Popsicle stick flower Easel card - Crafting with Dragonflies GDT

I'm pleased to be guesting designing along with the talented Crafting with Dragonflies team for their next two challenges! Today begins their two-week Make your own flower embellishment challenge.

I made an easel card with two punched flowers:

We enjoyed many a Popsicle this summer, so I'm trying to find a creative use for them! I punched a hole in it with my Crop-O-Dile. The flowers were made with a Recollections 3-in-one stamp/punch set:

This is a fun punch; you ink one of three flower shapes, place it into the punch, and you get a nice punched flower with an embossed edge. It works really nicely; I recently used it with my friend's two young daughters and we were all very entertained!

I got fancy and used Versamark watermark ink and heat-embossed the stamp. Then I ran the shape through my BigShot with an embossing folder, and then lightly sanded the Core'Dinations paper. I did the same thing with the leaves, which were cut with a Sixxiz die. I shaped the flowers and sprayed them with a matte coating to help retain their shape. I punched a hole and secured the flower with a brad.

The "Best Wishes" sentiment is a gold sticker that I colored with a silver Sharpie before adhering.

For the background on the front of the card, I inked an embossing folder with China Blue distress ink and ran it through my BigShot. I used the same technique for the "grass".

Inspiration/Challenges:
Crafting with Dragonflies #14: Make your own flower embellishment (on its own or on something, card, scrap page whatever...No Halloween)

A Gem of a Challenge #103: More than one Fold
Crafting When We Can #56: Make your own flowers
Fashionable Stamping Challenge #59: Make a Card
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Anything Goes

Many thanks to the Crafting with Dragonflies team for letting me join them for this fun challenge. Hope you all will join us! Thank you for visiting,

Cute Halloween - Love to Create GDT

I'm very pleased to be guest designing with the Love to Create team this week! I was one of the prize winners for Love to Create's "Fancy Folds" Challenge, and being invited to GD was icing on the cake. 

The Love To Create Challenge theme this week is "Halloween" and our sponsor is Stamp Fairy, so I used their adorable Barry Halloween digi stamp:

The bear was covered with Teddy Bear Flower Soft, and the bag was colored with Copics. I ran the ghost-sheet layer through my sticker machine and covered it with white satin ribbon (May Arts). I cut out the eyes and covered them with Glossy Accents.

For this Tall Step Card, I used Glenda's tutorial at The Stamp Camp. The base DP is from October Afternoon's Witch Hazel Collection, and the three coordinating DPs are from Graphic 45's [out-of-print] Magic of OZ Collection. I edged everything with a bright orange ink.

The Clear Shapes are from Making Memories (they are actually adhesive, so I left the backing on), and the tiny license plate is by Junkitz. The little candy-corns are from a rubber stamp set by Studio G, and I colored them with Sakura glaze pens.

I'm entering this set into the following challenges:
(Oops! I scheduled this post and then forgot to enter the challenges I had selected! So I'm entering them on Wednesday instead of Monday; This isn't back-linking, it's more like late-linking!)
A Gem of a Challenge #103: More than one Fold
By LORi Designs #58: Trick or Treat

Simon Says Stamp: Halloween/Halloween Colors (5th entry)
Stampavie and More: Bear

Thank you for visiting,

December Guest Designer at Eureka Stamps

I'm very tickled to announce that I was invited to be the December Guest Designer at Eureka Stamps! They have so many adorable and creative stamps — both digi and rubber.

Today begins their 17th challenge, with the theme of Winter Wonderland. Their store has lots of images that would work for this challenge, but I chose the fantastically fun Santa & Dillos. 

Although this card may not portray a traditional winter wonderland, for many in this world we have more sun than snow at the holidays! I'm visiting my folks in Sun City West, Arizona, so I had the perfect backdrop!

Challenges:

1. Crimbo Crackers #29 - Anything holiday/festive goes 
2. ATCs & Cards With Attitude - Anything Goes
3. DL.ART Thankful Thursday Challenge - December holiday 
4. Fussy and Fancy - I Love Christmas 
5. Jingle Belles - Anything (Holiday) Goes   
6. Paper Shelter Challenge #92 - Christmas 
7. Penny's Paper-Crafty #104 - More than 1 fold   
8. Stamp n Doodle - Fabulous folds
9. Wags 'n Whiskers - Christmas 
10. Winter Wonderland - Santa Claus is coming to town

I made a simple step card modeled after this one, made by my crafty inspiration, my wonderful Mom:

Thank you for visiting,