Simple 10 Club Card

Nice and easy card. All supplies are SU.

Check Out the Tips!!

Just wanted to tell you that the tips posted under the Blog Candy post of Saturday, September 29 are SO awesome. Check them out!

Answering Questions

Q-Thanks so much for sharing Google Reader, but do you realize that you will get less hits by encouraging readers to use it?

A-I honestly do the blog as much for my own fun as anything, but I contacted Google and they said that you still get the hits every time someone looks at your entry through Google Reader whether they go to the blog from the entry on Google Reader, or not. So for you, if the hits on your blog matter, you still get them if you encourage readers to make their blog reading easier with Google Reader.

Q-I saw on a chatboard that someone kind of poked at you about listing advertisers on your blog roll. Would you clarify if you make money from your blog?

A-Not a single cent do I get from anywhere. I list my favorite vendors to share them with YOU!! I also like having the list with the links handy as I really do purchase from those places.

Q-Do you consider yourself a frugal stamper?

A-LOL! Ask my husband that one! Actually, I used to be very frugal and still am in certain areas. I have to decide between time and money and sometimes convenience and getting exactly what you want is worth the extra. On the other hand, I still use the Georgia Pacific Walmart cardstock because I like it and because it is such a good deal. I still buy my red in reams at Paper Zone to save some money. I make lots of tools that I use and can often Lamaze breathe my way through a fad without purchasing until the urge passes. A lot of my reason for going unmounted is to save money and of course, because I like all the new options and space savings. I am a banker's daughter who was taught to weigh every purchase. On the other hand, life is short and stamping is joy. Joy is pretty valuable these days.

Q-How do you decide what to give for blog candy?

A-I choose things I love to share. Once I choose a theme I start collecting things for the giveaway. For the ribbon giveaway, I actually collected for over a year and bought ribbon in Europe and Hawaii to include. My current giveaway (see previous post and get in on it before next Saturday!) is something I have also been collecting for. Shopping trips to Seattle always net a delightful little bundle of blog candy.

Q-How do you find the time to post daily?

A-The posting takes under a minute. It is the card making and shooting the photos that takes time. I don't stamp any more than I always have. I just stamp when I want and put the cards aside for a good day to photograph. Then I load them all into a folder and have them sitting there to post each day. I think I have enough for about 2 months stored in a file at this point, but since I am stamping all along, some days you see something I just made minutes before and other days my post is a card I made long ago.

Q-What will you do when you retire from teaching in your special little school?

A-I cannot imagine retiring from this job I love so dearly. I often say I will probably die there, hopefully not in front of the children, LOL! If I did retire--possibly due to my hearing loss situation--I am sure I would stay busy. I am not a person to sit and stare at the walls by any means!

Halloween Smiles

Sentiment by SU, images are chipboard images I found at Walmart. Card is Bazille and the stitching on the sides is from the Paper Trey set called Faux Ribbon.

A Delicious Blog for you to see!

I have "known" Elaine for years on the GW board and just discovered that she has a wonderful, wonderful blog! Check it out here If the link does not work I have also linked it on the left in my list of Favorite places.

~~~~BLOG CANDY!!!~~~~~~~

Just hit 20,000 last night so it is time for blog candy! Next Saturday is World Card Making Day so that is the day I will be doing my drawing. This blog candy contains a huge assortment of eyelets,spirals, frames, buttons, punchouts, tags, corners, clips, embellishments and other little goodies thrown in. I have been avidly collecting for several weeks and went to Seattle on Wednesday where I picked up several additions for this blog candy.

All you need to do to enter is to post your very favorite and most useful OR money saving stamping tip--on THIS post only. I will draw Saturday night. Check back to claim your BLOG CANDY! (US residents only, please)

Snowflake Nugget Tin

I used SU Cool Carribean and Colorbox Chalk ink in Lavender to do these labels. All stamps are Paper Trey, including the circle frame on the tag which comes from the Borders Circles set. See a previous post on this blog to find a source for these tins at only 80 cents each!

True Friend

Simple and quick card.

Paper Trey News?

From Nichole:
Papertrey will begin carrying labels for the October 15th relaese as well.

I am guessing there will be a new label release possibly!!

An Apple a Day

I just love this SU stamp so much. I watercolored it and the papers behind are TAC.

Happy Halloween

A mix of unknown stamps, but the moon was made with a compact round sponge. I love making use of household items.

Fall Girl

Main image and background are SU. Sentiment is unknown. I pieced the squares first and then stamped and colored.

Fall Leaves

I made this card long ago. The leaf is a 2 step Just For Fun stamp and the sentiment is from an unknown source and I don't even have that stamp any more. Just ran into the card and remember how fun it was to ink the stamp and then take sponge daubers with other colors and add directly to the rubber before stamping. Gotta get that leaf out and do this again!

Fall Apples

Main image is SU on watercolor paper and colored with watercolor crayons. The background is a Verve Visual unmounted stamp stamped repeatedly with Vanilla Craft ink.

Difference Between SU and Paper Trey White Cardstock

Quote from Nichole of Paper Trey:

There are a few major difference between our Stamper's Select White Cardstock and SU! Ultasmooth White Cardstock. Here are the major factors...

-ours doesn't have any coatings or finishers added to the top layer of the cardstock, therefore ink dries more quickly (less chance of smudging) and you are less likely to "slide" your stamp.

-ours is much thicker. We have quoted ours as 110lb. stock. In a side by side comparision of thickness, one sheet of PT cardstock equals 2 sheets of SU!'s white cardstock.

-ours is makes a much sturdier card bases (perfect for one layer cards)

-because of the thickness of ours, you have a greatly reduced chance of "bleed-through" that can occur with some darker, heavier inks.

-ours also works great with different coloring mediums, especially copics. The ink is so wet from these particular markers, you can sometimes end up with warping when using them with thinner cardstocks. The same goes for watercoloring.

Some Changes

Due to another bout of harrassment on this blog, I have gone to moderated comments if you sign in anonymously. I don't mind anonymous posters at all unless they are rude, so don't worry if you prefer to post anon.

Good news is that the most recent rude commenter (probably the one who was doing this weeks ago too) has been tracked to an IP and reported to both her provider and to another pertinent party.

I have changed some settings for feeds to make my blog more feed-friendly. Since I personally discovered the convenience of Google Reader, I want the same convenience for my readers who use a variety of blog mangers. Some of you may notice changes, but to most of you, they will be invisible.

Answering Questions

Q-What kind of camera do you use to photograph your cards?

A-I use Power Shot A700 Cannon. I turn off the flash and try to use natural light.

Q-Do you mind that I used your email that you have given? I don't have an account.

A-I don't mind at all. I enjoy email from my readers.

Q-Do you subscribe to any stamping magazines? If so, which are your favorites?

A-I am in my last few months of a sub to Paper Crafts. With the internet and blogging my time is filled with learning things that way. The magazines just really are not worth the price to me.

Q-Do you think you might do another ribbon giveaway? That intrigued me so much.

A-Yep, watch for one in the coming weeks. It was such a hit and I am currently collecting cool ribbon as I find it and buying bits and pieces of it for some lucky winner.

Q-Thanks for posting about Google Reader. Do you have any idea why I cannot make it work for Gina K's blog?

A-I cannot put hers on mine either. I did contact her about it.

Q-I noticed you removed your Rubber Stamping Fun link and design team note. Why?

A-The company is not responding to ANY of us on the design team and so I don't care to continue to advertise for them.

Q-Do you make any money from your blog?

A-No, but I have received some really nice products from companies from mentioning their company or their products.

Fall Voila

I used the chef from the Voila set and the paper piecing technique (see many previous posts for instructions on this easy technique). The pumpkin is from an SU set, as are the leaves. The corner flourish is a clear stamps and I think it is from Autumn Leaves, but I am not sure. Stitching is done with a white Signo pen. I buy all my white Signo penss from www.jetpens.com because they are so much cheaper there and because I go through so many of them! I used a dot of Crystal Effects on each of his buttons.

Pics of My Stamp Room?

The easiest way to see them is to go to posts #11-14 on my old Ruby Slippers Blog (linked in the Favorite Places on the list on the left--scroll down). I have had so many requests and will take new pictures one of these days, but for now, these give you the main idea!

Google Reader-answer to my time problem

If you have many blogs you like to read--I have over 400--you MUST check out Google Reader. It is free, it is simple enough for any computer virgin, and will save you hours and frustration. All you do is cut and paste your favorite blog addresses into the green strip where it says Add a Subsription. From that point on whenever you open your Google Reader it will directly link you to the posts you have not read yet. It actually keeps track of what you have read and not read. Some blogs only update now and then. How frustrating to wait for the page to load only to find over and over that you have already seen it. No more! In what used to take me hours, I can now see exactly where I need to read very simply and quickly. Put "Google Reader" into your Google search and it will take you right there.

Don't Have the Label Stamp?

Strips of paper work too!!

Another 2-5-7-10 Box

All stamps by SU. Link in the previous post on boxes showing the tutorial to make these. Once you get the hang of it, they are fast and easy.

Paper Trey has a chatboard/forum

What a great idea!! Visit them here

Love Warms Every Nest

All stamps are Crafty Secrets Bird Notes stamps except the background, which is an SU wheel. I got the baby rick rack at JoAnn--many times cheaper than what baby rick rack is selling for in stamp stores.

Santa Nugget Tin

Paper Trey stamps and tin. See below for a much cheaper source for tins (previous post). I saw this in the Paper Trey gallery and just had to try it! I made the white packing material by running a sheet of paper through a crimper and then through my paper shredder.

Someone asked what it in these. If you scroll down to the other tin you might get a clearer view of how the Paper Trey Avery Labels are wrapped around Hershey's Nuggets.

Fall Nugget Tin

This is the first tin I made using my new Paper Trey set with the label stamp. I have another I am working on and will post later today. Leaf tag is from unknown source.

Want to Buy

I am looking for 2 SU sets--Measure of a Life and In the Spotlight. If anyone has these for sale, please let me know.

Answering Questions

Note: If your question pertained to a certain card then I generally have gone back to that post and answered the question as part of the explanation for that card.

Q-If all things were equal--size of stamp set, both high quality, images equally appealing, and the price was the same, would you prefer red rubber or clear acrylic.

A-Hands down I would go for clear acrylic. Once you have been using them a lot they are just a dream to position and ink. I feel slightly handicapped when using even unmounted red rubber. I just crave being able to see through the stamp and I love being able to stamp it twice to make the color richer.

Q-How do you store your 12 x 12 paper?

A-Still looking for a good method. Right now I have a few of the 12 x 12 plastic box/folders and I also got a cool very heavy duty envelope when I ordered something from somewhere. That is what I am using now, but I am going to have to come up with a solution.

Q-Do you scrapbook?

A-I have done 2 for myself after Hawaii and Paris, one for my son on Paris, and I have helped a couple of friends do it. I think since my kids are grown I just didn't go that direction.

Q-Have you ordered yet from the cheap place you linked for tins?

A-I have a long wish list and will probably order early next week. I have got to figure out where to store the stuff first!

Q-Have you ordered from MFT lately?

A-Not since the teacher set. The dog walking one slated for October release just does not grab me and I did not think the shower one was versatile enough for my needs.

Q-Do you think 5 years from now that all stamps will be clear?

A-I would love that. I think it will likely happen. These stamps are just such a hit. Every time I go to Seattle I see the stores that carry mainly wood carrying more and more clear acrylic stamps. But, I do have many red rubber stamps that I will never part with thanks to the design.

Q-What is your most recent "tool" purchase?

A-I bought a cheap paper shredder at Shopko to make packing paper for bags, boxes, and general mailing. A great way to recycle computer paper. Paper bags are cool too. Run your paper through your crimper first for a really nice effect.

Q-What one thing is a must for stamping Christmas cards?

A-I cannot get enough glitter and sparkle. I go through Stickles like mad and use lots of sparkly clear embossing powder too!

Q-Which new in colors do you use?

A-I love the Pomegranate and will be stocking up on that like I did with Cool Carribean. Got my first package of Groovy Guava this week and I think I am going to like it with Chocolate Chip for Halloween cards.

Another 10 Club Card

This is my favorite that we did! The snowflakes are all handcut except for the small one that used an SU punch.

WOW! WOW! Cheap Hinged Nugget Tins!!!!!

Click the title of this post for a link!

The New Penny Black site is Up!

Check it out here

Another 10 Club Card

10 Club

We made this at our last 10 club. I really like the color combo. It is Blue Bayou, Sky Blue, Celery and Pomegranate.

Another Delicious Blog for you!

Check out Kristen's work at Artfully Inking here

Wanna See the NEW Cuttlebug Folders???

I think they are just fantastic!! New Cuttlebug Folders

2-5-7-10 Box

These are fun little boxes to make! They take one sheet of cardstock. The one on the left is my own creation and the one on the right was shown as a sample on SCS last night and so I kind of CASED it. The original was done with Bella stamps and this is an SU stamp with Paper Trey Sentiment. The pink box is used with the True Friend SU set and BoHo wheel. I used a Riveting stamp on the ribbon. You can find the tutorial at 2-5-7-10 Box Tutorial

The oval is done with the Cuttlebug die. I punched it in blue and then again in white and then put the 2 parts together to form the inside with the coordinating "frame".

Delicious Blog (new feature)!

As part of my blog candy offer, readers gave me their 3 favorite blogs. I was delighted to find several I had never seen before. I put them in my favorites and have spent a week "ranking" blogs. I have the Delicious Blog category. These are the ones that I must look at when I can only see a few. These rank as some of my very favorites. I then have the Tasty Blog category which are the ones that are still must sees, but when I have more time. I then have a few others that I check out only when I have lots of time, but they still often have delightful treasures on them. I plan to start sharing my Delicious Blog choices one at a time. I will list the addy here and also LINK it on my blog roll on the side.

My first pick is Elaine's blog at http://agedtoperfection-elaine.blogspot.com/ This blog just is so eclectic and creative. I find myself amazed at some of the combinations of colors and designs that I would have never guessed would be so perfect when put together. Check it out and see if you don't also find this a "Delicious Blog"!

Paper Piecing

I have received several questions on the technique used on the apricot Voila card below. It is very easy to do. First I stamped the image on white. Then I restamped it on the pattern paper and then once again on the green. I then cut out the pieces and attached them where I wanted them to the image that had been stamped on white. This is a really fun technique! I often save the extra pieces and do another card where I reverse. For example, I could use the extra for a green coat and patterned pants.

Another BD card

SU Voila stamps were used with the paper piecing technique. The background is Cuttlebugged. I added Stickles to the cupcake and to the corner brads.

Happy Birthday!

This is for a friend's upcoming birthday. Main image is by Fancy Pants. The sentiment is SU and punched with the Word Window. After coloring I added Stickles to make it sparkle.

Paper Trey Lady

Having fun again with the Paper Trey Little Lady set.

Paper Trey? Did she or didn't she?

She did!! I was afraid they would run out of hinged tins right away. I was right!! So BEFORE the release, I ordered all my containers and other items. Then after the release I bought the Holiday Treats and the Believe sets and then ordered some red Primas to make my shipping free.

I cannot wait to try those labels in various colors and combos. That little open circle will allow for all kinds of images for all kinds of occasions! I DO love Paper Trey!!

Rooster

The rooster and the sunflower is from a retired SU set. The yellow background was done with a stamp simply called Toile Background (no brand on it) with Yellow Cadmium Chalk Ink. The paper is Daisy D.

Feels Like Fall!

The leaves are from an old SU set. The basket was found in a sale bin years ago and I have no idea of the brand.

Answering Questions

Firstly, I have had 3 people tell me that my links do not work. For some reason they sometimes work sporadically or I try repeatedly to get them to link and I cannot. This is why I refer people to my links on the left when you scroll down. To my knowledge, they do work consistently. I think that this is one of those flukey Mac things that happens now and then. All you have to do it is to cut and paste the address into your address bar if you find it won't work for you.

Q-What popular stamping items have you decided to forgo and why?

A-Well, I pretty much never say never. I can be hesitant and then later, at the right price or with the right experience, I can be won over. But at this moment I am still not going for the Copics. I just read of too many problems that others are having with them. It appears one needs to be quite an experienced artist in order to get a good result. I am just not there yet. I also am not, at this point, buying Nestabilities. Too expensive and I seem to be able to make due with other ways of getting the same effect. No Bellas for me yet. I know they are all the rage, but just not my style. The teacher one and the book one did make me pause, but it was the layout and the theme that attracted me and not the images themselves.

Q-What popular stamping items are you glad you bought?

A-Since I was able to find almost every one of my oval and circle scallop punches for about 40% or even more off the regular price, I am pretty happy with those. I really actually use them more than I expected. Also, I will never regret my Cuttlebug. It is still used A LOT!! The ATG gun remains probably my favorite purchase ever. That thing is such a dream in so many ways (nothing falls off, ease of use, savings is awesome, and the rolls last so long that I don't need to mess with them). I am still only on my third roll of ATG tape! I also still love my hot knife for unmounting.

Q-Have you ever regretted unmounting?

A-Not one bit. In fact I wish I had done it years before.

Q-Tell us your favorite UM stamp companies.

A-I have added a few more since I last posted about that. I have found Sideshow Stamps, Verve Visual, Lizzie Ann, Fancy Pants, and Crafty Secrets added to my love of Paper Trey and several others previously mentioned. I really think twice or even thrice before considering a wood mounted stamp because I am just going to toss that wood. As you noticed I am in love though with the SU True Friend set and yes, I am very happy that I cut it up for ease of use.

Q-I never see you refer to a Cropadile? Do you use one?

A-I don't think I need one. I have an eyelet setter and really don't even use it much anymore. I don't know what I would do with it. I have seen them all over the place but have never used one.

Q-Are we going to be seeing Christmas cards soon?

A-I LOVE Christmas stamping. By the time I am through you are going to be begging for me to quit with the Christmas. But--I do have a few more fall and Halloween things in the works and I am still happily using some floral sets currently also.

Just a Note

This is from the Crafty Secrets Bird Notes set. I colored it with watercolor crayons and mounted it on DCVW pearlized paper from the Luxury Stack. I purchased a package from Verve Visual and then I also found it 1/2 price at JoAnn so I bought another package that was 12 x 12 since I know I will be using lots of this gorgeous paper. The sheen is just perfect!

Pierced Flower

This is a card we did at 10 club. Using the piercing brass stencil was fun!

Lizzie Anne

I love these new unmounted stamps from the Jolies Fleurs set. Colored with Tombow markers and added some Stickles.

Amy, Your Blog Candy----

is on it's way! Enjoy!

Eat, Drink, and be Scary!

Made this card with my students a couple of years ago. They thought it was so much fun to add the spider web film across it made with a bag of pillow batting I had.

Check out this Japanese Blog!

You probably won't be able to read a word, but the cards are wonderful!!

http://makinkstudio.blogspot.com/

The Correct Winner of the Blog Candy

There was a little confusion about which Amy. I did not realized that "second" depends on how you have things ordered on your computer.

The winner is the Amy that posted this:
Amy said...
Oh my goodness! Just three, eh? Yikes! Well, here goes...

http://beate.blogs.splitcoaststampers.com

http://tayloredexpressions.blogspot.com

http://sweetmissdaisy.typepad.com

What a fantastic thing to collect as you travel around the world! Oh you've got the wheels turning here :-)

Contact me with your snail mail at rubyslippers@neofast.net

True Blue

I did this card using Impress Cerulean ink (same as the Tsukinko ink). I did cut the little flowers off the stem and then I went ahead and cut the 3 flowers apart too--see the post below about my rubber stamp surgery--, and they were a breeze to do the rock n' roll technique with for this card. The strip down the side was using the wheel that matches the set. The background is SU Aida. The dots around the oval are done with the Paper Trey Ovals set.

And the Blog Candy Winner IS----------

I drew 2 names because I ended up with enough ribbon to do 2 packages. The first one goes to Amy! (the second one on the list of posts)!
Amy please send your snail mail addy to rubyslippers@neofast.net and I will get that package out right away! (Amy has responded!)

I then drew a second name that happened to be a person for whom I already have a snail mail addy due to a previous "transaction" and so that person is going to get a package too! Just to add to the suspense, I am not announcing that name, but rather she will be just surprised when the package arrives in her mail box. Soooo, if you think I could possibly have have your snail mail addy (hint: think GW board) you might just find a package in your box unexpectedly.

This was so much fun that I will be doing more blog candy before Christmas. I already have something up my sleeve.

Additionally, thanks to you ladies, I found blogs that I had no idea that existed that were just delightful. I will be featuring some of those in the future. Watch for that!

You Make My Heart Sing

This is made using the Crafty Secrets Bird Notes clear stamp set. The birds are colored with watercolor crayons and then the edges are sponged with Dark Brown Colorbox Fluid Chalk ink. I used the same ink and the SU Linen background over the paisley paper to make it look more vintage. The background is made with the little feather in the set. Not sure if I like that. Kind of looks like fingerprints to me. I used a Cuttlebug die to get the little blue corner embellishment piece.

Blog Candy winner will be announced later today!

Only 4.5 hours to go (Blog Candy)

If you get a comment in before midnight PST, you are in the running for the ribbon. See below!

True Friend in Pink

I am SO glad I cut up my stamps. I have made several cards and it really does make it easier and allow for more options.

I used the set along with my Paper Trey stamps for this card. The flower and the dark pink images on the background are from the SU True Friend set. The white circles and the border around the sentiment and the sentiment are from the Circles set from Paper Trey. The dotted border above and below the flower are from the Faux Ribbon Paper Trey set. the flower is done in SU Pink Passion and then using Rock n' Roll technique I did the edges in Dark Peony Colorbox Fluid Chalk. The stem is Old Olive. The flower center is a metallic dot from JoAnn in a light pink.

For some reason the pink round sentiment looks like it doesn't match. In real life, in real light it does. Just could not get it to look right in the photo for some reason.

Check Out This Blog!

Thanks to all of you participating in the blog candy below (24 hours to go, ladies!) I am finding all kinds of wonderful new places to visit. Each of those has links to new places and I am finding the most wonderful sites out there. You really do need to visit Lily Bean at http://lilybeanpaperie.typepad.com/ (the link is at the left if you scroll down). It is beyond delightful. I went back through all her archives and was just sighing by the time I got through it.

Has She Finally Lost Her Mind?

Yes, my stomach does hurt when I make these decisions!

My True Friend set just arrived (thanks so much, Pam, you are a sweetie!!). I looked at it while unmounting it and decided once again--yes I did it to Heartfelt a long time ago too--to cut the stems off the flowers so that I would have more options. The pieces will work better for the Rock n' Roll technique if I don't have to deal with the stems. I won't have to use markers to do the colors on each section. I can use the flowers without the stems for background. The trio flower stamp may still get cut into 3 flowers and used individually for borders and such. I cut those parenthesis marks off the other sentiment stamp because, frankly, I just don't get them, nor do I like them. I will probably save them just in case I come up with a use for them. Hmmmm, I think I have an idea already. Watch for the possibilities!

Do you think I have lost my mind? Watch for samples and then you can decide. Or you can decide now if you want :)

Adding More Ribbon to the Blog Candy

Check out the Sept. 3 post for the original post on the blog candy. Today I unexpectedly got a ribbon order that I did not expect nearly so soon, soooooo I am adding more ribbon to the package. This is gorgeous 2 sided stitched satin ribbon to die for! I am also adding some of the others from this order. Go for it ladies!

Feeling Fall

The top part is SU and colored with my Caran d'Arche watercolor crayons. It is then mounted on apricot colored bazille that has a white core. I then Cuttlebugged the small image 3 times along the bottom and finished by sanding them with sandpaper until the white core began to show through. The sentiment is from Fancy Pants and the circle stamp is Paper Trey.

Happiness!

When I received my Verve Visual (link at left) order not long ago, Julee included a card made with the most gorgeous pearlized paper. I contacted her and she told me it was the DCWV Luxury Stack on SALE at Verve Visual. I ordered a package of it and it is literally a gold mine of luxurious pearlized papers. A paper from the large selection makes up the blue layer on this card. The background is Cuttlebugged with the Texture folder and then brayered with Champagne Metallic Encore ink on the raised parts. The leaf and the sentiment are SU. I got the ribbon at Craft Warehouse--love that reversible ribbon!

Don't forget to check out the RIBBON BLOG CANDY on the Sept. 3 post!!!

Summer is NOT Over? Is it?

The background is Cornish Heritage Rice Paper. The shirt is SU and the surfboards are Denami. Sentiment is from My Favorite Things set. Just had to have one last summery card.

Ribbon Blog Candy!

This is a picture of my new ribbon storage. Got the jars at Walmart for around $3 each.

I have been planning to do blog candy since I hit 10,000. I have been collecting ribbon for a long time. In my blog candy package is ribbon I got in Paris, France and ribbon I bought in Hawaii, along with 34 different ribbons and fibers from all over! Some lengths are 1/2 yard to 10 yards. Quite a variety!

All you have to do is leave a comment with links to your 3 favorite stamping blogs (please, no other kinds of blogs) and at least a first name before midnight PST on Sept. 8. Please choose the best of the best as I have plans for those links in the future. On Sept. 9 I will draw from all the names and will post that here so the winner can send me their snail mail addy to receive their gift of ribbon!!

US stampers only, please.

"Chenille" Robe and Bunny Slippers

I wanted this Rubber Romance girl to have a textured "chenille" robe so I ran some light blue through the Cuttlebug in the texture embossing folder and then cut it out and glued it to my watercolored image. I got the bunny slippers that I used on the background from the ATRS sale. They are Stampendous. The Perk Up sentiment is from my Crafty Secrets set. Ribbon is from JoAnn.

Possibilities!

The great thing about these new Verve Visual stamps (link at side) is that there are so many, many combinations as to how you can layer them. It really is fun. The background is SU Jumbo Swirl roller and the sentiment is Fancy Pants, one of my favorite clear stamp companies. You will need to click on the picture if you want to see the detailing of the stitching done with the Cutterbee piercing tool and the SU floral background on the dark rose colored square layer behind the flower.

Many Thanks

Verve Visual stamps. The main reason I bought this set was the tiny stamp that looked like cross stitch when repeated across the card, but I have totally fallen in love with this huge versatile set. Comes in 2 CD cases. By the way, they are on sale right now. Link on the list at the left. The design stamp in blue at the bottom is a free with order TAC stamp and the circle is done with the Cuttlebug small embossing folder and then punched out.

Great Tip!!

At the CTMH calendar go to Sept. 1 for a great tip: http://www.closetomyheart.com/nsm07/calendar.aspx

I never thought of using the BACKS of my acrylic stamps to create a shadow stamp exclusive to the image I am stamping. See a picture of this genius idea at the site linked!

Win a Free Stamp

Not hard to do! I went to the CTMH main site here: http://www.closetomyheart.com/nsm07/calendar.aspx and entered and already won one. I know several people who have one. I think they are giving away lots of stuff. Might be worth your time to try.

Hmmm-Wonder If I Could Make One

Bought this cute little chipboard purse because I like looking at it! I do plan to use it as a gift and the more I look at it the more I wonder how much work it would take to make one. It came with little note cards in it.