My time as a designer at SweetPea ends tomorrow but I just had to show you these 3 cards that I made with the newest plate.

Sweet!

My new favorite tool for adding a touch of beach sand to any card is an old dry scratchy washcloth.

Cupcakes ... and ...

Tagged! And another cupcake for Amanda. 365 cards challenged using a tag on your card. This came out very cute, I think.

More cupcakes

This one follows the sketch challenge at Fridaysketchersblog. I used some of the new cuttlebug folders I ordered from HSN. Fun fun! Here's a link to the site ... http://fridaysketchersblog.blogspot.com/

Un frog etable Two-fer

Two-fer one ... the teapot challenge and 365 cards --- here is my un-frog-etable card. Background recipe -- xyron or double stick tape tin foil to cardstock; alcohol ink to color; let dry and cuttlebug; then clear emboss it all.

From turtles to cupcakes

I did the turtle card for FS129 at Splitcoast ... but then just had to switch it over to being a cupcake card !

Surfside Stampers

Ahhh to be in Florida and have Surfside Stampers meetings the 4th Monday ... it is really something I miss when I am in Michigan. Today we did 3 projects - each one cute as can be

The top is a little purse, maybe 4 or 5 inches tall -- and I have the template to make more ;)

The middle one isnstamped and colored then put through a crimper and lightly rubbed with stazon black to look like a shade. The bottom one is punched in front then uses a template to do the stamping, versamarking and sparkly embossing inside.

Sketchy Sunday!

Here is the sketch from 365 cards and the birthday card for Amanda that I made with it:

Black and white just isn't me!

I saw a card I really wanted to imitate on splitcoast but somehow MY cards came out much much different. I just can't do black and white I guess.

New Playground

Found a new place to play ... First stop on a blog hop is http://www.embellish-online.blogspot.com/ and while I don't scrapbook much, the card sketch was kind of fun and challenging. Here is the card I made for it.

Amanda's Gone, Camera's gone

Amanda and I are having a great visit in Florida. However, today she is off to Sebastian Inlet and took MY camera along. So I will had to use my old scanner to post a picture of the "Welcome Home" card I made to have waiting in her New York City mailbox when she returns. I used sketch 238 from Splitcoast. There's more of my shaving cream background on the inside of the card.

Snail Pal

This is the card, inside, kind of inside and the outside that I made for Mike -- he is running a race on Saturday and I won't be there to cheer him on. The card reads:

Speed matters not when the race is long

The winner is he who finishes strong

It was inspired by the Tuesday Teapot over at Mothermark's site ... mothermark.blogspot.com/

New York Inspiration

Amanda brought me this card from a Japanese shop in New York called MUJI. The card came flat and fits in a flat envelope to mail. Isn't it the coolest thing! I can't wait to try one.

Shaving cream mess!

Oh did I have fun making shaving cream backgrounds today - what a mess! My fingers might be blue forever!

Here is the card I made for the 365 days prompt of using a quote - Mark Twain is my favorite author.

Thank you Mike!

This is a thank you card I made for dear Michael who makes it possible for me to come to Florida and enjoy the sun. I have been trying to fancy up the insides of my cards lately so I am posting the inside as well.

Feelin' Punchy

This is my stapleless stapler and I used it for today's 365 card challenge to attach something - It was a little more hassle than I thought it would be since the stapler was really made for paper and not cardstock. It clips a teensy slot and a little hole and then neatly tucks that cutout into the slot. But on cardstock it just clips the piece and you get to tuck it by hand. No, by fingers. Actually might be best by tweezers!

FLorida here I come

I

I should be packing but instead I am looking at my favorite inspirations. Tuesday is such a great day, I get to make a card for 365 cards which has a new surprise every day plus I get to go to a teaparty at mothermarks. Today her party is being catered by cats so of course it is a great day for me.
Since I am off to Florida, I wonder if I can get her to come visit me down there - the space shuttle is scheduled to take off this week and we can see it from our driveway, or maybe she would prefer to go to the beach and find shells and waves. However, Florida this time of year is hot hot hot so maybe I should wait to invite the girls later in the year.
My text inside this card will read:

The dog’s in the coffee,

The cat’s in the tea

Your birthday card’s late

Oh shame on me!

365 cards is at Day 136 - What is Black, White, and Red all Over?

Your Card!!! That means these are the only colors to use on your card. How's that for a challenge?

Shake the G man

Today's challenge over at 365 cards (http://365cards.blogspot.com/) was "I challenge you to create a window on your card using some see-through material. I pulled out some old transparencies and played around with creating a gingerbread man with a sizzix die.

I have been working on a bead project but the colors were perfect. I just hope that I have enough beads left for the pendant I am making now that I pilfered a few for this card ...

When I went to put his smile inside the card, I just coudn't resist changing that smiley gingerbread man to a snowman.

I think I will handwrite Gingerbread wishes

And snowman kisses

Have a sweet and cuddly holiday

Please leave a comment by clicking on the word "comments" below.

Godspeed

Special thanks to schirmcat who inspired this card ... it is not my usual style. But I got a call from my firstborn telling me he had been sailboat speed racing on the Hudson when his boat collided with another racer. It was the other guy's fault, and my David wasn't at the helm when they crashed. He said they were all shouting, "leeward leeward," but the other boat didn't turn. The girl who was in command at the time had a great explanation -- the other boat was supposed to turn and didn't have the right of way. Guess she showed them!

At any rate, a sailboat card was in order and this is the one I came up with. The e e cummings quote was the only seaworthy quote I could find in my collection. But I thought it made the boat look a lot like a photo on the wall with a brass plate underneath. I have a great imagination, betcha you didn't see that at all till I pointed it out.

Those darn brackets!

Those darn brackets are everywhere and as an English professor, it rattles my cage that they are not being used correctly and ... ahem ... it is summer, you say, so all the grammar police are off duty and at the beach?

This was my first try at a 365 cards challenge (see sidebar on left for link) and I think it was great fun. I continue in dotsy mode; and made the brackets with my tab punch which was really easy and might just convince me ( me !!! ) to use brackets on my cards more often.

As you will notice, it is one more cupcake card for Amanda's birthday. If she ever finds my blog in cyberspace, the whole surprise will be spoiled!

Cupcake case

A "cased card" means "copy and share everything" (I think, ) and my birthday card was inspired by a card by Sandra over at splitcoast. You can see her card here and see what I did with it.

Mermaid Inspiration

Here's the inspiration, a doll from the store "Chasing Fireflies," and the mermaid card I made.

If it's Christmas in July, it's gotta be palm trees

Click on the photo to enlarge ...

I have been playing with my Christmas palm today - Splitcoast challenges suggested using a cut out of your image at least 3 times. My first tree was just the tree cut 3 times so that wasn't quite the idea. But I like the card anyway. Next I tried using the trunk of the tree, cut out for a frame, and the top of the tree as a fanciful pointsettia. I was pretty pleased with the results. Finally a topsy turvy card with the top of the palm tree 4 times. I folded the red to see where to cut it and liked the tabs the folds created. Serendipity is the best muse!

Tweet-pot

Teapot Tuesday at Mothermark's site ( see my left hand column for a link ) and here is the teapot she chose to inspire us. We are all to think of a lovely tea party in an Irish botanical garden, but were warned to wear hats in case the birds think it is their garden too.

I meant to pop out of bed and make a card but then a good friend emailed that her new job teaching kindergarten will have a frog theme in fall, so I was busy punching out frog parts to get in the mail to her. My card had to wait.

Once I got going, I realized I really am not into roses, but my new stamps from Elemental Doodles had some fall leaves that could imitate the flowers. Everything was fine until I tried to add a bird on top. That's when the cats got out and took a perfectly sane card and made it a little crazy. Oh well.