A Thank You Pear - CS40S

Hello all!!!  Wow two posts in two days!  Well, over on the Creative Sketches blog it's Thursday and time for another sketch!

The sketch this week made me stop and think for a minute and I wasn't quite sure what I was I going to do!  But once I looked at my dsp and thought of the new stamps I wanted to ink up, it just fell into place from there!  Don't you just love it when that happens?? :)

The card base is Whisper White, layered with Poppy Parade and a piece from the Pocket Full of Posies dsp.  Now, I have to admit when I first looked at this dsp in our pre-order period, I wasn't all that thrilled.  I mean I like retro and funky, but this seemed even a little funky for me!  But, I ordered to give it a try and I have to say I am glad that I did.  I've been cutting into it like crazy!

The center panel is Pear Pizzazz layered with WW.  I stamped the pear from one of the new hostess exclusive sets, Faith in Nature.  I used black staz on and then watercolored with the different stamp pad lids.  I really like how my pear turned out!  Not sure how much you can see, but I spritzed it with my Soft Suede marker after.  The sentiment is stamped in Poppy And a piece of linen thread is also wrapped around it.

The double ribbon strips are punched from So Saffron and then pearls are attached.  The entire center panel is is up on dimensionals.

Enjoy!!!

Happy Stamping!!!

~~~~Ann~~~

GCA #137 - Buy Anything New Lately???

Hello all!!!  Yes, I seem to be behind the eight ball lately!  Leaving for convention next week and I spent the entire weekend working on my swaps to get ready.  Besides doing the normal things like laundry, starting to pack, buying groceries and dealing with a totally annoying (non-life threatening) family drama.  My friend who is going out to convention with me and I, are driving out to Salt Lake City!!!!  Are we crazy you ask??  Maybe, but we are going to see how it goes!  We've traveled several times before and do it fine together.  I'm just excited to be going!

So, in reference to the new catalog year with Stampin' Up!, have you seen it?  I love this catalog and think it just may be one of my faves.  I'm trying very hard to resist buying anything from the catalog until after convention.  We did have a pre-order period of sneak peek products and that is what I have to show you today.  Two card, actually!!  So I'm going to keep the descriptions short.

Both of the cards use one of the new In-Colors - Pool Party!  Think this is my new fave!!  They also use Not Quite Navy, Wild Wasabi and WW.

The first card uses the new Pennant Parade set along with the co-ordinating Pennant Punch.This is a double punch that gives you both the scalloped one and the smaller layered pennant.  The "Thank U" is in the set.  The dsp is from the new set of "Just Add Cake".  White baker's twine was used to string the pennant's "together".

The second card uses the Touch of Kindness set from the current Summer mini.  New to me since I just ordered it!  It is the most delightful set, too!  I watercolored the birdbath and such and then on the water drops I added some of smooch paint, but you can't see it very well.  The belly of the kitty is paper pieced.  One other brand new item this year is the Lace Ribbon border punch.  OMG!!!!  I'm in love!!!

Upload your creation to either your blog or to an online gallery and post a link to your creation to this blog entry by July 9, 2011 at 12 midnight. I will choose the winner the next day. If you upload your card to SCS, PaperCraft Planet, Stampin' Addicts, Stampin' Connection (for SU! demos) or Stamp TV, please put GCA137 in your keywords. That way everyone can see all of the wonderful creations at once!


Even if you can't make the deadline, PLEASE feel free to participate in the challenges and upload your creations at any time. I would love to see it!

Happy Stamping!!!!

~~~Ann~~~~ 

GCA #136 Winner is....

.....Rebecca!!!!!  You can view all of Rebecca's work on her blog Little Miss Princess Scrapper.  She makes delightful cards so pay her a visit.  Here is her winning card for this week:

Thanks to all who stopped by, played along, left comments or just took a look!

Up Next:  GCA #137 - Buy Anything New Lately???

Happy Stamping!!!!

~~~Ann~~~

GCA #136 - The Colors of America!

Hello all!!!  Did you think I forget?  Had a stamp class today and finished cleaning up.  Always have fun spending time with my stampin ladies.

A week from tomorrow will be July 4th.  And for those in America, that means lost of celebrating and honoring the colors of our country.  So the challenge for this week is to use the colors of:

RED
WHITE
BLUE

That's it.  No special focus on images or anything, just use the above colors on your project and have fun!  I'll have my sample up in just a bit.

Upload your creation to either your blog or to an online gallery and post a link to your creation to this blog entry by July 2, 2011 at 12 midnight. I will choose the winner the next day. If you upload your card to SCS, PaperCraft Planet, Stampin' Addicts, Stampin' Connection (for SU! demos) or Stamp TV, please put GCA136 in your keywords. That way everyone can see all of the wonderful creations at once!



Even if you can't make the drawing deadline, PLEASE feel free to participate in the challenges and upload your creations at any time. I would love to see it!

Happy Stamping!!!!


~~~Ann~~~~ 

GCA #135 Winner is....

...... Flipsi AKA Sabine from Germany!!!!  You really should visit her blog, Flipsis Stamp Corner, and see amazing works of art.  She does some very unique tags.  That is what she made for her entry for this weeks challenge.  Thanks for playing along Sabine.

Is this neat or what???  Thanks to everyone who played along this week,stopped by for a peek or left comments.

Up next:  GCA #136 - The Colors of America!

Happy Stamping!!!!

~~~~Ann~~~~

Summer is here and Getting Creative with Ann is back!!!!

Hello all!!!!  Well, getting back into the swing of things is much easier said than done!  Now that I actually feel like I have creative thoughts flowing in my head I seem to run out of time to put them together!!  I have alot of sketches and notes, but not a lot of completed projects!!  Ever happen to you?  Hopefully that changes now.

This week, actually June 21st, is the actual first day of summer.  Are you ready?  I know that I am.  Before we know it, all that white stuff will be here again and it will be cold and icky out!!  Until then, lets celebrate summer!!!

Anything you can create that celebrates the beauty and fun of summer is up for grabs!  Show your love for summer fruit, the water, beverages or whatever! 

What's better in summer than lemons, oranges and friends?  Odd combo, but it's summer so does it matter???  This cute set, Tart and Tangy, is soon to retire at the end of the month.  I have really liked using this set and am sad to see it go.  But, in the new catalog there is an equally cuter set to take it's place.  The sentiment comes from Simply Said, another retiring set.

I started here with a Whisper White card base and layered with Daffodil Delight and another layer of WW.  The bottom part was put through the Big Shot using the Perfect Polka Dots folder.  Strips of sticky strip just above the embossed part holds the ribbon down.  And the white pom-pom trim is not SU!  I was trying to make the lemons and oranges look as if they were "attempting" to balance on the card, sort of going with the saying.  Make sense?

Now, as I stated in my post here, I am making some slight changes to the GCA.  Primarily with the "stampin' goodie" packages that I send to the winners.  As much as I love to send these packages out, for multiple reasons I find it is not realistic for me to do so.  Time is my biggest factor with many changes happening at work that are going to be pulling me away from home more often.  In place of the stampin' goodie packages I will be choosing one person each week as that week's "Creative Stamper".  The card will be highlighted on my blog and a link to the stampers blog, or gallery, will be provided.  I really want to come up with a "blinkie" to give out to each "Creative Stamper", but I have very limited knowledge about putting those types of things together.  If anyone out there knows how, or know where I could get the info to do so, I would soooo appreciate the direction.

I am also looking into the Mr. Linky program for adding your entries too.

Upload your creation to either your blog or to an online gallery and post a link to your creation to this blog entry by June 25, 2011 at 12 midnight. I will choose the winner the next day. If you upload your card to SCS, PaperCraft Planet, Stampin' Addicts, Stampin' Connection (for SU! demos) or Stamp TV, please put GCA135 in your keywords. That way everyone can see all of the wonderful creations at once!

Even if you can't make the drawing deadline, PLEASE feel free to participate in the challenges and upload your creations at any time. I would love to see it!

Happy Stamping!!!!

~~~Ann~~~~ 

Where in the World has Ann been......????

…..well I haven’t been out seeing the world, that’s for sure!!! Yes, I know it’s been over a month since I last posted. And in my last post I commented that I had been dealing with dreaded migraines. I actually wound up at the emergency room one afternoon because it got so bad.

Needless to say, my doctor has seen me more this past month than he usually does in a year! I feel like I’ve been poked and prodded from every end. Not really, but almost!!

So, long story short, and not to bore you with my issues, the month of May is pretty much a blur to me. We played around with my medications, taking some away and adding some. One he added is Topamax. Anyone who suffers from migraines and takes this medication knows that when you first start it, it practically can drain you of all your energy. That is one reason why I have resisted going to it, but it just came to the point where I had no choice. And on top of that I have not been sleeping well at night for some time, so that meant I barely made it through the day and the thought of stamping, and blogging, at night was not happening. Even the weekends were spent sleeping or just laying on the couch.

However, I am extremely happy to say that I am on the road back to “life”! The Topamax appears to be doing what it needs to for the initial dose, but I suspect it will need to be increased. All of the tests I went through have come back normal (so I have proof that I am normal!!!), except for the sleep study I had. Still waiting for the results, but I believe that I will be doing a second one with a CPAP machine on.

And I finally feel like stamping, and blogging, again. It really hurt that I couldn’t stamp or blog. I love sharing my work with all of you and I so appreciate each and everyone of you that stops by to visit. So you can expect to see more postings again from me.  Like, starting tomorrow!!!!  The Getting Creative with Ann challenges will resume this Sunday, June 12th. Some changes are coming, but I’ll post that in another post.

Again, thank you to all who have continued to stop by, send me emails to see how I was and just say hi. I wasn’t ignoring you, but computer time wasn’t a top priority either.

Happy Stamping!!!!!
 
~~~Ann~~~

GCA #134 - Anything Goes with Animals!!

Hello all!!!!  Sorry for the delay in posting, but I am finally back to the land of the living!!!  After a week and half migraine, many trips to the doctor and many drugs!, the migraine is finally gone!!!!!  I seriously hate those things and if the weather we have already had is any indicator of what's to come this summer, boy am I in trouble.  So yesterday was spent in relaxing and doing much of nothing!!

This week we are going to focus on animals!  Any type of animals.  Bunnies, goats, horses, sheep or even rats!  As long as they fit into the animal kingdom somewhere!!  I know there are many stamp companies out there that have some unusual stamp images and I hope to see some this week!!

My sample will be up either tonight or tomorrow.  Posting this from work right now.

Upload your creation to either your blog or to an online gallery and post a link to your creation to this blog entry by May 7, 2011 at 12 midnight. I will choose the winner the next day. If you upload your card to SCS, PaperCraft Planet, Stampin' Addicts, Stampin' Connection (for SU! demos) or Stamp TV, please put GCA134 in your keywords. That way everyone can see all of the wonderful creations at once!


Even if you can't make the drawing deadline, PLEASE feel free to participate in the challenges and upload your creations at any time. I would love to see it! And yes, my challenge is open to everyone who visits, even if you live outside the US!

Happy Stamping!!!!

~~~Ann~~~~ 

Winner of GCA #133 is....

..... Tara from Homemade Happiness!  Check out out her fantastic baby card on her blog!  Tara please send me your snail mail address to amf1066@comcast.net and I will get a stampin' goodie package out to you.

Thanks to all for playing along last week!!

Up Next:  GCA #134 - Anything Goes with Animals!!!

Happy Stamping!!!

~~~Ann~~~

Hello Baby Cakes - GCA133

Hello all!!!  We had a gorgeous day here in Michigan, but we are also under a tornado watch!  That must mean that spring is here!

Here's another baby sample for this week.  I made this on Sunday with the leftovers from the cards I made the grandkids.  Guess I was having too much fun with the quilting technique!!

With these squares I just randomly, in some order, put them together!!  Make sense?  Once I had the pattern I wanted, I went around each square with my white gel pen and did the faux stitching.  Doesn't show up too much after I embossed it with the Elegant Lines ebf.  Backed it with a Crumb Cake layer.

The sentiment and white/pear scallop oval come from the Nursery Suites Quick Accents.  I used my oval scallop from the Movers & Shapers set and then backed that with a Whisper White decorative label punch.  The overall set is up on very thick dimensionals.  Then, I used dimensionals under the pear scallop layer and one more under the sentiment.

The baby jammies is from the Simple Life level 1 hostess set out of the Occasions mini.  I used paper piecing by stamping first on WW in Brown staz on and then again onto the dsp.  The heart is punched from the owl punch and popped up with a tiny dimensional.  A mini library clip with the new WW baker's twine finishes that off.

The scrunched ribbon is using the Crumb Cake seam binding and then pulling a thread from the middle of it.  I've tried to do this many times and usually break the thread I'm pulling on!  But this time it worked perfectly and I am very happy with the end result.

The finished size of this card is 4 1/4 x 4 1/4 and has a WW card base.

Happy Stamping!!!

~~~Ann~~~

GCA #133 - Anything Baby!!!

Hello all!!!!  Happy Easter to all who celebrate this wonderful day!

With the blossoming of spring, new buds on the trees, flowers coming up and the birds returning, what does that make you think of?  Babies, right?  And not just people babies, but the baby birds, animals and plants!  Yes, I said plants!  They are babies too to start with.

My sample for today is three cards made with the Nursery Suites dsp and Quick Accents that coordinate.  I actually made these for my grandchildren's Easter cards, but they can easily be baby cards too.  I purposely left off a sentiment on the outside and will write each of them something inside.

I also created one of the "Quilted Cards" that was recently spotlighted on SCS.  It was much easier to make than I thought it would be and I really like how it came out.

The two blue/green cards are for Cameron and Malaki and the pink one is for Alysha.  So happy to have a baby girl to create for now!!!  Love my boys, but there is something special about girls!!

Upload your creation to either your blog or to an online gallery and post a link to your creation to this blog entry by April 30, 2011 at 12 midnight. I will choose the winner the next day. If you upload your card to SCS, PaperCraft Planet, Stampin' Addicts, Stampin' Connection (for SU! demos) or Stamp TV, please put GCA133 in your keywords. That way everyone can see all of the wonderful creations at once!

Even if you can't make the drawing deadline, PLEASE feel free to participate in the challenges and upload your creations at any time. I would love to see it! And yes, my challenge is open to everyone who visits, even if you live outside the US!


Happy Stamping!!!!

~~~Ann~~~~ 

Winner of GCA 132 is....

..... Kelly from Kelly's Kreative Korner!!!!  Check out her delightful stair step card done with heat embossing!  Kelly please email me your address so I can send you out a stampin' goodie package to amf1066@comcast.net.

Thanks to all who stopped by, played along and left a comment!!!  All of you are much appreciated!

Up Next: GCA#133 - Anything Baby!!!

Happy Stamping!!!!

~~~Ann~~~

GCA #132 - Anything Goes with a Technique!!

Hello all!!!  Sorry for the late posting.  Actually, I thought I had it posted earlier and just needed to add my sample!  Oh, well!

So, the challenge this week is "Anything Goes" theme wise, but with the additional twist of using a technique. Is it required to use a specific technique? No. I just like finding all the new techniques that I can!! If you do use a technique you found on a blog, in a paper craft mag or even one you came up with, let us know so we can check it out too!!  A couple of sites I can lead you to is SCS - Try a New Technique challenge and Technique Junkies.

Actually the sample I have for you tonight is one of the technique cards we did at club today.  This one is called Faux Mother-of-Pearl.  And does it pack a WOW!!  A little messy, but the results are worth it.

Started with a card base of Daffodil Delight, folded at the top.  On a piece of Whisper White the swirl from Baroque Motifs was stamped in Wild Wasabi and the flower in Tangerine Tango.  Once those were stamped the entire piece was run through the Big Shot using the Square Lattice ebf.  Sort of gives the panel the look of fabric, doesn't it?  I took my inspiration for this card from one I saw on Stampin' Connection by Brenda Ruse.

The butterflies were cut with the Butterfly die and Big Shot with glossy white card stock. 

To create the Faux MOP look you need shimmer paint, preferably white, plain or glossy white card stock, paper plate, plastic wrap and ink.  Here's how it goes:

1.  Pour a little of the shimmer paint onto a paper plate.  Scrunch up the plastic wrap and lightly dip into the paint.  Dab off excess if needed.
2.  Dab the paint over the image, or panel, randomly.  Leave parts of the card stock open.
3.  Set aside to dry.  Doesn't take long.
4.  Once dry, use a sponge or brayer to cover the image or panel with the ink of your choice.  On my sample the large butterfly is sponged with Daffodil Delight and the smaller one with Tangerine Tango.
5.  Set these aside to dry for a few minutes.  Then embellish and finish your card!

Daffodil Delight 1/8" taffeta and white crochet thread finishes off the butterfly.

Upload your creation to either your blog or to an online gallery and post a link to your creation to this blog entry by April 23, 2011 at 12 midnight. I will choose the winner the next day. If you upload your card to SCS, PaperCraft Planet, Stampin' Addicts, Stampin' Connection (for SU! demos) or Stamp TV, please put GCA132 in your keywords. That way everyone can see all of the wonderful creations at once!

Even if you can't make the drawing deadline, PLEASE feel free to participate in the challenges and upload your creations at any time. I would love to see it! And yes, my challenge is open to everyone who visits, even if you live outside the US!

Happy Stamping!!!!

~~~Ann~~~~ 

GCA #131 Winner is....

.....Glenda from Gilby's Corner!!!  Take a moment to check out her cute card and the fabulous site she got her sketch from!

Thanks to all who stopped by or played along!!!

Up Next:  GCA#131 - Anything Goes with a Technique!!

Happy Stamping!!!

~~~Ann~~~

Creative Sketches Color Challenge - 28 & Diva Inspiration

Hello all!!!  Another week has come and gone and here we are at another Thursday.  Time for both the Creative Sketches and UDI Blog Inspiration challenges!!!

The challenge this week on Creative Sketches is to use the colors of Daffodil Delight, Bashful Blue and Elegant Eggplant.  What a combo!!!  I played with this combo some the other day for my GCA 131 card.   I have to say that the Bashful Blue threw me for a loop!

So, I started with a Whisper White card base and the sketch from Stamping 411 for this week.  A nice easy and clean sketch.  Worked for me with these colors!  And I pulled out a stamp set that I haven't used, at all, and put ink to it!!  (And I buy more why???)

I used Silhouette Sentiments, a level 1 hostess set.  Since the Bashful Blue was throwing me off, I tried to keep it to a minimum.  I stamped the weedy flower image in Bashful Blue, randomly.  With the sketch you can really use anything on the left hand side, so I stamped the images in the three colors.  The smaller flower which I stamped in Elegant Eggplant, is from Because I Care, another level 1 hostess set.  Notice the theme???

The rest is really quite simple, and easy.  I stamped the bird/branch and then stamped the bird again and cut it out.  It's popped up with dimensionals.  Whisper White taffeta and Daffodil Delight 1/8" taffeta were used with white crochet thread tied around and through the button to hold it on.

If you get a minute, check out each of the sites and play along!!

Happy Stamping!!!

~~~Ann~~~

GCA #131 - Anything Goes with a Sketch!!!


Hello all!!!  Today is a fabulously warm and beautiful day in my area of Michigan!!!  It's at least 80* out!  Not to last forever, but the temps coming up this week aren't so bad either.

I haven't done an "Anything Goes" challenge in awhile, but this one has a slight twist.  I've said it on here many times that I LOVE sketches.  Any time I find a new one, or a card with an unusual layout, I make I save it!  There are so many blogs out there now that have specific sketch challenges and one of them I happen to be a design team member of!!  What a plug, I know!  Check out the Creative Sketches blog to see all of the fabulous sketches they have.

So, the challenge this week is "Anything Goes" theme wise, but with the additional twist of using a sketch.  Is it required to use a specific sketch?  No.  I just like finding all the new sketches that I can!!  If you do use a sketch you found on a blog, in a paper craft mag or even one you came up with, let us know so we can check it out too!!

My sample this week is using the weekly sketch challenge on Mary Jo's blog, TechnoStamper.  She posts a new sketch every Monday.

Upload your creation to either your blog or to an online gallery and post a link to your creation to this blog entry by April 16, 2011 at 12 midnight. I will choose the winner the next day. If you upload your card to SCS, PaperCraft Planet, Stampin' Addicts, Stampin' Connection (for SU! demos) or Stamp TV, please put GCA131 in your keywords. That way everyone can see all of the wonderful creations at once!

Even if you can't make the drawing deadline, PLEASE feel free to participate in the challenges and upload your creations at any time. I would love to see it! And yes, my challenge is open to everyone who visits, even if you live outside the US!

Happy Stamping!!!!

~~~Ann~~~~ 

Winner of GCA #130 is.....

..... Hazel!!!  You can see her fabulous card on her blog My Crafty Outlook.  So soft and pretty, I am sooo looking forward to spring!!!

Thanks to mall who stopped by this week!!

Up Next:  GCA #131 - Anything Goes with a Sketch!

~~~Happy Stamping!!!

~~~Ann~~~

Clearly for Mother - GCA130 & LNS115

Hello all!!!  I have another Mother's day card to show you today.  As you know this is the theme for this week's GCA and for the Late Night Stampers group I belong to.

Actually, for me, this card turned out to be quite CAS!!  Doesn't happen very often, but I used the sketch from the Create with Connie and Mary blog that just said CAS to me.  And, I was able to use up some scraps that I had laying around!  Bonus!!!

The card base is Whisper White, layered with a piece of the Love Impressions textured dsp (still available in the Occasions mini).  The panel was cut at 3 3/4 x 5 to leave some of the card base showing.

For the main image I decided to open up, and use, the Beveled windowpanes I've had since the Occasions mini came out!!  I also used the stamp set, Clearly for You, which coordinates with the windowpanes.  Pretty in Pink satin wraps and holds the windowpane to the card.  These are tricky little things to play with, but I do like the end result!  I used a piece of Crumb Cake seam binding around the know and used a hat pin (non SU!, but we no longer carry these!) through the middle.

Not sure how well you can see in the photo, but I also used my Tea Stain distress ink around the edges and on the crown.

Happy Stamping!!!

~~~Ann~~~

GCA #130 - Happy Mother's Day!!!

Hello all!!!  Finally, I have the never-ending wedding invites done!!!  I am so envious of those stampers who can do CAS to perfection!  I have another set to do later this year and I will definitely be doing them CAS!!!

While Easter is late this year, it seems that Mother's Day is EARLY!!  (We can never win can we??)  So, anything related to Mother's Day: cards, scrapbook pages, gifts or whatever are in order for this week. 

My sample for this week's GCA is also a combo with the Late Night Stampers weekly challenge of Mother's Day.  And, I was also asked to be the guest designer for April!  How cool is that??  Now I'm really nervous about posting my work!

The card today is really quite simple and easy.  The base is Very Vanilla textured (and leftover from the invites), the second panel is plain Very Vanilla and the punched scallops and circles are Peach Parfait textured.  The dsp is from Sweet & Sour.  The sketch is from Clean & Simple stamping - FTL134.

Upload your creation to either your blog or to an online gallery and post a link to your creation to this blog entry by April 9, 2011 at 12 midnight. I will choose the winner the next day. If you upload your card to SCS, PaperCraft Planet, Stampin' Addicts, Stampin' Connection (for SU! demos) or Stamp TV, please put GCA130 in your keywords. That way everyone can see all of the wonderful creations at once!

Even if you can't make the drawing deadline, PLEASE feel free to participate in the challenges and upload your creations at any time. I would love to see it! And yes, my challenge is open to everyone who visits, even if you live outside the US!


Happy Stamping!!!!


~~~Ann~~~~ 

GCA #129 Winner is....

......Carlie from Carlie Bug!!!!  Not too many girls her age craft and blog, but I'm glad she does!!!  She is very creative with her work.  Check out her blog and she what I mean!!  Carlie please send me your snail mail addy to amf1066@comcast.net and I will get a stampin' goodie package out to you.  Please make sure it's alright with your mom or dad that you do.  Thanks for coming by and playing along.

Thanks to all who stopped by, left comments and played along.  Sorry for being so late, but these wedding invites seem to be never ending!!!!!

Up Next:  GCA #130 - Happy Mother's Day!!!

Happy Stamping!!!

~~~Ann~~~