Newton's Nook Designs September Release: Boo Crew

I have the pleasure of being the September guest designer at Newton's Nook.  I love September because I get to work with fall and Halloween stamps.  Newton's Nook has some of the cutest that I have seen. Today, the focus is Boo Crew - a charming Halloween set full of pets and forest creatures in their Halloween costumes! (Be sure to read all the way to the bottom for a chance to win this set.)

My first card puts the sweet little mummy bear in the forest at a Halloween party!!  He looks ready for more treats, doesn't he?


I was still in forest mood when I started playing with the vampire bunny!!

The bunny card uses the sketch from the Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge.

And then I just had to do one more....another forest scene.  (There actually are non-forest animals in this set - I'll be using some of those in the next few weeks!)

Would you like to win Boo Crew?

This set will be given away to Two lucky winners! 

Here's how to win: 

1. Comment on Newton's Nook Design blog: http://www.newtonsnookblog.com. One Winner will be randomly chosen from the comments on the September release posts.

2. Comment on the Design Team Member and Guest blogs (see list below)! One winner will be chosen at random from the collective blogs in the September release blog hop. Make sure to check out each of their blogs and comment for your chance to win. You will not know which blog has been chosen so the more you comment on the better your chances are of winning! You have until Thursday, September 12th at 9 pm Central Standard Time to comment  -- winners will be announced on the blog post on Friday, September 13th.

Make sure you check out all the blogs participating in the Launch Party below to enter:

Tessa Wise

Jocelyn Olson

Samantha Mann

Emily Leiphart

Jennifer Ingle

Kim Singdahlsen (Guest Designer)

Seize the Sketch with Merry Monday: Peace, Joy, Love

I really wanted to play along with Merry Monday before it closes this afternoon.  It's a classic and warm challenge to use kraft, red, green and burlap, twine or ribbon.  I went looking for some Christmas papers that fit the challenge and found an older Hobby Lobby brand pad with the rustic look that I was going for.  Then the light bulb came on and I realized that if I used the sketch at Seize the Sketch, I would have a wonderful, warm Christmas quilt!

It might be a little quiet here for the next couple of days.  I have a number of design team and new release cards to make in the next few days for later in the week.  You'll have to come back on Wednesday for a new release at Newton's Nook Designs.  Have you checked them out yet?  They have only been around for a few months and I love what I am seeing - absolutely charming!  I am guesting in September starting with this new release.  I also have a post for Paper Smooches that uses Free Spirits!!  And there will be a new sketch on Thursday for CAS(E) this Sketch! and a new challenge on Sunday for Curtain Call.  Good thing the roofers finished up yesterday, although I think it will take awhile before the pounding stops in my head.  And we could finally hook up the air conditioner again - it was unhooked during our record heat!  So I am seriously looking forward to sending the kids to school tomorrow and crafting in the peace, quiet and coolness!!

I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend!

• Stamps: Technique Tuesday Jingle All the Way
• Paper: Papertrey Kraft, Hobby Lobby Greetings of the Season
• Ink: Tim Holtz Antique Linen, Papertrey Ink Pinefeather
• Accessories: Lifestyle Crafts Nested Hexagons, Avery Elle Kraft and Berry Sequins, Papertrey Ink Rustic Jute Button Twine

Catered Crop Recipe Swap: Big Girl Pants!

I have had my eye on a stamp but have had absolutely no reason to add it to my collection...until the most recent challenge at Catered Crop.  The challenge is "sentimental-al" and it is really just to add a sentiment to the card and make it the focus.  I'm thinking I already have a few sentiments in my collection!!  But I didn't have this sentiment!

Bring it life!!  I can handle it!!  Because I definitely have my big girl pants!!!

This is a challenge that all of you can play along with - and you don't even have to buy a new stamp!  We all have sentiments - and the newer sentiment stamps are all big and bold and they take center stage.  Linda at Catered Crop has curated a Pinterest board full of ideas for making your sentiment the focus.  Then tomorrow, my card and the cards of the rest of the design team will be on display at Catered Crop for your inspiration.  I look forward to seeing your cards!

• Stamps: Hampton Art (wood stamp, I got mine at Archivers)
• Paper: MME Adorbs
• Ink: Memento Black, Memento Pear Tart, Rose Bud, Teal Zeal
• Accessories: MME Adorbs "Hello" Enamel Dots, misc twine

Addicted to CAS: Music (with a shameless CASE)

It's been a week of highs and lows.  Maybe not "lows" so much as "irritations".

At the beginning of the week, I was thrilled to be named to Addicted to CAS Wall of Fame!!!  I love all of the other ladies named to the Wall also and felt truly honored to be in their company. Thank you to all of the good people at Addicted to CAS.

So I most definitely could not miss their current challenge (given the requirements for the Wall of Fame include participation week in and week out!).  Plus the current challenge is "Music" and my house is full of music.  My music room holds a piano, organ, hammered dulcimer, classical guitar, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet and baritone along with assorted recorders and penny whistles!!  My children play in the school band but seem to switch instruments regularly so we just keep collecting instruments.

Then the first irritation hit.  I knew right away what I would make for the music challenge - it was perfectly pictured in my mind.  My youngest is marching in his first competition and I decided to have a card ready.  Some bold diagonal stripes down the side - a fun trumpet - a "good luck" - PERFECT!  Sadly, with all of the music stamps that I have - no trumpet!  I will have to remedy that, won't I?

Then my creativity took a major slump - mostly due to the really, REALLY, REALLY big irritation in my life.  Roofers are very loud and very early and they never, ever stop pounding.  They started Tuesday and are still here this morning (at 6:30 am!)

But things took a turn for the better when I saw this truly stunning card by Donna Mikasa.  She works miracles with kraft and bold colors.  This is just one example but I decided that I would allow myself a shameless CASE.  I actually even started my musical butterfly in exactly the same colors that she had used but decided to force a few moments of creativity.


I absolutely love the music hidden within that butterfly.  I did hesitate to use it though as the company - Layers of Color - is no longer open, so if you have fallen in love with the stamp, I am really sorry.  But I had never used it and it deserved to see ink.

• Stamps: Layers of Color Joyful Noise, Avery Elle To The Point (sentiment)
• Paper: Papertrey Ink Kraft
• Ink: Memento Black, Tim Holtz Squeezed Lemonade and Festive Berries
• Accessories: Lil' Inkers Stitched Rectangles, My Mind's Eye Enamel Dots

CAS(E) this Sketch! Bear Hugs

It's time for a new sketch at CAS(E) this Sketch!

I like this sketch, mostly because I LOVE my card!!  Is that bad to say?  If I post a card, I generally like it, but some cards just stand above the others in my mind.  I think this card is just charming - because of that sweet little bear and because of the happy accident of a smudge that needed to be covered, thus the heart balloon and the balloon string made out of a bee trail.  Most of my crafting accidents involve bad words or, in the case of a spilled glass of red wine, lots of tears.  But I love how this one worked out!


I hope to see you play along.  Once again, the design team at CAS(E) this Sketch! has a huge variety of cards for your inspiration.  I instantly saw a shelf of some kind, but the team has turned this sketch into a soup pot, and a feather and a clothesline - it's very flexible!!

• Stamps: Simon Says Stamp Circle Friends and scallop from Flower Friend
• Paper: white, Simple Stories Snap Color Vibe
• Ink: Stampin' Up Coastal Cabana, Memento Black, Copics
• Accessories: Doodlebug Sprinkles Swimming Pool Assortment, Lil Inkers Stitched Squares

Paper Smooches: A Fairy Tale Day

It's a fairy tale kind of day today!!

First, I am the guest designer at Paper Smooches!! Talk about a dream come true.  I have used Kim's stamps since she was with Cornish Heritage Farms years ago.  I was thrilled when I was asked to be the guest designer for September!!

Second, I am using their brand new set Royal Cuteness.  It's full of knights and princesses and even frogs!  So I made a couple of fairy tale style cards!  The first uses a glass slipper.  I have framed it with their Duo Die 1 which I thought had the look of the magic mirror that every princess has to have!!


Since I had a magic mirror on my mind and I had the inside of the above die cut - I thought it would work as the actual mirror!!  Here's another fairy tale card using a very charming frog prince!

There's a little bit of shine on the mirror (in the hope that I am not the only one who sees this die as a magic mirror!!)

Aren't these just the cutest stamps?  I get to post every Wednesday this month at Paper Smooches and in two weeks, I have big plans for the handsome knight in this set!  (But before the handsome knight, I get to play with some Free Spirits - the alcoholic kind!!!)

• Stamps: Paper Smooches Royal Cuteness
• Paper: white, scrap of gray stripe
• Ink: Memento black, Copics
• Accessories: Paper Smooches Royal Icons die, Duo Die 1, Cuttlebug embossing folder, Avery Elle sequins, Ranger Glossy Accents

Rockwell Designs and Festive Friday: Peace

I had THE most exciting cardmaking day yesterday.  First, I was named to the Addicted to CAS Wall of Fame along with six other cardmakers - a group that I am incredibly proud to be part of.  I'm sure you know them all, but definitely check them all out!

Then, I won a gift certificate to Paper Smooches!!  They liked the Back to School card that I did just two days ago!

And, finally, I will be guest designer in October at Avery Elle!!  I cannot tell you how long I have been trying for this one!!!

I cannot believe everything has come at once.  I definitely thank each and every one of these groups! And I thank Mr. Mojo for showing up the last few weeks.  I definitely have hot and dry spells and I was definitely feeling good about these projects.  This week...not so much...I had a whole day off after my final papers and before the next school semester started again yesterday (on a holiday!!)  and I got one card done - the "peace" card that follows.  I struggled all day and have so many things in my scrap bins.  From reading all of your blogs, I know mojo comes and goes for everybody.  

We cardmakers are a tough bunch, aren't we?  We stick it out in the tough times. We create cheerful birthday cards when we aren't cheerful.  We create sympathy cards for people we care for.  We survive when Mr. Mojo disappears!!  And it always all works out in the end.  I LOVE this hobby!!

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I got the Notched Star Banner from Papertrey Ink's last release.  It was a Halloween release, but I saw this as a perfect Christmas die!  I was inspired by two different challenges.  First, the "peace" challenge at Festive Friday was exactly the inspiration that I needed to use this new die.  Then, I am four colors behind at Jackie's Pantone Color Challenge.  I knew there was a deep blue that would work perfectly for a night sky.  Thankfully, it's OK to get behind with the color challenge, because all colors are open until September 22.

• Stamps: none!!
• Paper: Papertrey Ink Enchanted Evening, Stampin' Up Silver Glitter
• Ink: none!!
• Accessories: Papertrey Ink Notched Star Banner die, Wonderful Words Holiday die, Quickutz star die, Stampin' Up Silver Cord