stamping on pre - purchased invitations

Hello Friends, Sorry that it's been so long. I hope this post finds you healthy, happy and creating :)

My step dad is turning 70 and I wanted to create invitations to mark this special Birthday. My mom and step dad denied my request but,  I'm happy about that. I was able to transform the store bought invitations by trimming, stamping, coloring and adding another layer.

What they did was walk on over to the Paper Source, purchased some kraft invitations that say "join us!" and printed them on their printer. So proud of them.

This is how it looked before I got to add my stamping on the invitations.  (I erased some of the information to protect their privacy.)

This was my final and there are a few more below that I "submitted" to my mom and step dad. My mom said, "Stop creating and pick one" in the nicest way possible. 

After stamping several times with this stamp (from Penny Black called "Breezy") and different shades of inks I colored on top of the stamping with a turquoise & green colored pencil. I really outlined and shaded with the pencils...pretty quick and easy.

This is the first one I did and parts of me love this the most but, it's not the right feel for the party.  This is the stamp and now I understand why some stamps are better in a smaller size. I love what these circles did for the invitation. (this one was embossed with white and colored with distress markers) splashed with Dylusions ink spray.

After embossing this one in white I felt it was to bight but, found it was faster to color when it was embossed so ultimately I decided against the circles after stamping the one below. 

This one was stamped with turquoise which I really liked but, my ink pad was dry and it took to long to color when it's not embossed. Don't get me wrong I like to work on projects like this stuff but, I had a quick turnaround time.
Off to spend time with my Birthday boy husband. Enjoy your week and thanks for stopping by. Hugs, Kathy

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Lil Pad Color challenge

Hello Friends, How was your week?? Anything exciting happening in your life? I'm pretty dang excited because my son comes home tonight from college! I haven't seen him since Christmas so you can image that this is the best Mother's Day gift of all.

This floral card was created for Lily Pad's Color challenge that's being sponsored by Globe Craft. Did you can really notice the dimension in this card? It's a globe that gives my card mega depth!! Click here to see what the talented DT(at Lily Pad) has created with these fun globes and read more about them too on the Lily Pad blog.


Before we get started I have to tell you that I finally bought one of the new Spellbinders "M-Bossabilities" and I LOVE the crisp impression you get plus the embossing flower is reversible!! So cool! This is the one I used and there are so many more on my list. 

What do you think of these flowers? This stamp is number ONE on my favorite list and it's a must have in my book...It's called "Floral Thread"from Penny Black . I promise to let you know when it's available . I used the color challenge at LP as my starting point and pulled some Copic colors from this Copic book (that I refer to ALL the time & it keeps track of al the colors I own) . It's soooooo nice to know that my punched butterflies (thanks Martha...this is my all time favorite punch too) will remain with properly fluffed wings because of the protection the globe provides. 

The butterflies were colored with Copics and I put a black edge on them with the side of a marker because it makes them stand out better. Now....notice the yummy dots on the flowers....they were created with this and I use it all the time. Worth every penny :) The enamel accents really truly adds that little extra to your projects/cards. 

And so it begins. These are a few of the pieces that come with your globe. White paper ready to stamp on. I stamped my background first with Memento Ink. This frame was colored simply and I added white dots with this and set it aside. This photo is a good one of the globe and I was really happy with the result of applying flowers to the TOP of the globe. After coloring more flowers and cutting them out I attached them with Glossy Accents to the outside of the globe. Super easy and so dramatic. 

Sometimes it faster to color the paper and make it your own then it is to search for the right color of paper. It's a snap to color & don't worry about blending it because you can add texture by dampening a rag with this and dabbing it onto the orange.

This is not the best photo of the texture but, you get the idea. Next time I will NOT color the inside rim orange. You can see it peaking out on the photo...leaving it white would have blended in better. Here is a card with the same technique. 

This is a better look of the butterflies. Love this sentiment...the sizes are awesome and I love the fonts too.  Off to bed ... we had an open house today for the agents and I barely have any energy left. Have a wonderful Mother's Day to all of you mommas in the US. Thanks so much for visiting me. Hugs, Kathy

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Hello Friends, How are you? Today I have "just a note" card for you. The butterfly is one of my favorites and it's from Penny Black. This paper is from Lawn Fawn and I love it's fresh, bright colors.
Have you been checking out all of the new stamps at Penny Black? Did you see the new card Kit at Simon Says Stamp for June. It's amazing!!!!!! The value is incredible too!
Just a quick post and a quick thanks for your visit. Hugs, Kathy

P.S. I almost forgot to share my new favorite kraft paper here :)

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Make a wish for a 60th Birthday & SSS card kit winner

Hello Friends, Did you have a nice weekend?? I sure hope so :) Our families first grandson....my nephew graduated from college this weekend. It was fun, busy and so emotional. 
Today's card was created for one of my dear friends Birthday. This digital image is from A Day for Daises and this sentiment is from SRM stickers.  

I has so much fun pulling out my Copic markers to color this sweet image. The background paper is Basic Grey and it's called Kioshi and it comes in a 6x6 paper pack. 

I love making these backgrounds. Here is mini tutorial just in case you are interested. Distress the edges before you glue it down really gives the paper a richness. 

After I colored her hair with Copic markers I put this on the hair ...I applied it with a paint brush using these brushes...they are so reasonable and such good quality.  Clean your brush and add more stickles to spots in the sand and the mermaids body.

Don't forget to add some sparkle to her eye lids and the gold fish. If you add some Glossy Accents on top of the Stickles I think you will like the results. 


AND NOW FOR THE WINNER OF Simon Say's Stamp's May card kit. See the post here. 
a big congrats to SARAH. 

Have a great week and like I always say...I am so happy you stop by. Hugs, Kathy

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Hello Friends, Happy May Day! May is an extremely busy month for us with lots of Birthday's, Graduations, Prom and Open Houses. My son coming home from college is definitely the highlight for me! I haven't picked up any markers for 5 days and I'm starting to go nuts but, this weekend I was fortunate enough to fit in two  of Fred Mullett's classes. The class I found most inspiring was  ADVANCED embossing. I can't wait to share and create with the new techniques I learned. You can read some of Fred's tips right here. Fred created some beautiful stamps and I love many of his fish images. This particular fish fish is what I created in class using the embossing techniques and water colors.
Anything new with you? Have a great day and thanks for poppin by. Hugs, Kathy