeps under the covers? He curls his 95lbs up at our feet every night. It's cute!

It's Monday again, which brings my Beary Scrap DT post *and* a new challenge for the design team. This week we decided to go down my favorite path:

Vintage

Ok, so *I* decided to take the design team down this path kicking and screaming. I had to duck from a few well-thrown old shoes... but I'm still excited to see what they come up with when truly challenged!

Here's another in my Vintage Christmas Series. Haha! I just made that up as an excuse for my 2 Christmas cards in a row here at TBS. I'm on a mission to avoid the Great Frenzy of 2009, which had me scrambling and working through the night weeks before a craft show. Oh, it was awful even for this procrastinator.

So, about this card: I used the yummy delicious My Minds Eye Laundry Line/Flirty Collection. The design is called "Pretty Coat" and boy is it fabulous! The tag in the upper left corner is also MME and available at the store. On my vintage postcard image I've added white Flower Soft for snow and as decoration on Santa's coat. Star Dust Stickles found its way on the little girl's coat and the star, and Frosted Ice around the edges.

The MME tag was trimmed and crushed into a ball, then the edges and random creased were inked up before it got a Pearl Glimmer Mist squirt. The flowers were white before being misted with Vanilla Glimmer Mist. I'm really pleased with the subtle color!

Challenges

• MMSC #70 (9/14): Sketch - I fall somewhere between both sketches, I think
• Bah! Humbug! #35 (9/16): Favorite medium - Stickles, of course!
• ABC Christmas (9/21): S is for Santa

Card Recipe

• Image: Vintage postcard printed on Neenah Classic Crest
• Paper: Bazzill Basics Mud Pie and Ruby Slipper; My Mind's Eye: Laundry Line - Flirty
• Medium: Flower Soft in Polar White; Glimmer Mist Pearl and Vanilla; Stickles Frosted Ice and Star Dust; Glossy Accents (avail. at the store)
• Embellishments: Mulberry Paper Roses; pins, pearls and lace from stash
• Adhesive: Scor-Tape; Fabri-Tac; sewing machine (haha!)

Thanks for stopping in today. Don't forget that the Beary Sweet Challenge #9 is open until Tuesday night - there's still time to whip something up with our sketch!

Cheers,
Susan

Digital Delights Guest Designer

Hello hello! I'm so thrilled to be a guest designer for Digital Delights today! Thanks so much to the Delightful Challenges design team for picking my card as your favorite. I *know* there were a ton of fabulous entries and that the choice was a challenging one. 

Sooo, I've been itching to color a mermaid lately. I found this fabby Creative Imaginations paper at a little craft store a couple of months ago, just hoping a mermaid would swim on by and claim it. *wink* There are so many wonderful mermaid examples in the digi and stamp world right now, but not a single one as cute as this little darling. I'm *so* happy I waited!

Isn't she the best? I've done my customary layering - this sweetie's full body layer (1) sits on a wet, glossy rock (layer 2), and her glittery scale-y dress is the third layer. It's a fabulous effect on this otherwise "simple" card. 

The starfish embellishment in the top left corner is cut from coordinating paper of the same CI line. I layered that, too, just 'cause I could. The charms are a combination of a sand dollar I bought as a teen (the matching chain is looong gone) and fun little gems from Sky Blue Pink. The chain is a necklace extender from a Grandma stash. Hey, it works!

I used a wildly textured paper for the water and cork paper for the sand. Feel the grains between your toes? No? That's the beauty of cork sand! All the fun without the... grit. 

Aaanyway... this CI paper has such character that I couldn't cover it up too much. Inside, the printed "By the Sea" is from the same 12x12 sheet as the front section (I separated it and added the glitter, of course). This was one versatile sheet o' paper! 

 And here's one more bit to show you - an angled view for all the layers I love so dearly:

Thanks for visiting! If you came by from Digital Delights - welcome! I would love for you to pull up a chair and sit a while (or, "follow" in blog-speak). I can tell you I write a lot - as if you couldn't tell by now - but I just might make you giggle in the process. I get immense pleasure from 'the making' and 'the writing about', and to know someone is actually reading sends me in a tizzy as if I was 10 and being tickled by *all* my older siblings.

Wait, is that a good thing?

Card Recipe

• Stamp: Digital Delights Mermaid
• Paper: Creative Imaginations/ Christine Adolph's Tidepool Collection; Bazzill Basics in Mud Pie; Neenah Classic Crest for the mermaid; No idea about the blue textured paper or the cork (they're been in my stash for years) -- maybe from a Joann's Superstore?
• Medium: Copic E000 (base skin tone); Prismacolor pencils blended with odorless mineral spirits; Stickles - Star Dust, Platinum and Diamond; Distress Stickles - Faded Jeans and Vintage Photo; Glossy Accents (on the rock); Glimmer Mist Pearl (subtle sheen on the front dp and cork sand)
• Embellishments: Charms I've already explained... :) ;corner metal from an ebay seller called Accent Factory - this was my last one, so don't buy them out before I get there *grin*; Pearl necklace bits from an unidentified stash; Inside pearls are Kaisercraft Latte.

Cheers,

Susan

CDAC Graphic Tablet Giveaway

What is CDAC, you ask? Well, the Crafters Digital Art Center is a wonderfully well-organized community of digital artists and crafters, together to share products and projects and support one another. It is possibly the best gathering place for digital stamp users online. Really!

If you are a digi stamp artist or someone who does a lot of photo editing you will be interested in this giveaway. It's an amazing 8"x6" graphic tablet that allows you to abandon your mouse and use a pen instead. It's just like writing on a piece of paper, and the pen has buttons that mimic the left and right buttons on your very own mouse. Plus, it comes with a wireless mouse, too.

 Come on over to CDAC and enter to win (scroll down the page a bit for all the info) - you won't regret it! Hurry - it ends 9/13!

Cheers,

Susan

TBS DT: Color Challenge - Gold and Ivory + One

Hello friends! Happy Labor Day to everyone celebrating, and happy Monday to *everyone*! This week the design team is taking on a color challenge:

Gold and Ivory + One Color

My "plus one" is green. :) Ok, so here's the scoop - the delicious SEI Windsor gold and ivory paper and Kaisercraft wood die-cut are available at the store. As of this writing, I don't think it's on the website yet, so give Kimm a call to add to your order. 

Kaisercraft Wood Flourishes are raw wood and ready for your finishing. I painted this flourish gold, used dark brown chalk ink to age it a bit, then layered with Diamond Stickles. Remember a few weeks back when I waxed on about my white Stickles exploration (every white is different!)? Well, the gold flecks in Diamond Stickles were perfect for this project. The shine is more subtle than gold glitter and really tasteful... if glitter glue can be "tasteful".

The only thing I regret is the little bit of white-ness to the glue in places, especially the numbers - the layering was thicker and resulted in a messier finish. I should have stuck with the "less-is-more" approach. (Oh, the numbers are cardboard-type die cuts that I painted the same as the Kaisercraft.)

The holly sprigs are leftovers from last year's Christmas cards - I don't throw anything away! I think they were cut on the Cricut.

Challenges

• The Sweet Stop #72 (9/10): Sketch
• Our Creative Corner (9/10): ABC's and 123's
• Simon Says Stamp and Show (9/6): Show Your Layers

Card Recipe

• Image: Vintage, printed twice and layered
• Paper: Bazzill Basics in Truffle, Guacamole, French Vanilla; SEI Windsor (available at the store - call!)
• Medium: Glimmer Mist Diamond; Stickles Diamond and Frosted Lace; ColorBox Fluid Chalk on edges and used to distress the flourish and numbers - Chestnut Roan and Dark Brown
• Embellishments: Kaisercraft Wood Flourishes (available at the store); Kaisercraft Pearls; sheer ribbon, lace, holly die cuts and numbers all from stash.
• Adhesive: Scor-Tape

Thanks for stopping in to visit today! Our Beary Sweet Sketch Challenge #9 is going on through the 14th - we'd love to have you join in! 

Cheers,

Susan