the cyclist

Today, I have a real fun card to share with you.  I have so many Uptown images that have never seen ink, so thought best I should get at them before Emily decides to have another release, then I will be further behind.

I love this Uptown image - it speaks Spring to me, the bicycle with a basket of flowers, makes me want to get my bike out and go biking.  Last spring & summer, hubby and I would go biking about 5 nights a week for 12-15km per night, sometimes more.

Okay, so lets get on with the card - here is Uptown Girl Flora the Cyclist.  I must say I don't look like Flora when  I bike ride (but wish I did - hehe).

I based my colouring on this new paper I picked up this week by MME called Nostalgia. I actually picked up all the new MME 6x6 pads - couldn't decide which ones I really wanted So bought them all! So after I stamped Flora on bella's bestest paper, I pulled out my copics and pencils to colour her up.
Finishing touches - stitching, lots of glitter, prima flower and I used a die from Memory Box for the flourish in the corner.

Don't forget about our challenge this Friday - it's a sketch challenge, it's easy peasy, so hope you play along.  Just email Emily your card by thursday night to be on Bloggabella on Friday as well as a chance to win some bella bucks.

Thanks for coming by, see you soon...

Green, green and more green

Hi - I'm back today with a card I did last night.  I saw this lime green/black paper at Paper Pickle this week, and just knew I had to have  it.  Wasn't sure what I was going to do with it until I started playing around.  So a bit of embossing, distress inks, die cuts it all came together.

The image I used is called solid flowery weeds.

I embossed the flowery weed on a manilla tag using black embossing powder.  Next I sponged TH Distress inks - mustard seed, peeled paint, crushed olive, shabby shutters, pumice stone and walnut stain.  Doily was cut out using a Cheery Lynn Die.  I used a happy birthday sentiment from Stamping Bella (sorry can't seem to find it to link it up).  For my ribbon, I used some funky lime green lacy ribbon- had this for so long, finally had a chance to use it!

See that little bird on my tag, well these are small wood veneer die cuts.  I sponged some peeled paint and then a bit of walnut stain and the adhered it using a glue dot. Just a nice little addition to my card.
These die cuts are by Studio Calico.  I also bought a pkg of the butterflies as well.

Well, that does it for today.  Thanks for coming by.  Enjoy your weekend!

What is blue, yellow & black?

These colours represent this weeks colour challenge we are having over on Bloggabella. I must say I really struggled with this colour combo- it took 3 coloured images until I settled on the 3rd.  The other two didn't make it!

I used Fishing Peep for my image today- these peeps are one of the cutest image lines Stamping Bella has - I sure hope she comes out with more (hint, hint). 

I didn't want to use plain cardstock for my black, blue & yellow theme, so went digging through my 6x6 pads of paper.  I must tell you I have tons of paper, but not too much with these colours.  But I did manage to find a couple of pieces by MME - Stella Rose - Hattie papers. Image was stamped on bella's bestest white paper then I coloured using copics and shaded with pencils. This image also comes with a sentiment which I used.  Finished off with some stitching. As an after thought of my picture taking, I am going to add some glossy accents to the fish's eye.

Stop over at bloggabella and check out all the entries this week.  Leave a comment for a chance to win some bella bucks.

Next week for our challenge we have sketch #11.  If you would play along with us - hope you do- just email Emily your card by thursday night - again some bella bucks up for grabs just for sending in your entry.

For all my fellow American friends - enjoy your nice long weekend!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Sketch #10

Hi everyone, and welcome back to another Bellariffic friday challenge. For us Canadian folk we are in for a long weekend - woohoo - 3 days off, can't wait.  Weather looks gorgeous, no rain in the forcast for 3 days, just pure sunshine and warm temps!

So for our challenge this week we had a sketch to follow.  Did I tell you I love sketches?? well I do. For my image I used Have a seat Maya.  I'm always in need of baby cards, so another one for my stash!

Well, you know my routine I started by stamping her on bella's bestest paper and coloured her with copics and shaded with pencils.  I also added some grass around her. Paper is from Doodlebug - sugar & spice- lots of fun papers in this pack.  I went digging for some ribbon to go with the papers and came across this pink and yellow piece that fits perfectly.  I used the baby girl sentiment to finish the sketch off.

Please stop over at bloggabella to see the rest of this weeks gorgeous creations.  Leave a comment for a chance to win some bella bucks.

Our next weeks challenge is a colour challenge.  To play along just use YELLOW, BLUE AND BLACK   on your card, then email it off to Emily by thursday night.

Thanks for coming by today.  Have a wonderful weekend.

Ava loves to celebrate

Hi everyone! I hope all you Mother's had a wonderful day yesterday!  It was a beautiful day here, couldn't of been any better. I did some gardening, enjoyed the sunshine, sat back with a glass of wine while hubby bbq'd, then last night I worked on my card for today.

I pulled out one of the newest Uptown girl images called Ava loves to celebrate.

I stamped her on bella's bestest paper with black memento ink then first coloured her with copics and then did all my shading with pencils.  I don't know why I shaded around her in a soft pink, I don't know what I was thinking, there isn't any pink in the paper???? oh well, I don't think it looks all that bad.
After cutting her down to size, I sponged some aqua die ink around the edges, then I layered her onto a piece of aqua c/s cut out using the spellbinder romantic rectangles - love the lacey edge on this die. DP is by MME - called sun kissed 'sweet' butterfly kisses - it's from 2009 - see I'm starting to dig into that big ole' stash.  Finished off with stitching around the image and then added lots of glitter.

Just a reminder for our challenge this week - it's a sketch challenge - all you have to do to participate is email Emily your card by thursday night for it to appear on Bloggabella on friday - also this gives you a chance to win $20 in bella bucks!

Thanks for coming by today, see you real soon....

wedding gown

I'm back today to share another card with you.  Being that it's Spring, and summer around the corner I'm trying to get ahead on some wedding/shower cards.

Today's card focuses on just that with this image called Wedding Gown Circle.

I wanted to do this in soft mauves/purples, even though it is hard to match this colour tone, due to the fact there are some many purple hues out there, but I did manage to find some paper that would work.
DP is from Memory Box.  The image was stamped on bella's bestest paper and then I applied a bit of mauve around the dress using copics - BV0000, & BV000. Spellbinder dies - circles, scallop circles,
parisian motifs, and grand square scallop.

Finishing touches - stitching, lots of glitter, mauve rhinestones, pearls, chiffon ribbon (oh so pretty) and I also stamped and extra image and cut out the bow, then layered it on the dress using pop dots.

Well that's it for today.  I hope your have a great Saturday!! Thanks for stopping in.

Sew or Faux

Hi blogging friends!  Hey, the weekend is upon us once again, and looks like it's going to be a nice Mother's Day as well.

For the Bellariffic challenge today it is "sew or faux"- and I chose to sew.  Being that I love anything nature related I pulled out Pot o' orchids for Lulu. (sorry couldn't link it up, can't seem to find on the Stamping Bella site).

I started by stamping on bella's bestest paper and coloured with both copics and pencils.  The shading around the image was sponged on using versamagic wheat, persimmon, and pixie pink. Designer paper is by MME - Laundry Line - (I've had this a while) - see I'm slowly starting to dig into some of that stashed paper!

To finish it off I added some small mini pearls and stitched around the image.

AND  if you haven't already heard, we have a new BABE  in the house.  She is a wonderful artist, I've been a follower of her for quite some time - her work is amazing.  I introduce to you
Katrina Menzies.  I'm so excited that she is part of our team. Be sure to stop by her blog and show her some love!

Our next weeks challenge is another sketch.  You know the drill, email Emily by thursday night for a chance to win $20 in bella bucks and to have your card posted on Bloggabella.

Thanks for stopping in.  Have a great weekend, and Happy Mother's Day to all  the Mothers out there!

Milestone birthday

Hi all! How was your weekend?  I had a busy one - I think I needed to go back to work today just to get a rest- LOL!

I needed to make a card for a 50th birthday, as a request from a friend.  Of course I left it to the last minute, which only left tonight to get it done.  I find when I 'have' to make a card I have a brain freeze- ever have that happen? Well I knew my BF Carla had some gorgeous cards posted on her blog, so I hopped over there to see what I could 'case'!  And I found this card.  Here is my version.

First of all, these are not by go to colours when making a card.  I always tend to go 'pretty soft colours', but when flipping through my pad of K & Company Bailey I came across this paper and thought why not, lets try something different. I used spellbinder dies, martha stewart border punch, PTI scallop die, cuttlebug embossing folder (for the flourish) Justrite stamp set for the sentiment and the oval edging.

Finished off with some coffee colour pearls, brown rhinestones, shiffon ribbon and a prima rosette.  I loved putting this all together. I was very pleased on the finished results.  I hope the recipient feels the same way.

Thanks Carla for the inspiration!!

Thanks for visiting today, see you real soon.....

A magical day

Hi, and thanks for stopping by today for another Bellariffic challenge.  Our theme today is a sketch challenge, and how I love sketch challenges, although I kind of goofed it up, but for the most part I stayed to the layout.

I pulled out one of my favourite images (I have so many) but this little girl is so cute.  She is called
Peachy Pixie- I just love her sitting on this branch.

I have coloured her a while ago with pencils, this time she is coloured with copics, and of course I stamped her on bella's bestest paper.  I love the shades of pink/red I used for her dress, it really pops! I flipped the sketch to make it work for me.  After I glued down the squares I realized the squares should of been over to the edges - oops! but for the most part I followed the layout.  The paper is from Basic Grey called Green at Heart. 

For the corners I used a die from the spellbinder set called Antique frame and accents. There are two sizes in this set, I used the smaller one. For my sentiment I used this stamp,  then cut it out using a s/binder label dies.

Finished off with some tiny pearls, and a chiffon rosette.

Be sure to stop in over a bloggabella to see what the other babes and sistahs coloured up for this challenge.  Leave a comment while you are there for a chance to win $10 in bella bucks.

Our challenge for next week  is SEWING - (real or faux).  Play along with us for a chance to win $20 in bella bucks.  Just email your card to Emily by thursday night.

Thanks for dropping by, and have a wonderful weekend.

See you soon.....

Lazy summer days

Yes, I wish it was a lazy summer day.  Can't wait for the weather to warm up a bit so we can spend more time outdoors than in.  It's been a gloomy couple of days here, looks like another one today.

I am just 'smitten' with Paula's images that came out a while ago, and just haven't had much of a chance to get around to colouring them up.  Well last night I did just that.  I coloured up one of the images (comes in a set of 4)- from Summer Days.

I stamped the image on bella's bestest paper and coloured with Copics and shading with pencils and gamsol.  DP is by Authentique- Gathering.  When I stamped this image off I new I wanted to colour the Adirondack chair a deep orange/rust colour, so this paper pack was ideal.

I used some spellbinder dies, other than that I kept it very simple.

And just a reminder for our challenge this week, it is a sketch (see layout on post below).  If you would like a chance to win $20 in bella bucks all you have to do is email Emily your card by thursday night or upload it on SCS using the keyword BELLARIFFIC1712.

Well that's it for today ladies, I'm off to work.  Have a great day!

See you on friday...

Flower challenge

Hi and welcome to another bellariffic challenge.  Today our challenge is to use flowers on your card - any way you choose. I was excited when I saw this weeks challenge, because I loooovvvee flowers, anything nature related.

My image is a cutie called Little peep's flower vase- I've coloured her before but I just love these peeps, and since she had flowers in her image - bonus.  Also a great image which can be used for many occasions- double bonus!  Okay, so here she is...

Now is she adorable or what?  You know the drill, I always start with bella's bestest paper to stamp my images on. I used copics to colour and shaded with pencils. I came across this 12x12 sheet of dp the other day, which was still sitting on my table - it has flowers on it, great colours, so that's what I based my colouring on.  My card base is a grand spellbinder die -called grand scallop squares - I so love these.  Lately Beate has been using these larger size dies for her card base, so after seeing her beautiful creations I so needed a few of them. Next you will notice the gorgeous punched flower strip along the bottom under the image -when my BFF Carla use this border punch on this card I knew I had to pull my MS punch out and use it.  I'm glad I did, I love how it turned out. While your at Carla's blog be sure to check out all her other gorgeous creations! She is the queen of dies, and a great inspiration.

To finish this off, I added lots of glitter, glossy accents on the circle flowers, ribbon,  a prima rusty orange flower, and some punched leaves using MS punches.  I'm very happy how this turned out.

Hop over to bloggabella to see all the other gorgeous creations.  Leave a comment for your change to win $10 in bella bucks!

For next week, we are back to another great sketch by Ebru.  You can email your card to Emily or upload on SCS using the keyword BELLARIFFIC1712.

Thanks for looking in today. Have yourself a wonderful weekend!

april showers...

brings May flowers!  My card today reflects both of those - rain and flowers!!

Don't you just love the Uptown girl images? For my card today, I coloured up Uptown Girl Lolly and her Brolly!  Seems like she has been a popular image with the 'babes' this week.

I started by stamping her on bella's bestest paper and then coloured with copics and shading down with pencils and gamsol.  I wanted to colour her in mauves, so I matched her up with some yummy-licious paper from MME called Fiddlesticks- love this paper - well actually love all the MME collections.
After cutting her out I sponged some versamagic sea breeze around her.  For the white border I used a couple of s/binder edgeabilities - the classic scallop set and classic decorative inserts one. I love how these are all interchangeable.
Finished off with lots of glitter, cream silk ribbon, pearls and glossy accents on the sunflower.

See you back here on Friday for our bellariffic challenge - it's Flowers - hope you get a chance to play along!

lady in pink..

I really wanted to say Lady in red, but the strike through wouldn't work in the title, so I just called it like it was.
Today, I 'm working on some birthday cards, so pulled out a great image my Mo Manning in rubber at Stamping Bella called Veronica.

Veronica was stamped on bella's bestest paper and coloured with copics and shading done with pencils & gamsol. After cutting her down to size I sponged some antique lined around the edges. DP is by Basic Grey called Bittersweet.
Finished off with a nice big fat brown bow, and glitter.

Just a reminder for our challenge this week - Flowers - in any fashion - paper, prima, in your image as long as it's a bella image and you use flowers you can play along.  Email Emily your card by thursday night or upload it on SCS using the keyword BELLARIFIC1612.  There is $20 in bella bucks up for grabs just by playing along.

Thanks for dropping by today, till next time...

Little girl in blue..

Hi everyone, hope you had a good weekend.  It was a very cool weekend here in SW Ontario.  Yesterday, Bill and I went down to Pt. Pelee, to see if there were any new birds have landed.  It was so cold along Lake Erie - strong cold winds and cloudy, but I had layers of clothing on to keep me warm.
It felt like winter all over again. Brrrrrr.  We had a successful outing, we saw a red-headed woodpecker, palm warbler and a blue gray natcatcher.  These birds don't sit in one place too long, always fluttering around so it was hard to get a real good picture of them and with being cloudy not the best for pictures, but I do believe Bill managed to get a couple of good ones.  I will share with you once he prepares them.

This afternoon, I managed to work on a card in between cooking a roast chicken dinner and a pot of soup for lunches this week.

I found this sketch I really liked from Card Patterns #160.  So I pulled out an image that would work.
I'm using one of the new images from Emily's last release called Flynn needs a cupcake.

 I  stamped her on bella's bestest paper using black memento ink.  I then coloured her up using copics and shading is done with pencils and gamsol.  I based my colours on paper from MME called On the Bright Side - One. I think I got a bit carried away with the glitter, I started with just a bit of glitter on the bottom of her dress, and then i just kept on dotting my quickie glue pen all over, so that's why she has so much glitter - but then again a 'girl' needs glitter right! Finished off with some stitching, prima flower and I punched the leaves using a couple of different Martha Stewart leaf punches.

Okay, off to get some things in order to begin the work week again.  Have a good week, see you again real soon.

Do you measure up?..

well Leila always measures up! Happy friday everyone, and welcome to another bellariffic friday challenge.  Today's challenge was a sketch challenge. Another awesome layout by Ebru!
For my image this week I'm using this cutie called Leila always measures up.

As always she was stamped on bella's bestest paper and coloured using copics and shading done with pencils.  Designer paper is Basic Grey - Hopscotch.  I have since changed where the sentiment goes, I turned it on an angle across the same corner - in accordance with how the sketch was. (thanks Lucy!).
Finished up with a bit of glitter and some stitching.

Be sure to stop over at Bloggabella, check out all the entries, then leave a comment for a chance to win $10 in bella bucks.

For our challenge next week, we have a theme - and your going to love this one, at least I do - use FLOWERS on your card, whether it be paper, primas, in your image etc - get creative!  Just have your card to Emily by thursday night or upload it on SCS using the keyword BELLARIFFIC1612.

Thanks for stopping in today, have a great weekend.